Clear and precise metrics are essential for evaluating phenomena such as e-commerce ('Net'-enablement) and the organizational use of networks and the Internet for commercial activities. Researchers require them for theory building and testing; practitioners require them for improving organizational processes. But for IS professionals to engage in serious creation of metrics, it is critical to recognize: (1) that the phenomenon of net-enablement is an enduring change, probably led in the future by 'brick-cum-click' firms, (2) that some new and old measures need to be differentially applied, and (3) that the papers in this special issue are not the end of metrics creation, but just the beginning.
Metrics are sine qua non for solid research, and scientific metrics have now been advanced with new approaches in the arena of Net-enablement (NE), otherwise known as e-commerce. Questions that likely require additional attention include: (1) Where/what is the real value in substituting information for physical processes?, (2) which NE systems effectively support end-to-end fulfillment?, and (3) when should a Net-enabled organization share information? With respect to extant studies in Net-enhancement, the field has been advanced in three methodological dimensions. Multiple methods have been used to validate measures. Approaches to metrics using archival/secondary data have also been initiated. Finally, strong external validity has been established through large scale data gathering.