Individual Attributes as a Determinant in Predicting E-commerce Adoption: A Case of Manufacturing SMEs Industries in Nairobi, Kenya

Abstract

Lately, researchers have been paying attention on e-commerce adoption equally in the developed and developing countries. The study’s main objective was to evaluate the individual factors influencing e-commerce adoption among SMEs within Nairobi Kenya from the perspective of CEOs, management and staff. The researcher investigated four factors affecting e-commerce adoption with emphasis on individual determinants versus technological, environmental, external and individual factors. The problem identified was lack of adequate research in EC adoption among SMES in the manufacturing industries. The research design used was both exploratory and descriptive. The underpinning theory used was Technology Acceptance Model theoretical framework. The researcher conducted the study based on the formulated research questions which consequently guided the structure of the questionnaires used. The proposed study area was manufacturing SMEs within Nairobi Kenya, who are registered with KAM. The data for the study was collected through sets of questionnaires, administered to respondents, as well as interviews with key stakeholders in the industry. For this study, stratified random sampling technique was applied to pick respondents and data collected was analyzed by using SPSS. A sample population of 78 SMEs was picked out of 243 KAM registered SMEs within Nairobi. The study concludes that individual attributes have a positive and highest influence on the adoption of e-commerce in manufacturing SMEs operating in Kenya. The study therefore recommends that the involved companies should invest in relevant IT training to create ICT awareness that will facilitate e-commerce adoption. The study also recommends that the organizations should come up with IT elaborate ecommerce campaigns to instill online business culture that will translate in enhancing ecommerce adoption. Hiring of key decision makers on ICT implementers should be drilled.