Análisis de la región promotora del gen FOXP2 en primates

Issues surrounding individual persons are an important aspect of the adoption of ICT and e- commerce in any organisation. In SMEs, the position of individuals matters a lot as they are supposed to be generalist (Drew, 2003) in performing their functions. Most SME personnel are either in key managerial positions or are classified in a unit or function that performs a certain task or numerous tasks. Most SMEs are run by a manager who is usually an owner of the organisation (Demirbas, Hussain, & Matlay, 2011). The following sub-sections describe owner/manager and other individual aspects affecting e-commerce adoption.

2.2.1.1 Owner/Manager Characteristics

Literature continues to recognize the significance of the owner or manager in the adoption and use of ICT and e-commerce amongst SMEs (Caldeira and Ward, 2002; Charterjee et al., 2002; Cragg & King, 1993; Thong, 1999; Looi, 2005; Stockdale & Standing, 2006; Bharati and Chaudhury, 2006). Owner/manager factors relate to executive decisions that the SME owner /manager must make, what financial commitments to take relating to the overall direction of the firm, acquisition of new e-commerce infrastructure, whether the SME must consider e-commerce adoption or not, their appreciation or non-appreciation of ICT and new technological developments, and the like. This could be expected since the owner and

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manager is the full driver of all business undertakings in the organisation (Riemenschneider et al., 2003). The challenge comes when the manager is reluctant to push for e-commerce developments. A vibrant SME owner and/or manager usually transform the SME objectives to grow the organisation further (Karakaya and Shea, 2008). Where the owner or manager of the small enterprise slumbers and does not appreciate the value of ICT innovation, there is stifled growth in the firm. Extant studies have further established that a combination of owner/manager perspectives and attitudes towards ICT adoption and use, play an important role in the development of internal ICT competencies, and provide an important contribution to the development of an environment that enables ICT adoption and use (Wilson et al., 2008; Caldeira and Ward, 2002; Cloete et al., 2002).

2.2.1.2 Level of Education

It is also necessary that the owner/manager and other key personnel in SMEs attain an acceptable level of education in order to drive e-commerce activities in their firm. Research studies have found that one of the criteria for successful e-commerce adoption amongst SMEs is the level of education (Thong, 1999; Sarosa & Zowghi, 2003). A basic level of education such as General Certificate of Education (GCE) or its international equivalent is critical as it allows easy communication and appreciation of business terms in global business. Most SME owner/managers, especially in developing countries, are unable to communicate in international languages that give access to global markets. A general acceptable level of education would be a high school ordinary level certification, although higher business qualifications are better.

2.2.1.3 Level of ICT and E-commerce Knowledge

Another individual factor is the level of ICT and e-commerce knowledge. It is expected that an acceptable level of ICT and e-commerce knowledge of the owner or key manager, and other key decision making personnel can assist the SME to adopt appropriate e-commerce activities in their business (Teo & Ranganathan, 2004; Meso, Musa & Mbarika, 2005; Looi, 2005). A higher level of appreciation of ICT and e-commerce principles by the owner or key manager will directly influence considerations for further e-commerce uptake in the business. Due to the availability of resources and ease of entry into the business sector, SMEs in

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developed countries have a better knowledge of ICT than those in developing countries (Eriksson et al., 2008). In a comparative study of how SMEs in the US and Canada manage information technology (IT), Montazemi (2006) found that SMEs in US make better use of ICT and are better guided in managerial decisions-making. Karakaya and Shea (2008) depicted a high satisfaction of e-commerce initiatives in US companies which has resulted in expected levels of e-commerce success. In most developing countries, a low literacy level amongst SMEs is prevalent (Mollar and Licker, 2005a). This makes it difficult particularly for owner/managers to appreciate and comprehend ICT and e-commerce opportunities on the market. The inability and lack of access to information related to ICT and general management skills was cited as one of the factors affecting SMEs in the appreciation of ICT and e-commerce in Botswana (Duncombe and Heeks, 1999; 2002).

Some SME owner/managers lack the zeal and creativity to act beyond their environment (MacGregor, 2004; Lawson, Alcock, Cooper, & Burgess, 2003; Shemi and Magembe, 2002). In most cases, especially in developing countries, SME managers would do just the barest minimum to make themselves abreast with technology. Many who have complained about the cost of technology for e-commerce set-up have not explored other inexpensive ways of accessing global markets, such as open source software, short message service (SMS) facilities and other new generations of ICT (Scupola, 2010).

Previous studies (Mutula & Van Brakel, 2007; Ssewanyana & Busler, 2007; Forth & Mason, 2006; Cragg & King, 1993) emphasise the importance of ‘skilled ICT personnel’ within the organisation or from outsourcing firms to assist in deploying and using e-commerce. Wilson et al., (2008) found that skilled ICT personnel were crucial for e-commerce progression in the UK SMEs. They further argue that this factor is more important than financial ability.

2.2.1.4 Social and Cultural issues

Researchers have stated the need to consider social and cultural factors in the adoption of e- commerce in developing country contexts (Avgerou, 2002; Vatanasakdakul et al., 2004). They further argue that social and cultural factors are often disregarded when e-commerce

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technology is transported from developed countries to developing countries where it is implemented. This is a key point of view advocated by Avgerou and colleagues.