Suggested answer: (127words)
The last years of twentieth century saw the Internet being used by more and more companies as a business tool. In 1997 e-commerce was very limited earning a revenue of less than $25 billion. However, since then, there has been a steady growth worldwide. This trend looks set to continue into the next century with revenue from e-commerce rising to reach almost $200 billion by 2003.
Like e-commerce, e-business has shown steady growth with revenue tripling in the period 1997 to 2000, rising from about $50 billion to $150 billion. However, during there is predicted to be a far more dramatic increase in e-business revenue over the next three years. It is thought that by 2003 revenue from e-business will have reached over $800 billion worldwide.
A motivation survey
Ex 3: Sample answer: (116words)
Findings
A number of employees clearly suffer from a lack of motivation as a result of dissatisfaction in one or more areas of their work. The key findings are outlined below:
Staff feel undervalued by the company, both on a financial and a personal level. It is generally felt that the companyˇs competitors offer higher levels of remuneration. The perception that the managers are unappreciative of staff efforts is particularly noticeable in the Sales Department.
Certain employees feel under-challenged. The company is clearly not exploiting its human resources.
There appears to be a breakdown of communication in the Production Department. The confusion and resultant ill-feeling towards managers has the potential to disrupt the production cycles.
Recommendations
We strongly recommend the following measures:
An evaluation of job profiles throughout the company to assess whether skills could be utilised more efficiently
A review of the current salary structure involving the comparison with similar organisations
It is also essential to investigate and take action regarding the communication in the Production and Sales Department.
