The Enabling Role of IT Solutions in SMEs Frugal Innovation- Post
Coronavirus Crisis in Bahrain - Case Study
- Maryam Zainal
Abstract
SMEs were pushed to implement innovative procedures and transform from
traditional operations into a Digital Transformation process of
converting into more technologized and enhance the market needs to
obtain new employment opportunities post to the covid-19 crisis, the
expectations of development put the stockholders and investments under
stress to adopt the new techniques of innovation to fill the market gaps
and needs, keeping the low cost as the first target with quality of
values in products and services at the same or better level, taking into
consideration the customers' satisfaction as the main factor that
affects the technology adoption, policies changing and the low-cost
innovation due to the economic crisis. To take into consideration this
issue, we built a conceptual framework model based on multi-model founds
in different studies concerning different factors that affected the
adoption, focusing on the digital transformation and had an impact on
the Frugal Innovation in 50 of new established SMEs undergoing the new
program adopted by SME's Society in Bahrain. The hypothesis of the
adopted model will provide the relationship of some of the most founded
factors affecting the Frugal Innovation Implementation, which had a link
with Digital Transformation and a positive impact on Customer
satisfaction, keeping in mind that the Covid-19 anxiety is considered a
moderator that affected the adoption of Digital Transformation directly.
To test the hypothesis, data would be collected with both Quantitative
and Qualitative methods in a longitudinal study before applying the
Digital transformation and after the technology adoption and expected
that the data analysis will support the testing of the hypothesis.