Preparing For eBusiness Professionals' Future

The eBusiness professional, one of the newest management roles in most firms, is also one that has extensively evolved. The future holds even more change for eBusiness professionals. Today, eBusiness professionals run large, hub-like departments. Tomorrow, they'll need to be prepared to run more general departments, like marketing, and be viewed as experts in their businesses, and not channel experts. Why? As eBusiness becomes more mainstream with customers in the next five years, eBusiness as a function will be integrated into other departments. In many cases this will mean the dissolution of a centralized eBusiness team and that eBusiness professionals will rise to other management roles with their organizations. eBusiness professionals admit, though, that they lack experience in areas that can position them as solid business strategists. To help, Forrester has developed a self-assessment diagnostic tool specifically for eBusiness professionals that allows them to identify professional strengths and weaknesses as they prepare for their next role.