e-Readiness Assessment of SMEs to Use e-Commerce: The Case of Manufacturing Firms in Shiraz Grand Industrial Park

In the information society, firms need to develop competitive advantages with regard to the adequate and intensive usage of information and communication technology which is essential element in today's markets. Competitive advantages through ICT development are especially important for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Because using ICTs help to improve internal and external communications and develop new organizational models to compete in the new markets. For assurance of the effective and useful implementation of internet based technologies such as e-Commerce in business transactions, the first step is to measure e-Readiness of companies to accept these modern technologies. This study describes six dimensions of telecommunication and technical infrastructure which comprise communication with environment, informational readiness, management and organizational policies, human resources and cultural infrastructures, information technology security and legal environment. The findings of this paper indicate that except in the dimensions of informational readiness dimension and management and organizational policies, there is no e-Readiness in the other dimensions of manufacturing firms in Shiraz Grand Industrial Park.