Manajemen | Fakultas Ekonomi Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji joeb.82.5.276-281

Journal of Education for Business

ISSN: 0883-2323 (Print) 1940-3356 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vjeb20

The Evolution of Electronic Commerce Education
Julie Burkey
To cite this article: Julie Burkey (2007) The Evolution of Electronic Commerce Education,
Journal of Education for Business, 82:5, 276-281, DOI: 10.3200/JOEB.82.5.276-281
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3200/JOEB.82.5.276-281

Published online: 07 Aug 2010.

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The฀Evolution฀of฀Electronic฀Commerce฀
Education
JULIE฀BURKEY
GOLDEY-BEACOM฀COLLEGE฀
WILMINGTON,฀DELAWARE

ABSTRACT.฀Business฀schools฀began฀
introducing฀electronic฀commerce฀programs฀
in฀the฀late฀1990s฀at฀unprecedented฀rates.฀
In฀this฀study,฀the฀author฀examined฀the฀evolution฀in฀electronic฀commerce฀programs฀
offered฀by฀AACSB-accredited฀colleges฀and฀
universities฀from฀2001฀to฀2005.฀Although฀
these฀programs฀are฀declining฀in฀number,฀

they฀provide฀the฀necessary฀skills฀and฀
knowledge฀required฀in฀today’s฀digital฀economy.฀The฀findings฀of฀this฀study฀suggest฀that฀
the฀essential฀skills฀and฀knowledge฀included฀
in฀these฀programs฀have฀changed฀little฀over฀
the฀periods฀examined.฀The฀author฀has฀provided฀profiles฀of฀the฀skills฀and฀knowledge฀
included฀in฀master฀of฀business฀administration฀(MBA)฀and฀bachelor’s฀programs฀in฀
electronic฀commerce฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀the฀
2005฀curricula.
Keywords:฀curriculum฀content,฀curriculum฀
studies,฀electronic฀commerce
Copyright฀©฀2007฀Heldref฀Publications

276฀

Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business

E

lectronic฀ commerce฀ is฀ changing฀
the฀ business฀ world฀ dramatically.฀

Shaw,฀Gardner,฀and฀Thomas฀(1997)฀stated,฀ “In฀ short,฀ much฀ of฀ what฀ we฀ know฀
about฀ doing฀ business฀ will฀ change.฀ All฀
companies,฀ large฀ and฀ small,฀ will฀ face฀
the฀inevitable฀challenges฀brought฀about฀
by฀ these฀ technological฀ developments”฀
(p.฀149).
Companies฀are฀unable฀to฀ignore฀electronic฀ commerce.฀ Bakos฀ (1991)฀ held฀
that฀“Electronic฀marketplaces฀are฀a฀fact฀
of฀life฀and฀are฀becoming฀more฀prevalent฀
everyday.฀…฀Electronic฀market฀systems฀
are฀likely฀eventually฀to฀become฀a฀strategic฀ necessity฀ and฀ part฀ of฀ an฀ industry’s฀
infrastructure”฀(p.฀308).
From฀annual฀reports฀prepared฀by฀the฀
U.S.฀Bureau฀of฀the฀Census฀(2005,฀2006)฀
that฀examine฀four฀sectors฀of฀the฀economy฀(manufacturing฀shipments,฀merchant฀
wholesale฀trade฀sales,฀retail฀trade฀sales,฀
and฀ selected฀ services฀ revenue),฀ it฀ can฀
be฀ discerned฀ that฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
sales฀ increased฀ 16.2%฀ from฀ 2003฀ to฀
2004.฀ Total฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ sales฀

in฀the฀four฀sectors฀were฀$1.9฀trillion฀in฀
2004.฀This฀indicated฀that฀the฀economic฀
impact฀from฀electronic฀commerce฀activities฀was฀significant.
The฀demand฀for฀knowledgeable฀workers฀increases฀as฀more฀businesses฀engage฀
in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ activities.฀ This฀
growth฀ in฀ the฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ job฀
market฀ has฀ spurred฀ the฀ demand฀ for฀
electronic฀ commerce฀ educational฀ pro-

grams.฀ Business฀ schools฀ began฀ introducing฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs฀
(degree฀and฀nondegree)฀at฀unprecedented฀ rates฀ in฀ the฀ late฀ 1990s฀ (Association฀
to฀Advance฀Collegiate฀Schools฀of฀Business฀ [AACSB],฀ 2000).฀The฀ importance฀
of฀this฀new฀business฀discipline฀was฀recognized฀ by฀ AACSB,฀ the฀ international฀
association฀ for฀ management฀ education,฀
when฀ it฀ dedicated฀ a฀ portion฀ of฀ its฀Web฀
site฀to฀promote฀the฀continued฀introduction฀of฀electronic฀commerce฀educational฀
programs.฀ This฀ rapid฀ adoption฀ of฀ electronic฀commerce฀programs฀by฀business฀
colleges฀ and฀ universities฀ has฀ been฀ a฀
cause฀ of฀ concern฀ (Lajoie,฀ 2000).฀ Business฀ school฀ authorities฀ must฀ carefully฀
weigh฀ the฀ content฀ of฀ curricula฀ in฀ such฀

programs฀ to฀ provide฀ a฀ good฀ quality฀
product.
Many฀business฀education฀researchers฀
have฀explored฀the฀content฀of฀programs฀
in฀ computer฀ information฀ systems฀ and฀
management฀ information฀ systems฀
(e.g.,฀ Gambill฀ &฀ Jackson,฀ 1992;฀ Gill฀
&฀Hu,฀1999;฀Maier฀&฀Gambill,฀1996),฀
marketing฀ (Koch,฀ 1997;฀ Lamont฀ &฀
Friedman฀ 1997),฀ management฀ (Day฀ &฀
Glick,฀ 2000;฀ Floyd฀ &฀ Gordon,฀ 1998),฀
accounting฀(Lee฀&฀Blaszczynski,฀1999;฀
Oliver฀ &฀ Que,฀ 1996),฀ as฀ well฀ as฀ other฀
business฀ disciplines.฀ Morrison฀ and฀
Oladunjoye฀ (2002)฀ explored฀ the฀ integration฀ of฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ topics฀
into฀ traditional฀ business฀ courses.฀ Few฀
researchers,฀though,฀have฀explored฀the฀

