2-2-6: The Contributes of The e-Management in the .... II Questionnaire English Version. 62. III ... TPB. Theory of Planned Behavior. TPS. Transaction Processing System ..... the research methodology that was applied in this research, and display ...... Sekaran, U. (2006), "Research Methods for Business: A Skill-Building.
Mu’tah University Deanship of the Graduate Studies
An Investigation of Factors Influencing the Adoption of Electronic Management Based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA): A Case Study in the University of Technology / IRAQ By Haydir Basil Ali Mahmood
Supervised by Dr. Fairouz Al-Dhmour
A Thesis Submitted to the Deanship of the Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Business Administration (MBA) Department of Business Administration
Mu’tah University, 2013
عبر اآلراء الواردة في الرسالة الجامعية ال تُ ِّ بالضرورة عن وجهة نظر جامعة مؤتة
II
Dedication I would like to dedicate my research: To my Father whose is still with me, always fills my mind and has a special part in my life and heart. To the best Mother for her patience and for her emotional support throughout my whole Master journey. To my Sisters and Best Friends, who have helped me to achieve my dream of completing a thesis for submission for award of MBA.
Haydir Basil Ali
I
Acknowledgement My supervisor Professor Fairouz Aldhmour who through her continuous useful feedback and direction helped me to complete and submit my thesis. She did not hide any knowledge or Information that will enhance my understanding of the research subject. She always tries to support her students there along the way. Thank you even though the words can not express my appreciation. My sponsor University of Technology for offering me this opportunity to achieve my ambition. My Father and Mother for their patience, as well as to my sisters for their continuous encouragement and emotional support.
Haydir Basil Ali
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Table of Contents Dedication Acknowledgement Table of Contents List of Tables List of Figures List of Appendices List of Abbreviations Abstract in English Abstract in Arabic Chapter One: Introduction 1-1: Research Background 1-2: Research Problem and Questions 1-3: Research Importance 1-4: Research Aim and Objectives 1-5: Research Model 1-6: Research Hypotheses 1-7: Operational Definitions 1-8: Research Structure Chapter Two: Theoretical Framework and Previous Studies 2-1: Introduction: 2-2: Theoretical Framework 2-2-1: The Concept of the e-Management 2-2-2: The Attributes of the e-Management 2-2-3: The Benefits of the e-Management 2-2-4: The Objectives of the e-Management 2-2-5: The Characteristics of the e-Management 2-2-6: The Contributes of The e-Management in the Organization's Functions 2-2-7: The Steps of The e-Management Application 2-2-8: Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) 2-2-9: Some Experiments in The Application of The eManagement 2-2-9-1: The e-Management Experience in the USA 2-2-9-2: The e-Management Experience in the Japan 2-2-9-3: The e-Management Experience in the Jordan 2-2-9-4: The e-Management Experience in the UAE 2-2-9-5: The e-Management Experience in the Saudi Arabia 2-3: The Factors Influencing the adoption of e-Management Based on the (TRA) 2-3-1: University Readiness (UR) 2-3-2: Top Management Support (TMS) III
I II III VI VII VIII IX X XI 1 1 2 2 2 3 4 4 5 8 8 8 8 9 11 12 13 13 14 14 15 15 16 16 16 17 18 18 19
2-3-3: Financial Resources (FR) 2-3-4: Subjective Norms of knowledge Sharing (SNKS) 2-3-4: Attitude (A) 2-4: Literature Review 2-5: Summary Chapter Three: Design and Methodology 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Research Design 3-3: Research Strategy 3-4: The Population and Sampling Method 3-4-1: The Research Population 3-4-2: Sample Selection and Sample Size 3-5: Data Collection Methods 3-5-1: Questionnaire Construction 3-5-2: Response Rate 3-6: Data Analysis Tools and Techniques 3-7: Validity and Reliability Test 3-7-1: Validity 3-7-2: Reliability 3-8: Summary Chapter Four: Data Analysis and Hypotheses Testing 4-1: Introduction 4-2: Sample Characteristics 4-3: Multiple Regression Analysis 4-3-1: Multi-Collinearity Test 4-3-2: Normality 4-3-3: Fitness of the Model 4-3-4: Auto-Correlation 4-4 : Hypotheses Testing 4-4-1: The First Main Hypothesis 4-4-2: The Second Main Hypothesis 4-4-3: The Third Main Hypothesis 4-5: Summary Chapter Five: Conclusions and Recommendations 5-1: Introduction 5-2: Discussion of Findings 5-2-1: University Readiness (UR) 5-2-2: Top Management Support (TMS) 5-2-3: Financial Resources (FR) 5-2-4: Subjective Norms of Knowledge Sharing (SNKS) 5-2-5: Attitudes (A) 5-3: Conclusions of the Research 5-4: Recommendations of the Research IV
19 20 20 20 24 25 25 25 25 26 26 26 27 27 28 29 29 29 32 32 34 34 34 37 37 38 38 39 39 39 43 46 48 49 49 49 49 49 50 50 50 51 51
5-5: Research Contribution 5-6: Future Researches 5-7: Limitations of the Research 5-8: Summary References Appendices
51 52 52 53 54 60
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List of Tables No. (1-1) (2-1) (3-1) (3-2) (3-3) (3-4) (4-1) (4-2) (4-3) (4-4) (4-5) (4-6) (4-7) (4-8) (4-9) (4-10) (4-11) (4-12) (4-13) (4-14) (4-15) (4-16)
Title Variables Operational Definitions The definition of e-Management Number of Responding for Each Department Reasons for Not Responding Test of Construct Validity Cronbach’s Alpha for the Scales The Multi-Collinearity Test Skewness Coefficients Fitness of the Model for Regression Analysis Model Summaryb Multi Regression Analysis The Stepwise Multiple Regression A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(1-1) A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(1-2) A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(1-3) A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(1-4) Multi Regression Analysis The Stepwise Multiple Regression A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(2-1) A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(2-2) A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(2-3) A Simple Regression to test the sub-Hypothesis H0(2-4) Correlations between the Independent Variables Regression weight for paths correlations between the (4-17) Independent, Mediating and Dependent Variables
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Page 5 9 27 28 31 32 38 38 39 40 40 41 42 42 43 43 44 45 45 45 46 47 47
List of Figures No. (1-1) (1-2) (2-1) (2-2) (2-3) (4-1) (4-2) (4-3) (4-4) (4-5) (4-6)
Title Research Model Research Structure The Attributes of e-Management Management Information System MIS The Theory of Reasoned Action TRA Percentages of Respondents According to Their Gender Percentages of Respondents According to Their Age Percentages of Respondents According to Their Education Level Percentages of Respondents According to Their Job Description Percentages of Respondents According to Their Experience Regression weight for paths correlations between the Independent, Mediating and Dependent Variables
VII
Page 3 7 10 11 15 34 35 35 36 36 48
List of Appendices No. I II III IV
Title UOT Organizational Structure Questionnaire English Version Questionnaire Arabic Version Judiciary Group
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Page 60 62 70 77
List of Abbreviations A AB2CEWS BPR CBIS CCE CEO CFI CRM DBA DBMS df DSS EIS EPM ERP FR HR HRM ICT ICTC IDT IS IT KwSS MIS OAS RMSEA S.E SCM SME's SNKS SPSS TAM TMS TPB TPS TQM TRA UOT UR α
Attitudes Airline Business-to-Customer E-Commerce Websites System Business Process Reengineering Computer-Based Information Systems Center Computer Electronically Chief Executive Officer Comparative Fit Index Customer Relationship Management Database Administrator Database Management System Degree of Freedom Decision Support Sysytem Executive Information System Enterprise Performance Management Enterprise Resource Planning Financial Resources Human Resources Human Resource Management Information and Communication Technology Information and Communication Technology Center Innovation Diffusion Theory Information Systems Information Technology Knowledge Workers Support System Management Information Systems Office Automation System Root Mean Square Error of Approximation Standard Error Supply Chain Management Small and Medium-Size Enterprises Subjective Norms of Knowledge Sharing Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Technology Acceptance Model Top Management Support Theory of Planned Behavior Transaction Processing System Total Quality Management Theory of Reasoned Action University Of Technology University Readiness Cronbach’s Alpha IX
Abstract An Investigation of Factors Influencing the Adoption of Electronic Management Based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA): "A Case Study in the University Of Technology (UOT) / IRAQ" Haydir Basil Ali Mahmood Mu’tah University, 2013 This study is concerned with investigation of the factors that influence the adoption of electronic management (e-Management) based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) in the University Of Technology (UOT) in IRAQ. To achieve this aim the researcher investigated a set of factors: University Readiness (UR), Top management Support (TMS), Financial Resources (FR), Subjective Norms (SNKS) and Attitudes (A). A questionnaire was developed and distributed to a sample of (240) respondents to collect primary data, and based on a convenience sample the response rate was about 75%. Furthermore, the findings were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Software (SPSS) and Amos program to analyze the path of the independent variables with an R2 of 35.5%, linear Multiple Regression analysis revealed that all research variables have a significant effect on the adoption of e-Management in the UOT. The results indicated that UR, TMS, FR, SNKS and Attitudes have a positive and significant influence on the adoption of e-Management based on (TRA) in the UOT in IRAQ. Based on the research findings and conclusions, a number of recommendations and future research suggestions were proposed such as: The UOT should keep a consistent rate of growth and development for the University Readiness, because of its important role in e-Management and the positive effect it has on the adoption of eManagement in the UOT.
