SMEs, on the other hand, need to conduct self assessments to determine whether
they are able, among other things, to recognize what they wish to use e-business/ecommerce
for; what benefits they stand to gain by delving into e-business/e-commerce
or the digital economy; their preparedness in terms of skills, infrastructure, the legal
environment and general business environment; aspects of e-business/e-commerce
that they need to implement and in what critical areas of the business; the techniques
needed to implement e-business/e-commerce; the associated costs and benefits; the
resources and financial and human capital they would require; monitor their performance
in the digital economy in order to take corrective actions; and recognize the
various training needs. Payne (n.d.) summarises these well, saying that in order to
determine how the e-readiness initiative should be delivered to the targeted SMEs,
a needs assessment survey should be conducted. This assessment would help the
SMEs define the target audience, determine their level of expertise and sophistication
and their context, and identify what other programs are underway.