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content฀ of฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs.฀Williams,฀Kwak,฀Morrison,฀and฀
Oladunjoye฀ (2000)฀ proposed฀ several฀
discussion฀points฀that฀were฀relevant฀to฀
electronic฀ commerce฀ education.฀ Durlabhji฀ and฀ Fusilier฀ (2002)฀ examined฀
the฀technical฀aspects฀of฀electronic฀commerce฀ master’s฀ programs฀ finding฀ that฀
such฀programs฀tended฀to฀be฀nontechnical฀ in฀ nature.฀ The฀ researchers฀ did฀ not฀
explore฀ the฀ specific฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀elements฀in฀such฀programs.฀They฀
also฀did฀not฀explore฀types฀of฀electronic฀
commerce฀ programs,฀ other฀ than฀ the฀
master’s฀programs.
Much฀is฀at฀stake฀with฀these฀electronic฀ commerce฀ programs.฀ The฀ failure฀ of฀
many฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ companies฀
has฀been฀directly฀linked฀to฀the฀inability฀
of฀ such฀ companies฀ to฀ find฀ qualified,฀
experienced฀ workers฀ (Vizard,฀ 2000).฀
Erik฀ Brynjolfsson฀ of฀ the฀ Sloan฀ School฀
of฀ Management฀ (Nickell,฀ 1999)฀ contended฀that
We฀ can฀ expect฀ fundamental฀ shifts฀ in฀ the฀
way฀many฀products฀are฀marketed,฀priced,฀
delivered฀ and฀ purchased฀ over฀ the฀ next฀

decade.฀ These฀ changes฀ have฀ profound฀
implications฀ for฀ the฀ business฀ economics฀
for฀all฀market฀participants.฀This฀[electronic฀commerce]฀initiative฀will฀explore฀these฀
critical฀ management฀ issues฀ and฀ develop฀
the฀ managers฀ who฀ can฀ understand฀ and฀
manage฀ these฀ new฀ ways฀ of฀ doing฀ business.฀(para.฀6)

In฀ this฀ longitudinal฀ study,฀ I฀ attempt฀
to฀more฀thoroughly฀examine฀the฀content฀
and฀ adaptation฀ of฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
business฀ programs,฀ thus฀ adding฀ to฀ the฀
literature฀in฀this฀area.
METHOD฀
In฀ this฀ study,฀ my฀ purpose฀ is฀ to฀
determine฀ how฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
programs฀ evolved฀ in฀ the฀ period฀ from฀
2001฀ to฀ 2005.฀ I฀ selected฀ a฀ random฀
sample฀of฀100฀AACSB-accredited฀colleges฀and฀universities฀in฀June฀2001฀and฀
obtained฀ the฀ curricula฀ for฀ each฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ program฀ and฀ related฀
course฀ descriptions฀ via฀ the฀ schools’฀

Web฀ sites฀ in฀ 2001฀ and฀ 2005.฀ I฀ included฀ only฀ programs฀ offered฀ by฀ business฀
schools฀ or฀ departments฀ and฀ examined฀
the฀programs฀whose฀titles฀were฀clearly฀
related฀ to฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ (e.g.,฀
e-business,฀e-marketing).฀To฀verify฀the฀
reliability฀ of฀ the฀ data฀ from฀ the฀ Web฀
฀

sites,฀ I฀ compared฀ curricula฀ and฀ course฀
descriptions฀ from฀ 33฀ of฀ the฀ 63฀ programs฀ included฀ in฀ this฀ study฀ to฀ applicable฀ hardcopy฀ catalogs฀ or฀ bulletins฀
published฀by฀the฀colleges฀and฀universities฀ and฀ found฀ that฀ the฀Web฀ site฀ postings฀ versus฀ hardcopy฀ catalogs฀ or฀ bulletins฀to฀be฀100%฀consistent.฀This฀high฀
rate฀of฀consistency฀was฀perhaps฀due฀to฀
the฀ nature฀ of฀ the฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
programs฀under฀examination.฀Accurate฀
Web฀sites฀are฀important฀when฀engaging฀
in฀electronic฀commerce฀activities.฀
Content฀ analysis฀ techniques฀ were฀
used฀to฀examine฀the฀course฀descriptions฀
in฀ an฀ effort฀ to฀ determine฀ the฀ skills฀ and฀
knowledge฀ included฀ in฀ each฀ program.฀

Skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ were฀
used฀ rather฀ than฀ course฀ titles฀ because฀
of฀ the฀ variations฀ in฀ course฀ titles฀ in฀ the฀
area฀ of฀ electronic฀ commerce.฀ Course฀
titles฀were฀used฀for฀those฀courses฀traditionally฀ offered฀ in฀ business฀ disciplines฀
(e.g.,฀marketing,฀management,฀financial฀
management).฀ The฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ specifically฀ related฀ to฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ were฀ noted.฀ No฀ distinction฀
was฀made฀between฀required฀and฀elective฀
skills฀and฀knowledge฀elements.฀
Content฀ analysis,฀ also฀ called฀ textual฀
analysis,฀is฀defined฀as฀a฀research฀methodology฀that฀allows฀one฀to฀“make฀inferences฀about฀variables฀by฀systematically฀
and฀objectivity฀analyzing฀the฀content฀or฀
process฀ of฀ communications”฀ (Sproull,฀
1995,฀ p.฀ 246).฀ I฀ developed฀ a฀ ฀ coding฀
frame฀ or฀ matrix,฀ with฀ the฀ assistance฀
of฀ 30฀ experts฀ in฀ the฀ field฀ of฀ electronic฀
commerce,฀ who฀ identified฀ potential฀
skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ in฀ electronic฀commerce฀programs,฀and฀formed฀
a฀list฀of฀elements฀via฀a฀three-round฀Delphi฀process.฀This฀was฀necessary฀because฀

the฀ existing฀ literature฀ did฀ not฀ provide฀
a฀ list฀ of฀ possible฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀
elements฀ in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs.฀After฀the฀coding฀frame฀was฀created,฀I฀analyzed฀the฀course฀descriptions฀
and฀ entered฀ the฀ codes฀ for฀ the฀ skills฀
and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ in฀ the฀ coding฀
frame฀(e.g.,฀1฀=฀Yes,฀if฀present฀and฀0฀=฀
No,฀ if฀ absent).฀ The฀ author฀ conducted฀
the฀analysis,฀whereas฀a฀panel฀of฀experts฀
developed฀ the฀ classification฀ scheme.฀
The฀specific฀focus฀of฀certain฀skills฀and฀
knowledge฀elements฀(e.g.,฀the฀discipline฀
of฀ a฀ specific฀ element฀ or฀ the฀ specificity฀
of฀ an฀ element฀ toward฀ electronic฀ com-

merce฀are฀discussed฀when฀applicable฀to฀
better฀distinguish฀between฀and฀enhance฀
understanding฀ of฀ the฀ listed฀ elements.฀
For฀ example,฀ many฀ business฀ programs฀
of฀ study฀ require฀ a฀ course฀ in฀ marketing฀
management฀ that฀ does฀ not฀ specifically฀

address฀ electronic฀ commerce,฀ whereas฀
many฀ of฀ the฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs฀ include฀ marketing฀ management฀
courses฀ that฀ focus฀ solely฀ on฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ issues.฀ Both฀ courses฀ cover฀
marketing฀discipline,฀although฀the฀manner฀ in฀ which฀ these฀ topics฀ are฀ covered฀
differs.฀The฀focus฀was฀determined฀when฀
analyzing฀the฀course฀descriptions.
The฀ research฀ questions฀ addressed฀ in฀
this฀ study฀ include฀ (a)฀ Are฀ electronic฀
commerce฀programs฀as฀popular฀in฀2005฀
compared฀to฀2001?฀(b)฀What฀skills฀and฀
knowledge฀ tended฀ to฀ be฀ included฀ in฀
electronic฀commerce฀programs฀in฀2001฀
and฀ 2005?฀ (c)฀ What฀ are฀ the฀ similarities฀ and฀ differences฀ between฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ programs฀ offered฀ in฀ 2001฀
and฀2005?
RESULTS
Thirty-one฀ of฀ the฀ 100฀ schools฀ in฀ the฀
sample฀ offered฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
programs฀ in฀ 2001฀ versus฀ 26฀ in฀ 2005.฀
This฀ indicated฀ a฀ 16.1%฀ decline.฀ Many฀
of฀ these฀ schools฀ offered฀ multiple฀ electronic฀commerce฀programs.฀In฀2001,฀31฀
schools฀offered฀฀51฀programs.฀The฀number฀of฀programs฀in฀the฀sample฀declined฀
to฀ 37฀ in฀ 2005,฀ representing฀ a฀ 27.5%฀
decline.฀ The฀ greatest฀ decline฀ in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs฀ occurred฀ in฀
the฀ graduate฀ degree฀ area.฀ The฀ number฀
of฀graduate฀degree฀programs฀went฀from฀
36฀ to฀ 21฀ in฀ 2001฀ and฀ 2005,฀ respectively.฀ However,฀ there฀ was฀ an฀ increase฀
of฀ 42.9%฀ in฀ undergraduate฀ programs฀
during฀the฀timeframe฀of฀the฀study.
Graduate฀programs฀were฀more฀common฀ than฀ undergraduate฀ programs฀
in฀ both฀ years.฀ In฀ 2001,฀ 84.3%฀ of฀ all฀
electronic฀ commerce฀ programs฀ were฀
graduate฀ programs,฀ and฀ 15.7%฀ were฀
undergraduate฀ programs.฀ In฀ 2005,฀
73%฀ of฀ the฀ programs฀ were฀ graduate฀
programs,฀and฀27%฀were฀undergraduate฀ programs.฀ The฀ results฀ show฀ that฀
although฀ graduate฀ programs฀ are฀ still฀
more฀common,฀the฀gap฀between฀graduate฀ and฀ undergraduate฀ programs฀ has฀
narrowed.฀ Of฀ the฀ graduate฀ programs,฀
May/June฀2007฀

