Cost - Driving Strategy Under the Use of E-Business to Achieve a Competitive Advantage in a Digital Economy Environment

Abstract

The study has aimed at identifying the developments the modern business environment, i.e e-business, witnessed; it also identify to which extent accounting information systems contribute to the achievement of competitive advantage of economic advantage through cost leadership strategy, which represents one of  strategies of achieving competitive advantage. This strategy is significant and links to accounting work in digital economy environment and shifting toward e-application in business environment.  The study has illustrated a set of fields which can be used in e-business environment in order to reduce the costs of economic units’ products in digital economy environment; industrial, marketing, administrative and finance cost may be reduced.  In addition, the study has explained a set of accounting methods contributing to the achievement of cost strategy’s goals and competitive advantage of economic unit. The most important methods are as follows: activity-based cost system (ABC), value chain (VC), product life cycle (PLC), just on time product cost system (JIT) and target cost (TC). Research study has found that working in e-business environment have various advantages which can contribute to the reduction of product costs. It has also concluded that IT environment required by e-business can be used, thereby shifting towards e-accounting. Accordingly, designing a central database containing the data of applying cost management strategies is a necessity; this database also provides positive relationships among all accounting methods, thereby achieving the general goal, i.e the achievement of competitive advantage of economic unit through the reduction of product costs; product prices can be reduced at the markets.