Search results

There has been an avalanche of global natural disasters in recent times. In recent years approximately 210 million people were affected, an estimated economic cost of US$153bn was incurred and 68,000 deaths were recorded. This was a work up call that made it imperative for humanitarian actors to impetuously adopt information and communication technologies (ICTs) to timeously assist affected populations in disaster prevention, mitigation response and recovery However, the use of ICTs in the humanitarian field is still at its infancy in most third world countries. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to evaluate the utilization of ICTs in humanitarian relief operations associated with Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe.

Using a pragmatic approach, the study gathered data using semistructured questionnaires that were triangulated with interviews of humanitarian staff that were involved in Cyclone Idai relief efforts.

An observed suboptimal utilization of ICTs was further disadvantaged by the inequitable distribution of communication infrastructure. However, despite the suboptimal usage, there was a significant positive influence of ICT adoption on effectiveness, efficiency and flexibility in humanitarian relief operations.

Optimal use of ICTs has the potential to revolutionize humanitarian supply chain management. A smooth transition to new technologies is recommended in which personnel are given professional development opportunities on a regular basis.

The construction industry’s daily processes demand heavy data usage and communication between project participants to meet client requirements. Thus, the application of information technology in project implementation has been increasing in the construction sector (CS) lately. However, the same cannot be seen in public sectors responsible for implementing government projects in South Africa. This study aimed to investigate the causes and effects of the underutilisation of information communication technology (ICT) in the building section of a public sector in a municipality in South Africa.

A qualitative approach was adopted for the study, using a public sector in one of the municipalities as a case study. Face-to-face interviews were conducted among the building unit workers, using unstructured interview questions. The data collected were analysed using the ATLAS.ti software.

The findings indicate a lack of understanding of existing and newly available ICT software and hardware technology among staff within the building technology due to lack of digitalisation in construction projects implementation, inadequate system upgrades, lack of adequate ICT resources, lack of financial resources for internet and software application subscriptions and lack of ICT training leading. The issues mentioned above have led to the outsourcing of projects professionals, slow pace of electronic emails, untrained professionals, usage of different and unlicensed software, resulting in the underutilisation of ICT within the whole building section. This change also adversely affects all officials, especially the junior officials who have graduated using the most recent ICT technology during their studies.

The building department of only one public sector was used for the study; therefore, the findings may not be generalisable. The case study public sector’s name is withheld for confidentiality purposes.

Adequate change management and continuous development, combined with the allocation of proper resources, would be necessary for all staff members. Enormous investments had to be made in the ICT equipment by providing a sufficient budget in the building section of the public sectors. The building section within public sectors should provide change management to all aged skills staff by attending seminars to learn new ICT technology applied within its work environment.

The study established the causes of the underutilisation of ICT in the CS, especially in the public work departments and municipalities, and how this contributes to service delivery.

The growing availability of wireless internet services and the great popularization of smartphones and other mobile devices means a greater challenge for mobile service companies that need to identify the factors influencing the use behavior of mobile services. So considering that the level of consumer involvement can lead to differences in service outcome evaluations, this study aims to examine whether consumer involvement with information and communication technologies (ICTs) has a moderating influence on consumer behavior in mobile services

The authors propose an integrative model of the usage of mobile services to examine the moderating role of involvement with ICTs. Drawing on a sample of 493 users, two levels of involvement with ICTs were examined; and data were analyzed through multiple-group structural equation modeling.

Findings show that the level of consumer involvement with ICTs influences the behavior in the mobile services. Further, the findings support that mobile services’ perceived quality, followed by the service perceived value are the factors with a stronger influence in satisfaction with mobile services, regardless the level of consumer involvement with ICTs. However, the mobile company corporate image has a lower influence. In addition, the results support the partial moderating role of involvement with ICTs in the loyalty toward mobile service providers, suggesting that consumers lowly involved with ICTs experience a greater impact of the service quality on their loyalty.

The main contribution of this study is the examination of the influence of involvement with technologies in consumer behavior in the mobile services

La disponibilidad creciente de los servicios internet inalámbrico y la gran popularización y adopción de los smartphones y de otros dispositivos móviles supone un gran desafío para las compañías de servicios móviles que necesitan identificar aquellos factores que influyen en el comportamiento de uso de los servicios móviles. Así, considerando que el nivel de implicación del consumidor puede llevar a diferencias en las evaluaciones de los resultados de los servicios, este estudio analiza si la implicación del consumidor con las tecnologías de la información y la comunicación (TICs) tiene una influencia moderadora en el comportamiento del consumidor en los servicios móviles.

