Xu’s study reveals
flaws in e-business data quality

Research shows need for interaction
between online merchants and customers

If information quality is the key to electronic business success, then conventional database management systems fall short, according to a new study by a Central Michigan University business information systems assistant professor.

In her study, “Understanding Information Quality in E-Business,” (The Journal of Computer Information Systems, Winter 2004-2005) Hongjiang Xu found that, while business managers consider information entered electronically by consumers as more accurate than when collected by a company employee over the telephone, the data may still be flawed.

“Information quality is a very important issue in e-business,” Xu said. “The rapid growth of the online community has forced commercial enterprises to rush to establish an electronic commercial presence.”

This rush can lead to degraded quality of information, which in turn leads to poor customer satisfaction as well as a loss of product quality and revenue and a degraded decision-making process.

“It could even damage the organization’s reputation and competitive advantage,” Xu said.

Xu studied the Web sites of a variety of e-businesses and found that few top managers had implemented ways to ensure reliable information gathering. Many Web sites accepted fake addresses, ZIP codes, and expired credit card numbers.

“It is clear that very little of the information captured is actually verified by human operators, with the majority finding its way into databases without further verification,” Xu said.

Part of the problem stems from an emphasis in conventional database management systems on security and speed rather than quality. If unchecked, the problem will grow. In 2003, consumers in the United States spent more than $13 million on the Web. That number will exceed $230 million by 2008.

Xu believes two-way feedback procedures would help ensure information quality.

“Users must be able to actively use and change information in the system’s database, and e-businesses must be able to communicate with users directly,” Xu said.

Business information systems assistant professor Hongjiang Xu completed a study revealing how businesses that have rushed into e-commerce also have compromised data quality.