The Adoption of Business-to-Business E-Commerce: Empirical Evidence for German Companies

Although in its infancy, one promising application of Internet technology for firms is so-called Internet commerce or electronic commerce. This paper analyses the determinants of B2B (business-to-business) adoption borrowing from the literature on the adoption of new technologies and considering factors like firm size, corporate status, human capital and international competitive situation. An ordered probit model is applied to a data set containing about 3,000 enterprises from the German manufacturing industry and the German services sector in the year 2000. We find positive and significant effects of firm size, the share of highly qualified employees and the export share. An IT-intensive production process enhances the probability of a broad use of B2B e-commerce. An important influence on the use of B2B is the bandwagon effect, implying that firms are more likely to use this new Internet application if others within the same industry likewise do it. We find no significant effects of firm age and of the fact that a firm belongs to a group of companies as measures of a firm's flexibility and financial power

Drivers of e-commerce adoption amongst small & medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the business service sector / Zahariah Mohd Zain …[et al.]

Technology has played a significant role in the development of business to business (B2B) or business to consumers' (B2C) electronic commerce (or e-commerce) over the recent decades. The purpose of this study is to empirically examine determinants of e-commerce adoption among small-and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the business services sector in a progressively developing nation. This study tested six hypotheses focusing on organizational, technological and environmental factors that may affect e-commerce adoption. Using judge mental sampling approach, a total of 110 feedback were gathered via online questionnaire based survey. The study employed SmartPLS 3.0 (Partial Least Square) structural equation modelling statistical software to confirm the hypotheses of this study. Structural model analysis was conducted and it was revealed that perceived relative advantage, perceived compatibility, e-commerce knowledge and expertise, external change agent and competitors' pressure have positive and significant influence on the SMEs respondents' e-commerce adoption. The study found that the most significant factors influencing e-commerce adoption among SMEs in Selangor was perceived relative advantage, to which managers or small and medium-sized enterprises see the potential advantage of e-commerce . The implication of this study is that SMEs need more exposure on the benefit of technology and intervention to guide them to change from traditional business to online business

Research on the Application of E-commerce to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs): the Case of India

SMEs account for a large proportion and play an important role in the development of each country in the world, including India. The globalization will bring many advantages for enterprises however SMEs will face fierce competition at the local, national and International level. In order to maintain and promote the important role of SMEs in the context of increased competition, SMEs have to change and adopt new technologies. E-commerce and digital technologies are bringing opportunities to help SMEs improve their competitiveness, narrow the gap with big enterprises thanks to their fairness and flexibility of the digital business environment.       According to UNIDO (2017), India is one of the countries successfully applying e-commerce to SMEs. Contributing to this success is the important role of the Indian government. Therefore, this paper focuses on researching the application of e-commerce to SMEs in terms of the role of government in promoting and creating an ecosystem for SMEs and e-commerce development

Which B2B e-business model to adopt: the case of Taiwan agribusiness firms

The research reported in this paper investigated the reasons which led Taiwanese agribusiness firms to adopt specific e-business models. Initially, the study was based on a prior study conducted in the context of Australian agribusiness firms. Its relevance lies in the importance of agribusiness to the economies of both nations and because whereas Australia has developed a reputation as an efficient exporter of agribusiness products, Taiwan needs to develop export markets for its agribusiness produce as it is facing increasing competitive pressure in such global markets, particularly with its entry into the WTO. Findings enhanced the preliminary model as two additional factors, the influence of buyers and suppliers and the influence of government agencies, were found to also influence the selection of e-business models

Which B2B e-business model: the case of Australian agribusiness organisations

The growing importance of B2B e-commerce has seen the need for the development of a model to assist in the choice of e-business models. This paper explores the internal and external factors influencing the choice of e-business models using depth interviews and case studies conducted with Australian agribusiness organisations. Sixteen factors, were identified with only 11 regarded as important to the selection of e-business models

A Survey of Greek Agricultural E-Markets

The role that information technology plays in today’s business activities has led to an increase in firms using and/or deploying e-markets online. This development undoubtedly affects the agri-food sector, since a large number of agricultural firms are demonstrating or are expected to demonstrate e-commerce activities. This paper aims to provide an overview of the current status of agricultural e-markets in Greece, by presenting results from an analysis of 100 cases. Results indicate that Greek e-markets may still have a rather low degree of sophistication, but they demonstrate a strong B2B orientation, as well as an outreach for international customer bases.Internet, e-commerce, e-markets, agriculture, agri-food sector, survey, Consumer/Household Economics, Marketing,

Adoption of Information and Communications Technology in Rural Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) : Case of MSEs in South Indian State of Kerala, India

ICT plays a significant role in the life of enterprises. Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) have to be familiar and in tune with ICT applications, within the context of fast evolving global market dynamics. However, how far MSEs of rural India could address this challenge of adoption of ICT within their enterprise level? What are the challenges and opportunities that rural MSEs could accrue from ICT adoption?Micro and Small Enterprises; Rural Enterprises; India; ICT adoption

Internationalization strategies of frontier Lusophone-African multinational enterprises: comparative case studies of Angola and Mozambique

Internationalization theories suggest that enterprises from emerging and frontier markets will adopt different entry modes than those in advanced economies. There are very few studies to date, however, examining the process of how multi-national enterprises (MNEs) from frontier markets internationalize or evaluating which factors influence their mode of entry into global markets. This research investigates the internationalization strategies of Lusophone Africa MNEs from Angola and Mozambique, more specifically their entry mode, to expand the framework for entry mode strategies to include the motivations and issues of MNEs from emerging and frontier economies. Surveys, as well as in-depth, in-country, qualitative interviews reveal that these frontier and emerging market MNEs opted for equity-based investment strategies as their preferred mode of entry. A significant group second group opted for e-commerce/e-business strategies, and direct and indirect exports. Finally, a smaller portion of the interviewees chose Greenfield investment as a mode of entry. Many of these MNEs could be classified as born global/INV.https://doi.org/10.1080/15475778.2017.1335127Accepted manuscriptPublished versio