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الملخــــص التحقيق في العوامل المؤثرة على اعتماد اإلدارة اإللكترونية باالعتماد على نظرية النشاط المسبب (:)TRA
"حالة دراسية في الجامعة التكنولوجية /العراق" حيدر باســل علي محمود جامعة مؤتة3102 ،
يهدف البحث إلى التحقق من العوامل المؤثرة على اعتماد األدارة االلكترونية باالعتماد على نظرية االجراء المسبب ( )TRAفي الجامعة التكنولوجية /العراق, ولغرض تحقيق اهداف البحث قام الباحث باختبار مجموعة عوامل :جاهزية الجامعة ( ,)URدعم االدارة العليا ( ,)TMSالمصادر المالية ( ,)FRالمعايير الشخصية لتشارك المعرفة ( )SNKSوالمواقف (.)A لغرض تحقيق اهداف البحث فقد تم تصميم استبانه وتم توزيعها على أفراد العينة البالغ عددهم ( )042مستجيب بهدف جمع البيانات األولية ،وبلغ معدل االستجابة ( .)%57والختبارالفرضيات فقد تم استخدام الرزمة اإلحصائية للعلوم االجتماعية ( )SPSSوبرنامج ( )Amosلتحليل المسار الخاص بالمتغيرات المستقلة ومن خالل استخدام اسلوب االنحدار المتعدد كانت ( )R2 = 35.5%مما يدل على وجود اثر هام ذو داللة احصائية للعوامل المؤثرة في اعتماد االدارة االلكترونية في الجامعة التكنولوجية. أشارت النتائج إلى أن جاهزية الجامعة ,دعم االدارة العليا ,المصادر المالية, المعايير الشخصية لتشارك المعرفة والمواقف لهم تأثير ايجابي وذو داللة احصائية على اعتماد االدارة االلكترونية باالعتماد على نظرية االجراء المسبب في العراق. وبناءا على نتائج البحث قدمت مجموعة من التوصيات العملية التي قد تعد مهمة للجامعة ا لتكنولوجية ،كما قدمت بعض االقتراحات لمجاالت البحث العلمي المستقبلية اهمها :يجب على الجامعة التكنولوجية ان تحافظ على معدل نمو ثابت في تطوير جاهزية الجامعة وخاصة البنية التحتية التكنولوجية ،بسبب دورها المهم في اإلدارة اإللكترونية وأثرها اإليجابي في تبني اإلدارة اإللكترونية في الجامعة التكنولوجية. XI
Chapter One Introduction 1-1: Research Background: The rapid changes in the business environment lead to the need for technologies and their acceptance at an accelerating rate; organizations are becoming more flexible using various Information Systems (IS) to support more strategic and complex procedures in order to achieve competitive advantage. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is a facilitator of organizational activities, processes and assistant tool. It has been used to support management in achieving the organization's goals. Many types of Computer-Based Information Systems (CBIS) have been developed to support the organizational performance, such as Electronic Management (Martin, Brown, Dehayes, Hoffer & Perkins, 2002; Turban, Rainer & Potter 2001). Currently, many universities globally have adopted e-Management and they have recognized that it has made a positive effect on their performance (Cordella, Martin, Shaikh, & Smithson, 2011). The eManagement enables universities to link their internal and external data processing systems more efficiently and flexibly, to work more closely with their students and staff, and to better satisfy the needs and expectations of their clients (Paul, 2000). In practice, e-Management refers to an emphasis on the functions that occur using electronic capabilities, this can be partially explained by the e-Management use of ICT solutions in improving the university's performance (Jeong, 2007). In addition, e-Management helps to simplify routine procedures, and to make data and information more easily accessible to all beneficiaries regardless of time and place. Another benefit and important contribution of the e-Management on the universities have been in reducing the transaction times and costs. (Jeong, 2007). One definition of e-Management is providing services to the customers by using IT capabilities via the Internet (Vladimir et al, 2012). Liu Yao, et al., (2011) explain e-Management as a strategic approach to managing future and dynamic organizations through the implementation of a high-performance and Technology-Based System. Based on the above, the researcher concluded the e-Management is the ability to use ICT for the implementation of administrative activities electronically via the Internet and providing electronic services anywhere and at any time. Therefore, the main aim of this research is to investigate the factors influencing the adoption of e-Management based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) in the University of Technology UOT in IRAQ
1
1-2: Research Problem and Questions: The e-Management as it relates to the ICT revolution will help to improve the performance of the universities, raise the university's administrative efficiency, and assist in eliminating problems and obstacles that the university faces. Thus, the university require to establish high University Readiness and Top Management Support. In addition, the university will also need to have the Financial Resources in order that they are able to apply the e-Management and best Knowledge Sharing between the employees in the university. Therefore, the researcher determines and identifies the factors that influence the adoption of e-Management based on the Theory of Reasoned Action TRA in the UOT in IRAQ. Correspondingly, this research attempts to answer the following main question: "What are the impacts of the internal factors on the adoption of e-Management at the UOT in IRAQ?" The answer to this question will be achieved by answering the following sub-questions: 1- What are the impacts of the internal factors that influence the adoption of the e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ? 2- What are the impacts of the internal factors on the "Attitudes" in the UOT in IRAQ? 3- What are the impacts of the internal factors that influence the adoption of the e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ through the Attitudes? 1-3: Research Importance: The e-Management in universities has become a necessity and standard in this era of rapid technological growth. The e-Management is also part of the e-Government program in IRAQ. Hence, the importance of this research can be summarized in the following points: 1- This study may represent a starting point for future research to the adoption of e-Management based on the TRA. 2- This study aims to investigate the factors influencing adoption of the e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ. 3- The findings of this study could be useful and purposeful to the UOT in IRAQ. 1-4: Research Aim and Objectives: The main aim of this study is to determine the factors influencing adoption of the e-Management based on the TRA by achieving the following objectives: 1- Explaining the impact of the internal factors on the adoption of the eManagement at the UOT in IRAQ. 2
2- Investigating the impact of the internal factors on the Attitude. 3- Explaining the impact of the internal factors on the adoption of eManagement at the UOT / IRAQ through the Attitude. 4- Providing significant recommendations based on the results that will be resulted in this study. 1-5: Research Model: To study the main factors influencing successful adoption of eManagement, the researcher relied on previous studies, the Theory of Reasoned Action and his observations in building the proposed model below. The dependent variable in this research is the adoption of eManagement, while the independent variables are divided into four important categories of factors. The first of the independent variable is “University Readiness”. The second independent variable is “Top Management Support”. The third independent variable is “Financial Resources” while the fourth and final independent variable is “Subjective Norms of Knowledge Sharing” and the mediating variable is "Attitude". Independent Variables Factors influencing the adoption of e-Management
University Readiness
Mediating Variable
Dependent Variable
Attitude
Adoption of eManagement
Top Management Support Financial Resources Subjective Norms of Knowledge Sharing Figure (1-1) Research Model
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1-6: Research Hypotheses: H01: There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the factors affecting (UR, TMS, FR, SNKS) that influence the adoption of e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ. H0(1-1): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the University Readiness that influences the adoption of e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ. H0(1-2): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the Top Management Support that influences the adoption of eManagement based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ. H0(1-3): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the Financial Resources that influences adoption of e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ. H0(1-4): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the Subjective Norms of Knowledge Sharing that influences on the adoption of e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ. H02: There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the Independent Variables that influences the Attitude. H0(2-1): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the University Readiness that influence the Attitude. H0(2-2): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the Top Management Support that influences the Attitude. H0(2-3): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the Financial Resources that influences the Attitude. H0(2-4): There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the Subjective Norms of Knowledge Sharing that influences the Attitude. H03: There is no statistically significant impact at the level of (α≤0.05) of the factors affecting (UR, TMS, FR, SNKS) that influences the adoption of the e-Management based on the TRA in the UOT in IRAQ through the Attitude. 1-7: Operational Definitions: The researcher articulated some concepts of the study variables through the following operational definitions:
