Evaluating prospective e-providers: An empirical study

Abstract

It has been problematic to evaluate prospective providers prior to actual adoption and use of their technologies and services. This research uses the resource-based view of the firm to identify, prioritize and relate e-provider evaluation criteria and evaluation process factors to user satisfaction levels, using cluster analysis and ANOVA on data gathered from 103 companies. The results suggest that firms prioritize intangible evaluation criteria over tangible criteria. Project performance is associated with e-provider performance on intangible evaluation criteria, as well as cross-functional participation in the evaluation process. © November 2007, by the Institute for Supply Management, Inc™.