Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
1.
The classes voted whether or not to work with live businesses, thereby achieving
concept buy-in. Students made suggestions for business participants, but the author
carefully screened these options to insure they would provide an appropriate e-
commerce project experience and that business owners would have the time to
communicate with teams.
2.
The five-part project milestone plan and Team Contract (included in the Appendix) were
more tightly structured to include task elements that would fulfill the basic project
requirements, while allowing flexibility in how the tasks were accomplished and with
the team's choice of technology. It is considered a contract between the team members
to encourage equal participation. Each milestone section included task items that, when
developed, would become a part of the final project report. Milestone task items are
reviewed in class prior to each deadline to improve understanding, and teams were
allowed to revise prior milestones after the fact to make up missed points. As part of
each milestone submission, members committed to the next set of tasks, responsibili-
ties, and output for that section of their team contract.
3.
Hands-on labs in class and technical homework assignments addressed the basic
technical tools available to the teams to complete their prototypes, including JavaScript,
ColdFusion, and CGI. Refresher material was linked to the class Web site to cover Web
technology the students should have had in other classes. In this manner, every
student was exposed to enough technology in the classroom to ensure they had the
basic skills for e-commerce development.
4.
A primarily technical textbook was chosen that included basic e-business issues that
could be easily supplemented with available materials from the Web and print media.
Supplemental materials included business benefits of implementing e-commerce
business models, alternative e-business drivers, elements of Web design, analyses of
business Web sites, and secure transaction technology.
5.
Team-building and role-playing exercises were conducted in class to help develop
rapport among the team, as well as basic consulting skills to prepare team members for
working with their client companies. One such exercise was a puzzle that had to be
completed without any verbal communication. Each person had their own piece to
contribute but had to do so with some kind of logical process. Communication
processes were discussed, and sample templates were developed as a group to aid in
the client interviewing and interaction process, providing a structured and profes-
sional client engagement process.
6.
Information about the SME population was shared to ensure that teams had reasonable
expectations about small businesses and their resources. Students were continually
amazed that in a few short weeks, they had much more understanding about e-commerce
than did their client companies. Communication problems and client perceptions of e-
commerce and the required technology were discussed at various times during the
semester to share the different team experiences.
Figure 1 summarizes the consulting project process. It stresses the importance of the
relationship between conceptual skills developed in incoming prerequisite courses and in the
e-commerce course, along with technical, communication, and team skills developed in class.
All support the engagement process to produce a successful consulting relationship with
the client companies.