Se propone un modelo integrador sobre el uso de los servicios móviles para examinar el rol moderador de la implicación del consumidor con las TICs. Sobre la base de una muestra de 493 usuarios, se analizaron dos niveles de implicación con las TICs; y los datos fueron analizados mediante un modelo multigrupo de ecuaciones estructurales.

Los resultados muestran que el nivel de implicación del consumidor con las TIC influye en su comportamiento hacia los servicios móviles. Además, nuestros resultados respaldan que la calidad percibida de los servicios móviles, seguida del valor percibido de estos servicios son los factores con mayor influencia en la satisfacción con los servicios móviles, independientemente del nivel de implicación del consumidor con las TIC. Sin embargo, la imagen corporativa de la compañía de servicios móviles tiene una influencia menor. Adicionalmente, nuestros resultados muestran el rol moderador parcial de la implicación con las TIC en la lealtad hacia los proveedores de servicios móviles, sugiriendo que los consumidores poco implicados con las TIC experimentan un mayor impacto de la calidad del servicio en su lealtad.

La principal contribución de este estudio es el análisis de la influencia de la implicación del consumidor con las tecnologías, en su comportamiento hacia los servicios de comunicación móvil.

Information and communication technologies (ICT)-presented technological developments, such as soil sensors, remote sensing, artificial intelligence (AI) and big data, have shown the potential to increase crop output and quality while consuming fewer resources and having a smaller environmental impact. The first step in ushering in a new era of technological advancement in the agricultural sector in the Kingdom of Bahrain is evaluating how prepared farmers and farm owners are to adopt these technologies. Therefore, the current study examines how ICT are prepared, accepted and adopted in agriculture in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The study's goals were attained by using both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. A survey was created to learn more about the present state of ICT usage in agriculture, including its awareness, readiness, acceptance and adoption. To strengthen the conclusions and investigate the current situation related agricultural behavior, production and the use of information technology (IT) to support agriculture in the chosen farms, four exploratory field visits were made. Additionally, a strength-weakness-opportunities-threat (SWOT)-threat, opportunities, weakness, strength (TOWS) analysis was performed to evaluate the Kingdom of Bahrain's readiness and long-term plans for implementing ICT in agriculture. On the basis of secondary data, survey data and interview findings, SWOT-TOWS were created.

The findings revealed insufficient knowledge and awareness about ICT in agriculture. Despite the high level of digital infrastructure readiness in Bahrain, farmers are not ready to adopt sophisticated devices and complex applications such as crop sensing tools, the internet of things (IoT) and AI; however, there is a strong acceptance among farmers to implement new ideas and agriculture approaches.

The Arabian Gulf Countries, which are characterized by an arid environment, sporadic vegetation, weak soil and a lack of water supplies and arable land, have few studies that explore the crucial role of ICT in growing the agricultural sector. Considering the influence of ICT on the provision of more productive agriculture in a challenging and complicated environment, the study contributes to the body of knowledge by conducting an empirical investigation that addresses an urgent issue. The study is considered one of the few in the countries of the Arabian Gulf to address this subject.

The purpose of this (qualitative, multiple-case) study is to determine how small-to medium-sized enterprise (SME) leaders in Nigeria use information and communication technology (ICT) adoption as a business strategy to increase profitability and compete globally.

The participants for this study consisted of executive-level SME leaders who had the authority to approve ICT implementation within their respective organizations. Individual interviews were undertaken with participants to gain an understanding of their experience of determining the merits of and implementing ICT. The technology acceptance model, which specifies the relationship between perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude toward computer use and intention to use technology, was applied as a framework to explain the Nigerian SME’s ICT adoption strategies.

Four major themes emerged from the data analysis: ICT adoption factors, ICT roles and benefits, role of government and SME success factors. The findings of this study may help SME leaders and government leaders address many of the factors inhibiting the adoption of ICT in SMEs in Nigeria.

This study may ensure that SMEs are successful and able to create jobs, which in turn may help to promote socioeconomic development through adoption of ICT.