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MBA฀ programs฀ with฀ concentrations฀
or฀ specializations฀ in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀have฀consistently฀been฀the฀most฀
prevalent฀type,฀making฀up฀51%฀of฀the฀
total฀ programs฀ in฀ 2001฀ and฀ 43.2%฀ in฀
2005.
I฀included฀degree฀and฀certificate฀programs฀ in฀ the฀ samples฀ for฀ both฀ years.฀
Degree฀ programs฀ were฀ more฀ common฀
than฀certificate฀programs฀in฀both฀years.฀
In฀2001,฀8฀(15.7%)฀of฀the฀51฀programs฀
were฀ certificate฀ programs.฀ Schools฀
offered฀ one฀ certificate฀ program฀ at฀ the฀
undergraduate฀level฀and฀seven฀programs฀
at฀the฀graduate฀level.฀In฀2005,฀6฀(16.2%)฀
of฀the฀37฀programs฀were฀certificate฀programs,฀all฀at฀the฀graduate฀level.
Researchers฀ have฀ discussed฀ the฀
appropriate฀ terminology฀ for฀ this฀
field.฀ In฀ both฀ the฀ years฀ under฀ study,฀
researchers฀ used฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ to฀ describe฀ the฀ area฀ of฀ study฀
in฀ program฀ titles,฀ with฀ 31฀ of฀ the฀ 51฀
(60.8%)฀ programs฀ in฀ 2001,฀ and฀ 18฀
of฀ the฀ 37฀ (48.6%)฀ programs฀ in฀ 2005฀
bearing฀that฀name.฀This฀was฀followed฀
by฀ e-business฀ at฀ 31.4%฀ and฀ 35.1%฀ in฀
2001฀ and฀ 2005,฀ respectively.฀ E-marketing฀was฀next฀with฀7.8%฀and฀10.8%,฀
respectively.฀In฀2005฀researchers฀used฀
e-strategy฀and฀e-service.
Although฀ I฀ identified฀ 37฀ programs฀
in฀the฀2005฀sample,฀this฀does฀not฀mean฀
that฀ all฀ of฀ the฀ programs฀ were฀ in฀ existence฀in฀2001.฀In฀2005,฀schools฀continued฀to฀offer฀only฀21฀programs฀that฀were฀
offered฀in฀2001.฀Of฀the฀21฀programs,฀5฀
remained฀consistent฀with฀regard฀to฀content.฀The฀remaining฀16฀had฀either฀minor฀
(14.3%)฀ or฀ major฀ (61.9%)฀ changes฀ in฀
content.
The฀ program฀ types฀ for฀ the฀ 21฀ continuing฀ programs฀ included฀ MBA฀ programs฀ (n฀ =฀ 12),฀ bachelor’s฀ programs฀
(n฀ =฀ 5),฀ master’s฀ programs฀ other฀ than฀
MBA฀ programs฀ (n฀ =฀ 2),฀ and฀ graduate฀
certificates฀ programs฀ (n฀ =฀ 2).฀ Ranking฀ these฀ as฀ a฀ percentage฀ of฀ program฀
types฀ for฀ 2001,฀ the฀ largest฀ percentage฀
of฀ continuing฀ programs฀ was฀ bachelor’s฀
programs฀ (62.5%),฀ followed฀ by฀ MBA฀
programs฀(46.2%),฀graduate฀certificates฀
(28.6%),฀ and฀ master’s฀ programs฀ other฀
than฀MBA฀programs฀(20.0%).฀
Of฀ the฀ 51฀ programs฀ in฀ existence฀
in฀ 2001,฀ 30฀ were฀ discontinued.฀ More฀
MBA฀programs฀(n฀=฀13)฀were฀discontinued฀ than฀ any฀ other฀ program฀ type.฀
278฀

Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business

This฀ was฀ followed฀ by฀ other฀ master’s฀
programs฀(n฀=฀9),฀graduate฀certificate฀
programs฀(n฀=฀5),฀bachelor’s฀programs฀
(n฀ =฀ 3),฀ and฀ undergraduate฀ certificate฀
programs฀(n฀=฀1).฀With฀rank฀as฀a฀percentage฀ of฀ 2001฀ programs,฀ schools฀
discontinued฀more฀undergraduate฀certificate฀ programs฀ (100.0%),฀ followed฀
by฀master’s฀programs฀other฀than฀MBA฀
programs฀ (90.0%),฀ graduate฀ certificate฀ programs฀ (71.4%),฀ MBA฀ programs฀ (50.0%),฀ and฀ bachelor’s฀ programs฀(42.9%).
In฀ 2005,฀ the฀ schools฀ in฀ the฀ sample฀
had฀16฀new฀programs฀that฀did฀not฀exist฀
in฀ 2001.฀ Of฀ the฀ 16฀ new฀ programs,฀ the฀
majority฀ (31.4%)฀ of฀ growth฀ was฀ in฀
bachelor’s฀programs,฀followed฀by฀MBA฀
programs฀ (25.5%),฀ graduate฀ certificate฀
programs฀ (25.5%),฀ and฀ other฀ master’s฀
programs฀(19.6%).
2005฀Program฀Profiles
Because฀ MBA฀ programs฀ are฀ the฀
most฀ prevalent฀ and฀ bachelor’s฀ programs฀ are฀ the฀ fastest฀ growing฀ types฀
of฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs,฀ I฀
profiled฀both฀on฀the฀basis฀of฀2005฀cur-

ricula฀ and฀ compare฀ these฀ profiles฀ to฀
2001฀curricula.
Profile฀of฀MBA฀Programs฀in฀Electronic฀
Commerce
Table฀ 1฀ shows฀ the฀ percentages฀ of฀
MBA฀ programs฀ that฀ offered฀ specific฀
skills฀and฀knowledge฀elements฀in฀2001฀
and฀2005,฀sorted฀in฀descending฀order฀by฀
2005฀percentages.฀The฀table฀shows฀only฀
the฀percentages฀for฀elements฀included฀in฀
at฀least฀30%฀of฀the฀programs.฀No฀skills฀
and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ were฀ focused฀
on฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ unless฀ specifically฀ stated.฀ The฀ results฀ showed฀ that฀ a฀
common฀ business฀ core฀ and฀ two฀ electronic฀commerce฀elements฀tended฀to฀be฀
included฀in฀the฀MBA฀programs.
The฀ common฀ business฀ core฀ is฀ composed฀ of฀ accounting,฀ economics,฀
finance,฀ management,฀ and฀ marketing.฀
A฀ business฀ statistics฀ or฀ quantitative฀
analysis฀ course฀ was฀ also฀ sometimes฀
included฀ in฀ common฀ business฀ core.฀
The฀two฀electronic฀commerce฀elements฀
included฀ an฀ introduction฀ to฀ electronic฀
commerce฀from฀an฀information฀technology฀ focus฀ and฀ marketing฀ management฀

