Enhancing Efficiency: The Impact of Cloud Computing Adoption on Small and Medium Enterprises Performance

Abstract

This study investigated the factors influencing cloud computing adoption (CCA) and its impact on organizational performance (OP) among SMEs employees in Bahrain. The study used an online survey approach, which includes Likert scale questions to assess attitudes and views, multiple-choice questions for categorical data, and open-ended questions to obtain qualitative insights. The target audience comprises 300-350 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Bahrain currently utilizing cloud computing technology, and 314 useful responses were received. A mixed two-step sampling technique was initiated by convenience sampling. Then, snowball sampling was used to guarantee the inclusion of various SME categories, thus ensuring representativeness. The measurements are derived from validated instruments used in academic research, with the questionnaire incorporating elements adapted from the studies conducted. Participants' responses to the Likert scale are analyzed using SmartPLS 4 to understand their perspectives. Full collinearity was used to assess common method bias, and VIF values below 3.3 indicated no bias. The measuring model's validity and reliability were evaluated by loadings, AVE, CR, and discriminant validity tests (HTMT), which ensured all constructs fulfilled thresholds. Path coefficients, standard errors, t-values, and p-values were used to evaluate the structural model using 10,000-sample bootstrapping. The research findings indicate that both Perceived Ease of Use (PEU) and Perceived Usefulness (PU) have a substantial impact on Cloud Computing Adoption (CCA), which in turn improves the performance of Bahraini SMEs. PEU and PU directly impact CCA while indirectly improving Organizational Performance (OP) by increasing cloud computing usage. These findings emphasize the importance of user-friendly and beneficial cloud solutions in increasing cloud computing adoption and enhancing business outcomes for SMEs. Doi: 10.28991/ESJ-2024-08-06-017 Full Text: PDF

Keywords

• cloud computing adoption
• perceived usefulness
• perceived ease of use
• organizational performance
• sme’s performance: resource-based view.