GOVERNMENT ICT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMMES: A WEBSITE ANALYSIS OF MALAYSIAN SMEs
Keywords:
Internet, Government, E-commerce, SMEsAbstract
E-commerce, one of the areas of ICT that interests governments, has received particular attention. It is said that e-commerce is crucial for economic success and gives SMEs a major advantage in the marketplace. Yet, reality seems to be quite different from this rhetoric. This paper explores the extent of e-commerce adoption amongst SMEs in Malaysia that have received government e-commerce grants. It highlights preliminary findings from an exploratory study of 101 websites of funded SMEs. Only 68 of the 101 websites are operational at all. Many SMEs have e-mail and websites, but very few bother with anything more sophisticated. This result is surprising if e-commerce really is so valuable to SMEs. Implications are discussed and some concluding thoughts are made.
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References
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Chan, B. and Al-Hawamdeh, S. (2002). The Development of E-commerce in Singapore. Business Process Management Journal, 8(3), 278‒288.
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Corbitt, B. J. and Thanasankit, T. (2002). Acceptance and Leadership: Hegemonies of e-commerce Policy Perspectives. Promethus, 20(1), 39‒57.
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Daniel, E. (2003). An Exploration of the Inside-Out Model: e-commerce Integration in UK SMEs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 10(3), 233‒249.
DeLone, W. H. (1988). Determinants of Success for Computer Usage in Small Business. MIS Quarterly, 12(1), March, 51–61.
Drew, S. (2003). Strategic Uses of E-Commerce in the East of England. European Management Journal, 21(1), 79‒88.
DTI (2001). Business in the Information Age: International Benchmarking Study. Department Trade and Industry, UK.
Fillis, I., Johansson, U. and Wagner, B. (2004). Factors Impacting on e-Business Adoption and Development in the Smaller Firm. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 10(3), 178–191.
Gilbey, K. (2005). Programme to Improve Access to Finance for Small Businesses in the Objective 2 Areas of London. Local Economy, 20(3), August, 309‒313.
Grandon, E. E. and Pearson, J. M. (2004). Electronic Commerce Adoption: An Empirical Study of Small and Medium US Businesses. Information & Management, 42(1), December, 197–216.
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Macdonald, S. (2004). Review Article: Productivity and Organisational Transformation: Optimising Investment in ICT. Promethus, 22(1), 99–107.
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Malaysia (2004). Economic Report 2003‒04. Kuala Lumpur: Economic Planning Unit. Goverment ICT Assistance Programmes: A Website Analysis of MALAYSIA SMEs 103
Mehrtens, J., Cragg, P. B. and Mills, A. M. (2001). A Model of Internet Adoption by SMEs. Information & Management, 39, 165–176.
Mohd Asri, A. (1999). The Accessibility of the Government Sponsored-support Programmes for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Penang. The International Journal of Urban Policy and Planning, 16(2), 83‒92.
Mohd Osman, M. H. (2001). High Technology Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (HTSMEs): An Assesment of the Determinants of Growth and Constraints Faced by Malaysia HTSMEs in Malaysia. Louborough Business School, Loughborough University, Unpublished PhD Dissertation.
Newton, G. (2006). DATA Issue 6 - Incubate to Innovate: The BITS Program does Its Bit for ICT, Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Australia Government.
OECD (1997). Globalisation and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), OECD., Paris.
OECD (1998). Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Technolgy and Competitiveness, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris.
OECD (2000). Small and Medium Enterprise Outlook. 2000 Edition. Paris: OECD.
Poon, S. and Swatman, P. M. C. (1999). An Exploratory Study of Small Business Internet Commerce Issues. Information & Management, 35, 9‒18.
Pratten, C. (1991). The Competitive of Small Firms, Occasional Paper 57, Department of Applied Economics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge.
Quayle, M. (2002). E-Commerce: The Challenge for UK SMEs in the Twenty-First Century. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 22(10), 1148‒1161.
