The 1990s marked the beginning of a dynamic development in information technology, manifested, among other things, by increased computing power of computers, the capacity of electronic storage media, and the bandwidth of teletransmission networks. Much better computer hardware parameters provided greater opportunities for software developers. The emerging applications became increasingly functionally mature, giving users unprecedented capabilities, but also becoming more demanding in terms of the resources used. The spiral of development was set in motion, involving newer and newer solutions in the race, realizing the vision of a “global village” and fitting into the image of the information age that is emerging for the 21st century. The aforementioned applications, i.e., specific ICT solutions, support various spheres of human life, creating “e-areas” (e-administration, e-economy, e-health, e-tourism, etc.), in which communication processes play a fundamental role, and information becomes a value in itself. E-solutions move their users (people, business entities, institutions, government and local government administration units, etc.) to the level of e-relations (C2C, B2B, B2C, G2B, A2B, G2G), creating an increasingly dense network of information systems and a new quality of cooperation.
The customer is king
In economies with a high level of competitiveness, open to globalization processes, the fundamental value that must be cared for and pursued is the customer. Such a situation triggers the need to search for new concepts and solutions aimed at achieving an appropriate level of customer satisfaction within entire production and distribution systems. In the area of electronic commerce (e-commerce), which is an integral part of the e-economy, a concept known as “e-fulfilment” has been developed, which in simplified terms corresponds to the concept of “electronic order processing”. From a definitional point of view, it can be said that “e-fulfilment” means a complex process of order fulfillment and logistical customer service using electronic economy tools. This definition includes the following situations:
• communication with the customer is fully supported by electronic tools (most often via the Internet), and the entire sphere of logistical order fulfillment is very significantly supported by IT and electronic tools (with the exception of necessary manual activities); this is the fullest understanding of the term “e-fulfilment”
• communication with the customer takes place in a traditional form (telephone, fax, mail), while the logistical handling of the order is (partially) supported by IT and electronic tools
• communication with the customer takes place in an electronic form (most often via the Internet), while the logistical handling of the order is manual.
Integration of processes and IT systems through e-fulfilment
Expanding and deepening the substantive content of the term “e-fulfilment”, it is worth noting the supporting role of electronic tools in the order fulfillment process. There are definitions emphasizing that e-fulfilment is the electronic support of order fulfillment. According to this definition, e-fulfilment can be understood as:
• the process of providing information to the customer and facilitating order fulfillment using electronic tools
• the part of electronic business related to the informational integration of processes supporting end-customer service (order management, automatic picking, shipment tracking/monitoring) from the moment the order is received until the goods are delivered to the customer
• a set of activities covering full or partial IT and communication support for the order fulfillment process.
Electronic tools involved in customer service support both the direct customer/seller contact zone (placing an order) and the seller’s internal area (order fulfillment). The distinction between “front office” and “back office” activities is perfectly visible in the operations of online stores (Figure 1). In every online store, just like in a traditional one, two areas of activity can be distinguished: direct contact with the customer (front office) and processes supporting order fulfillment (back office). The customer participates in processes related to direct contact (front office). This contact takes place through the storefront – a computer system for placing orders. All online stores must have this function. Most often, these systems are equipped with the following functionality: product presentation, price list and product description, placing an order, initiating payment.
The second area of activity (back office) is customer service supporting order fulfillment. It can be carried out entirely manually or partially automatically (using electronic tools). In Polish conditions, about 24% of online stores have functions related to electronic handling of processes supporting order fulfillment. Typical functions handled by e-fulfilment systems operating on the Polish market in terms of supporting order fulfillment processes include:
• order management (checking product availability; verifying the customer’s payment credibility)
• order confirmation
• order fulfillment (picking, packing, shipping, delivery to the customer).
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 5/2007.