Affiliations: [a] School of Economics and Management, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing, China
| [b] School of Software Engineering, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing, China
Correspondence:
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Corresponding author: Zulfiqar Hussain Pathan, School of Economics and Management, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing, China. Tel.: +86 15624962430; E-mail: zulfi2k3bcs@yahoo.com.
Abstract: Large- as well as small-scale firms are quickly reorienting their information technology (IT) to include cloud computing (CC). This study’s purposefulness is to examine the determinants of CC adoption by the service-sector Pakistani SMEs, according to innovation diffusion theory (IDT). Data were collected both online and through a manually distributed and filled questionnaire, from a total of 101 study participants. Structural-equation modeling (SEM), and reliability and validity tests were employed to test the study’s hypotheses and measurements. The results show that three determinants, i.e., relative advantage, compatibility and cost reduction, can positively affect CC adoption, while dynamic complexity can impact it negatively, with relative advantage possibly being the most influential CC-adoption determinant. Our study could be the first to investigate CC-adoption determinants in Pakistani SMEs, yet the findings improve comprehension of the CC-adoption process across different industries in a developing country, namely Pakistan. Also discussed are the study’s implications for SME researchers and managers.
