Adoption of EC by Logistics Service Providers: Adoption of Electronic Commerce by Logistics Service Providers in Hong Kong

Logistics has developed into an integral part of the corporate strategy of many firms, contributing to the primary activities of their value chain, and ultimately creating cost and service advantages to the firm. Many firms nowadays have adopted a supply chain management, increasingly outsourcing their logistics activities to logistics service providers (LSPs). Logistics encompasses all of the information and physical flows throughout a supply chain. A percentage of logistics services providers (LSPs) adopt the new technology of electronic commerce (EC) as a tool to conduct their business operations, but others still resist it. What causes LSPs in Hong Kong to accept or reject EC? This study aims at investigating factors affecting the adoption of EC by LSPs in Hong Kong, their practices and their performance outcomes. Using both qualitative and quantitative data collected from a sample of LSPs in Hong Kong, this study identifies the factors that affect firms to adopt EC, examines the stages of EC adoption, and the corresponding performance. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are also discussed.

Dr. Venus Lun is Lecturer in Department of Logistics of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Her research interests include shipping logistics, intermodal transport operations, and liner shipping management. She has co-authored a book Shipping and Transport Logistics. Her research papers have published in referred scholarly journals.