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Table (1-1) Variables Operational Definitions Variables Independent Variables: University Readiness Top Management Support Financial Resources
Subjective Norms of Knowledge Sharing
Attitude
Dependent Variable: Adoption of e-Management
Source
Items (Questions)
Chong Yee Ling, 2009
1-12
Ana,R.et al, 2006
13-17
Stone et. al, 2006
18-22
Hong et.al, 2009
23-28
The sum of beliefs about a particular behavior weighted by evaluations of these beliefs.
Seonghee & Boryung, 2008
29-33
The adoption of the e-Management is due to the extent of available group from main factors which are University Readiness, Top Management Support, Financial Recourses, Subjective Norms of knowledge Sharing and Attitudes in the UOT in IRAQ.
Hart & Porter, 2004
34-45
Operational Definition The ability and willingness of an organization to shift from Traditional Management to the eManagement in the UOT in IRAQ. The level of influence that the chief executive officer (CEO) practices to support adoption the e-Management at the UOT in IRAQ. Contents that relate to the adequacy of the funds necessary to enable the adoption of the eManagement at UOT in IRAQ. Looks at the influence of people in one's social environment on his/her behavioral intentions, the beliefs of people, weighted by the importance one attributes to each of their opinions, and that these factors will influence one's behavioral intention to adoption the eManagement.
1-8: Research Structure: This research is organized into five chapters as displayed in Figure (1-2), as follows: Chapter One (Introduction): The aim of this chapter is to provide a general background concerning the research subject, research problem and questions, research importance, research aim and objectives, and the structure of the research. In addition, the researcher determines the model, hypotheses, and operational definitions. Chapter Two (Theoretical Framework and Previous Studies): The objective of this chapter is to review the literature and previous studies that are related to the e-Management. The purpose of this literature review and analysis of previous completed studies is to identify the factors that relate 5
to the e-Management. It is also in this chapter where the research model will be presented with the hypotheses. Chapter Three (Methodology): The goal of this chapter is to discuss the research methodology that was applied in this research, and display many elements; the research design, research strategy, population and sample selection, data collection methods, variables measurement, analysis tools, and instrument validation and reliability. Chapter Four (Data Analysis and Hypotheses Testing): The purpose of this chapter is to present and analyze the data obtained from the use of questionnaires and to also test the hypotheses. The researcher examines sample characteristics, displays data descriptive analyses, tests the hypotheses, and gives and interprets the results. Chapter Five (Conclusions and Recommendations): This chapter providing the findings and conclusions. In addition, the purpose of this chapter is to state the limitations and provide some further recommendations for future research.
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Chapter One Introduction
Chapter Two Theoretical Framework and Previous Studies Theoretical Framework
Previous Studies
Chapter Three Design and Methodology
Chapter Four Data Analysis and Hypotheses Testing
Chapter Five Conclusions and Recommendations
Figure (1-2) Research Structure
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Chapter Two Theoretical Framework and Previous Studies
2-1: Introduction: This chapter is comprised of the following section: An explanation of the concept of e-Management. That includes: its attributes, benefits, objectives, contribution to the organization's functions and the procedures of the adoption process. Also, this section reviews the TRA. Furthermore, it will highlight the previous studies concerning the focus of this research. In addition, the factors that influence the adoption of e-Management based on the TRA are reviewed. Finally, the researcher determines the model, hypotheses, and operational definitions. 2-2: Theoretical Framework: 2-2-1: The Concept of the e-Management: The e-Management is designed to support an organization through the development and deployment of the ICT. It can be defined as a strategic approach of managing the future and dynamic organizations through the implementation of a high-performance and Technology-Based System (Liu Yao, et al., 2011). According to Liu Yao et al., (2011), e-Management focuses on integration and automation by using rapid development and deployment methodology towards the creation of the knowledge environment to achieve the university’s vision. Fatimah et al, (2010) indicated it as a strategic approach. It starts with a vision and mission of the university. It focuses on the core value of the applications which will give the best quality output and the true efficiency and cost effective operations that can be gained through the strategic approach of e-Management considering the future business style (Alam & Khalifa, 2009). In the higher education sector, tend to present of service to its student via the internet. These services provide orientation for new students, registration and applications for graduate studies. The following services will be provided: Contents & Knowledge Management Services: with a focus on knowledge and experience sharing. Collaboration: it aims at bringing teachers, students, administrators and enterprises together and facilitating mutual interactions. Processes Management: to improve organizational performance through new management and business models linked to the business strategy (Rafik et al., 2011; Sirkemaa,., 2007). The following are different definitions for e-Management as given by different researchers and academics:
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Sources Vladimir Vujin et al, 2012
Table (2-1) The definitions of e-Management Definitions Providing services to the customers by using IT capabilities via the Internet.
A strategic approach to managing future and dynamic organizations through the implementation of a highperformance and technology-based system. UN eThe use of internet technology as a platform for exchanging Management information, providing services and transacting with citizens, survey, 2008 businesses, and others. The process in which an e-organization is created or built by Jeong Chun means of e-service through integrating the e-sources using eHai, 2007 techniques. Chatura R. et The use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) al, 2005 to change the structures and processes of organizations. Beynon The application of Information and Communication Davies P. Technologies (ICT) in support of all the activities of business. (2004) Use of Information Technology (IT) to improve the Sharon S. performance of the organization, from streamlining processes to Dawes, maintaining electronic records, to improving the integration of (2002) information. Liu Yao, et al., 2011
2-2-2: The Attributes of the e-Management: The e-Management is comprised of many attributes which include: 1- Database Management System (DBMS): the Database is considered as the heart of the university system, which is a central warehouse where all data are collected, stored, analyzed and retrieved in an efficient and structured manner. In e-Management environment, the University Database should be a single integrated database in order to ensure data integrity and security; This database shall be supported by the actual DBMS such as: Oracle, Informix or Sybase (Liu Yao, et al., 2011). The DBMS shall be managed by a dedicated Database Administrator DBA. The DBA will make sure the database is running smoothly and efficiently. The general functions of DBA include: Establish database design policy for overall system; Establish up-to-date data dictionary for system, people and endusers; Organize and maintain database structures; Establish database documentation; Advise the team on the efficient data manipulation approach; Develop security procedures to safeguard the database; Develop 9
backup procedures; and Resolve any issues on the data management (Fumei , France & Christopher, 2010).
