Internet 'fundamentally changing' UK businesses

The web is transforming traditional business practices as the number of UK firms using technology to communicate and transact online with customers and suppliers continues to rise, according to research from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).

The e-Value Matters report, sponsored by the Department for Trade and Industry (DTI), says it is the "end of the beginning" of e-business in the UK as automation of processes evolves into more fundamental transformation of business practices.

The report cites significant growth in the use of the internet by UK businesses since the last CBI survey in 2002, with more than two-thirds of companies now engaging with customers online compared with 50 per cent in 2002.

There has also been a dramatic rise in the use of the internet to facilitate remote access and teleworking for staff, up from 10 per cent of organisations three years ago to 50 per cent today.

More than three-quarters of firms now also make payments to their suppliers electronically, 58 per cent process orders over the internet and 51 per cent schedule and track orders electronically.

But security concerns about transacting online remain and two-thirds of respondents said they expect security to affect the integration of the supply chain over the next two to three years.

John Cridland, CBI deputy director-general said "ebusiness" can help firms of all sizes and sectors maintain their competitive edge in a global marketplace.

DTI minister Alun Michael said in a statement: "Ten years ago mobile phones were a luxury and the internet was the preserve of geeks and technologically advanced academics.

"We are now reaching a point when it is as strange for a company not to have a fully integrated ebusiness system as it was 50 years ago for it not to have a telephone and typewriter."