TABLE฀1.฀Percentage฀of฀Master฀of฀Business฀Administration฀(MBA)฀
Programs฀That฀Offered฀Specific฀Skills฀and฀Knowledge฀Elements฀in฀
2001฀and฀2005฀
Skills฀and฀knowledge฀element฀
Accounting฀principles
฀ Managerial฀฀
฀ Financial฀
Financial฀management฀
Marketing฀management฀
Strategic฀management฀
฀ Electronic฀commerce฀focus฀
Statistics฀or฀quantitative฀business฀analysis฀
Operations฀management฀
Economics฀
Organizational฀behavior฀
Introduction฀to฀electronic฀commerce
฀ Information฀technology฀focus฀
฀ Business฀focus฀
Marketing฀management฀(electronic฀commerce฀focus)฀
Leadership฀
Supply฀chain฀and฀logistics฀management฀
฀ Electronic฀commerce฀focus฀
International฀business฀or฀management฀
Business฀law฀
฀ Electronic฀commerce฀focus฀
Database฀management฀
Change฀management฀
Systems฀analysis฀and฀design฀
Management฀information฀system฀
Telecommunications฀and฀networks฀

2005฀%฀

2001฀%

68.8฀
56.3฀
68.8฀
56.3฀
56.3฀
—฀
50.0฀
50.0฀
43.8฀
43.8฀

68.0
64.0
72.0
64.0
60.0
36.0
32.0
64.0
76.0
52.0

37.5฀
—฀
37.5฀
31.3฀
31.3฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀

—
52.0
80.0
—
—
36.0
52.0
32.0
40.0
40.0
36.0
36.0
32.0
32.0

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 23:27 11 January 2016

with฀an฀electronic฀commerce฀focus.฀The฀
level฀ of฀ importance฀ of฀ these฀ two฀ elements฀ was฀ equal฀ (included฀ in฀ 37.5%฀
of฀ MBA฀ programs).฀ Table฀ 2฀ shows฀ all฀
skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ specifically฀ focused฀ on฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
for฀ the฀ MBA฀ and฀ bachelor’s฀ programs.฀
The฀table฀shows฀the฀elements฀in฀alphabetical฀order฀with฀the฀percentage฀of฀programs฀ that฀ included฀ each฀ element.฀ In฀
addition฀to฀the฀two฀electronic฀commerce฀
elements฀ commonly฀ included,฀ 18.8%฀
of฀ MBA฀ programs฀ in฀ 2005฀ also฀ contained฀(a)฀business฀law฀with฀a฀focus฀on฀
electronic฀ commerce,฀ (b)฀ introduction฀
to฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ with฀ a฀ business฀focus,฀and฀(c)฀electronic฀commerce฀
independent฀study,฀practicum,฀or฀internship.฀ Only฀ one฀ of฀ the฀ five฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ specific฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ was฀ technical฀ in฀ nature.฀
This฀was฀consistent฀with฀Durlabhji฀and฀
Fusilier’s฀ (2002)฀ finding฀ that฀ master’s฀
programs฀ tended฀ to฀ be฀ nontechnical฀ in฀
nature.

MBA฀ curricula฀ also฀ included฀ an฀
expected฀common฀business฀core฀in฀2001.฀
However,฀the฀results฀showed฀more฀agreement฀as฀to฀the฀importance฀of฀elements฀in฀
the฀ common฀ business฀ core฀ in฀ 2001,฀ as฀
opposed฀to฀2005.฀For฀example,฀although฀
general฀economics฀topics฀were฀included฀
in฀ the฀ MBA฀ programs฀ for฀ both฀ years฀
under฀study,฀these฀topics฀were฀required฀in฀
76%฀of฀the฀programs฀in฀2001฀compared฀
to฀ 43.8%฀ in฀ 2005.฀ The฀ results฀ showed฀
differences฀ in฀ specific฀ electronic฀ commerce฀elements.฀In฀2001,฀80%฀of฀MBA฀
programs฀ included฀ marketing฀ management฀ with฀ an฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
focus.฀ The฀ results฀ showed฀ significantly฀
less฀ agreement฀ as฀ to฀ its฀ importance฀ in฀
2005฀(37.5%).฀Table฀1฀and฀Table฀2฀also฀
include฀ the฀ following฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ elements฀ for฀ 2001฀ in฀ descending฀order฀of฀importance:฀(a)฀introduction฀
to฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ with฀ a฀ business฀
focus฀ (52.0%),฀ (b)฀ business฀ law฀ with฀
an฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ focus฀ (40.0%),฀
(c)฀ strategic฀ management฀ with฀ an฀ elec-