Figure (2-1) The Attributes of e-Management (Source: Liu Yao, et al., 2011) 2- Management Information System (MIS): MIS is a complete and integrated application system to support the operation of the university. It is designed on the e-Management’s principles to achieve UOT’s vision and mission. With MIS, all levels of users will be interfaced with the university database, as it consists of all the applications needed by all staff, customer, supplier and top management of the UOT in order to do their task or job efficiently (Laudon, & Laudon,, 2009). All applications in MIS will be interacting with the university database through DBMS (Laudon, Kenneth & Laudon, 2009). The Management Information Systems MIS include: Executive Information System EIS, Decision Support Systems DSS, Office Automation System OAS, Knowledge Workers Support System KwSS, Transaction Processing System TPS, Human Resource Management HRM, Enterprise Resource Planning ERP, Enterprise Performance Management EPM, Supply Chain Management SCM, Customer Relationship Management CRM, Project Management and Database Retrieval Applications (Lucey, 2005). (Figure 2-2).
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(Figure 2-2) Management Information System (MIS) (Source: Lucey, Terry, 2005) 3- Devices Management: e-Management will utilize all available devices in the university in order to increase the level of automation. The devices will be integrating with MIS application and the DBMS. The devices include: Intelligent Building Controller; Smart Card; Bar Code Reader; Voice (SMS, Call Center); Video Conference; Facility’s Controlle, etc. (Laudon & Laudon, 2009). The devices will be changed from time to time based on the available technology. Everyone in the university shall be alert with the new devices in the market, and understanding the opportunity to use the new device in order to improve the automation in the processes (Addison Y.S. Su, Stephen J.H. Yang, Wu-Yuin H. & Jia Zhang, 2010). 4- User Management: The fourth attribute is all the users who are involved in using the system either as a process owner or an end-user. All the users must be identified and categorized properly to ensure every type of users are given a proper attention in terms of planning, designing and development (Kock, Nereu F., et al., 1994). The critical categories of users are: Data Owner; Process Owner; System Owner and End-Users. 5- External Entity: The external entities of the university such as: ministry, customers, students, banks or anyone who has interaction with the University Database. In e-Management environment, it will allow the external entities to enter the main database without any worries (Gengeswari, K. & Abu Bakar A. H., 2010). 2-2-3: The Benefits of the e-Management: The e-Management has many benefits and can be summarized by: First: The Benefits of the e-Management for the university including: Sequence work of various departments of the university as a central unit; 11
Accuracy and speed in completing transactions; Increase administration productivity; Provide the required information electronically to all levels of management; and Increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the university (Harjit & Gurdev, 2011). Second: The Benefits of the e-Management for the Customers in the university including: Transparency, clarity and speed in how to access services in the university; The possibility to communicate with the university in any place and at any time; Participation in policy making in the university through feedback; Access to services for customers to ensure the confidentiality and security of information; and Providing a set of options to customers in the quality of service according to their desires (Ching Cheah, Aik Teo, Jia Sim, Kam Oon & Boon , 2011). Third: The Benefits of the e-Management for the Staff in the university including: Developing the technical skills and abilities of the staff; Ease of doing administrative work as unify models of electronic work procedures; The effective communication between the staff and management; Speedy access to necessary information in order to perform a job through the electronic archive in the university; and Electronic Documentation of employees through personal PIN numbers assigned to each employee (Andrew, 2010). 2-2-4: The Objectives of the e-Management: The objectives of e-Management as it relates to the goals of the university can be described as the following: Reducing the administrative complexities of the beneficiaries and achieving the maximum benefit for the university's customers; The prompt completion of work and reduce the time; and Increase the efficiency of the university's performance (Ana, Del, & Antonio, 2006). According to Bland, Vikki, (2004), the e-Management has been more objectives like: Emphasize on the Total Quality Management TQM; Reducing the errors that related to the human factors; Increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the managerial decisions and Provide information and data electronically to decision makers. Budi Hermana, et al., (2007) indicated that the objectives of eManagement include: Improving performance and helping top management in the university in different areas including planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation; The e-Management combines the concepts of Enterprise Resource Planning ERP and Customer Relationship Management CRM into one system. It also expedites transactions and maintains the rapid exchange of information in order to keep up with technological advances at work.
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2-2-5: The Characteristics of the e-Management: The e-Management is comprised of many characteristics which include: Connectivity Enabler: With current e-Management, university can connect to the other universities in the world as fast as possible. It connects people inside and outside the university in a few seconds through such systems as Information System (IS), e-mail system and through all the information on the internet (Farid, Roya & Dolores, 2009). Intelligent Engine: The e-Management is intelligent, with the capabilities of simulating, thinking, predicting and planning. Also, it can support the university with less human resource especially at the operational level. Thus, it can improve the university’s efficiency and help the university to react fast and intelligently to all the new challenges in the future. High Performance Processor: The e-Management has the capability to process all the problems much faster compared with the human’s processing capability, with the e-Management including high performance memory, CPU, Storage Management, Network system, Operating System, Database system and other necessary in the infrastructure. In addition, Ana, R., Del, A., & Antonio P. (2006), indicated to some characteristics of the e-Management, which are: Speed and Clarity; Work in anytime and anyplace; Direct Control; and Confidentiality and Privacy. 2-2-6: The Contributions of the e-Management in the University's Functions: The e-Management contributes in the Electronic Planning through: Development of the university’s capabilities and also expands the participation of staff at the operational levels; Increases the university's ability to diagnose problems as a result of improved ability in gathering information; Support the university's ability to identify and evaluate different alternatives and Increase the university's ability to simulate reality situations by using Management Information Systems MIS (Benamati, & Lederer, 2008). The Contribution of e-Management to the Electronic Organizing by: The communication and cooperation between different individuals in the university; There are important changes that develop in the labor force and these changes impact on the university in two areas. Firstly, highly skilled workers and professionals are employed. Secondly, use the "Teleworking" as a result of the changes made in the labor force (Christoph, 2009). About the Electronic Orientation, The e-Management Providing continuous communication between managers and employees of the internal network (Intranet) and with others from outside the university via the extranet; Increase the capacity for innovation; Increase the understanding of the tasks and advanced flexibility in adapting to the
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changing environment; and It also Increase the services for employees, customers, students, etc. (Jessup, & Valacich, 2006). The e-Management add value to the Electronic Control by achieving real-time control instead of the current control which is based on the past; Enhances the relationships between the staff in the university and helps them in being based on trust and this reduces the administrative effort (Chatura, Gordon & Harvir, 2005). 2-2-7: The Steps of the e-Management Application: The switch to e-Management requires that several steps are taken in order to achieve the university's goals. The steps of application of the eManagement in the UOT are: Step 1: The Preparation of the Preliminary Study: The formation of a working group that includes specialists in MIS who know how to manage the IT and identify different alternatives and collecting information and also make the preliminary studies and change management to determine the requirements for the application of e-Management at the UOT (Matthias & Gaëlle, 2003). Step 2: Implementation the Executive Plan: When approving the recommendations of the team made by top management for the application of e-Management at the university, a comprehensive and detailed plan must be made for each stage of implementing the plan (Kaaya, 2004). Step 3: Determining the Sources: In this step, determined the resources that related to the university readiness in the UOT such as: IT infrastructure, financial resources and professional staff in technology, to ensure the implementation of the e-Management (Okot-Uma & Rogers, 2004). Step 4: Determining the Responsibility: For the plan to be successfully implemented, a team must be identified that will be responsible for leading the e-Management transition (Salmi & Sulaiti, 2008). Step 5: Sequence to Technical Progress: Due to the rapid advancement in the field of ICT, the university must also follow-up to all the developments in the field of the IT techniques, hardware and software (Salmi Alaa A. & Sulaiti K. I., 2008). 2-2-8: Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA): Theory of reasoned action was introduced by Fishbein & Ajzen (1975) in order to understand the behavioral intention. In TRA, the behavior intention of performing a particular behavior is determined by a personal factor and a social factor (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975). The personality factor is represented by the attitude towards the behavior, which is "an individual's positive or negative feeling". The social factor is represented by subjective norm, which describes “the person's perception 14
that most people who are important to him think he should or should not perform the behavior in question”. Furthermore, according to the expectancy value model of attitude (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975), an individual's attitude towards performing the target behavior is itself determined by his or her beliefs regarding the consequences of performing the target behavior, as well as the evaluation of these consequences. Likewise, an individual's subjective norm is the byproduct of his or her normative beliefs and motivation to comply. Figure (2-3) depicts a graphical representation of TRA, which illustrates that external variables i.e. personality, demographics, etc. do not have a direct influence on target behavior, but, rather, are mediated by the TRA model.