Raymond, L. (1987). An Empiricl Study of Management Information Systems Sophistication in Small Business. Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 5(1), 38–47.
Raymond, L. (2001). Determinants of Web Site Implementation in Small Businesses. Internet Research: Electronic Networking Applications and Policy, 11(5), 411-422.
Riley, M., Wood, R. C., Clark, M. A., Wilkie, E. and Szivas, E. (2000). Researching and Writing Dissertations in Business Management. Thomson Learning, Croatia.
Rodriguez, J. (2005). Internationalisation of the SME: The Aware Manager. Management School, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, Unpublished PhD Dissertation, 1‒244.
Salam, A. F., Rao, H. R. and Pegels, C. C. (1998). Content of Corporate Web Pages as Advertising Media. Communication of the ACM, 41(3), March, 76–77.
Scupola, A. (2009). SMEs’ E-commerce Adoption: Perspectives from Denmark and Australia. Journal of Enterprise Information Management. 22(1/2), 152‒166.
Scupola, A. (2003). The Adoption of Internet Commerce by SMEs in the South of Italy: An Environmental, Technological and Organisational Perspective. Journal of Global Information Technology Management, 6(1), 52–71.
Simpson, M. and Docherty, A. J. (2004). E-commerce Adoption Support and Advice for UK SMEs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 11(3), 315‒328.
SMIDEC (2001). E-Commerce Grant for SMIs. Kuala Lumpur: Small Medium-sized Industry Development Corporation (SMIDEC).
Soh, C., Quee, M., Fong, G., Chew, D. and Reid, E. (1997). The Use of the Internet for Business: The Experience of Early Adopters in Singapore. Internet Research: Electronic Network Application and Policy, 7(3), 217–228.
Stern, L. W. and Weitz, B. A. (1998). The Revolution in Distribution: Challenges and Opportunities. Long Range Planning, 4(6), December, 813‒821.
Steve, S. (2001). An Overview of Content Analysis. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 7(17).
Storey, D. J. (1994). Understanding the Small Business Sector. London: Routledge.
Taylor, M. and Murphy, A. (2004). SMEs and E-business. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 11(3), 280‒289.
Timmers, P. (1999). Electronic Commerce: Strategies and Models for B2B Trading. Wiley, New York.
Turban, E., King, D., Lee, J. K. and Viehland, D. (2003). Electronic Commerce 2004 - A Managerial Perspective. 3rd. International Edition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall Inc.
Wigand, R. T. (1997). Electronic Commerce: Definition, Theory and Context. The InformationSociety, 13, 1–16.
Zwass, V. (1996). Electronic Commerce: Structures and Issues. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 1(1), 1‒23.
Beaver, G. (2002). Small Business, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise Development. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited.
Beveren, J. V. and Thomson, H. (2002). The Use of Electronic Commerce by SMEs in Victoria, Australia. Journal of Small Business Management, 40(3), 250–254.
Boocock, J. G. (1994). Venture Capital in Malaysia: The Role of the Government. Development Policy Review, 13(4), 371‒390.
Brown, D. H. and Lockett, D. (2004). Potential of Critical E-Applications for Engaging SMEs in E-Business: A Provider Perspective. European Journal of Information Systems, 13, 21–34.
Chan, B. and Al-Hawamdeh, S. (2002). The Development of E-commerce in Singapore. Business Process Management Journal, 8(3), 278‒288.
Colecchia, A. (1999). Defining and Measuring Electronic Commerce: Towards the Development of an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Methodology. International Conference on the Measurement of Electronic Commerce. Singapore, 6-8 December.
Corbitt, B. J. and Thanasankit, T. (2002). Acceptance and Leadership: Hegemonies of e-commerce Policy Perspectives. Promethus, 20(1), 39‒57.
Cragg, P. B. and King, M. (1993). Small-Firm Computing: Motivators and Inhibitors. MIS Quarterly, (March), 47–59.
