Ecommerce should be prime board focus, says IoD chief

NEWS One of Britain's leading business representatives has slammed company directors for neglecting ecommerce issues. George Cox, the recently appointed director general of the Institute of Directors (IoD), was interviewed on Silicon.com's Agenda Setter programme earlier this week and spoke about the perception of IT and ecommerce at board level. Cox insisted there should be more IT directors present on the board. However, he claimed IT directors must first take a closer look at business strategy within their role. According to Cox, gearing up for board-level ecommerce decisions also involves a radical re-education of the other board members. Referring to an IoD survey completed earlier this year, he said only 50 per cent of IoD members have had a briefing about ecommerce and IT. He insisted that the opinions of the other half were even more surprising, as they claim they have no intention of seeking such a briefing. "It's as if they have a determination to stay ignorant. Why is this? Ecommerce is going to transform the way we do business. I actually think this is the biggest change I've seen in my business lifetime. People have never experienced anything like this before," said Cox. Cox also talked about his former role as chairman of hardware giant, Unisys. His appointment as Director General of the IoD - which is the pinnacle of traditional business in the UK - is an important bell-wether for the evolution of IT towards the heart of business. To watch the full interview with George Cox go to our Ecommerce Channel (http://www.silicon.com/a34704 ).