A study of the progression of e-business maturity in Australian SMEs: some evidence of the applicability of the stages of growth for e-business model

Abstract

This paper reports on the results of an empirical study investigating the progression of ebusiness maturity in Australian SMEs and the applicability of the stages concept in explaining that progression. Using multiple case studies within medium-sized manufacturing organisations, the authors explore the issues and challenges experienced by organisations when moving forward with their e-business initiatives. The paper is particularly interested in establishing the applicability of the stages of growth for e-business model for mapping the ebusiness progression faced by these organisations. The cases presented in this paper suggest that the stages of growth model provides a valuable perspective in examining the progression of the organisation's e-business.