E-BUSINESS USE AND VALUE FOR FAST GROWTH SMALLTO-MEDIUM ENTERPRISES IN TURBULENT ENVIRONMENTS

While e-business has been playing an increasingly role in facilitating firms to conduct businesses, there is a dearth of research examing the antecedcents and outcomes of e-business use in the entrepreneurial small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). Drawing upon the technology-organizationenvironment (TOE) framework and resource-based view (RBV) of the firm theory, we develop, theorize, and test an integrated theoretical model to evaluate the antecedents and consequences of ebusiness use in the fast growth SMEs context. We propose that IT resources, strategic IT alignment, market orientation, managerial perception of industry environments, and business partnerships are the key antecedents enabling fast growth SMEs to use e-business, and thus help these companies to achieve and sustain e-business value in turbulent environments. Structural equation modeling is employed to test our theoretical conceptualization on a cohort of 310 Australian fast-growth SMEs across different industrial sectors. The results confirm our conceptualization, highlighting the prominent role of IT, strategic planning, culture, managerial skills, and business partnerships in SME success. Our study provides initial empirical evidence to understand the relationship between IT and entrepreneurial SME performance. These findings have important implications for research and business practices

SME Selection Criteria for External IS/IT Consultants, including Swiss Universities of Applied Sciences

Working PaperIt does not matter whether small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have good, bad, or no IS/IT competencies. Almost all enlist the services of an external consultant at some point. External consultants can handle a wide range of tasks, from fixing an existing bug, to choosing new software or adapting a Business strategy in line with state-of-the-art technology. While there is some evidence that external assistance with IT projects is an effective course of action, so far no information has been available on what SMEs pay attention to when choosing their consultants. The aim of the preliminary study was therefore to establish SMEs’ selection criteria for hiring IS/IT consultants, to determine what competencies SMEs look for in their external consultants, and to find out if Swiss universities of applied sciences (UAS) are included in their selection process. For this purpose, interviews were conducted with 15 SMEs, most of which are based in the Swiss cantons of Zurich and Schaffhausen. Findings indicate that selection criteria vary considerably according to the size of the SMEs. The majority have never consulted a UAS

Profiting from the Accumulation and the Assimilation of IT-based resources and capabilities: An Empirical Study in Small and Medium Enterprises

The capability of using Information Technologies (IT) based resources for improving business processes and enhancing the firm economic performance has long been investigated in large firms. Nevertheless, with the decreasing costs of IT solutions, also Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) may be able to accumulate and assimilate IT-based resources in order to increase their economic performance. This study applies two conceptual approaches (resource-based view and contingency-based view) to assess the strategic value of IT-based resources in SMEs. Fourteen hypotheses related to these approaches are developed and tested based on survey data collection from the CIOs of 373 SMEs to understand more clearly the entire process from the adoption of IT-based resources to the achievement of higher economic performance, through the development of IT-based capabilities. The influence of internal and environmental factors, and the features of the business environment where SMEs operate are investigated. Results indicate that the resource-based view and the contingency-based approaches provide complementary understanding of the strategic value of IT in SMEs, making five main contributions. First, SMEs that operate under particular environmental (low turbulence and high complexity) and internal conditions (where the IT managerial capabilities are developed) are more likely to adopt earlier IT solutions. Second, SMEs are more likely to develop IT-based capabilities that are internally oriented, rather than the externally oriented. Third, internally oriented IT-based capabilities are developed independently by the environmental conditions where the SME operates, while the externally oriented are developed not uniformly among industry types. Fourth, the features of the business environment in which SMEs operate influence the IT-based resources adopted and the IT-based capabilities developed. Finally, given industry-level differences in competitive environments, the value appropriation of capabilities that firms developed using IT depends on industry type, with SMEs operate in turbulent environments exhibiting lower profit returns, while in munificent environments exhibiting lower or higher profit returns according to the IT-based capability considere

Are we really competent? : Assessing organizational ability in delivering IT benefits

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present organizational competencies for gaining information technology (IT) benefits within organizations. Following the analysis of 16 in-depth case studies, a set of six high level, fundamental competencies and 17 facilitating competencies are identified.Aframework for orchestrating the organizational competencies is also presented. The results of this research would be useful to academics in developing measures for assessing the level of organizational competence and for practitioners in identifying and nurturing competencies for organizational benefits realization. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology involved two phases. Phase 1 entailed conducting 16 extensive case studies. Case study methodology employed follows guidelines provided by Yin and Benbasat et al. Case studies are a suitable means to collect the data since the notion of competencies in delivering IT benefits has not been well understood in the literature. By analyzing and understanding the particular situation and factors in each organization in an in-depth manner, the paper develops a sound interpretation of the abilities that organizations need to have in place to deliver IT benefits. Findings – In order to gain business benefits from IT investments, organizations must develop competencies to exploit IT. These competencies involve individual skills and organizational processes that enable those skills to be effectively applied. This paper identifies 23 competencies categorized into fundamental and facilitating competencies that firms need to have in place if IT services are to be delivered adequately and business benefits achieved. Also developed is a network of competences based on the data collected in the 16 cases studied. Research limitations/implications – Like any research, this paper has its limitations. Given the qualitative and interpretive nature of the research, a lot of assertions are interpretations of the authors. While in the literature, this has been argued as a valid way to undertake research, clearly there are biases that creep into the research. Practical implications – The model of competencies presented forms a good basis for enterprises to fine-tune their abilities for harnessing IT. Originality/value – While management researchers have been researching the notion of organizational competence for a while, it has not been well considered in the information systems arena; it is felt that this research makes a positive contribution to that effect.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

