An Exploratory Investigation of Organizational Factors and e-Business Motivations Among SMFOEs in the US

It is well recognized that e-business supports all parts of an organization’s value chain, and offers valuable competitive advantage to firms. SMFOEs (Small and Medium-sized Family Owned Enterprises) represent the majority of firms worldwide and yet many have lagged in their adoption of e-business. This paper investigates the influence of key organizational demographics, owner/manager characteristics, and organizational strategy on SMFOEs’ motivations for e-business. Eight hypotheses were formulated and tested. Characteristics found to have the greatest influence on e-business motivation are the business strategy of the firm, new product strategy, and market scope. Owner/manager education, industry sector, and firm size were also influential, but to a lesser degree. The overall conclusion is that e-business is in the early stages of evolution in small organizations and is favoured largely by entrepreneurial and innovative firms.