Extended and Virtual Enterprises – A Review of the Concepts

Developments in the field of Distributed Information Technology and changing business needs have imposed new challenges on today’s businesses. Enterprises are faced with the challenges of global collaboration, competition and operations. The concepts of Extended and Virtual Enterprises are means of meeting these new expectations. But, what are these two concepts? In order to answer this question, I have reviewed various definitions of these concepts from different research communities. This article aims at providing an understanding of these two concepts in terms of their main characteristics, the distinction(s) between them, if any, and the relationship(s) between them. Based on the review of the concepts, I also redefine Extended and Virtual Enterprises.