IT-enabled Knowledge Management in Primary Care Settings: An Absorptive Capacity Perspective

Primary care medical practices have made sizable IT investments in recent years, primarily deploying electronic medical record (EMR) systems as well as Web-based e-learning applications. The basic assumption here is that developing IT-enabled knowledge management capabilities may significantly improve the innovation and clinical performance of these organizations. Increasing uncertainty in their environment requires them to develop greater absorptive capacity (ACAP), i.e. an organizational learning capability to deal with the external sources of this uncertainty. In applying ACAP theory to primary care settings, this study seeks to answer the following research questions: What are the e-learning and EMR capabilities developed by primary care medical practices in response to increasing environmental uncertainty? To what extent does the development of an e-learning capability influence the development of an EMR capability? To what extent does building ACAP contribute to positive outcomes in terms of medical practices\u27 innovation and clinical performance

Information Technology and Organizational Learning Interplay: A Survey

The objective of this paper is to provide a systematic review of the evolutionary trends in the research domain of information technology and organizational learning. Having surveyed various journals and key conferences between 2000 and 2018 on the topic, we observe that information technology (IT) has expanded from its general form to various contemporary information systems, e.g. knowledge organization systems, communication and collaborative systems and decision support systems. However, organization learning (OL) now essentially occurs through knowledge management activities, e.g. knowledge acquisition, storing, sharing and application of knowledge. The survey reported here not only validates the interplay of IT and OL but also reveals some important intervening factors between IT and OL, e.g. absorptive capacity, organization culture, user trust, acceptance and satisfaction that work as deterministic elements in the reciprocal relationship of IT and OL. We propose future research to explore interaction between big data analytical systems and organizational learning

Antecedents and Impacts of E-Business Aligment Amongst Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

E-business has great potentials for firms to extend their business efficiency. Nevertheless, due to various problems and constraints, the e-business deployment within SMEs sector has been reported as not effective. To ensure effective e-business deployment, necessary measures are needed to assess how firms align diverse ebusiness capabilities in support of their business operation. This study therefore aims to investigate the extent firms align diverse e-business capabilities across business processes (e-business alignment). Using a strategic fit perspective, this study has observed two major propositions. First, firms‟ ability to align e-business to support the most crucial business processes has potentially led to better realisation of ebusiness values. Secondly, certain managerial and environmental conditions have explained the differing characteristics of e-business alignment amongst firms. This study employs quantitative research approach using survey method to collect and collate evidences from 140 owner/managers of SMEs. Preliminary analysis has indicated e-business alignment/misalignment patterns across business functions. The cluster analysis further reveals three distinct profiles with different characteristics of e-business alignment. These profiles are labelled as 'highly fit', 'moderately fit' and 'low fit' based on their e-business fit characteristics. This result confirms the first proposition where highly aligned firms will report greater and wider e-business impacts. The second proposition reveals that environmental uncertainty, IT sophistication, owner/manager knowledge on advanced IT/IS, e-business deployment status, and support network are significant predictors to different e-business alignment characteristics among firms. This study suggests that firms relatively have different priority over e-business solutions to support their business. These findings have demonstrated why some firms do not progress to a higher e-business ladder. It further justifies unequal deployment of e-business solutions to support functions across firms

Effective use of data analytics and its impact on business performance within small-to-medium-sized businesses

Business use of data analytics and its potential impact on firm performance have become topics of deep interest within both the business practitioner and academic communities. While previous research has demonstrated relationships between data analytics and firm performance in larger firms, there is limited research on whether and how data analytics is used within and impacts Small-to-Medium-sized Business (SMB) settings. Given the preponderance of SMBs within the US economy, and their contribution to employment and economic activity, it is important for SMB owners to understand what management practices lead to effective use of data analytics that in turn impacts SMB performance. Drawing upon the Resource-Based View (RBV) of the firm and prior empirical research on practices within large firms, this dissertation identifies the resources that are needed to form a Data Analytics Capability (DAC) and examines the relationship between the maturity of DACs and the extent of business value realized. The research model was tested using Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) analysis of survey data gathered from a sample of 300 SMB firms in the US, complemented with qualitative interviews of SMB owners. The results provide evidence that a more developed DAC can lead to higher Data Analytics Business Value across business functions