Page 660 - Introduction to Business

634 PART 6 Managing Business Operations, Management Information Systems, and the Digital Enterprise

Careers in the Digital Enterprise

Most job opportunities in the digital enterprise are in the same catgories as the sec-
tions of this chapter. There are some that combine two of these categories.

Information Technology Infrastructure for the Digital
Enterprise

The Career Center at Texas A&M University lists the following job description in
Web development: Organizations are increasingly using the World Wide Web for a
diverse set of business purposes. Websites are used for marketing, sales, communi-
cations, public relations, and training, to name just a few. Careers in Web develop-
ment involve the design and maintenance of such sites. Web developers typically
work with a client to determine the needs of the organization. The Web developer
will then design a prototype, usually using multiple applications and interfaces.
The design will be tested and technical documentation is written for the program.
Positions in Web development require creativity. The majority of positions are
found at companies that specialize in Web development and multimedia creations,
but some large corporations hire Web developers for in-house design as well. The
array of organizations seeking Web developers is extremely diverse. These organi-
zations may include publishing firms, electronic game companies, educational
institutions, marketing firms, government agencies, and many more.

ERP Systems
The job opportunities in ERP systems commonly fall into three categories. First,
one may find a job as a developer, consultant, or trainer for one of the ERP software
companies like SAP, Oracle, PeopleSoft, J.D. Edwards, and Bann. Developers design
or identify the best practices for business processes and then create the code to exe-
cute these processes. Consultants can specialize in the technical or functional
areas. For example, one may become a consultant in the information technology
infrastructure needed to successfully run an ERP system; SAP calls this type of con-
sultant a basis consultant. One may also become a consultant in one of the func-
tional areas like accounting, human resources, or logistics. Finally, one may work as
a trainer for users of the ERP software.
A second category of job opportunities in ERP systems is becoming a consult-
ant for one of the professional services firms that are alliance partners to the ERP
software company. For example, one may work as a PeopleSoft expert at Accenture
or Deloitte & Touche. These consulting jobs may also be in technical or functional
areas.
A third category of job opportunities in ERP systems is working for a company
that is implementing or has implemented an ERP system. In this company, one
may work as a developer, technical or functional consultant, or trainer. The Oracle
ERP implementation by Cisco Systems was completed with the help of the profes-
sional consulting services firm KPMG. ERP systems expertise could lead to a job
with the Oracle ERP group or the Cisco Systems group, or the KPMG group.

Supply Chain Management
The Career Center at Texas A&M University indicates that demand for profession-
als in this area is rapidly growing as firms are realizing the improved efficiency and

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