TABLE฀2.฀Percentage฀of฀Programs฀Including฀Each฀Electronic฀Commerce฀
Skills฀and฀Knowledge฀Element฀for฀the฀Master฀of฀Business฀Administration฀
(MBA)฀and฀Bachelor’s฀Programs฀
฀ ฀
Skills฀and฀knowledge฀element฀
Accounting฀for฀electronic฀commerce฀companies฀
Business฀lawa฀
Business-to-business฀supply฀chain฀managementa฀
Business-to-consumer฀supply฀chain฀managementa฀
Customer฀and฀supplier฀relationship฀managementa฀
Electronic฀commerce฀application฀development฀
Electronic฀trading฀
Ethicsa฀
Information฀technology฀securitya฀
Introduction฀to฀electronic฀commerceb฀
Introduction฀to฀electronic฀commercec฀
Interactive฀electronic฀commerce฀marketing฀
Electronic฀commerce฀independent฀study,
฀ practicum฀or฀internship฀฀
Electronic฀commerce฀technology฀foundations฀
Entrepreneurshipa฀
Managing฀electronic฀commerce฀companies
฀ (e.g.,฀theories,฀models)฀
Marketing฀managementa฀
Marketing฀strategya฀
Payment฀systems฀for฀electronic฀commerce฀
Start฀up฀and฀development฀of฀electronic฀
฀ commerce฀companies฀
Strategic฀managementa฀
Supply฀chain฀and฀logistics฀managementa฀
Systems฀analysis฀and฀designa฀
a

฀ MBA฀ ฀
฀Bachelor’s
2005฀%฀ 2001฀%฀ 2005฀%฀ 2001฀%
—฀
18.8฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
18.8฀
37.5฀
—฀

—฀
40.0฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
52.0฀
24.0฀
—฀

20.0฀
10.0฀
10.0฀
10.0฀
20.0฀
20.0฀
10.0฀
10.0฀
10.0฀
50.0฀
40.0฀
10.0฀

28.6
14.3
—
—
28.6
—
14.3
14.3
14.3
57.1
28.6
14.3

18.8฀
—฀
—฀

—฀
20.0฀
—฀

20.0฀
—฀
20.0฀

—
28.6
28.6

—฀
37.5฀
—฀
—฀

28.0฀
80.0฀
—฀
—฀

—฀
30.0฀
—฀
10.0฀

—
57.1
28.6
14.3

—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀

—฀
36.0฀
36.0฀
20.0฀

20.0฀
10.0฀
20.0฀
—฀

28.6
28.6
28.6
—

Electronic฀commerce฀focus.฀bBusiness฀focus.฀cInformation฀technology฀focus.

฀

tronic฀commerce฀focus฀(36.0%),฀(d)฀supply฀ chain฀ or฀ logistics฀ management฀ with฀
an฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ focus฀ (36.0%),฀
(e)฀managing฀electronic฀commerce฀companies฀ (theories,฀ models,฀ etc.;฀ 28.0%),฀
(f)฀฀introduction฀to฀electronic฀commerce฀
with฀ an฀ information฀ technology฀ focus฀
(24.0%),฀ (g)฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ technology฀foundations฀(20.0%),฀and฀(h)฀systems฀ analysis฀ and฀ design฀ with฀ an฀ electronic฀commerce฀focus฀(20.0%).
This฀shows฀that฀there฀was฀much฀more฀
variety฀ and฀ agreement฀ in฀ MBA฀ programs฀ regarding฀ the฀ electronic฀ commerce฀skills฀and฀knowledge฀elements฀in฀
2001฀compared฀to฀2005.
Profile฀of฀Bachelor’s฀Programs฀in฀
Electronic฀Commerce
Table฀ 3฀ shows฀ the฀ percentages฀ of฀
bachelor’s฀ programs฀ offering฀ specific฀
skills฀and฀knowledge฀elements฀for฀2001฀
and฀2005,฀sorted฀in฀descending฀order฀by฀
2005฀percentages.฀The฀table฀shows฀only฀
percentages฀ for฀ elements฀ included฀ in฀ at฀
least฀ 40.0%฀ of฀ the฀ programs.฀ No฀ skills฀
and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ were฀ focused฀
on฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ unless฀ specifically฀ stated.฀ I฀ found฀ that฀ (a)฀ a฀ common฀
business฀ core฀ tended฀ to฀ be฀ included฀ in฀
bachelor’s฀programs,฀(b)฀a฀common฀general฀education฀core฀tended฀to฀be฀included฀
in฀bachelor’s฀programs,฀and฀(c)฀two฀electronic฀ commerce฀ elements฀ tended฀ to฀ be฀
included฀in฀bachelor’s฀programs.
The฀ common฀ business฀ and฀ general฀
education฀ core฀ courses฀ were฀ those฀ traditionally฀ required฀ in฀ bachelor’s฀ programs฀ in฀ business฀ fields฀ that฀ provided฀
a฀wide฀breadth฀of฀skills฀and฀knowledge.฀
The฀two฀electronic฀commerce฀elements฀
included฀were฀both฀introductory฀courses:฀฀(a)฀฀one฀with฀a฀business฀perspective฀
(50.0%),฀and฀(b)฀the฀other฀with฀an฀information฀technology฀perspective฀(40.0%).฀
Table฀2฀shows฀the฀additional฀electronic฀
commerce฀elements฀for฀2005.
As฀ with฀ the฀ MBA฀ programs,฀ there฀
was฀ significantly฀ less฀ agreement฀ as฀
to฀the฀importance฀of฀the฀business฀and฀
general฀ education฀ core฀ elements฀ in฀
2005,฀compared฀with฀2001.฀However,฀
if฀ ranked฀ by฀ the฀ percentages฀ shown฀
in฀ Table฀ 3,฀ the฀ order฀ of฀ ranking฀ was฀
relatively฀ the฀ same฀ in฀ both฀ years.฀
There฀ were฀ also฀ differences฀ in฀ the฀
specific฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ eleMay/June฀2007฀

