A profile of ERP adoption in manufacturing SMEs

Abstract

Purpose – This paper seeks to build and validate a typological profile of manufacturing small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in regard to their eventual adoption of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, based on the predisposition of their environmental, organizational, and technological context. Design/methodology/approach – Provides cluster analysis of secondary questionnaire data obtained from a benchmarking database of 356 Canadian manufacturing SMEs. Findings – Three types of SMEs were obtained: 140 “internally predisposed” SMEs, 60 “externally predisposed” SMEs, and 156 “unfavourably disposed” SMEs. Originality/value – Provides a valid framework for analysis that can serve ERP vendors and consultants, as well as SME owner-managers, the first to better target their offer of products/services, and the second to better position their firm before contemplating the implementation of an ERP system.