Curran, J. and Blackburn, R. A. (2001). Researching the Small Enterprise. London: SAGE Production.
Daniel, E. (2003). An Exploration of the Inside-Out Model: e-commerce Integration in UK SMEs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 10(3), 233‒249.
DeLone, W. H. (1988). Determinants of Success for Computer Usage in Small Business. MIS Quarterly, 12(1), March, 51–61.
Drew, S. (2003). Strategic Uses of E-Commerce in the East of England. European Management Journal, 21(1), 79‒88.
DTI (2001). Business in the Information Age: International Benchmarking Study. Department Trade and Industry, UK.
Fillis, I., Johansson, U. and Wagner, B. (2004). Factors Impacting on e-Business Adoption and Development in the Smaller Firm. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 10(3), 178–191.
Gilbey, K. (2005). Programme to Improve Access to Finance for Small Businesses in the Objective 2 Areas of London. Local Economy, 20(3), August, 309‒313.
Grandon, E. E. and Pearson, J. M. (2004). Electronic Commerce Adoption: An Empirical Study of Small and Medium US Businesses. Information & Management, 42(1), December, 197–216.
Harvie, C. and Boon, C. L. (2002). The Role of SMEs in National Economies in East Asia. East Asian SMEs: Contemporary Issues and Developments - An Overview, 2, 1–12.
Holsti, O. R. (1969). Content Analysis for the Social Sciences and Humanities. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley,
Kalakota, R. and Whinston, A. B. (1997). Electronic Commerce: A Manager’s Guide. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Addison-Wesley.
Kendall, J. D., Tung, L. L., Chua, K. H., Ng, C. H. D. and Tan, S. M. (2001). Receptivity of Singapore’s SMEs to Electronic Commerce Adoption. Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 10, 223‒242.
Laudon, K. C. and Traver, C. G. (2002). E-commerce: Business, Technology and Society. Addison-Wesley Books, Boston.
Lawson, R., Alcock, C., Cooper, J. and Burgess, L. (2003). Factor Affecting Adoption of Electronic Commerce by SMEs: An Australian Study. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 10(3), 265‒276.
Lee, C. T. (1981). Role of Government in the Heavy Industries. AIESEC Seminar in Heavy Industries: Vision of the 1980s on 17th October 1981 at Kuala Lumpur.
Macdonald, S. (1987) “High Technology Industry in Australia: A Matter of Policy”. In Breheny, M. J. and McQuaid, R. (eds), (1987). The Development of High Technology Industries: An International Survey, Croom Helm, London, 223–261.
Macdonald, S. (2002). The IT Productivity Paradox Revisited: Technological Determinism Masked by Management Method? International Journal Information Technology and Management, 1(1), 1‒29.
Macdonald, S. (2004). Review Article: Productivity and Organisational Transformation: Optimising Investment in ICT. Promethus, 22(1), 99–107.
Macdonald, S., Anderson, P., Senker, P., Liesch, P. and Assimakopoulos, D. (2001). Information for Innovation in SMEs: The Impact of the Education and Training Provided by the Yorkshire and Humberside Universities’ Association. Sheffield University Management School, Sheffield.
Malaysia (2004). Economic Report 2003‒04. Kuala Lumpur: Economic Planning Unit. Goverment ICT Assistance Programmes: A Website Analysis of MALAYSIA SMEs 103
Mehrtens, J., Cragg, P. B. and Mills, A. M. (2001). A Model of Internet Adoption by SMEs. Information & Management, 39, 165–176.
Mohd Asri, A. (1999). The Accessibility of the Government Sponsored-support Programmes for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Penang. The International Journal of Urban Policy and Planning, 16(2), 83‒92.
Mohd Osman, M. H. (2001). High Technology Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (HTSMEs): An Assesment of the Determinants of Growth and Constraints Faced by Malaysia HTSMEs in Malaysia. Louborough Business School, Loughborough University, Unpublished PhD Dissertation.
