Perceived factors affecting the adoption of electronic procurement in the Mpumalanga Provincial Treasury.

Abstract

The digital revolution in the 21st century is regarded as the channel of corporate development that resulted in substantial changes in the way procurement is handled and managed within organisations. Public organisations have since become increasingly reliant on information and communication technologies. Given these developments, new forms of electronic commerce have also emerged; the most prominent form of electronic commerce is electronic procurement. By early 2000 developed economies began the implementation of e-procurement. In contrast, in emerging countries specifically in Africa, electronic procurement has not been widely adopted in government departments, including in South Africa. The purpose of this study was to investigate the perceived factors that influence the adoption of electronic procurement and further establish employees’ perceptions of electronic procurement in the Mpumalanga Provincial Treasury. An overview of procurement in the South African public sector was presented in a literature review, shedding light on the challenges and opportunities within this particular environment. The study relied on a framework for successful implementation of electronic procurement espoused by Gunasekaran and Ngai. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data from a sample of 33 personnel in Supply chain, finance, and ICT using a quantitative descriptive approach. Descriptive statistics, including principal component analysis and Cronbach’s alpha, were performed using the Social Sciences Statistical Package (SPSS) and an Excel spreadsheet. The results indicate that there would be a significant reduction in paper consumption if electronic procurement was adopted in the department. Furthermore, the results indicate that there is a strong influence on the promotion of visibility in supply chain operations, although electronic procurement is prone to challenges. The results show that the availability of supporting infrastructures, the fear of cyber security, and the lack of management support were found to be the predictor of the lack of adoption of electronic procurement. Furthermore, due to the potential benefits of the adoption of electronic procurement, the results indicate that other procurement expenses, cost reduction, and increased supplier participation and competitiveness were found to be positive benefits of the adoption of electronic procurement. These findings have significant implications for the Mpumalanga Provincial Treasury's adoption of electronic procurement. Suggestions for further studies on the adoption of electronic procurement were suggested.