The influence of the technology-organization-environment framework and strategic orientation on cloud computing use, enterprise mobility, and performance.

AutorPicoto, Winnie Ng

1 Introduction

Developments in information technologies (IT) and network infrastructures have changed the way physical organizations and individuals use information systems applications and resources. Additionally, mobile devices with their increasing computer capabilities are important resources in helping organizations become mobile. This is part of the so-called "digital transformation" that has been challenging organizations to use information systems and technologies to innovate in their products and services as well as in the processes and models of their businesses (Hess, Matt, Benlian, & Wiesbock, 2016). Cloud computing enhances access to a wide range of digital services and infrastructure to implement digital transformation (Vu, Hartley, & Kankanhalli, 2020).

The use of web-based applications such as Dropbox, Facebook, Gmail, and Google Docs increases awareness of the concept of "cloud computing" as these services are used extensively for both professional and personal purposes. Cloud computing is the natural evolution of IT management and provides the flexibility and agility needed to gain competitive advantages, thus leading to a new computing paradigm. Cloud computing is a growing phenomenon. In fact, according to the Synergy Research Group (2019), investment in data-center hardware and software grew by 17% in 2018. According to that same source, "cloud service revenues continue to grow by almost 50% per year, enterprise SaaS revenues are growing by 30%, search/social networking revenues are growing by almost 25%, and e-commerce revenues are growing by over 30%, all of which are helping to drive big increases in spending on public cloud infrastructure" (Synergy Research Group, 2019, p.1).

According to Low, Chen, and Wu (2011, p. 1007), cloud computing can be defined as "a kind of computing application service that is like email, office software, and enterprise resource planning (ERP) and uses ubiquitous resources that can be shared by the business employee or trading partners." This ability allows firms to locate organizational information resources on servers elsewhere that are accessible through the internet. As such, cloud computing supports the ubiquitous accessibility of information resources, enabling the use of mobile business applications. Therefore, organizations that adopt cloud computing services are more likely to use mobile applications (Nkosi & Mekuria, 2010). Cloud computing is an enabler of enterprise mobility.

There are a number of studies (e.g. Alshamaila, Papagiannidis, & Li, 2013; Gangwar, Date, & Ramaswamy, 2015; Lian, Yen, & Wang, 2014; Low et al., 2011; Nkhoma & Dang, 2013; Priyadarshinee, Raut, Jha, & Gardas, 2017; Senyo, Addae, & Boateng, 2018; Senyo, Effah, & Addae, 2016) that identify the antecedents of adopting cloud computing, some of which are based on the technology-organization-environment (TOE) framework (Tornatzky & Fleischer, 1990). However, no studies have examined whether the adoption of cloud computing plays a role in enabling enterprise mobility. The present research aims to fill this gap in the literature. Additionally, as enterprise mobility is a strategic option, we also build on the strategic orientation theory to understand the effects of innovational and entrepreneurial orientations on enterprise mobility. Thus, the following research questions guide the development of the present study: (i) what are the antecedents of the use of cloud computing?, (ii) what is the effect of using cloud computing together with innovational and entrepreneurial orientations on enterprise mobility?, and (iii) what is the effect of enterprise mobility on organizational performance?

The remainder of this paper is structured as follows. The next section presents the literature review on the definitions and adoption of cloud computing, enterprise mobility, and the TOE framework. The third section presents the conceptual model and the research hypotheses. The fourth section describes the method applied in this work, and the following section presents the data analysis and results. The last section presents the concluding remarks, limitations, and further research related to this work.

