Objectives

This is what I want you to get out of this class:

Objectives

The objectives of this course are to:

• Give you a sound understanding of the impact the Internet has had on business
  • Provide you with a solid microeconomic foundation and a set of business analytical skills which you can apply to analyze internet-related businesses
    • Why they succeed or fail
    • How an internet-related business can improve its chances of success
• Give you a level of understanding of internet technology and terminology sufficient to understand the business implications of the technology
• Prepare you for the internet-enabled workplace
  • Provide hands-on experience with internet tools
  • Provide experience at working on a collaborative research project using internet tools
  • Provide experience at analyzing real internet businesses
    • Market and competitor research
    • Financial performance

Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course students should be able to

• Demonstrate the ability analyze real internet-related businesses
  • Business model of an internet business - costs, revenues, risks
  • Understand key terms: business model, competitive advantage, competitive strategy, marketing strategy
  • Understand key economic factors that determine success or failure, such as economies of scale, shipping costs, customer acquisition costs
• Be able to understand basic financial reports
• Be familiar with the ways in which the internet can be used in every business
  • Internet marketing
  • Collaboration
  • Outsourcing
• Understand the key success factors for internet businesses
• Understand the impact of the internet on various industries
  • Competitive environment
  • Business models
• Understand the business implications of internet technology
• Understand the basics of startups
  • Sources of finance
  • Exit strategies - IPOs, trade sales
• Understand the impact of likely future developments in internet business
• Understand how the internet affects the way people work
• Demonstrate the ability to use wikis, blogs, internet survey software and basic web site development tools