Does ICT use as a strategic response to globalization matter for SME performance in Nigeria? Mediating roles of entrepreneurial orientation, strategic agility, and organizational resilience

Abstract

This study examined the effect of information and communication technology (ICT) use on small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) performance with a focus on the mediating roles of entrepreneurial orientation, strategic agility, and organizational resilience. Cross-sectional data were collected from 298 SMEs in Lagos, Nigeria, using a questionnaire based on previously validated measurement scales. Partial least squares modelling was applied to test the hypothesized five-factor model. The results demonstrate that ICT use, in response to globalization, exerts a significant and positive effect on SME performance. However, this effect is fully mediated by entrepreneurial orientation, strategic agility, and organizational resilience. The analysis further revealed that the positive effect of ICT use on SME performance is sequentially mediated by strategic agility and organizational resilience. In contrast, the sequential mediation involving entrepreneurial orientation and organizational resilience was positive but not statistically significant. These findings suggest that ICT use alone may be insufficient to enhance SME performance; instead, the development and maintenance of distinctive or dynamic capabilities are essential to achieve optimal and consistent effects.