TO WHAT EXTEND CAN ADOPTING E-BUSINESS SYSTEMS CONTRIBUTES TO COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE AND BUSINESS PERFORMANCE?

CURRENT THEMES IN BUSINESS (BBUS601)

Dissertation

RESEARCH QUESTION: TO WHAT EXTEND CAN ADOPTING E-BUSINESS SYSTEMS CONTRIBUTES TO COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE AND BUSINESS PERFORMANCE?

STUDENT NAME:     MANUEL CARVALHO

STUDENT ID:             1510576

WORD COUNT:         4600

Abstract

New information and communication technologies such as the Internet, like other technological innovations, are characterized by profound changes in various sectors of activity.

Discussed in the scientific community, the adoption of e-business systems is recognized as a key concept for investment and technological innovation.

Thus, this study seeks to determine the determinants of the levels of adoption of e-business systems and their impact on the forms of competitive advantage and business performance (Chaffey, 2008).

Thus, this study seeks to determine the determinants of the levels of adoption of e-business systems and their impact on the forms of competitive advantage and business performance. In order to achieve this objective, an empirical cross-sectional study was carried out, after an in-depth bibliographic review, which was based primarily on an exploratory factor analysis, followed by a multivariate analysis of the relationship between the various factors and the level Of adoption of e-business systems, as well as the investigation of its impact with competitive advantage and organizational performance.

The research presented here shows the determinant role of knowledge management in the adoption of e-business systems to which a competitive advantage based on differentiation may be associated.

Table Of Content

Introduction……………………………..…………………………………………….  4

Research Objective …………………………..……………………………………. 6

Literature review …………………………………………………………………… 6

Methodology ……………………………………………………………………………11

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….12

Introduction

This chapter aims to provide an overview of the content of the research, defining its context, delimiting contexts and identifying its most relevant aspects, in order to begin the study of the determinants of adoption of e-business systems and their impact in Competitive advantage.

The following sections, after a brief description of the "state of the art" at the level of adoption of e-business systems, are intended to define the problem to be investigated, the object and objectives of the research. The theoretical and practical contributions expected from this work are presented in this chapter and, finally, the structure of the research will be presented.

At a time when change management is an important paradigm that many academics refer to, changes in information and communication technologies will be one of the greatest changes that humans have seen since the middle of the last century to the present (Foster, 1995). One of the most striking features of the age in which we live is precisely the information, the way it is treated, how it circulates and how it is spread. Information and communication technologies consist of processes of treatment, control and communication of information, based essentially on electronic means (Foster, 1995)

Internet access has increasingly become a form of communication, allowing new ways of contacting people and organizations. With the continued evolution of this technology, the possibility arose of any person or entity being able to share information in a more comprehensive and global way (Castells, 2001).

Currently, knowledge and information technologies are critical factors for the success of a strategic formulation (Castells, 2001).  Information technologies play a decisive role in knowledge management, being considered as one of the most important tools used to decide, compete and reach markets (Castells, 2001).

Information and communication technologies, in particular the Internet - a system consisting of services and information housed in local servers, accessible from anywhere on the globe, through different means, constituting a network without frontiers- have been Identified as tools to improve communication, building processes and creating new business opportunities (Castells, 2001) . The growth in the use of these technologies is due in large part to the growing need to respond to the new demands of modern society: speed and efficiency. When companies join this broad information network, the system itself tends to develop and move towards new challenges (Castells, 2001).

Information and communication technologies allow the support of integrated communication and information among project members. It is now widely recognized as one of the strengths of the economy and can act as a strategic tool, modifying the structure of the market and of production creating Competitive strategies (Gendron, 2012)

The Internet in particular is an extremely important technology, and it is not surprising that entrepreneurs are more attentive to their potential, whether used as a medium of communication or as a business space. The key question is not whether companies should adopt this technology, but rather how it should be developed. The Internet has created new industries such as online commerce and digital markets (Porter, 2001). Understood as a global network, the Internet acts as a powerful channel that presents new opportunities both for building business globally and for users, enriching products and services with more information and lower costs for its process automation. For Gendron (2012), the Internet is perhaps the largest and most well known implementation of interconnected networks, which allows keeping numerous individual networks connected throughout the world.

The adoption of e-business system is considered as adopting an innovation (Sanders, 2007), depending to a large extent on how companies view technology. Factors internal to the organization allow, to a greater or lesser extent, to create a culture of adoption of such systems in the company. In this sense top management can play a leading role in defining a business technology strategy. Technological strategies, as well as knowledge and management, depend to a large extent on the business context in which companies are located (Sanders, 2007).

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