UW-Madison students will now use their computer knowledge to help Wisconsin businesses become more acclimated to the Internet, the UW Consortium for Global eCommerce will announce Thursday at the Monona Terrace, 1 John Nolen Drive.
The group that founded the Internet education program, the Wisconsin e-Business Institute, has been specifically created to help state businesses by researching the benefits of Internet business strategies and educating employees on them.
\It's designed to serve as a hub for research and collaboration, and to help economic development of Wisconsin industries,"" Institute Director Raj Veeramari said.
The organization will expand on the university-industry programs already promoted by the CGEC, emphasizing e-business strategies in Wisconsin industries such as manufacturing, printing, paper, dairy and financial services.
""Companies need to be proactive to be competitive,"" said Shawn Helwig, head of the e-Business Journey for Wisconsin Manufacturers program.
Student involvement in this program will be a key factor to its success. Currently, UW-Madison students are working on several strategies and workshops and the program will offer many other student research activities.
""These students are involved in preparing strategic pools as well as participating in workshops to train the companies in the industry,"" Helwig said.
Faculty from UW-Platteville, UW-Stout and technical colleges from Madison and Milwaukee are already involved in the projects and summer internships will be offered to students from other campuses in hopes of bringing more viewpoints to Madison.
""A core idea [of the program] is collaboration on research that will involve faculty and students from various disciplines working together,"" Veeramari said.
Currently, three research projects are planned for WEBI to spearhead: the Partnership for Innovation to enhance plastics development, the e-Business Journey for Wisconsin Manufacturers to help companies adapt e-business strategies, and the RFID Industry Workgroup for analyzing the abilities of radio identification tags.
The program founders are optimistic, hoping in the future the program will aid businesses all over Wisconsin to open up new opportunities and strengthen existing policies.
""We are hoping it will serve as a resource for Wisconsin companies and industries to help guide them in their adaptation of e-business,"" Veeramari said.
