Businesses that use the Internet to purchase office supplies benefit from cost savings, reduced paperwork and increased productivity in purchasing-related activities, a new study co-authored by a DePaul University management professor has found.

The study by John R. Olson, assistant management professor at DePaul’s College of Commerce, and Kenneth K. Boyer, associate management professor at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Mich., examined 416 businesses that ordered office supplies from Office Depot’s Web site during 2000. The companies surveyed represented 17 different industry sectors and included firms that ordered supplies from the Web site once in a year, businesses that ordered supplies online two or three times annually and companies that used the Web site to buy supplies four or more times a year.

The study found that the more an organization used the Web site to purchase supplies, the greater the cost benefits. “We found that online purchasing reduced the cost of activities associated with record keeping, order documentation and the physical delivery of materials, as well as the cost of training people who worked with the ordering system,” Olson said. “Online purchasing also decreased the time needed to place orders and delivery times, while improving order documentation and the accuracy of deliveries.”

Olson said the initial impact of using the Internet to order supplies was small for the companies surveyed but increased as company personnel became more familiar with using the sites’ features, which included access to lists of past orders and transaction records. The study also has implications for office suppliers who sell products on the Internet, the web designers that develop these sites and the managers who train workers who order office supplies online, Olson said.

“If people experiment with purchasing goods and services on the Internet and believe they have received no benefit, it’s often because the Web site was poorly designed or the user did not have adequate time to adjust to it.

“Individuals surveyed who use the Internet the most for ordering supplies were also the individuals who indicated that the site was easy to use,” he said. “To attract and keep customers, the study indicates that office supply Web site designers should consider ease of use for customers when designing the Web site’s navigation, billing account set-up, billing cycle and special features that enhance the Web experience.”

According to the study, firms that adopt online purchasing must allow time for employees to adjust to the new online system. “We found that employees who are more comfortable and have had significant training on the new system are more likely to use and accept the new technology,” Boyer said.

Note to Editors: For media interviews, Olson can be reached at 312/362-6061. Boyer is available at 517/353-6381.