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SMEs 'hindered' by internet responsibilities, study suggests
Growing numbers of small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMEs) are looking into outsourcing some or all of their IT operations as they feel that the internet has been just as much of a hindrance than a help to them, new research has suggested.
Figures compiled by the Cranfield School of Management show that around 97 per cent of UK SMEs now have email, with 94 per cent having broadband installed and 84 per cent having their own website.
However, in spite of the obvious advantages of being online, 46 per cent of ten firms questioned in the study said that the internet has raised the complexity of running their business.
The growing demand for online services among customers and the complicated technological language used by broadband suppliers were among the reasons cited by the respondents in support of such an attitude, leading some to look into outsourcing as a means of cutting back their overheads and enabling them to concentrate on their general business operations.
"There is no question that the internet has enhanced the performance of SMEs," explained Andrew Burke, co-author of the report.
"The sting in the tail is that this uptake in internet use has been so dramatic that most SMEs now share these same benefits and few can garner a competitive advantage as a result."
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