Exploring Root Problems in Enterprise System Adoption From an Employee Age Perspective: A People-Process-Technology Framework

ABSTRACT

This study investigates the role of employees’ age in the perception of problems during enterprise systems (ES) adoption and use. The analysis of data gathered from Polish ES practitioners suggests that ability to perceive the broad impact of technology decreases with age. The findings also illustrate that younger employees recognize root problems among technical issues, while older practitioners focus on impediments associated with people and emphasize the role of competence and training as root causes.

KEYWORDS:

• Adoption
• ageing
• enterprise systems
• labor force age
• Poland
• problems

Acknowledgments

An earlier version of this manuscript, entitled Are We Ready for an Ageing Workforce? Learning from Difficulties Experienced by Polish Practitioners during Enterprise System Adoption and Use, has been presented as a keynote speech at the 4th International Conference on ICT Management for Global Competitiveness and Economic Growth in Emerging Economies (ICTM 2016) in Wrocław, Poland. The abstract of the conference presentation has been published in the conference proceedings: ICTM 2016 Proceedings of the International Conference on ICT Management for Global Competitiveness and Economic Growth in Emerging Economies, Conference Theme: Economic, Cultural and Social Innovations for Human Capital in Transition Economies (November 7, 2016). Available at ictm2016.edukacja.wroc.pl. The current paper includes a development and extension of the issues presented at the ICTM 2016 conference and thus is a significantly expanded version of the abstract published in the proceedings.

Funding

This research has been financed by the funds granted to the Faculty of Management, Cracow University of Economics, Poland, within the subsidy for maintaining research potential.

Additional information

Funding

This research has been financed by the funds granted to the Faculty of Management, Cracow University of Economics, Poland, within the subsidy for maintaining research potential.

Notes on contributors

Ewa Soja

Ewa Soja is assistant professor in the Department of Demography at the Cracow University of Economics, Poland. She holds a PhD in economics from the Cracow University of Economics. She also holds a Master of Science in Mathematics from Jagiellonian University of Cracow, Poland. Her research interests include socio-economic implications of demographic processes and the labor market in the context of an aging population. She is also interested in the possibilities of using ICT in the context of the problems associated with an aging population.

Piotr Soja

Piotr Soja is associate professor in the Department of Computer Science at the Cracow University of Economics (CUE), Poland. He holds a postdoctoral degree (habilitation) and PhD in economics from CUE. His research interests include enterprise systems adoption, ICT for development, and interorganizational integration. Piotr has published in Enterprise Information Systems, Industrial Management & Data Systems, Information Systems Management, and Information Technology for Development, among many other journals, as well as in numerous conference proceedings such as AMCIS, HICSS, ICEIS, and ISD.