Figure (2-3) The Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) (Source: Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975) 2-2-9: Some Experiments of the e-Management Application: In the current era of technological advancements, there are some countries in the Middle East that have experiences a pioneer in the eManagement, The following are some of these experiences of some Arab countries: 2-2-9-1: The e-Management Experience in the USA: USA experience in the field of computing their tasks are very old since the invention of the computer in that country where it started computerization of simple activities to be arrived to establish standardized electronic integrated departments to manage the USA government, the USA government is seeking to provide services directly to the citizen, get away from the complex procedures, simplify the distribution of services to people, remove the government beroagheratih, simplify the work of federal agencies, adoption of decentralization in the achievement of transactions, reduce the costs of administrative work, achieve high speed in the activities of the government and ensure a rapid response to the needs of people (Salmi & Sulaiti, 2008). 15
2-2-9-2: The e-Management Experience in the Japan: Turban, Rainer & Potter (2001) conducted a number of research and studies in the United States and Japan to know the secret of the success Japanese management excellence, and economic efficiency of their organizations. The researcher found a new paradigm in the management and explained in the summary of findings entitled: How American business organizations met the challenges Japanese? The researcher concluded that the human aspect is the obstacle that organizations face before they are financial or investment; America spends in the fields of financial and investment exorbitant amounts, but it is not enough if no charge other amounts are great for the development and understanding of how to manage these organizations and their employees during their management of their business, which is considered a researcher lesson it must be taken from the Japanese to USA. Turban concluded "The best investment process is those oriented to human because of the human enables the organizations to eliminating problems, uniting the efforts of individuals and create a spirit of community to achieve a high level of performance." Japanese experience in the E management characterized by many advantages including: modernity, acceleration, judgments and comprehensive. 2-2-9-3: The e-Management Experience in the Jordan: Jordan ranks medium in terms of the ratio between the countries of the world and their readiness towards the adoption of the e-Management applications (Al-Alaq, 2005). Jordan hopes to become over the next few years a major center in the Arab region by using the e-Management, software development and other services that related to the IT. Al-Alaq, (2005), indicated that, the Jordan has taken a set of decisions that will enable them to login to the IT markets, such as: Legislation and several laws that would enhance the digital environment and development in Jordan, and creation of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology and providing leadership to facilitate efficient business and provide full support for the performance of its tasks. According to Salmi & Sulaiti (2008), the main aim of this experience is the access to efficiency, transparency and improved performance of the government. Jordan also enjoys many of the success factors such as having a supporting IT infrastructure and availability of qualified Human Resources. The Ministry of Information and Communications also plays a supportive role in the process of applying and the coordination of eManagement in Jordan. 2-2-9-4: The e-Management Experience in the UAE: The Project of the e-Management in the UAE is a pioneering project in Dubai. The project seeks to make the tasks manageable and work 16
towards the comprehensive application the e-Management. The UAE initiated this project in the year (2010) as part of the framework of initiatives launched by the UAE, both at the federal level and at the level of each Emirate (Salmi & Sulaiti, 2008). The e-Government in Dubai seeks to unite all the government services provided by the different government departments. It is also considered one of the few governments in the world that have adopted such an initiative. Dubai is a global center of trade and industry in the Middle East. For precisely this reason, the UAE government is taking bold steps in transforming the economy of the UAE to the knowledge economy and making the e-Management based on the sound foundations and sophisticated information technology (Saad, 2010). The UAE ranked first among Arab nations and ranked twelfth amongst countries around the world according to United Nations data when measuring the electronic government programs (Jarallah, 2004). 2-2-9-5: The e-Management Experience in the Saudi Arabia: The e-Management in the Saudi Arabia has provided many advantages to the government including establishing a certification system and electronic documentation which is important for the security of information. A contract was signed in (2003) between the Government and the Council of Chambers of Commerce and Industry in where they agreed to establish e-Management services. These services were to include certification and authentication and to associate remotely without the need to go to their offices. This project has succeeded in equipping the system and all the necessary elements in order to launch twenty systems’ business rooms. This in turn will serve more than 8 million people and residents in Saudi Arabia (Mohammad, 2008). The application of e-Management not only benefits people on an individual level, but it also benefits the different levels of government and various institutions. Ultimately, society at large will be able to share in the positive changes that e-Management provides (Robbers, Gerhard, 2007). The applications of the e-Management have many benefits not to the individual level but at the level of governments, institutions and society. So the Iraqi government has paid great attention to this area, as many of the ministries and sectors where began studying the possibility of implementing the electronic management in the completion of all transactions and provide services, in order to increase the productivity of these organizations, and to contribute to building a strong economy, and support comprehensive and sustainable development.
