Changes in the understanding and management of value chain in the information era

IT era is changing the way business and market perception, the whole business system becomes more complex. Holistic approach to business requires a comprehensive understanding of the process aimed at a new approach to managing the value chain. The development of electronic commerce creates new conditions for the installation of information in value chain, increasing the ultimate value for individual consumers. The company is increasingly shifting from `product oriented´ to `client oriented´. All these changes affect employees, management and influence the creation and application of new knowledge and its incorporation into the final value of the product or process of service delivery. Proactive action requires a continuous, conscious and organized collection of data and information about markets, suppliers, customers, competitors, distribution channels, industry and technology; that further analysis into a new or previously unused knowledge to support strategic management. In fact, successful companies in electronic commerce are changing the entire value chain, they `reverse´ it, because they have to consider the value from the consumer perspective. This trend imposes continuity in maintaining relationships with customers and all network elements with the constant need for flexible work and adaptation to market changes.