Newton, G. (2006). DATA Issue 6 - Incubate to Innovate: The BITS Program does Its Bit for ICT, Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Australia Government.
OECD (1997). Globalisation and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), OECD., Paris.
OECD (1998). Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Technolgy and Competitiveness, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris.
OECD (2000). Small and Medium Enterprise Outlook. 2000 Edition. Paris: OECD.
Poon, S. and Swatman, P. M. C. (1999). An Exploratory Study of Small Business Internet Commerce Issues. Information & Management, 35, 9‒18.
Pratten, C. (1991). The Competitive of Small Firms, Occasional Paper 57, Department of Applied Economics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge.
Quayle, M. (2002). E-Commerce: The Challenge for UK SMEs in the Twenty-First Century. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 22(10), 1148‒1161.
Raymond, L. (1987). An Empiricl Study of Management Information Systems Sophistication in Small Business. Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, 5(1), 38–47.
Raymond, L. (2001). Determinants of Web Site Implementation in Small Businesses. Internet Research: Electronic Networking Applications and Policy, 11(5), 411-422.
Riley, M., Wood, R. C., Clark, M. A., Wilkie, E. and Szivas, E. (2000). Researching and Writing Dissertations in Business Management. Thomson Learning, Croatia.
Rodriguez, J. (2005). Internationalisation of the SME: The Aware Manager. Management School, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, Unpublished PhD Dissertation, 1‒244.
Salam, A. F., Rao, H. R. and Pegels, C. C. (1998). Content of Corporate Web Pages as Advertising Media. Communication of the ACM, 41(3), March, 76–77.
Scupola, A. (2009). SMEs’ E-commerce Adoption: Perspectives from Denmark and Australia. Journal of Enterprise Information Management. 22(1/2), 152‒166.
Scupola, A. (2003). The Adoption of Internet Commerce by SMEs in the South of Italy: An Environmental, Technological and Organisational Perspective. Journal of Global Information Technology Management, 6(1), 52–71.
Simpson, M. and Docherty, A. J. (2004). E-commerce Adoption Support and Advice for UK SMEs. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 11(3), 315‒328.
SMIDEC (2001). E-Commerce Grant for SMIs. Kuala Lumpur: Small Medium-sized Industry Development Corporation (SMIDEC).
Soh, C., Quee, M., Fong, G., Chew, D. and Reid, E. (1997). The Use of the Internet for Business: The Experience of Early Adopters in Singapore. Internet Research: Electronic Network Application and Policy, 7(3), 217–228.
Stern, L. W. and Weitz, B. A. (1998). The Revolution in Distribution: Challenges and Opportunities. Long Range Planning, 4(6), December, 813‒821.
Steve, S. (2001). An Overview of Content Analysis. Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation, 7(17).
Storey, D. J. (1994). Understanding the Small Business Sector. London: Routledge.
Taylor, M. and Murphy, A. (2004). SMEs and E-business. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 11(3), 280‒289.
Timmers, P. (1999). Electronic Commerce: Strategies and Models for B2B Trading. Wiley, New York.
Turban, E., King, D., Lee, J. K. and Viehland, D. (2003). Electronic Commerce 2004 - A Managerial Perspective. 3rd. International Edition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall Inc.
Wigand, R. T. (1997). Electronic Commerce: Definition, Theory and Context. The InformationSociety, 13, 1–16.
Zwass, V. (1996). Electronic Commerce: Structures and Issues. International Journal of Electronic Commerce, 1(1), 1‒23.
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Published
2019-03-06
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Hashim, N. A., Abdullah, N. L., & Hanafiah, M. H. (2019). GOVERNMENT ICT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMMES: A WEBSITE ANALYSIS OF MALAYSIAN SMEs. Journal of Contemporary Issues and Thought, 3, 93–104. Retrieved from https://ojs.upsi.edu.my/index.php/JCIT/article/view/981
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