The Benefits of Information and Communication Technology in Henrich Dissertation

The Benefits of Information and Communication Technology in Henrich International Associates (HIA) A Small and Medium Enterprise - Dissertation Example In addition, the aim also assessed how ICT can foster knowledge transfer within HIA. The study made it evident that ICT act as a tool that has the ability to offer competitive advantage to a firm. It has been found that ICT also provides several advantages to a firm. Some of the obvious ones are increased the communication system, reduced the cost of communication, allowed retrieval of vast information and facilitated centralized control. Apart from that ICT also help companies to transfer knowledge within the organization. The primary research portrayed that the employees of HIA have a positive outlook towards this subject. The business will be also benefitted by the implementation of ICT as it can also acts as a marketing tool. The company is therefore recommended to implement ICT into their system of operation and capitalize on most of the opportunities provided by ICT. Table of Contents CHAPTER I – INTRODUCTION 5 1.1 Background of the Study 5 1.2 Purpose of the Study 5 1.3 Overview of Henrich International Associates (HIA) 5 1.4 Aims and Objectives 6 1.5 Research Questions 6 CHAPTER II – LITERATURE REVIEW 7 2.1 Defining Key Concepts 7 2.2 ICT in Business to Business Planning 8 2.3 ICT as a Tool to Gain Competitive Advantage 10 2.4 Disadvantages of ICT 11 2.6 ICT in SME and Large Organizations 13 2.7 Perception of Employees about ICT 14 2.8 Impact of ICT on Employees 15 CHAPTER III – RESEARCH DESIGN 16 3.1 Research Philosophy 16 3.1.1 Positivism 16 3.1.2 Interpretivism 17 3.2 Research Approach 17 3.2.1 Deductive Approach 17 3.2.2 Inductive Approach 18 3.3 Research Strategy 18 3.4 Type of Study 20 3.4.1 Qualitative Study 20 3.4.2 Quantitative Study 20 3.5Time horizons 21 3.5.1 Longitudinal Perspective 21 3.5.2 Cross Sectional Perspective 21 3.6 Data Collection and Sampling 21 3.6.1 Questionnaire 21 3.6.2 Focus Group Interview 22 CHAPTER IV 23 4.1Findings and Analysis of the Questionnaire 23 4.2Findings and Analysis of Focus Group Intervie w 25 CHAPTER V – Conclusion and Recommendation 27 5.1 Conclusion 27 5.2 Recommendations 27 REFERENCES 28 APENDIX 32 Appendix I - Questionnaire (For the Employees) 32 Appendix II - Semi Structured Interview (For the Executives) 33 CHAPTER I – INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Study The last few decades have witnessed an ‘insurgency’ in the growth of global economy. However, everyone did not have the opportunity to experience this revolution of growth. Around 65 % of the global population, still lives on $4 per day (Kramer, Jenkins and Katz, 2007). The scenario further worsened with the lack of opportunities to carry out developmental activities. The business community in this context has a major role to play and has the capability to create these opportunities. The information and communication technology (ICT) has been a powerful tool as well as acted as a catalyst to address the interest and needs of low income groups of the developing countries. In the last 20 years, the role of ICT in expanding economic opportunities and providing competitive advantages to a firm has been highly acknowledged by experts from every sector of business (Butcher, 2011). Information and Communication technology (ICT) is technology used for improving the efficiency of the operation of an organization (OECD, 2005). It is often regarded as a technology used for retrieving and processing information. ICT not only plays crucial roles in organizations,