Internet and it’s Affect on Business
Capella University

Technology has been able to provide advancements in quality of life across the world. One of the biggest forms of technology is the use of the internet in a variety of different business sectors. One of the fastest growing forms of Internet use revolves around online schooling. The result is not only because of the access of the Internet, but the vast amount of resources now available just a click away. Online schooling provides several advantages and disadvantages, but the new opportunities afforded due to the change are winning out. The growth of attending online school is becoming popular by both the students and the institutions because money talks; attending and producing an online learning environment are cheaper than running and attending a traditional college or university. The school does not have to pay for the space because everything is attended to online. In addition, the instructors do not have to be responsible for creating their own teaching material; this material can be shared among like classes (Chaffee, 2011). The online environment also opens up doors for a different type of teaching. No longer is the tenured professor the person in demand, now anyone with the correct education can be considered for an adjunct instructor position. This change from professor to instructor means a decrease in operating costs for the school. The economy is making the balance of work and life much harder. Being a stay at home mother or father is no longer an option to survive. Most of the college students packing up each September are no longer the traditional student. The modern student needs to cut costs by living with their parents, friends or their own family. In addition, most students also maintain at least a part-time job – if not a full-time job. In order to accommodate this new lifestyle most colleges are offering students the ability to take credits at a time instead of enrolling in a full program. As the student either saves the money or is able to arrange the class into their personal schedule, they can just attend and pay for classes at a time (Chaffee, 2011). This process is much more cost effective and easier to manage the work life balance. The online learning environment creates a cleaner and leaner atmosphere. Certain material can be used for multiple classes, cutting down on the time the student needs to devote to school. This allows for a more effective program as the students will not be given credit for the same material for several different classes. The school will have a more uniformed program by reusing online presentations that can be shared among several instructors and even schools (Chaffee, 2011). The position of many schools migrating to an online environment is strong for all but a few groups of schools and career paths. For Ivy League schools, their attendance is normally all about the name of the institution (Chaffee, 2011). For some students the choice to attend is because of family tradition, other is because of private funding. The other obstacles are generally not a problem for those students who plan to attend. Another large group of students and schools not able to make a complete online environment work would be those involved in college sports. Most of the students rely on the funding from playing sports to pay for the education, and the schools rely on the funding from the sports to pay for school expenses. Another important group that finds it necessary to attend a traditional school for at least part of their learning is anyone involved in a medical program or other program which includes hands on experience. The standard colleges and universities converting towards the sole use of the web will have implications for the education program and the manner in which the information is taught. The online learning environment is more affordable and accessible than traditional schooling, meaning more people will have the ability to attend school. In addition to just being able to attend school, the cheaper cost and ability to manager work and life will mean a higher graduation rate among both the young and older. Instead of long standing professors being in high demand, the less experienced, lower-paid adjunct instructors are poised to lead the new generation of students. The online environment also minimizes the social aspect of school with both students and the teaching staff. Students will have to rely on a self-teaching approach and independent study. Online school replacing standard schooling brings up some additional risks that were not as prevalent before. The chance of students cheating will be at an all time high. Much of the testing will be considered open book, but how can the instructor confirm who is taking the test? How can the instructor confirm who is managing the work? What if one student is doing the work of five? What if the parent(s) are helping more than they should? How can the students verify the instructor is knowledgeable? Most students attend school because they want to better themselves. However; some students will capitalize on an environment that opens up more risks that are impossible to manage in this new environment. The internet has provided so many more opportunities for people to earn a higher education. In addition to schooling, the web puts an infinite number of resources at the student’s fingertips from libraries all over the world. Resources that would not normally be available are now just another part of everyday work. Cost is no longer such a large problem for the student or the school. The school is able to operate at a lower cost enabling more students to take advantage of the opportunity. Risks and rewards are always in the forefront when change occurs, but as long as the overall reward is there isn’t it worth it? More people will be able to attend school and more students will have the chance to graduate. With all things considered, it seems as if the internet has turned school into an assembly line of learning. More people can attend at a decreased cost, but is it also a decreased value of learning? Just as the use of the internet opens doors for the education sector, it also allows for more opportunities for the banking industry. The advancements of the internet allows for many different banking resources such as online companies, personal online banking and mobile banking. Some companies solely provide online products such as loans, credit cards, and deposit