E-organisation and its future implication for SMEs

Abstract

E-organisations are expected to be one of the promising organisational forms in this Internet cultural era (ICE). E-organisations are different from traditional organisations; and most traditional organisations are evolving towards becoming e-organisations. These are organisations established and operated, based on the Internet and other related technologies in an environment referred to as Internet culture—whereby organisations will be placing the Internet at the centre of their business and encouraging ubiquitous use of networked technologies. This paper incorporates several perspectives to examine how small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) use the network technologies and information and communication technology (ICT) in their current business environment. Through a literature review and interviews, we analyse the various options for managing the transformation, and its effects, to ascertain the appropriate strategies within a range of SMEs. The results of this study reveal that the SMEs’ journey towards becoming e-organisations can be classified into three stages: 1/2-fusion, fusion and the ultimate e-organisation stage. Based on this work, strategic solutions are proposed for future SMEs intending to adopt Internet and other network technologies.

Keywords:

• ICT
• Internet
• Organisations
• SMEs

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to acknowledge all the SMEs’ directors, owner-managers, IT personnel and general managers who responded and co-operated with us in this study.

Gideon Azumah is a researcher at The University of Sheffield Management School. He gained his first degree from the University of Ghana in Psychology and his Masters degree in International Business Economics from Seoul National University in South Korea. He is currently working towards a Doctorate (PhD) in e-organisations. Gideon's research interests are: e-organisations, e-business, e-logistics, e-things, production planning and control, SMEs, competitive advantage, supply chain management, and knowledge management.

Dr S. C. L. Koh , BEng (Hons), PhD, MIEE, MCMI, MIOM, is a deputy director of MBA in EcoBusiness and a lecturer in Quantitative Methods and Management at The University of Sheffield, Management School, UK. Her research interests are in the areas of production planning and control (particularly in MRP, MRPII and ERP), uncertainty management, modern operations management, logistics and supply chain management, e-business, e-organisations and sustainable manufacturing. She has published widely in various international and national academic journals and conferences. She is the Associate Editor of the International Journal of Operational Research, an editorial board member of the International Journal of Logistics Systems and Management and Benchmarking: An International Journal, serves as a chairperson and on the board of committee of various international conferences, and a referee for several international journals in these disciplines.

Dr Stuart Maguire is a lecturer in the Management School at The Sheffield University. He has worked in the area of information systems (IS) for several firms in both the private and public sectors. He has also completed over 20 years working within business and management schools in the United Kingdom. During this time he has been able to undertake research in over 150 organisations. Stuart's current research interests are information strategy, customer listening tools, the intelligent organisation, supply chain management, and the role of the internet within SMEs.