THE DEVELOPMENT OF B2B E- COMMERCE READINESS ASSESSMENT MODEL FOR SMES: IDENTIFICATION OF BARRIERS USING AHP METHOD

The implementation of inter-organizational systems like business- to- business e- commerce (B2B ecommerce) is being categorized as a system with high degree of difficulty since it involves complexity of the multiple relationships and interactions between trading partners. Companies need to consider their own strengths and weaknesses before making decisions to explore new B2B ecommerce without weakening the existing traditional marketing channels. The main aim of this paper is to generate understanding on the development of weighting score of internal and external barrier indicators which impact the B2B e- commerce development of the Small Medium Enterprise (SMEs) in agro- based industry. The analytical process hierarchy (AHP) has been used to establish ranking so that key elements can be determined. The AHP is used due to the fact that its utility outweighs other research methods in terms of providing a more accurate and consistent judgment. Thus, companies able to identify their readiness level for implementing B2B e- commerce and every aspect needed to improve themselves before implementing the applications.

Keywords:

B2B e-commerce , Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) , barriers , e- readiness and analytical process hierarchy (AHP)