Promoting the Usage of ICT in Clusters for Business Process Re-Engineering Within SIDO Settings.

Abstract

There has been considerable interest and activities in clustering and the concomitant link to the regional development in recent times. The study wanted to help promoting of ICT usage in clusters for business process re-engineering within SIDO settings. This is due to challenges faced by SMEs clusters in performing business activities such as promoting their products outside their locality, using ICT in their businesses and gain other more benefits provided by the use of ICT technology. The study was conducted in Morogoro Municipal in Morogoro region with the main purpose of examining the extents to which SMEs clusters promote the usage of ICT within cluster environments. Precisely, the study sought to find out whether the use of ICT provides benefits and opportunities among the SMEs clusters, to assess the level of awareness on the usage of ICT in promoting business and its impact to the development of SMES clusters and to investigate the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of ICT tools to SMEs clusters in promoting business. About 88 SMEs dealing with clusters of (Metal work, Food processing, Clothes and Cereal flour) were involved in this study to understand the relationship between the use of ICT and business process re-engineering promotion among SMEs, the extent of SMEs clusters awareness of ICT usage in promoting their business and the extent of using it in business process re-engineering in improving the service and customer satisfaction. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 was used to analyze the data collected. UTAUT theory guided this study with empirical literature to weigh on how some of the concepts from the UTAUT theory, which can be used to promote usage of ICT in clusters for business process re-engineering within SIDO settings. Findings indicated that about 77.3 percent of respondents uses the ICT tools, whereby 86.4 uses mobile phones and they mostly used them for texting and making calls. Also about 55.7 percent used ICT tools for socializing and exchange of information and pictures. About 42.0 percent used ICT tools to read news of different kinds with less participation in information about their products while 51.1 percent agreed using ICT tools and applications facilitates well in the way the clusters would like to operate business. The study recommends that, government and other stakeholders in ICT sector should consider challenges that limit SMEs clusters into fully utilization of ICT usage especially on business process activities. Recommendations for further study should be focused to all clusters being served by SIDO along all regional offices to extend the knowledge of using ICT in business. The impact of using ICT in business to promote cluster products within SIDO setting should be really stated to these clusters in order to create the technology awareness.