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Internet Technologies for Enterprise Development and Learning

by Sloan-C

Abstract:
A global joint venture of educational institutions and national business organizations pool resources to create The Virtual University for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, an education web-site designed to increase understanding of how Internet technologies can be used to redefine enterprise, community development and the learning process. The site breaks down the applications of Internet technology into marketable and understandable segments, and provides each area with actual small business case studies and five hour web-based learning modules. The case studies are free but there is a charge for the courses. Students who complete the courses will receive a quality prestigious Certificate from the educational institutions and VUSME.

Article:
The Virtual University for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (VUSME at <www.vusme.org>) is a global joint venture of educational institutions and national business organizations dedicated to the application of Internet technologies for enterprise, community development and learning. The goal is to provide an educational vehicle in the form of actual case studies and courses on how small firms and communities are using Internet technologies to do what they could not do before to stimulate new forms of business and economic activity. The site breaks down Internet applications into ten areas (Enterprise Development; International Market Research; Electronic Commerce/Business to Business; Electronic Commerce/Business to Consumer; Community Development; International Trade; Networking, Intermediation, Reintermediation, and Web Marketing) provides actual small business case studies for each section and five hour web-based learning modules. The courses are $25 US each or $150 US for eight, however students have the option of taking two at the regular price and a further six for $100 US. Students who successfully complete a learning module will receive a color print Certificate mailed anywhere in the world. The completion of eight courses entitles the student to receive a special designation, 'Certified Internet Entrepreneur.' The sale of courses provide the sole source of funding for the project. If a student in Thailand, for example, completes a learning module, a portion of his fee processed via credit card is distributed to the appropriate educational institution.

There are a lot of people working together on this project to create some real synergy. The educational institutions essentially provide the content for the site and the business organizations provide the marketing support. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business is providing project management, site management, marketing and the distribution of the Certificates. The learning modules are posted on the server of Interchange Technologies and Learning in Missouri, who provide a private label version of their Learning Web system, security for the authors, credit card processing and statistical analysis.

The concept for VUSME was the result of a request by the Canadian government for advice on how to ensure that development spin offs from new information technologies reach down to the small business and community level and are not restricted to the major global corporations. The need to bring populations in general up the Internet learning curve provides the growing momentum for the project.

Moving new technologies across the spectrum of small scale enterprises is a complex process. There are many factors that make it difficult to reach this vast global community: the obvious size and complexity of the sector, the differences in culture and education, all the problems of access and so on. What we do know from experience is that this sector is very peer conscious and will implement change when they are convinced it is in their interest. They look to their colleagues for believable examples of how technology is being adapted, and the messenger is most likely a supplier or one of the many associations they use for networking purposes. The VUSME site capitalizes on this reality and is built around actual stories of how small firms are applying this technology. The applications then whet the appetite for a web-based learning module.

Starting this kind of venture was a different kind of challenge than creating a traditional business because the biggest demands are related to understanding technology and how to use it rather than raising money and hiring people. In a sense there is a replacement of the traditional capital and labor demands of a new venture with knowledge, although the various participants in our joint venture have invested about $200,000 US to date.

A pattern is beginning to become apparent as we post successful stories of small business applications of Internet technologies: We can observe either an owner, partner or associate of the firm that is continuously striving to stay on the learning curve of the technology. Their web-sites provide real value added and useful links. Intelligent use of search engines, directories, and e-mail seems to be more effective that traditional off-line publicity and marketing.

And for those engaged in consumer e-commerce the product is clearly identifiable, the costs of shipping are low relative to the product value and options for secure credit card transactions or traditional fax or telephone ordering are provided. It seems that the consumer is using the web to do comparison shopping, so the public can anticipate a lot of price-based small scale global retail ventures in the future. In reality, small firms that have traditionally operated in a 20 mile radius from their home are now able to service a global marketplace. It is a powerful transformation of the wealth creation potential of the individual at the community level. And its a transportation story as much as an Internet story. It seems that the transportation infrastructure that makes the postal and parcel delivery system viable is as important as the information infrastructure that makes the Internet viable.

Creating and building The Virtual University for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises is an ongoing process with some interesting challenges. A difficult challenge is developing the networks of people around the world that you can work with. VUSME is essentially based on original contacts and friendships developed over the years in the International Small Business Congress (an organization representing 60 nations and concerned with small business development). These contacts bring in others so eventually you have a virtual network of people that you seldom meet on a personal basis. The education Participants are Confederation College of Applied Arts and Technology in Thunder Bay, Ontario; The Small Business Advancement National Center at the University of Central Arkansas; The Center for Family Enterprise at George Washington University; Southern Cross University in
Australia and Barnsley College in the UK. The organization Participants, besides the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, are the Japan Small Business Corporation, the Federation of Finnish Enterprises and the Forum of Private Business in the UK. This group of four will expand to about eight in 1998.

The more difficult challenge however, is developing the small business case studies. On average it takes about eight hours of market research for each case study which culminates in a personal interview. Despite the efficiencies of e-mail, there is no replacement for the 'high touch' component of voice contact. Small firms, it seems, are reluctant to tell their story if they think they are giving valuable information away to their competitors.

As well, putting together an organization that has cohesiveness and purpose without day to day social interaction is also difficult and requires some form of organizational glue. The answer: a relationship where everyone is able to enjoy value proportional to their contribution. There are no sponsors and the only revenue comes from the sale of Courses, which places an incentive on everyone to work cooperatively to create a site that delivers quality, value-added and is geared to volume.

Between the educational and the organizational Participants, we plan to cover all the major areas of the world. Even though the technology collapses time and distance, there is a need to demonstrate that this technology can cut across cultural barriers and create new kinds of international linkages and networks different from the local networks traditionally associated with small scale enterprise. To date, there is a huge interest in the project from the English speaking countries, the Nordic countries and Asia with some real suspicion about the Internet in general in western Europe.

The first five modules are up on the site with three more planned for May and a further two by the summer. Our immediate goal is the sale of 10,000 courses and our long term goal 100,000 courses a year. But the potential demand is significant. According to latest forecasts, about 68 million businesses will have Internet access around the world by the year 2001. What we also anticipate is that business teachers all over the world will use the learning modules to supplement their courses.The challenge is maintaining the quality, but this is the big advantage of this kind of technology. All of the education Participants will be able to make regular modifications and improvements to their modules and transfer the changes down to the host server in Missouri.

Electronic 'word of mouth', the appropriate use of search engines, directories and e-mail, joint marketing projects with our organization Participants, special linkages and plain hard work are what we are counting on to develop our market and provide something of great public value.

John F Bulloch
Canadian Federation of Independent Business
ph: 416 222-8022
fax: 416 222-7593
http://www.cfib.ca
Virtual University for Small and Medium Enterprises
Stroud office: (705) 436-2405
http://www.vuSME.org