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2-3: The Factors influencing the adoption of e-Management Based on the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA): The success of the e-Management relies on a number of different considerations such as being able to provide a set of requirements that is needed for the implementation of the e-Management. Those requirements can be achieved through referring to the strategic program and the integrated approach to Business Process Reengineering BPR in the UOT. The factors for that influence to the application of the e-Management are: 2-3-1: University Readiness (UR): The e-Management requires a modern and flexible organizational structure based on the IT. It needs to emphasize as well on the innovation and initiatives, leadership in performance and completing work with the greatest efficiency (Ana Del & Antonio, 2006). The University Readiness consists of: 1- Developing Strategies and Establishing Plans: This requires the formation of management to ensure comprehensive planning strategies. Thereafter, implementation of the plans for e-Management can occur. During this process, consultants will also be involved to assist in helping the university develop specifications and standards of e-Management (Saad Yassin, 2010). 2- The Organization Structure: The organizational structures for the eManagement are matrix, networks and communications. The changes made in the organizational structure, procedures and methods, must match the principles of e-Management. This can be actualized through the development of new departments or the cancelling or merging of some existing departments to make sure that there are the appropriate conditions for the application of the e-Management in making the organization more efficiency and effectiveness (Grover, 1998). 3- Education and Training: The e-Management requires radical changes in their procedures, so that the quality of Human Resources HR is raised to the highest standards. This means rethinking education and keeping the current training systems in order that the requirements of new shift to the eManagement. Other changes include the preparation of new plans, programs, methods of education and training at all levels in the university. Furthermore, to raise awareness to the members of the UOT about the nature of the e-Management, psychological, behavioral, technical, material needs to be provided to successfully transition the requirements of the eManagement (Fink, 1998). 4- Update the Laws and Regulations in Accordance to Latest Developments: The shift to the e-Management requires changes be made to the legal and regulatory environment to help facilitate the eManagement. Any legislation that impedes the progress of e-Management 18
transition should be replaced and legal texts should reflect the management shift from traditional management to e-Management (Premkumar & Roberts, 1999). 5- Information Technology Infrastructure: IT infrastructure requires that it be developed and improvements are made in communication networks so that they can be integrated and ready for use to accommodate the high number of connections at the same time. In addition, it is important to signal in this aspect need to link the e-Management of all of the modern electronic systems and Information and Communication Networks together because it is one of the most important and necessary considerations that ensure the success of the e-Management (Caldeira & Ward, 2002). 2-3-2: Top Management Support (TMS): Several previous studies have shown that TMS is a significant predictor of technology adoption and leads to more successful IT use in many organizations (Seyal, & Rahman, 2003). It is important to create a supportive climate and adequate resources for the adoption of new technology (Premkumar & Roberts, 1999). Top management would be able to identify business opportunities for the exploitation of IT and their active involvement and support would provide appropriate strategic vision and direction for the adoption of new innovations (Thong,, Yap & Raman, 1996). Moreover, this characteristic would also send signals about the importance of the innovation and succeed in overcoming organizational resistance to accept the IS. As a result, TMS will lead to obtaining necessary assistance related to required capital spending and labor support and the cooperation to complete for resources in the project-planning and development stage (Grover, 1998). 2-3-3: Financial Resources (FR): The e-Management project must have sufficient funding where it will be able to cover the financial demands in improving the level of infrastructure, providing the necessary hardware and tools and software and technical maintenance, facilitating the training courses in Human Resources for the staff development. In order to continue and achieve the goal in e-Management implementation, funding needs to be available and sufficient (Forgionne & Kohli, 2000). Thus, it becomes clear that funding is a major consideration that is necessary for the application of systems within the e-Management. Hart, M. & Porter, G., (2004) suggested the there needs to be an independent budget of the project so that it can review periodically how the money is being spent and thereafter justify providing funding.
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2-3-4: Subjective Norms of knowledge Sharing (SNKS): According to Fishbein & Ajzen (1975), subjective norms refer to "perceived pressures on a person to perform a given behavior and the person’s motivation to comply with those pressures". Thus, subjective norms reflect how the customer is affected by the perception of some significant referents (e.g., family, friends, and colleagues, among others) of his/her behavior. Many studies in psychology have theorized that subjective norms are an important determinant of perceived usefulness (e.g., Yi, Wu & Tung, 2005) and behavioral intention (e.g., Dezhi, Samuel & Han, 2008; Luarn & Lin, 2005; Taylor & Todd, 1995; Yi, et al., 2005). As stated previously, the TRA identified subjective norms and attitude as determinants of behavioral intention (David Arnott, 2010). The Innovation Diffusion Theory (IDT) by Rogers (2003) demonstrated that subjective norms and the interpersonal communication networks performed significant functions in the adoption decision. 2-3-5: Attitudes (A): Attitude (A) explains a person’s favorable or unfavorable assessment regarding the behavior. Furthermore, attitude directly influences the strength of the behavior and beliefs regarding the likely outcome. Accordingly, attitude (A) is equated with attitudinal belief (ab) linking the behavior to a certain outcome weighted by an evaluation of the desirability of that outcome. Attitudes and perceived usefulness are also affected by perceived ease of use. Perceived usefulness and reflecting a person’s salient belief in the use of the technology will be helpful in improving performance. Perceived ease of use is a person’s salient belief that using the technology will be free of effort (Taylor & Todd, 1995). 2-4: Literature Reviews: Sattam & Sami (2011) focused to the factors affecting e-Commerce adoption in Jordanian SMEs. This study presents the results of a study investigating environment, organization Readiness and Technological Factors that influence adoption of e-Commerce in small and medium size enterprises in Jordan. The study outlines the most important business pressures facing organizations. By investigation seven case studies of small businesses, Sattam concluded that a large number of small organizations tended to have high organizational readiness but they inefficiently used financial and technological resources. Sattam explained this was in large part influenced by the decisions made by the top management. The study offers explanations and understandings of how e-Commerce responds to those pressures. This study was conducted by circulating a questionnaire to check the perception of e-commerce advantages and e-Commerce adoption levels among SMEs from various sectors in Jordan. The results show 20
several attention-grabbing similarities and few variations between the assorted sectors in Jordan. The organizational factors affecting eCommerce adoption in these sectors in Jordan are the CEO and employees’ knowledge and attitude. The questionnaire findings also showed that diverse technology in their respective organizations has an effect on eCommerce adoption by SMEs in Jordan. Technological factors play an important role in e-Commerce adoption by SMEs in Jordan. This study helps one understand and appreciate how Top Management Support impacts the adoption of the e-Management. Fatimah & Saedah, (2010) emphasized the ICT for participatory based decision-making-E-management for administrative efficiency in Higher Education. E-Management in the context of this study has been shown to facilitate participatory decision making in an organization while ensuring tight quality control and monitoring procedures. Ethical and confidentiality issues are addressed as well. The model, called QuESt (Quality E-management System), QuESt has the potential to take the organization’s, in this case the faculty’s, internal as well as external processes to the next level by putting into place electronic record management while maintaining flexibility. Using technology, the faculty can ensure reliable participatory decision making through the enforcement of policy guidelines. Most of all, the model has internal consistency as it integrates good management practices with dependable technology. Taking the cue from many reports and publications on threats that modern technology can give rise to QuESt, it was carefully designed taking into account various issues including ethical practices. As the main aim was to increase administrative efficiency, the system has a built in mechanism for minimizing wastage of resources, staff time as well as workload. As such it can maximize accountability, staff participation and to a certain extent, commitment. These being the case, in a small way, QuESt has managed to advance knowledge in e-management systems. It has implications for policy making in that policy makers can look to this system to perhaps improve management efficiency as well as staff commitment to achieving institutional aims. In as far as the efficiency of the system itself, commitment from top management especially in terms of monitoring. This study help the researcher to understanding the concept of the electronic management. Ming-Chi Lee (2009) attempted to explore the Factors Influencing the Adoption of Internet Banking: An integration of TAM and TPB with Perceived Risk and Perceived Benefit / China. Online banking (Internet Banking) has emerged as one of the most profitable e-Commerce applications over the last decade. Although several prior research projects have focused on the factors that impact on the adoption of information technology, there is limited empirical work which simultaneously captures 21
