Barriers to E-procurement Adoption by Small and Medium Enterprises in Machakos County

Abstract

SME’s are a significant part of many countries’ economies and by embracing the change brought on by the internet and e-commerce applications they may achieve productivity gains. However, in developing countries research geared towards the adoption and application of e-procurement systems appears severely neglected in procurement literature. The target of the study was to establish the key barriers to e-procurement adoption among SME’s in Kenya and establish a guideline that will help mitigate those barriers. Companies are faced with the challenge of considering several perspectives before choosing to contribute and harness the new innovation. This has contributed to the low level of e-procurement adoption. A self-administered questionnaire was used to gather information from 80 owners of SME’s in Machakos County. The information was analyzed using SPSS both quantitatively and qualitatively. The outcomes uncovered that technological barriers were the key factor to e-procurement adoption amongst SME’s in Machakos County. A guideline was developed to guide the SME’s in adopting e-procurement. Key Words ICT Adoption, e-procurement, small and medium enterprises, IT Adoption and TOE, organizational barriers.