E-Commerce System Business Model Analysis for DMU Distance Learning

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of De Montfort University's (DMU) proposal to expand its international student base through distance learning. It includes a SWOT analysis, identifying the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats associated with the proposal, such as the university's brand value, lack of supervision in distance learning, potential for expansion, and technical support challenges. The report also employs Michael Porter's Five Forces model to assess the competitive landscape, considering competitive rivalry, supplier power, buyer power, threats of substitution, and threats of new entry. Furthermore, it suggests improvements to the university's website to address cultural and trust issues and enhance communication with potential students. The analysis concludes with recommendations for DMU to mitigate risks and capitalize on opportunities, ensuring the successful implementation of its distance learning program. Desklib provides access to this and many other solved assignments for students.

Running head: E Commerce System
E Commerce System
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
The report deals with the distance education system, which is getting a huge response in the
society. This is a trade, which is getting famous day by day in the educational structure. The
reports includes about the DMU who had proposed a proposal of starting distance education
to their university for the overseas student. Lastly, the report concludes about the different
analytical tools, which give them a better idea about the decision, which they have taken in
the proposal. It also laid down the problem, which the university will face, and how the
university should acknowledge those problems. It also give an overview of the affect which
their decision will made in future.

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Discussion..................................................................................................................................3
Part 1......................................................................................................................................3
Part 2......................................................................................................................................6
Part 3......................................................................................................................................7
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................8
References..................................................................................................................................9

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Introduction
Distance courses have become an integral part of the education system. It help the
student who are working in different company to complete their desire courses easily and as
per their requirements. It even help the university to get more student than what the capacity
it has and allow them to get more courses for the students.
Discussion
Part 1
As an external consultant De Montfort University, the swot analysis of the university
proposal has been done related to the proposal of distance learning to the overseas students
Swot Analysis
SWOT analysis is the technique of analysis of the company. SWOT stands fort
strength, weakness, opportunity and weakness (Abdel-Basset,Mohamed and Smarandache
2018). It is done to know what are the strength of the company, weakness that the company
has and what are external factor, which company had to see in includes opportunity and
threats of the company. The swot analysis below:
Strength – It shows what the strength of the university are. The strength are:
 The university has a goodwill in the education sector so they will able to get
the overseas student for their new courses (Gürel, and Tat 2017).
 More no of course will help the university to get the student, which is not
getting that course in other university.
Weakness – It shows the places where the university should work more, the weakness of the
proposal are:

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 Distance learning will not able to give the proper supervision which is
required by the student in some typical task or subjects
 Teaching staff, which teach on study centre, are not able to pay the required
attention to all the students, so it may lead to the failure of the student.
Opportunity – It suggest what are the opportunity that the university can go for, the
opportunity, which the university have:
 Instead of going for distance learning, the university can add some new
expansion to their current structure of the studies. It can add more option for
their current as well as future student.
 It can even give training to its current facility about the new changes, which
have come in the recent study structure.
Threat – It help the university to know the threat, which are there in the proposal. The threat,
which the proposal have, are:
 Technical support may affect the plan as sometimes it unable to give the
proper support that the system is needed (McDONALD 2016).
 The distance learning may not be considered as the proper course by some
industry norms, so these let the university suffer about the project

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STRENGTH
 Brand value of the
university.
 Edge over other
university.
WEAKNESS
 Lack of supervision
 Lack of teaching
knowledge
OPPORTUNITY
 Expand their own
university
 Training of teaching
skills
THREATS
 Lack of technical
support
 Not considered as
proper course
SWOT
DIAGRAM

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The recommendation that can given to the university regarding the threats and weakness of
the proposal are:
1. As per the weakness, the university should make a different department for the
distance learning and should able to give the required number of supervision to the
students which can help the university to attain each number of students
2. The threats which the proposal has it should have to do a big technical research and
had to implement in the proposal so that they able to provide best technical support to
the overseas student.
Part 2
After completing the SWOT analysis of the company, the external situational
analysing model have selected to know the outcome the project. The tool which is been used
by the company is Michael Five Porters Model.
Micheal five-porter model is a tool, which help the university to know about the
competiveness, which the proposal will have upon the same industry (Cadle, Paul and Turner
2014). Micheal Five porter model has discussed below:
1. Competitive Rivalry – This analysis help the university to know who the potential
competitors in respect of the proposal are. This help them to get an overview of the
market in which they will deal in (E. Dobbs 2014).
2. Powers of Suppliers – It shows the university how much the suppliers of the
university can change their price of the product. It will help them to know how
frequently the suppliers can change their price. As the change in price can result in
increase in cost
3. Buyers Power – This help the university to know who the potential customers are. It
suggest the student whom they should target for the course

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4. Threats of substitution – It show how easily the student can change their university.
It may happen that the courses, which the university is going to offer, may not be
opted by the student (Harding 2017). As a result, the university have to suffer a lot
with the investment they have made in the studies structure.
5. Threats of new entry – It show easily a new entry of the firm can happen in the
industry. It help the university to know about how a university can start distance
courses and how it affect their services.
The objective that can draw from the above analysis are:
 To provide quality education to the student
 To introduced mixed courses which help them to give more knowledge to the
students
 To build proper resources related to the distance course
Part 3
Suggestion regarding the website of the university culture and trust, it can make a
separate portal which can be link with the university website and in the portal it will record
all the activities related to the issue of culture and trust. The portal will be directly handle by
the management of the university and it will show all the norms which it has and will give
each individual the option to raise their issue regarding the activities and it will also have a
feedback area where the individual can give their opinion and advice related to the norms of
the university. This help the university as well as the individual to overcome and solve the
issues, which they are facing in the organizational structure
To communicate with new potential audience, it should make a pop up system in the
website which will enable the new users to get all the details about the organization and the
pop up should also contain the form which will record all the necessary details about the

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individual. When an individual open the website of the DMU it will directly take them to the
course sections, which the university provide and it can have a help desk in which the
individual can post his entire query, related to the courses, which provided by the DMU.
Conclusion
The report concludes about the distance course, which the DMU is proposing to
introduce. It contain the swot analysis and Micheal porters five model. It show all the affect,
which will take place by the proposal, which the university has made. Lastly, the report
concludes about the objective of the proposal and all the matters, which should see by DMU
before applying the required proposal.

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References
Abdel-Basset, M., Mohamed, M. and Smarandache, F., 2018. An extension of neutrosophic
AHP–SWOT analysis for strategic planning and decision-making. Symmetry, 10(4), p.116.
Cadle, J., Paul, D. and Turner, P., 2014. Business analysis techniques. Chartered Institute for
IT.
E. Dobbs, M., 2014. Guidelines for applying Porter's five forces framework: a set of industry
analysis templates. Competitiveness Review, 24(1), pp.32-45.
Gürel, E. and Tat, M., 2017. SWOT ANALYSIS: A THEORETICAL REVIEW. Journal of
International Social Research, 10(51).
Harding, S., 2017. MBA management models. Routledge.
McDONALD, M.A.L.C.O.L.M., 2016. Strategic marketing planning: theory and practice.
In The marketing book (pp. 108-142). Routledge.