accounts. Many companies provide partial or complete online access to their customers to manage accounts. In addition, new features also allow customers to access and manage their accounts from multiple mobile devices. These changes mean a difference in the way banks handle products, customers and even employees. Traditional banking consisted of a customer opening accounts at a physical branch. A customer would utilize an ATM machine in conjunction with checks to access their funds. Customers could also request the assistance of the branch employees to access their funds. Each month the bank would mail the customer a statement reflecting the customer’s transactions for the month as well as copies of canceled checks. If the customer had a problem or a request they could either visit the branch or contact customer service generally located in a call center. The formation and use of online banking has completely transitioned this notion of banking to that of a virtual world. Customers now have the ability to view and maintain their accounts with the same access as customer service via the bank website. Customers can now choose to view all their statements and check copies online. In addition, the banks will also allow for customers to submit their own requests for items such as statement copies which would normally be reserved for customer service to resolve. Funds can now be transferred at will between accounts, and customers can even request for new accounts to be opened without even stepping foot into a branch. The customer can request for statements to be viewed online instead of the standard monthly mailing. “Using the Internet distribution channel, banks can offer increased convenience to customers by allowing them to perform their banking activities on-line at any time and in any place” (FDIC, 2011, para 15).Instead of writing out checks each month to pay bills, banks now offer online banking almost eliminating paper all together. The online bill payment option allows for customer to fill out their payee information to be saved permanently, and the bank will mail the check or ACH the funds each month. Not only does the internet access provide these customer advantages from a normal internet connection, but banks are also providing the customer with a new mobile banking option. Even if a customer does not have access to a computer, most people have access to a mobile phone with a data package allowing internet access. Anything a customer has the ability to do with a normal computer is able to be accessed on the mobile banking applications for cell phones. Some applications even allow a customer to image checks for deposit via their cell phone camera. All of these new options practically eliminate the effort of the customer to have to step foot in a standard branch. The migration of banking to a virtual environment also opens new doors in regards to employment. The decrease in a branch presence leaves opportunity to transition employees from the face-to-face customer service atmosphere to a call center environment. In addition, the internet has changed the call center environment as more and more employees are able to work from home as the accessibility of internet access grows. New opportunities are also growing for branchless banks. Many institutions such as credit card, mortgage, loans and deposit account companies offer products with all of their services completely online or call center customer service. Some of the most notable companies include ING Direct, E-loans, and America Express. Experts at the World Bank even feel that will become the majority by 2020. The reasons defined by their research include, “the changing demographics of users, the actions of increasingly activist governments, rising crime, and the spread of internet access via data-enabled phones even in poor countries and communities” (Pickens, Porteous & Rotman, 2009, para 2). The internet has had a profound affect on the financial world, changing the way a customer banks. More convenience and control has been put in the hands of the consumer. Alternative business opportunities have been afforded to the financial institutions. Even with all the good, risks also come with change. Banks rely on a Know Your Customer policy to minimize fraud and loss to both the customers and the banks. With such as faceless business relationship it becomes harder and harder for banks to protect their customer. The opportunity for people to open accounts in someone else’s name is at an all time high. Now that customers are using computers to manage most of their banking, the threat of computer fraud is also a concern. Banks need to invest extra money to ensure that the customer is safe from hackers obtaining their information online. With all of the changes affecting the banking world so far how much more advanced can the world become? Will the world truly become full of branchless banks? It is no secret that the internet has provided the means for the banking advancements, but at what cost? Is the streamlining of the banking world causing jobs to move? Is the movement okay for the overall advancement of the company? I think that these changes are creating several areas in need of some ethical consideration. Should the idea of branchless banking become prevalent because the majority rules? What about those customers who would still prefer a traditional banking? If the banks consider the transition into the virtual bank it is important that they continue to minimize costs in order to minimize fees passed onto the customers. The customers utilize online banking and bill pay because of the cheaper costs, control and convenience. As the traffic on the internet picks up, it is imperative that the security for the financial institutions keep up with hackers to ensure customer safety. Overall, the benefits to the customer as well as new opportunities make the implications of the internet use on the banking industry a positive experience. Continued maintenance is necessary to maintain customer loyalty and security but necessary to allow customers the power to manage their own finances.

References
FDIC. (2005). Limited-purpose banks: their specialties, performance, and prospects. Retrieved from http://www.fdic.gov/bank/analytical/banking/2005apr/article2.html
Pickens, M, Porteous, D, Rotman, S. (2009). Scenarios for branchless banking in 2020. Retrieved from http://www.cgap.org/gm/document-1.9.40599/FN57.pdf
Teachout, Z. (2009). Will the web kill colleges?