279

TABLE฀3.฀Percentage฀of฀Bachelor’s฀Programs฀Including฀Each฀Skills฀and฀
Knowledge฀Element฀

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Skills฀and฀knowledge฀element฀
Accounting฀principles฀(financial฀and฀managerial)฀
Business฀law฀
Economics฀
Financial฀management฀
Marketing฀management฀
Operations฀management฀
Oral฀communications฀
Statistics฀and฀quantitative฀business฀analysis฀
Written฀communications฀
Introduction฀to฀information฀systems฀or฀฀
฀ information฀technology฀
Mathematics฀
Social฀sciences฀
Business฀policy฀and฀strategy฀
Introduction฀to฀electronic฀commerce฀(business฀focus)฀
Principles฀of฀management฀
Principles฀of฀business฀
Introduction฀to฀electronic฀commerce฀(information฀฀
฀ technology฀focus)
Management฀information฀systems฀
Arts฀
Strategic฀management฀
Marketing฀management฀(electronic฀commerce฀focus)฀
Consumer฀behavior฀
Database฀management฀
SQL฀
Humanities฀

2005฀%฀

2001฀%

70.0฀
70.0฀
70.0฀
70.0฀
70.0฀
70.0฀
70.0฀
70.0฀
70.0฀
60.0฀

100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
85.7
85.7
85.7
71.4

60.0฀
60.0฀
50.0฀
50.0฀
50.0฀
40.0฀
40.0฀

100.0
71.4
42.9
57.1
71.4
—
—

40.0฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀
—฀

—
57.1
57.1
57.1
42.9
42.9
42.9
42.9

Note.฀SQL฀=฀Structured฀Query฀Language.

ments฀included฀in฀the฀2฀years.฀Table฀2฀
shows฀ the฀ additional฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ specific฀ elements฀ for฀ 2001.฀
Overall฀there฀tended฀to฀be฀less฀agreement฀ as฀ to฀ the฀ essential฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ that฀
should฀ have฀ been฀ included฀ in฀ bachelor’s฀ programs฀ in฀ 2005.฀ Fifteen฀ skills฀
and฀ knowledge฀ elements฀ specific฀ to฀
electronic฀commerce฀appeared฀in฀both฀
years.฀Added฀ in฀ 2005฀ were฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ independent฀ study,฀ practicum,฀or฀internship฀(20.0%)฀electronic฀
commerce฀ application฀ development฀
(20.0%)฀ business-to-business฀ supply฀
chain฀ management฀ with฀ an฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ focus฀ (10.0%)฀ and฀ business-to-consumer฀ supply฀ chain฀ management฀with฀an฀electronic฀commerce฀
focus฀ (10.0%).฀ Also฀ of฀ note฀ is฀ that฀
the฀ rankings฀ no฀ longer฀ included฀ the฀
two฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ specific฀
elements.฀ These฀ two฀ elements฀ were฀
technology฀ foundations฀ and฀ marketing฀ strategy—both฀ being฀ specific฀ to฀
electronic฀ commerce.฀ Bachelor’s฀ pro280฀

Journal฀of฀Education฀for฀Business

grams฀ in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ tended฀
to฀ be฀ nontechnical฀ in฀ both฀ years,฀ as฀
did฀the฀MBA฀programs.
DISCUSSION
Electronic฀ commerce฀ programs฀ that฀
are฀ offered฀ by฀ colleges฀ and฀ universities฀ in฀ the฀ United฀ States฀ have฀ evolved฀
over฀the฀years.฀The฀results฀of฀this฀study฀
highlight฀the฀changes฀in฀these฀programs฀
from฀ 2001฀ to฀ 2005.฀ The฀ changes฀ were฀
in฀the฀number฀of฀programs฀offered,฀the฀
types฀of฀programs฀offered,฀and฀the฀content฀of฀the฀programs฀offered.฀Evolution,฀
though,฀ is฀ a฀ slow฀ process.฀ Although฀
some฀changes฀took฀place,฀those฀changes฀
perhaps฀did฀not฀come฀as฀quickly฀as฀was฀
expected.
Although฀ critical฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀are฀required฀in฀the฀digital฀business฀
environment,฀the฀number฀of฀electronic฀
commerce฀ programs฀ offered฀ indicates฀
that฀they฀are฀not฀as฀popular฀as฀they฀once฀
were.฀ The฀ number฀ of฀ electronic฀ commerce฀programs฀offered฀by฀the฀schools฀