the success factors (positive factors) and resistance factors (negative factors) that help customers to adopt online banking. Ming-Chi Lee focused on the success factors (positive factors) and resistance factors (negative factors) that influence the customer’s likelihood in embracing online banking. This study explores and integrates the various advantages of online banking to form a positive factor named perceived benefit. In addition, drawing from perceived risk theory, five specific risk facets (financial, security/privacy, performance, social and time risk) are synthesized with perceived benefit as well as integrated with the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) model to propose a theoretical model to explain the customers’ intention to use online banking. The results indicated that the intention to use online banking is adversely affected primarily by the security/privacy risk, as well as financial risk and is positively affected mainly by perceived benefit, attitude and perceived usefulness. The implications of integrating perceived benefit and perceived risk into the proposed online banking adoption model are discussed. Finally, Ming-Chi Lee recommended using a longitudinal study in the future where the investigation in the research model would examine different time periods and make comparisons, thus providing more insight into the phenomenon of online banking adoption. This study helps to test the impact of Financial Resources by adoption of the e-Management. Chong Yee Ling (2009) conducted a model of factors influences on e-Commerce adoption and diffusion in SMEs. Since the emergence of the Internet, it has allowed small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to compete effectively and efficiently in both domestic and international markets (Poon & Swatman, 1999). However, the resistance and mismanagement of SMEs in adopting ‘Electronic Commerce’ proficiently often impede such leverage. Chong Yee Ling focused on organizations that use e-Commerce to carry out transactions and interactions that effectuate existing business relationship or pre-existing contractual relations between its trading partners (i.e. Business-to-Business Electronic Commerce). Chong Yee Ling identified four key factors: Top Management Support, Organizational Readiness, Organizational Culture and Communication Channels. This study aimed to develop a model of e-Commerce adoption to assist those SMEs that are considering or are currently conducting their business using the Internet. Building on an examination of current technology diffusion literature, a model of e-Commerce adoption has been developed. It investigated factors that potentially influence the adoption of Electronic Commerce, followed by an examination in the diffusion process that SMEs experienced while integrating e-Commerce into their business systems. The findings indicated that many of SMEs have the support of their top management and its own high organizational readiness and best 22
use of communication channels. The main recommendations of the study were that this model requires further testing through empirical validation. This study helps to investigate the impact of Organizational Readiness to adoption of the e-Management. Hong et al. (2009) examined the modeling roles of subjective norms and e-Trust in Customers’ Acceptance of Airline B2C e-Commerce Websites. Airline companies have increasingly employed e-Commerce for strategic purposes, in order to achieve long-term competitive advantage and global competitiveness by enhancing customer satisfaction as well as marketing efficacy and managerial efficiency. E-Commerce has now emerged as possibly the most representative distribution channels in the airline industry. In this study, Kim described an extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), which integrates "subjective norms of knowledge sharing" and e-Trust into the model in order to determine their relevance to the acceptance of "Airline Business-to-Customer e-Commerce Websites System (AB2CEWS)". The proposed research model was tested empirically using data collected from a survey of customers who had utilized B2C e-Commerce websites of two representative airline companies in South Korea for the purpose of purchasing air tickets. Path analysis was employed in order to assess the significance and strength of the hypothesized causal relationships between subjective norms, e-Trust, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, attitude toward use, and intention to reuse. Kim’s findings provide general support for an extended (TAM), and also confirmed its robustness in predicting customers’ intention to reuse (AB2CEWS). Valuable information was found from the findings regarding the management of (AB2CEWS) in the formulation of airlines’ Internet marketing strategies. The findings and recommendations of this study help one know the impact of subjective norms of knowledge sharing to adoption of the e-Management. Seonghee & Boryung (2008) sought to an analysis of faculty perceptions: Attitudes toward knowledge Sharing and collaboration in an Academic Institution. The purpose of this study was to examine and analyze the major factors influencing knowledge sharing and to provide useful and practical insights for academic institutions as they develop knowledge repositories. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, Kim and Ju identified six main factors in the study: perception, trust, openness, collaboration, reward systems and communication channel. Kim & Ju designed a questionnaire consisting of (24) paragraphs to gather the primary information from study sample which consisted of (200) individuals. The statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze and examine the hypotheses. Results show that ‘perception’ is the most influential factor and ‘reward systems’ is the second most influential factor for faculty knowledge sharing. Respondents did not consider other 23
factors such as trust, collaboration, and communication channels based on IT infrastructure to be the main factors. These factors do not have a statistically significant effect on faculty knowledge sharing. The main recommendations of the study were in fact that there were only two factors, perception and reward systems that had significant positive effects on material sharing on campus. According to this study’s regression analysis, its finding also concluded that perception was the most influential factor affecting faculty knowledge sharing. By its very nature, faculty jobs deal with creating, disseminating, and utilizing knowledge for research and teaching purposes. This study helps to understand the impact of attitudes to adoption of the e-Management. 2-5: Summary: This chapter is comprised of the following section: An explanation of the concept of e-Management. That includes: its attributes, benefits, objectives, contribution to the organization's functions and the procedures of the adoption process. Also, this section reviews the TRA. Furthermore, it will highlight the previous studies concerning the focus of this research. In addition, the factors that influence the adoption of e-Management based on the TRA are reviewed.
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Chapter Three Design and Methodology
3-1: Introduction: The aim of this chapter is to discuss the methodology that was applied in this research. This chapter is divided into: research design, research strategy, population and sampling design, data collection methods, data analysis tools and techniques and validity and reliability tests. 3-2: Research Design: The methodology must be in line with the research objectives and be able to answer the relevant research questions; the researcher uses a deductive approach which is more likely to work with quantitative data in order to answer the questions about the relationships among measured variables with the purpose of explaining, predicting and controlling phenomena. Thus, the aim of a deductive approach is to generalize from a sample to a population (Leedy & Ormrod, 2001). A deductive approach was considered appropriate because the information being gathered from this type of research enables the researcher to answer the research questions, objectives, identify the main factors, and depict the influence of these factors influencing of the adoption of e-Management (Zikmund, 2003). Therefore, the researcher has been able to measure and analyze the relationship between influencing factors and the adoption of the e-Management (Zikmund, 2003). 3-3: Research Strategy: Research strategy, as defined by Saunders et al, (2003), is a "General plan of how the researcher will go about answering the research question(s)". The research strategies classified into six categories as: experiment, survey, case study, grounded theory, ethnography and action research. For this research, case study strategy was chosen, and this can yield the following advantages: the case study strategy is flexible, useful for the discovery of new insights as well as for pointing out typical responses, can be applied to many people and provides data about the present and about what people are thinking, doing and anticipating (Zikmund, 2003). According to Churchill & Iacobucci, (2002), the methodological approach in this research is a Descriptive Analytical Approach, because the researcher attempts to identify, explain variables of this research and to describe the relationships between these variables in order to provide a picture of a particular phenomenon, but not to ferret out cause-effect relationships.
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3-4: The Population and Sampling Method: 3-4-1: The Research Population: The research population includes the employees of the University of Technology (UOT) in IRAQ, which consists of fourteen departments and nine centers, the researcher provides some reasons behind selecting the UOT as a research population to complete the requirements of this research. The rationale of this choice are two aspects: 1- The University of Technology has a high specificity characterized the rest of the Iraqi universities, it specialized in engineering science and it is the only specialist in IRAQ in this field and the total number of employees is (2400) employee. 2- It is working to provide the work environment of the scientific and engineering competences at the level of preliminary studies and graduate studies. These reasons enhanced the researcher and motivated him to conduct the research with confidence and reliability, as it meets the expected scale of research and presents a useful research material, in addition to the high reliability during conducting his research on a realistic basis as the research has no geographical or administrative barriers. 3-4-2: Sample Selection and Sample Size: The procedure of selecting (240) members (Top, Middle and operational levels) in the UOT was based on the convenience sampling method, as it considers the best way of getting some basic information quickly and efficiently (Sekaran, 2006). In addition, the researcher considered this procedure for its compatibility with the distinctiveness the e-Management for the managers. The study sample consisted of a group of employees in the UOT, which are: 1- Groups of employees in the headquarters of the University of Technology (UOT), include (75) employee. 2- (45) Lecturers and professors work at the Information and Communication Technology Center (ICTC), (55) employees work at the Center Computer Electronically (CCE) and (65) official employees working in the Material Engineering Department. The researcher distributed (240) questionnaires, (180) questionnaires were returned and were valid for analysis; these questionnaires were distributed to all of UOT’s top and middle management individuals. Table (3-1) provides the detailed data regarding the number of responding for each department (which included a number of employees of different job descriptions like, engineers and technical experts, based on the internal records within the context).
