Facilitation of Web-Based Business Systems Establishment through Inter-Organizational Process Mapping and Understanding

The introduction of web-based enterprise systems requires internal business process re-design, where organizations have to reconsider their internal working processes. These processes need to match their customers’ and suppliers’ processes and evolve into inter-organizational processes in order to create a sustainable web system. This article is based on a case study where the creation of a new web-based enterprise system is in focus. The purpose of the study is to identify gaps between the supplier of the web-based system and the case company and to share some insights into the process of bridging these gaps. The study shows the importance of closely united inter-organizational teamwork combined with inter-organizational process mapping in order to manage the implementation of a web system. The article suggests a model of inter-organizational process mapping and shared development, as exemplified by the actual case in the study, in the establishment of web systems where the web-system supplier and the buyer have different set-ups of cultures, core competences, project goals and business processes.