  1. Literature Review

    2.1 Adopting and using cloud computing

    In the year 2000, Salesforce, a pioneering company in cloud computing, released web-based software for interacting with its customers, which replaced physical products with virtual services offered as a software as a service (SaaS). In 2006, Amazon launched Amazon Web Services, and Google offered a free online service for email (Gmail) with unlimited storage capacity. In fact, "cloud computing is a new paradigm shift in which including computing resource services, soft applications of distributed systems and data storage" is the standard (Low et al., 2011, p. 1007). Furthermore, cloud computing can be defined as a service model based on the internet in which information, storage capacity, and software resources are shared through computers and other information technology devices. Besides the change in IT business models (Sharma, Gupta, & Acharya, 2020), these services allow users to access information from different devices and different locations, allowing for greater mobility and flexibility (Vu et al., 2020) by giving each user the option to choose how to use and manage the resources available in the cloud. The data and applications needed for accessing cloud services are not stored on the user's devices but on remote servers managed by the cloud computing vendor (Chandran & Angepat, 2010). Cloud computing can also be considered a pool of scalable resources from which an infrastructure can host end-customer applications that are billed according to usage (Sharma et al., 2020). Iyer and Henderson (2010) argue that cloud computing should be defined in terms of the services offered (infrastructure level, platform as a service level, application level, collaboration level, and service level) and in terms of the main types of cloud computing models (public, private, community, and hybrid clouds).

    The concept of cloud computing comprises a fairly comprehensive set of different services (such as emails, online advertising, website development platforms, word processing tools, data storage, management, and sharing) available on the internet (Cusumano, 2010). Importantly, the use of this technology by organizations turns CAPEX (capital expenditure) into OPEX (operational expenditure), which transforms the investments needed into operating expenses, allowing investments to be made in the core business of companies (Armbrust et al., 2010). With its "pay as you use" model, cloud computing is a scalable solution that does not require high levels of investment (Sharma et al., 2020).

    While several studies present different reasons why organizations adopt cloud computing, the benefits of adopting it are not yet clear, and it is important to understand these factors (Sharma et al., 2020). One major goal of cloud computing is to reduce IT costs (Zhang, 2012) and allow organizations to better access IT services and infrastructure (Vu et al., 2020). Lin and Chen (2012) develop a study based on 19 interviews with IT professionals in order to understand the main concerns and benefits related to the adoption of cloud computing. They find that many vendors claim that computational power and cost reductions are the main benefits of cloud computing. However, IT managers are concerned about the cloud's compatibility with existing companies' policies, information systems, and business needs and are unsure about the security and standardization that cloud services may provide. Additionally, Low et al. (2011) find that relative advantage, top management support, organizational size, competitive pressure, and pressure from partners are drivers of the adoption of cloud computing. In another study, Nkhoma and Dang (2013) claim that the drivers for adopting cloud computing are business scalability, cost, flexibility, and access to industry expertise. Sharma et al. (2020) conduct a mixed-method study and conclude that time to market, IT service costs, financial losses, and competitive pressure are among the most important factors that influence the adoption of cloud computing.

    Companies should adopt cloud solutions gradually by increasing the number of applications and services over time (Low et al., 2011). Furthermore, in order to accomplish the benefits of adopting cloud computing, management tools must be integrated (Applegate, 2006). The adoption of cloud computing may involve highly complex tasks and may lead to organizational changes (Serrano, Caldeira, & Guerreiro, 2004); its success depends not only on technical factors, but also on the characteristics of the organization (Behrend, Wiebe, London, & Johnson, 2011).

    2.2 Enterprise mobility

    Advancements in mobile technologies have made mobile business very appealing for both personal and professional purposes. The high levels of adoption have pressured organizations to offer their services through mobile technologies. To create value from adopting mobile technology, the definition of organizational strategies must include the transformation of traditional processes into mobile business processes. Changes not only occur in the technological infrastructure but also in business processes and human resources (Sorensen, 2011).

    In the present paper we adapt the concept of a mobile enterprise to enterprise mobility, as proposed by Stieglitz and Brockmann (2012, p. 190), who define a "mobile enterprise as an organization that provides access to enterprise systems via wireless mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets. Employees are able to use mobile devices to interact with colleagues or customers, to access all needed information, as well as to share information." Therefore, enterprise mobility supports and executes an organization's operations regardless of the geographical position of the employees...

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