Johnson, R; Clayton, M; Xia, G E; Woo, J H and Song, Y (2002) The strategic implications of e-commerce for the design and construction industry. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 9(3), pp. 241-248. ISSN 0969-9988
Abstract
In this paper we discuss the impact of e-commerce on the design and construction industry, with specific reference to how information technology will affect competition and competitive advantage in the industry. This paper continues the exploration of a concept that we have been working on for several years, namely that information technology is evolving from a tool that incrementally improves back-office productivity to an essential component of strategic positioning that may alter the basic economics, organizational structure and operational practices of facility management organizations and their interactions with service providers (architects, engineers and constructors)' (Johnson & Clayton, Automation in Construction, 8, 1998, 3). We first review industry trends and then develop a generalized model for thinking about strategy and e-commerce based on our previous research as well as the well-known framework developed by Michael Porter. Next we apply this framework to the discussion of several case studies and draw preliminary conclusions about the viability of the model for future research.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | competitive advantage; design and construction industry; e-commerce; strategy |
| Index terms: | competitive advantage, case study, engineer, productivity, e-commerce, architect, design and construction, interaction, automation, organizational structure, strategy, exploration, competition, information technology |
| Subjects: | management, automation and robotics, sociology, market analysis, behavioral psychology, profession, data collection methods, computing systems, environmental resource management, contractual arrangements, digital commerce |
| Topics: | Organizational Design, Digital Applications, Roles and Professions, Sustainability, Procurement, Business Strategy, Research Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here