From B2B to Thee 2 Me: Communicating with Employees via Digital Delivery Systems

September 5, 2000 (PRWEB) September 10, 2000 - B2B, B2C, and now… B2E. Far more than just another acronym in the alphabet soup of eBusiness, B2E (business-to-employee) represents a major opportunity for today's global enterprises. "B2E is a cost-saving and profit-boosting opportunity that every large-scale organization must seize if it intends to remain competitive in 21st century," says Michael Killen, chairman and founder of Killen & Associates, a leading Internet/eCommerce market research firm. Killen's firm recently issued a study detailing the significant quantitative and strategic benefits of electronic business-to-employee communications.

According to the Killen study, entitled "Digitally Delivered Business to Employee Communication: The Competitive Edge for Tomorrow's Global Enterprise," an electronic B2E system can provide corporations with as much as 4% gross margin improvement in three ways. B2E systems can 1) greatly reduce or even eliminate the cost of producing, storing, and distributing printed matter (directories, forms, brochures, etc.), 2) reduce the number of required HR staff members, and 3) provide opportunities for delivering critical information that will improve overall corporate performance.

So, what is digital B2E communication? At the simplest level, it entails the electronic transmission of information that would otherwise have been sent via letter, inter-/intra-office mail, or fax. However, it can also mean the intelligent distribution and routing of interactive documents. "It's one thing to deliver information to everyone in an organization," says Killen, "but it's another matter to deliver the right information to the right people at the right time. Everyone has experienced the frustration of receiving irrelevant information or multiple copies of the same information from different sources. Through 'closed-loop' communication - a key element of B2E delivery mechanisms - companies can ensure that information is distributed in a well-targeted manner. That's not only a matter of efficiency, but it tells your workforce that your company really does treat them as individuals with unique information needs."

The Killen report organizes electronic B2E communications into two different categories. The core HR application areas include Payroll and Related Applications, Benefits and Retirement-Related Applications, Health Information and Claims, Internal/External Announcements and News, New Employee Enrollment, and notification of Education and Training opportunities.

Extended B2E application areas include eCommerce Offers to Employers, Employee Travel Reservations and Expense Reimbursement, and Credit Union Services, among others. Companies that use digital delivery for all core functions will especially enjoy significant rewards.

And, just how big will the digital B2E market be? According to the study, paper was the dominant medium for publishing employee documents through the late 1990s - 77 billion out of 80 billion worldwide B2E documents were paper in 1998. Killen & Associates predicts that the ratio will dramatically shift by 2005, with 87 billion documents (or 71%) issued in electronic form, and 36 billion (or 29%) in paper form. Moreover, by the year 2010, B2E solutions will be used in more than 90% of the 30,000 worldwide industrial firms that have more than 500 employees and/or revenues that equal or exceed $100 million. In fact, as a marketplace for solution providers, such as hardware manufacturers, software companies, and systems engineering firms, B2E transaction volume represents a major opportunity during the next five years (123 billion B2E documents in 2005, up from 80 billion documents in 1998).

According to the Killen report, currently a number of ERP and other vendors are offering employee-related products. The report cites Pitney Bowes docSense as a digital B2E system that is robust enough for use by the largest global enterprises. docSense's Digital Document Delivery (D3) is cited as exemplifying "multipurpose digital document delivery" - the solution, according to Killen, that is in the best position to seize electronic B2E opportunities.

Finally, there are the issues of implementation and e-B2E readiness; Killen recognizes both electronic and paper document delivery systems are necessary until all employees are digitally connected. "Both B2E solutions can be architected to improve employee communications," stated Killen. "However, companies with a well-wired workforce will obtain the greatest benefits. That's exactly why companies like Ford Motor Company or Delta Airlines are creating their futures by providing their workforces with personal computers and Net access. Those enterprises that do nothing to embrace B2E will soon find themselves at a significant competitive disadvantage. Now is the time for every company to begin exploring the wealth of benefits that B2E has to offer. Especially given the fact that by 2004 - 2005, 77% of the Global 2000 will have adopted digital B2E solutions; by 2010, B2E solutions will be used in more than 90% of the 30,000 worldwide industrial firms that have more than 500 employees. I'd say that's a trend to be reckoned with."

About Killen & Associates

Killen & Associates, Inc., headquartered in Palo Alto, California, is the leading market research firm helping enterprises seize business opportunities created by the advance of essential eCommerce applications - electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP), electronic invoicing and payments (EIP), and electronic statement presentment (ESP). It provides its clients with the "EBPP/ EIP/ESP Global Research and Strategic Communications Service." Killen & Associates maintains European offices in Richmond, Surrey, UK, and Zurich, Switzerland. The firm's website address is: http://www.killen.com

Killen & Associates / Access Conferences International produces the conference series, ESP World 2000 to be held in San Francisco, London, and Singapore, Autumn 2000. Website: http://www.killen.com/events/

For more information about the Killen study, Digitally Delivered Business to Employee Communication: The Competitive Edge for Tomorrow's Global Enterprise, contact Mr. Jules Street, telephone: 650 617 6130, e-mail: jules@killen.com.

# # #