ERP Study on Dubai Police

United Arab Emirates (U.A.E) and Dubai in particular are hotbeds of entrepreneurial activity. Thanks to a number of pro-business legislations, Dubai has emerged as one of the top locations to start a business, whether small, medium or large. It is also the place where people with an entrepreneurial orientation are respected, valued and even nurtured.

With that in mind, we came across a study that was presented at the 9th International Business and Social Science Research Conference in Dubai, which explored the possibilities of Enterprise Resource Planning having a mediating effect on organizational performance and entrepreneurial orientation. Amusingly, the sample that was used was the Dubai Police.

What is entrepreneurial orientation?

Entrepreneurial orientation is usually described as an organization’s ability to be ‘entrepreneurial’. Commonly shortened as ‘EO’, entrepreneurial orientation measures a company’s abilities to take risks, being proactive and being innovative. It also measures if a company is aggressive enough when it comes to competition and if it is able to work in autonomy.

These 5 aspects of an organization’s way of working are studied together and are described as its ‘EO’. Companies that have a higher entrepreneurial orientation tend to have a higher organizational performance. Companies that are able to take risks and those which are proactive in adopting newer technologies will be able to fight competition and also innovate within an organization.

Methodology and results of the study

Hassan Saleh Al-Dhaafri and Abdullah Kaid Al-Swidi conducted a quantitative research by administering 320 questionnaires to members of the Dubai police departments. Though only 110 of the returned questionnaires were usable, the data provided interesting insights. Police officers who scored higher on entrepreneurial orientation tended to favor using ERP than those who had a lower score. Police officers who were willing to take risks to adopt a technology that they were not familiar with were also the ones who were able to take roles of leadership and make entrepreneurial decisions.

As ERP systems tend to be expensive and adopting a new technology requires the ability to think out of the box and be innovative, police officers who ranked higher on entrepreneurial orientation favored using ERP more than others. The authors of the study state that the reason why Dubai police were chosen as the sample was because Dubai Police has been using an ERP system for the last 10 years.

The study pointed out the importance of high entrepreneurial orientation when it comes to the adoption of ERP. It also highlights the importance of ERP as a variable, when it comes to increasing organizational performance, whether or not a company has a high EO score.

Our take

While the choice of sample is questionable, the study still provides a valuable insight: that entrepreneurial orientation and organizational performance are mediated when enterprise resource planning (ERP) is used.

To explain in more simple terms, whenever an ERP is used, entrepreneurial orientation is enhanced. Even if a company scores low on entrepreneurial orientation, using ERP can mediate its negative effects and help in increasing organizational performance. If a company already has a high entrepreneurial orientation score, chances are, they are already using a good ERP system. Then, it is probably time to update and choose an ERP that is more contemporary and in-sync with times to meet the demands of a highly competitive world.

While using an ERP will not increase EO scores (as causation is not the same as effect), it will certainly ensure that the organizational performance will increase by enabling a company to stay ahead of competition and increasing productivity.

References

1. Al-Dhaafri, H.S. & Al-Swidi, A.K. (2014). The Entrepreneurial Orientation and the organizational performance: does enterprise resource planning have a mediating role: a study on Dubai Police. Proceedings of 9th International Business and Social Science Research Conference, 6 – 8 January, 2014, Novotel World Trade Centre, Dubai, UAE, ISBN: 978-1-922069-41-2.

PDF:http://wbiworldconpro.com/uploads/dubai-conference-2014/management/1388561361_403-Hassan.pdf