PERSONALITY AND IMPLEMENTATION FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF E-COMMERCE FOR BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY BY SMES IN ANAMBRA STATE

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PERSONALITY AND IMPLEMENTATION FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF E-COMMERCE FOR BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY BY SMES IN ANAMBRA STATE

ABSTRACT

 

This is a research report on factors influencing adoption of e-commerce within SMEs. The case of selected SMEs in Awka LGA Anambra State Nigeria. Technology acceptance model was developed in this study. Five Objectives were proposed; Cost of ICT, ICT knowledge and skills, access to ICT, perceived benefits and Firm size context. The study adopted the following research methodology; First, the use of survey research design to collect data using a well-developed questionnaire. The target population was 1569 SME employees within SMEs in Awka LGA Nigeria. In this research the researcher used purposive sampling which allows the researcher to hand pick the respondents having information relevant to the study. Data was collected using a questionnaire, the collected facts were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential analysis applying statistical package for social science (SPSS) and correlation analysis and data presented in tables. The research concludes that majority of the entrepreneurs in Awka LGA in Nairobi, Nigeria have adopted e-commerce to improve organizational performance. The findings further point to the strong influence of ICT cost, ICT skill and perceived benefits, concerns on adoption of e-commerce. Firm size and Access to ICT influence but not as strongly as the other three attributes. It was evident that cost of ICT remains a key determinant of decisions made. The entrepreneurs expressed their concerns technical capabilities that could lead to deficient views of technical management, technical. The study recommends that SME‟s in Nigerianeed to incorporate all the e-commerce components into the ICT system to enable them to improve the overall performance of their firms. The study also recommends that future research will need to be carried in other financial industries and countries in order to show if the link between e- commerce components and SME‟s can be generalized.

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

 

1.1  Background to the Study

There was a notable proliferation to adopt online retailing systems in USA between 1995 and 2000. Subsequently, in industrialized countries e-commerce swift growth is apparent. Worldwide e-commerce expenditure was less than US$0.30 trillion in 2000 and has presently reached over US$9 trillion. The U S, shadowed by Europe, institutes the paramount share of approximately 80% e-commerce revenue worldwide. Conversely Middle East and African have the least portion of around 4% of global e- commerce revenue. According to Kagwana 2008, there are 98078, small and medium enterprises in Nigeriaout of which 156,924 are employed by these firms. The study population targeted the operators of small and medium enterprises in Awka LGA, Nairobi, Nigeria. The results from this target population was used to provide a whole view of the factors impelling e-commerce adoption amongst SMEs in Awka LGA costituency Nigeria.

Small businesses benefits a lot from Internet. As a transaction means, a marketplace, as a communication medium, it has advantages; the global Web is cheaper, fast and easy way to interact with clients, suppliers and other businesses all over the world. A company's Web helps to improve customer service, heighten credibility, gather feedback, and facilitate business procedure. (Chen, Steve, Alex & John, (2003)

There are many difficulties faced by SMEs essentially linked to its structure and the adjacent location,Small businesses ordinarily lack the financial resource, technical experties, and the experience to adopt new technology(Al-Hawari, Al–Yamani, and Izwawa, 2008),suggests that use of Internet is not compelling among small firms (Karanasios, 2007), mainly in less developed states.

Firms. in LDCs should have positive gain since their products can be overwhelmed using e-commerce technology and they are often not competitive leading to high cost of transport and unproductive business processes thus, e-commerce give them a better access to information due to availability of worldwide markets, firms in the LDCs expand into new sectors where they can gain from their low cost of labour,(UNCTAD 2001)

Moodle (2002) argue that businesses see e-commerce in South Africa,as extra investment cost with very indefinite returns. Firms used Internet platforms to complement other information, communication systems and trading procedures. More generally, the public Internet and e-mail are rather exclusively new way of doing business but regarded as a means of supporting existing trade associations.

Jelassi, T., & Enders, A. (2008). Mobile phones should be used to facilitate the transactions in order to improve efficiency and reduce high transaction costs, since both the customers and businesses people have access to it. However, in his findings he realized that most of those who had phones majorly used the phones for communication. One of the researchers (Macharia, 2009) further indicated that there was partial efficient research into E-commerce implementation in small micro enterprises and in selected SMEs in Nigeria.

 

1.2  Statement of the Problem

The usage pattern of the internet firms in Awka LGA, Nigeria illustrate a deliberate succession in the use of e-commerce information technology yet adoption is said to enlarge business through improved efficiencies and increased revenues, as well as the creation of new opportunities for business and consequent employment.

 

1.3 Purpose of the Study

This report scrutinized features inducing electronic commerce adoption of within SMEs in Awka LGA Nigeria.

 

1.4  Objectives of the Study

The study was steered by these five goals

  1. To Survey cost of ICT on e-commerce adoption by the SMEs in Awka LGA.
  2. To establish the ICT skills influence on the adoption of e-commerce by the small firms in Awka LGA.

 

  1. To establish the influence of perceived benefits on the adoption of e- commerce among the SMEs in Awka LGA.
  2. To evaluate the influence of firm size on adoption of e-commerce.

 

 

1.5  Research questions

  1. To what extent does cost of ICT influence the adoption of e-commerce by the SMEs in Awka LGA?
  2. How do ICT skills affect the adoption of e-commerce in Awka LGA?
  • How do ICT access influence the adoption of e-commerce by SMEs Awka LGA?
  1. How ICT do expected benefits influence the e-commerce adoption of among SMEs in Awka LGA?
  2. How do the size of the firm influence the e-commerce adoption of in Awka LGA?

 

1.6 Significance of the Study

As argued by (MacGregor 2011) Expansion of customer base is allowed by online transaction through global market penetration due enhanced access to information on an international scale, resulting in improved business performance, internal efficiency and their operations. The economic benefits that of online transactions are; increased productivity, sales, and economies of scale across the operational business processes. In Nigeria, the government has embraced policies on Information and Communications Technology named e-procurement and integrated financial and management information system.

 

1.7   Delimitation of the Study

This research was conducted within borders of Awka LGA. However, such data collected outside of the county but deemed pertinent for statistical analysis and comparisons was indispensable. The collection of data span from the late 1990s to the most recent of data available, (Crawford (1998) argued that from the perspective of commercial transactions as well as the manner in which it encourages improved

 

efficiency and transformation of internal systems with regards to receptive cost, , customization of offerings and the potential occurrence of novel products and services involvement in e-commerce are important

 

1.8 Limitation of the Study

The challenges the researcher faced was the financial aspect involved especially during the data collection phase and other activities related to the study however, with proper planning and self-organization, it was accoutered. Secondly the respondents might have ended up giving socially correct answers, where they were to respond to questions in a way viewed favorably by the researcher.

 

On the other hand, some respondents were concerned with their privacy and confidentiality of the information they were giving. This meant that they might have been worried that the information could be leaked, resulting to their harassment. To counter this, the researcher came up with a budget to enable her keep track of the expenditure, secondly the researcher assured the respondents of anonymity and confidentiality of the information given through the questionnaires.

PERSONALITY AND IMPLEMENTATION FACTORS AFFECTING THE UTILIZATION OF E-COMMERCE FOR BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY BY SMES IN ANAMBRA STATE

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