in฀the฀sample฀has฀declined฀significantly฀
since฀2001.฀The฀only฀exception฀to฀this฀
is฀the฀bachelor’s฀programs฀in฀electronic฀ commerce฀ which฀ increased฀ slightly฀
in฀ number.฀ The฀ most฀ common฀ type฀
of฀ program฀ in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
was—and฀ continues฀ to฀ be—the฀ MBA฀
program.฀
Ariguzo,฀Mallach,฀and฀White฀(2006)฀
documented฀that฀there฀has฀been฀significant฀ change฀ in฀ e-business฀ models฀ over฀
the฀ last฀ decade.฀ It฀ is฀ surprizing฀ that฀
though฀ the฀ essential฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ included฀ in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
bachelor’s฀ and฀ MBA฀ programs฀ have฀
changed฀ very฀ little฀ since฀ 2001.฀ However,฀ the฀ level฀ of฀ agreement฀ as฀ to฀ the฀
essential฀skills฀and฀knowledge฀included฀
in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs฀ of฀
study฀has฀declined.฀Some฀new฀electronic฀commerce฀skills฀and฀knowledge฀elements฀ have฀ emerged.฀ Given฀ that฀ little฀
change฀ has฀ occurred฀ in฀ the฀ skills฀ and฀
knowledge฀ elements฀ included฀ in฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ programs฀ from฀ 2001฀
to฀ 2005,฀ it฀ is฀ doubtful฀ that฀ the฀ significant฀changes฀observed฀in฀the฀e-business฀
models฀ have฀ been฀ considered.฀ In฀ 2001฀
and฀ 2005,฀ overall฀ essential฀ skills฀ and฀
knowledge฀in฀both฀bachelor’s฀and฀MBA฀
programs฀ were฀ nontechnical฀ in฀ nature.฀
The฀ skills฀ and฀ knowledge฀ specific฀
to฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ in฀ the฀ MBA฀
programs฀ also฀ tend฀ to฀ be฀ nontechnical฀without฀specific฀tracks฀emerging฀in฀
specific฀discipline.฀Three฀distinct฀tracks฀
have฀ emerged฀ in฀ the฀ bachelor’s฀ programs฀within฀the฀skills฀and฀knowledge฀
elements฀ specific฀ to฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ that฀ include฀ information฀ technology,฀ management,฀ and฀ marketing฀
topic฀areas฀(see฀Table฀2).฀Of฀interest฀is฀
the฀inclusion฀of฀hands-on฀experience฀in฀
electronic฀commerce฀programs.
These฀findings฀have฀implications฀for฀
various฀ stakeholder฀ groups.฀ Students฀
interested฀in฀careers฀in฀electronic฀commerce฀ should฀ be฀ aware฀ that฀ programs฀
with฀ the฀ same฀ or฀ similar฀ names฀ vary฀
significantly฀ in฀ content.฀ Students฀ must฀
carefully฀select฀an฀electronic฀commerce฀
program฀ that฀ focuses฀ on฀ their฀ career฀
objectives.฀ In฀ addition,฀ students฀ must฀
be฀ mindful฀ when฀ choosing฀ electives฀ to฀
select฀ those฀ aimed฀ toward฀ the฀ desired฀
career฀field.฀
The฀ business฀ community฀ also฀ must฀
be฀aware฀that฀there฀are฀significant฀differ-

Downloaded by [Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji] at 23:27 11 January 2016

ences฀ in฀ the฀ content฀ of฀ these฀ electronic฀
commerce฀ programs.฀ When฀ recruiting฀
and฀hiring,฀businesses฀must฀be฀aware฀that฀
individuals’฀transcripts฀must฀be฀reviewed฀
carefully฀to฀determine฀which฀individuals฀
have฀the฀desired฀skills฀and฀knowledge฀to฀
meet฀their฀specific฀needs.฀It฀is฀not฀enough฀
to฀just฀know฀that฀individuals฀have฀degrees฀
in฀electronic฀commerce฀programs.
In฀ addition,฀ colleges฀ and฀ universities฀ must฀ create฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
programs฀that฀can฀adapt฀to฀the฀quickly฀
changing฀ e-business฀ environment.฀The฀
needs฀of฀other฀stakeholders,฀most฀specifically฀students฀and฀the฀business฀community,฀must฀be฀constantly฀factored฀in฀
to฀program฀content฀decisions.฀Without฀
doing฀so฀there฀is฀doubt฀that฀these฀electronic฀commerce฀programs฀will฀remain฀
viable.฀The฀educators฀in฀business฀education฀ also฀ should฀ consider฀ adapting฀
program฀names฀to฀more฀clearly฀portray฀
specific฀content฀to฀stakeholders.
In฀ this฀ study,฀ I฀ did฀ not฀ attempt฀ to฀
identify฀and฀profile฀unique฀or฀innovative฀
electronic฀ commerce฀ programs.฀ I฀ also฀
did฀ not฀ attempt฀ to฀ explore฀ pedagogical฀
approaches฀ used฀ by฀ the฀ schools฀ in฀ the฀
sample,฀ and฀ also฀ did฀ not฀ explore฀ the฀
extent฀ to฀ which฀ electronic฀ commerce฀
topics฀ are฀ covered฀ in฀ traditional฀ business฀ courses.฀ Researchers฀ should฀ consider฀ these฀ issues฀ in฀ the฀ future.฀ I฀ can฀
provide฀ a฀ complete฀ list฀ of฀ skills฀ and฀
knowledge฀elements฀upon฀request.฀
฀Electronic฀commerce฀programs฀are฀in฀
their฀ infancy.฀ These฀ programs฀ have฀ not฀
yet฀emerged฀as฀a฀separate฀discipline.฀It฀is฀
still฀unclear฀whether฀these฀programs฀will฀
continue฀ to฀ exist฀ as฀ separate฀ programs฀
or฀ whether฀ electronic฀ commerce฀ topics฀
will฀be฀incorporated฀into฀traditional฀busi-

฀

ness฀ courses.฀ The฀ future฀ of฀ the฀ digital฀
economy฀ depends฀ on฀ the฀ availability฀ of฀
skilled,฀knowledgeable฀employees.฀Business฀colleges฀and฀universities฀have฀a฀duty฀
to฀supply฀graduates฀to฀meet฀this฀need,฀so฀
it฀ is฀ critical฀ that฀ researchers฀ continue฀ to฀
explore฀this฀area.
NOTE
Julie฀ Burkey,฀ DBA,฀ is฀ a฀ CPA.฀ She฀ teaches฀
financial฀ accounting฀ and฀ auditing.฀ Her฀ research฀
interest฀is฀electronic฀commerce.
Correspondence฀ concerning฀ this฀ article฀ should฀
be฀ addressed฀ to฀ Julie฀ Burkey,฀ Goldey-Beacom฀
College,฀4701฀Limestone฀Road,฀Wilmington,฀DE฀
19808.฀
E–mail:฀burkeyj@gbc.edu
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