Cloud Computing Adoption and Business Development in Small and Medium Enterprises in Bauchi State Nigeria
Keywords:
Bauchi State, Cloud computing, Competitiveness, Nigeria, Operational efficiency, Small and medium enterprises, Technology adoptionAbstract
Cloud computing adoption among Nigerian SMEs remains low despite high awareness. This paper examines the adoption of cloud computing and business development among small and medium enterprises in Bauchi State, Nigeria. The study surveys 327 SMEs in Bauchi State. A structured questionnaire was used to collect primary data, comprising 6 sections covering demographics, awareness and perceptions, barriers, adoption status, operational efficiency, and competitiveness. Content validity was ensured through expert review and principal component analysis with varimax rotation confirmed the three-factor structure of the barrier items. Data were analyzed using R, while descriptive statistics were calculated for all variables. Hypotheses were tested using Chi-square, ordinal logistic regression, and Cohen’s d. Findings reveal 98.2% awareness but only 37.3% adoption. Security concerns (mean = 4.35), cost/infrastructure deficits (mean = 4.11), and lack of technical knowledge (mean = 4.02) were the main barriers. Awareness strongly correlated with adoption (χ2 = 65.41, p < 0.001). Among adopters, higher barriers predicted greater efficiency (OR = 1.80 for cost/infrastructure, p = 0.012), but no competitiveness advantage was found between adopters and non-adopters (t = −0.16, p = 0.871). The study concludes that awareness alone does not translate to competitive advantage under infrastructural constraints.
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