MG209      Half Unit
E-business

This information is for the 2025/26 session.

Course Convenor

Availability

This course presents an analysis of the management, economics and information systems theories and practices in online business. This is a management information systems course and not a technical course. It is mainly directed at undergraduate students. It focuses on the study of the impact of digital technologies on business strategies and market configurations. Internet-based systems offer new means to operate businesses and to compete in the global marketplace and it is important for future executives and entrepreneurs to understand the economic and managerial implications of these transformations. Students will gain a good understanding of why and how successful companies are taking advantage of e-business, as well as an understanding of the main challenges and risks associated with different e-business models and strategies in a fast changing technological and business environment.
The course is structured into four main sections:
1. Strategic, technological, and economic foundations of e-business.
2. E-business and its configurations: B2C and B2B.
3. E-business: strategic and organisational challenges.
4.  Implementation of e-business strategies.

20 hours of lectures and 10 hours of classes in the Winter Term.

This course has a reading week in Week 6 of Winter Term.

In its Ethics Code, LSE upholds a commitment to intellectual freedom. This means we will protect the freedom of expression of our students and staff and the right to engage in healthy debate in the classroom.

Students will complete a formative assessment where formative feedback will be provided.

1. Chaffey, D., e-Business and e-Commerce Management, (Fifth Edition) Harlow, England: Pearson Education, (2011)
2. Cordella, A. "Transaction Costs and Information Systems: Does IT Add Up?'" Journal of Information Technology (2006) Vol. 21 (3), pp. 195-202
3. Davenport, T.H. (2019). The state of AI in business (introduction). Artificial Intelligence. Boston, Mass: Havard Business Review Press.
4. Garicano, Luis & Kaplan, Steven N, 2001. "The Effects of Business-to-Business E-Commerce on Transaction Costs," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(4), pages 463-85, December
5. Hope Koch and Ulrike Schultze. 2011. Stuck in the conflicted middle: a roletheoretic perspective on B2B e-marketplaces. MIS Q. 35, 1 (March 2011), 123-146.
6. Kauffman, Robert J.; Li, Ting; van Heck, Eric (2010) Business Network-Based Value Creation in Electronic Commerce. International Journal of Electronic Commerce 15 (1) / Fall
7. Loebbecke, C. & Palmer, J.W. (2006) RFID in the fashion industry: Kaufhof Department Stores AG and Gerry Weber International AG, fashion manufacturer. MIS Quarterly Executive, Vol.5, No.2, 69-79
8. Mahadevan, B. (2003) Making sense of emerging market structures in B2B, California Management Review, 46(1) 86-101.
9. Novak, J. & Schwabe, G. (2009). Designing for Reintermediation in the Brick-and-Mortar World: Towards the Travel Agency of the Future. Electronic Markets, 19, pp. 15-29
10. Picot, A., C. Bortenlanger, et al. (1997). "Organization of Electronic Markets: Contributions from the New Institutional Economics." The Information Society: An International Journal 13(1): 107-123.
11. Pramatari, K., Evgeniou, T. & Doukidis, G. (2009) Implementation of collaborative e-supply chain initiatives: an initial challenging and final success case from grocery retailing. Journal of Information Technology, 24, 269-281
12. Rigby, D. (2011) The future of shopping. Harvard Business Review, December, 65-76.
13. Shapiro, C. and H. R. Varian (1998). Networks and Positive Feedback. Information Rules: A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy. Harvard, MA, Harvard Business School Press.
14. Zott C., Amit R., Massa L. (2011). The business model: Recent developments and future research. Journal of Management, 37: 1019-1042

Exam (50%), duration: 120 Minutes in the Spring exam period

Course participation (20%)

Project (30%)

For detailed assessment information, including all deadlines and timings, please see the relevant course Moodle page. Assessment timings will be available at the start of each term.