Barreiras à adoção dos marketplaces B2C : a relutância das micro e pequenas empresas Portuguesas : Região Norte : em vender na Amazon

Esta investigação começou com um estágio curricular na consultora INOVA+. Em fevereiro de 2019, a INOVA+ lançou um novo serviço de consultoria especializado no marketplace da Amazon. Os baixos níveis de adoção de marketplaces entre as empresas Portuguesas e o facto de não terem sido encontrados estudos prévios sobre esta temática em Portugal motivaram a questão de investigação: por que motivo as micro e pequenas empresas Portuguesas não vendem na Amazon? O estudo de caso múltiplo foi a metodologia escolhida para recolher e analisar os dados. Através de entrevistas semiestruturadas a sete micro e pequenas empresas da Região Norte, e com base num modelo conceptual inspirado no modelo TOE de Tornatzky & Fleischer (1990), foi possível identificar sete barreiras tecnológicas, organizacionais e do ambiente que têm um impacto negativo na adoção do marketplace da Amazon. Esta investigação permite, pela primeira vez, uma compreensão aprofundada sobre a relutância das micro e pequenas empresas Portuguesas em vender na Amazon. A principal limitação do trabalho prende-se com a subjetividade do estudo de caso e o tamanho reduzido da amostra. Futuras investigações poderão utilizar o modelo conceptual proposto e testá-lo numa amostra mais numerosa e que inclua empresas de média dimensão e de diferentes regiões do país.This research began with a curricular internship at INOVA+. In February 2019, INOVA+ launched a new consulting service specialized in Amazon. The low levels of marketplaces adoption among Portuguese companies and the fact that there are no previous empirical studies on this subject in Portugal have motivated the research question: why do Portuguese micro and small companies not sell on Amazon? A multiple case study was the methodology chosen to collect and analyze the data. Through semi-structured interviews with seven micro and small companies in the Northern Region, and based on a conceptual model inspired by the Tornatzky & Fleischer’s TOE model (1990), we identified seven technological, organizational and environmental barriers that have a negative impact on the adoption of the marketplace Amazon. This research allows, for the first time, an in-depth understanding of the reluctance of micro and small Portuguese companies to sell on Amazon. The main limitation of this work is the subjectivity related with case study methodology and the small sample size. Future investigations could use the proposed conceptual model and test it in a larger sample that includes medium-sized companies from different regions of the country

ICTs in medium-sized farms in developing countries: a case study in Mexico: conventional banana and organic rice cultivation

This research examines how farmers working medium-sized farms in Mexico have adopted and enacted Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), and how these ICTs have impacted work practices. The effects of ICTs on farmers’ economic relations are explored from a business process perspective using a framework that combines Transaction Cost (TCT) and Social Embeddedness theories. A single case study in Mexico with two embedded units of analysis from different crop sectors, a cluster of banana producers from Tabasco and an organic rice grower from Campeche, provide an in-depth understanding of the adoption of ICTs and their impact. We examine issues of learning and co-operation, and how ICTs have affected production and distribution and the positioning of farmers in the context of their work practices and economic relations. The thesis discusses the ICTs used in the business process cycle of farming and their impact on business development and economic exchange. The research elaborates on and confirms the existence of network forms of organisation that operate in the farmers’ communities and analyses their social embeddedness. The findings show that information technologies bring improvements to the agricultural business process, facilitating not only the collection, collation and analysis of data to support informed decisions, but also innovative farming and business practices through learning and co-operation. We find that ICTs complement and support social relationships, both preexisting (traditional community connections and business links) and novel (virtual contacts and social media) to stimulate business development. The significance of social context is corroborated and should help inform development policy

IS-enabled creativity and survival of co-located artist/craftspeople communities: supporter experiences

This research investigates artist/craftspeople community supporters’ experiences appropriating information systems (IS). It proposes a framework combining theories of practice, social construction of technology and social capital for conceptualising supporters’ IS appropriation issues relating to government funding reductions, artist/craftspeople rejection of modern-day business, religious/tribal beliefs and art/craft community and sectoral tensions