Enablers and inhibitors of cloud computing assimilation: an empirical study

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand what inhibit or facilitate cloud computing (CC) assimilation. Design/methodology/approach The authors investigate the effects of two enablers, top management support (TMS) and government support (GS), and two inhibitors, organization inertia (OI) and data security risk (DSR) on CC assimilation. The authors posit that enablers and inhibitors influence CC assimilation separately and interactively. The research model is empirically tested by using the field survey data from 376 Chinese firms. Findings Both TMS and GS positively and DSR negatively influence CC assimilation. OI negatively moderates the TMS–assimilation link, and DSR negatively moderates the GS–assimilation link. Research limitations/implications The results indicate that enablers and inhibitors influence CC assimilation in both separate and joint manners, suggesting that CC assimilation is a much more complex process and demands new knowledge to be learned. Practical implications For these firms with a high level of OI, only TMS is not enough, and top managers should find other effective way to successfully implement structural and behavioral change in the process of CC assimilation. For policy makers, they should actively play their supportive roles in CC assimilation. Originality/value A new framework is developed to identify key drivers of CC assimilation along two bipolar dimensions including enabling vs inhibiting and internal vs external.