Inhibiting Factors for Adopting Enterprise Systems in Networks of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises - An Exploratory Case Study

Effective use of an enterprise system may result in productivity and quality improvements, cost reductions and a better resource management but also bears non-negligible risks. Since enterprise systems usually exhibit a proliferating complexity, many small and medium-sized enterprises fail to pass this hurdle. Therefore, the imperative of this research is to develop an understanding of what inhibits or drives the adoption of enterprise systems in networks of small and medium-sized enterprises. We use an exploratory case study to propose first explanations of the variables and factors that affect the adoption of an enterprise system for such a network.