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Table (3-1) Number of Responding for Each Department Department Headquarters of the UOT Information and Communication Technology Center (ICTC) Center Computer Electronically (CCE) Material Engineering Department Total
Dean of Department
Manager
Scientific Assist.
Administrative Assist.
Employee
Total
1
13
3
3
55
75
1
7
1
1
15
25
1
7
1
1
25
35
1
7
1
1
35
45
4
34
6
6
130
180
3-5: Data Collection Methods: This field research adopts the case study methodology and utilized questionnaires for data collection. This method was used to assess the respondents’ characteristics towards the adoption of the e-Management. This research depends on two main sources of data: Primary data: it was collected by the distribution of questionnaires designed to capture research variables and then analyzing these data using the SPSS and Amos Software. For this research, the use of questionnaire directly fits to the objectives of the research. Saunders et al, (2003) strongly recommended the use of questionnaires for descriptive or explanatory objectives. Consequently, the rationale for using the questionnaire method is that the questionnaire could provide that information relatively quickly, given that the selected sample was a representative one. Secondary data: it was collected by reviewing relevant books, scientific journals, previous studies and periodicals, as well as websites and databases related to the subject of the research. 3-5-1: Questionnaire Construction: The researcher developed the questionnaire in accordance with the research primary model described previously as well as in previous studies. The consequence, a draft questionnaire has been created, and it was necessary to subject it to a rigorous validation process. The questionnaire was submitted to a Jury of instructors and experts in the Faculty of Business Administration in Mu’tah University, University of Jordan, AlRafidain University / IRAQ and a group of managers in UOT (shown the Appendix (IV): Judiciary Group). The questionnaire is divided into two sections. The first section covers demographic information (gender, age, educational level, job 27
description, and experience). The second section contains (45) items measuring the adoption of the e-Management and the affecting factors: (University Readiness, Top Management Support, Financial Resources, Subjective Norms of knowledge sharing and Attitudes). The five-point Likert scale was employed in order to explore the managerial views regarding different issues, which range from (1) ‘Strongly Agree’ to (5) ‘Strongly Disagree’. The reason for adopting this scale is to give some degree of choice flexibility to reflect the intensity of respondents’ views (Saunders et al. 2003). Likert scales were used in the second section of the questionnaire to obtain the information. A five-point scale used to test the (University Readiness, Top Management Support, Financial Resources, Subjective Norms of knowledge sharing and Attitudes) that can impact the adoption of the e-Management. The scales were translated back and forth from English in order to ensure that they represent the same meaning in Arabic. The translators were fluent in both English and Arabic (shown the Appendix II). 3-5-2: Response Rate: The research sample consists of (240) members in UOT. The questionnaires were then directly distributed to them by hand on January2013. According to Neuman W. (2000) formula to calculate response rate, the total response rate, as shown in the equations below, is (75) percentage. Either a total response rate or active response rate, however, it is "high" and "adequate" to carry out the data analysis, as suggested by Saunders, M., et al. (2003). 180 Total number in responses Total response rate = = = 57 % 240 Total number of sample However, a total of (60) respondents did not respond on account of the reasons listed in Table (3-2). Table (3-2) Reasons for Not Responding Non-respondents Reasons (N = 60) N % - Did not return the questionnaires 21 34.89 - Busy / work load 18 30.23 - A university’s policy not releasing information 12 20.93 - Apology, with no reasons 9 13.95 Total 60 100
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3-6: Data Analysis Tools and Techniques: The researcher used the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) to test the hypotheses of the research; the following data analysis methods were used: 1- Correlation of the Item-To-Total for testing the validity. 2- Cronbach’s Alpha (α) for internal consistency to verify the stability of the research variables. 3- Descriptive Statistics to describe the characteristics of the research sample. 4- Variance Inflation Factor (VIF) and test of variation allowed (Tolerance) to ensure the absence of a high Multi-collinearity between the independent variables. 5- Skewness test to ensure that the data follow the normal distribution. 6- Multiple Regression Analysis to test the validity of the research model as well as the impact of the independent variables on the dependent variable. 7- In addition, Independent sample t-test to determine if there is a relationship between the independent variables and the dependent variable, where each subject is only in one level of the independent variables (Sekaran, 2006). 3-7: Validity and Reliability Test: Testing Goodness of data by checking for the validity and reliability of measures can be used to ensure the quality of findings and conclusions. Validity and reliability are separate but closely related concepts. Thus, to ensure the precise and accurate instruments developed for this research, it was necessary to have procedures for testing the goodness of data for measurements. There are two criteria for testing the goodness of measures: Validity and Reliability (Sekaran, 2006). 3-7-1: Validity: According to Zikmund, (2003), validity means "The ability of a scale to measure what was intended to be measured". Therefore, this research only included content validity and construct validity. Content validity is the first type used within this research. It is a method to evaluate the validity of an instrument by the judgment of a group of experts in order to ensure that the questionnaire has an adequate and representative group of questions that reflect the real meaning of the concept of the e-Management (Zikmund, 2003 & Sekaran, 2006). In this research, the content validity of the survey questionnaire was considered because it was tested by means of a pre-test using research professionals and managers in the UOT. The participants were asked to comment on the
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format and appropriateness of questions, and to suggest any items that they believed should be included in the instrument. Construct validity is another type used for an assessment of the questionnaires capability to record data (Sekaran, 2006). For the purpose of this research, construct validity has been assessed by using correlation analysis, the result of testing the validity showed in Table (3-3). It implies that the items that are indicators of a specific construct should converge or share a high proportion of variance (Hair et al, 2006).
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Table (3-3) Test of Construct Validity Item of Sig. Factor Question (2-tailed) UR 1 0.000 UR 2 0.000 UR 3 0.000 UR 4 0.000 UR 5 0.000 UR 6 0.000 University Readiness UR 7 0.000 UR 8 0.000 UR 9 0.000 UR 10 0.000 UR 11 0.000 UR 12 0.000 TMS 1 0.000 TMS 2 0.000 Top Management Support TMS 3 0.000 TMS 4 0.000 TMS 5 0.000 FR 1 0.000 FR 2 0.000 Financial Resources FR 3 0.000 FR 4 0.000 FR 5 0.000 SNKS 1 0.000 SNKS 2 0.000 Subjective Norms of knowledge SNKS 3 0.000 sharing SNKS 4 0.000 SNKS 5 0.000 SNKS 6 0.000 A1 0.000 A2 0.000 Attitude A3 0.000 A4 0.000 A5 0.000 EM 1 0.000 EM 2 0.000 EM 3 0.000 EM 4 0.000 EM 5 0.000 EM 6 0.000 Adoption the e-Management EM 7 0.000 EM 8 0.000 EM 9 0.000 EM 10 0.000 EM 11 0.000 EM 12 0.000 ** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed). 31
Correlation of item-to-total 0.801** 0.821** 0.843** 0.802** 0.806** 0.803** 0.802** 0.790** 0.754** 0.736** 0.753** 0.691** 0.737** 0.699** 0.748** 0.708** 0.639** 0.873** 0.918** 0.915** 0.804** 0.848** 0.823** 0.819** 0.562** 0.827** 0.747** 0.577** 0.571** 0.592** 0.685** 0.675** 0.633** 0.810** 0.812** 0.820** 0.805** 0.745** 0.763** 0.759** 0.696** 0.667** 0.526** 0.575** 0.657**
The item-to-total correlations in this research all exceed (0.5) and all items were significant because (Sig= 0.000
