lCT Utilization of Medium-sized Business Organizations: The Case of Selected Business Organizations in Addis Ababa.
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Date
2015-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The major objective of the study was to investigate leT utilization level of selected medium
sized business organizations located in Addis Ababa. Specifically, the study attempted to analyze
how the se lected organi zations use leT in their core business activities and identify the
opportunities and challenges of incorporating leT in business activities. The study appli ed
qualitative method whereby semi structured in-depth interview and text analysis were used as
data collection instruments. The study applied tlu·ee models: the adoption ladder model, the
Nolan's 6th stage of IT/IS and the transporter model as a theoretical framework that depicts the
utilization level of the businessorgani zations. The organizations were selected tlu·ough purposive
sampling method, that was based the definition of medium sized businesses formulated by an
international information technology research company named Gartner. The data obtained from
the in-depth interview were analyzed qualitatively, in an approach that begins with a profile of
theselected organization and continues with the analysis of the data gathered about the specific
organization. In the study, the data which were gathered through document analysis were used as
a describing feature of the major appl ications used by the selected organizations. By applying the
above methods of data collection and organi zation the research answered four basic research
questions. The findings of the study revealed that medium-sized business organizations struggle
with various problems of adopting leT opportunities as a result of the lack of skill and training,
internet service provider and leT appl ications. The findings of the study showed that except one
organization the medium-sized businesses do not apply any aspect of e-commerce. In add ition,
the study has also revealed that the selected businesses internal and external communication flow
takes place through the faci lities of leT. The study concludes that medium-sized organizations
utilize different information exchange and business activity enhancer software, but faces
problems such as employees' lack of the appropriate culture and knowledge of le T as a barrier
to effecti ve ly utili zing le T in the work activity of business organizations. Based on the findings
of the study, the researcher has forwarded recommendations on how busihess organizations can
better utilize leT to improve their performance.
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Keywords
lCT Utilization of Medium-sized, Business Organizations