The findings from this study contribute to the knowledge base regarding factors that affect ICT adoption by SME leaders as a business strategy to increase profitability and compete globally, particularly within SMEs in Lagos, Nigeria. It further addressed the gap in existing literature regarding other factors such as the influence of culture on ICT adoption, cost of ICT implementation, available ICT skills, infrastructure and ICT knowledge gap as the primary impeding factors of ICT adoption in Nigerian SMEs.

This systematic literature review focuses on the following future advanced information and communication technologies (ICTs) applied in the maritime transport of cargo: Internet of Things (IoT), big data, cloud computing and autonomous ships/vessels (including unmanned ships/vessels). The review question is: “RQ: In what context and by means of what mechanism does the implementation of future advanced ICTs have disruptive impact on maritime transport?”.

The paper complies with the methodological requirements of systematic reviews. The information analysis and synthesis are based on the CIMO logic, referring to the context (C), intervention (I), mechanism (M) and outcome (O) of the implementation of future advanced ICTs in maritime transport.

The review identifies the contextual factors and components of the mechanism that lead to the disruptive impact of different types of future advanced ICT interventions on maritime transport.

The review approaches only the most important future advanced ICTs that will disrupt maritime transport.

The maritime transport organizations should consider: intended outcome as intervention trigger; increased efficiency and responsiveness; benchmarking.

For the first time, the CIMO logic is applied in a systematic review focused on future advanced ICTs in maritime transport. The CIMO-DMT model is elaborated as a basis for further research. Ten directions of study are recommended in a future research agenda.

As empirical insights into when salespeople should integrate information and communication technology (ICT) into their sales tasks are limited, the purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of salespeople’s ICT orientation on role stress by considering the interplay of individual salesperson characteristics and the complexity of the selling environment, differentiating between customer and supplier complexity.

The authors develop an empirical framework based on the Job Demands-Resources model and previous research in the area of technology in sales. They test their hypotheses by means of a survey of 255 business-to-business salespeople which is analyzed using ordinary least squares regressions.

The results of this study show that ICT orientation generally helps salespeople to reduce role ambiguity. However, the benefits salespeople derive from ICT orientation to reduce role conflict depend on an interplay of both their job tenure and the average relationship duration with customers as well as the complexity of the selling environment.

This study contributes to research on the impact of technology use on salespeople by enhancing the understanding of contexts that make ICT valuable for them. In particular, the findings of this study demonstrate that the impact of ICT orientation on salespeople’s role stress depends on an interplay of individual salesperson characteristics, that is, resources, and environmental complexity characteristics, that is, demands.

At the beginning of the 21st century, a new class of information workers, the “information have-less” has risen. This class of workers alleviates the influence of information and communication technologies (ICTs) revolution on poverty and unemployment. The purpose of this study is to investigate the presence of this class of workers in Egypt and assess the size and potential growth of this category of workers.

The study clarifies the conceptual framework of the new division of labor, in the information age. The Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics, American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology and Information and Decision Support Center websites provided secondary data for this study. These data are used to assess the size of “the information have less” in Egypt.

The division of work and class, in the 21st century, depends on the level of skills possessed to work with ICTs. So, class and labor nowadays could be divided into self-programmable labor (Innovators). Information have-less labor class, adding value to the economy by learning skills and presenting repetitive work. Generic labor class, who cannot work with ICTs, and work in jobs, that do not need computers or other ICTs. The study has shown that the “information have-less” labor class is present in Egypt since the beginning of the 21st century, in all its categories; entrepreneurism, the service sector and the manufacturing sector. There are approximately 50% of this labor class in the service sector and only 13% of the information have-less works in manufacturing sector despite the great opportunities that Egypt has to expand manufacturing to absorb more employment. The inclusion of information technology (IT), in all domains, has not decreased employment in Western countries but has reallocated information have-less employment toward the service sector, and there would probably be the same effect in Egypt.

The study highlights the need for Egyptian policymakers to encourage the manufacturing and service sectors to provide huge working opportunities. The Egyptian government has to change the educational policies, at all stages, to include digital learning skills so IT can be incorporated in a wide range of economic activities. Further research includes: conducting a survey to measure the contribution of the entrepreneurial part of the information have-less employment in Egypt. In addition, a model may be developed, by the researcher to examine the reallocation of employees in Egypt.

Studying employment, in Egypt, using the conceptual framework of the information age is rarely being done.