Total Quality Management & Business Excellence

ISSN: 1478-3363 (Print) 1478-3371 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/ctqm20

Impact of data-driven decision-making in Lean Six

Sigma: an empirical analysis

G. Rejikumar, A. Aswathy Asokan & V. Raja Sreedharan

To cite this article: G. Rejikumar, A. Aswathy Asokan & V. Raja Sreedharan (2018): Impact of
data-driven decision-making in Lean Six Sigma: an empirical analysis, Total Quality Management &
Business Excellence, DOI: 10.1080/14783363.2018.1426452

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2018.1426452

Published online: 28 Jan 2018.

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Total Quality Management, 2018
https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2018.1426452

Impact of data-driven decision-making in Lean Six Sigma: an

empirical analysis
G. Rejikumara, A. Aswathy Asokanb and V. Raja Sreedharan a*

a
Department of Management Kochi, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Kochi, Kerala, India;
b
Department of Management Studies, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India

Data-driven decision-making refers to the approaches business firms, and managers are
adopting in decision-making on the strength of verifiable data. This study attempted to
evaluate the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) in a Lean Six Sigma (LSS)
organisation. The research model developed included external variables that capture
perceptions of managers on knowledge management, data quality, technology
readiness and performance expectancy. The study examined the moderating role of
complexity perceptions of managers. And, data were collected from 173 practising
managers in Indian industries. A PLS-based structural equation modelling was carried
out. The model revealed the critical linkages among the constructs to draw valid
insights about manager’s perceptions in an LSS environment. The study found out
that antecedents significantly predict usefulness and ease of using feeling among
managers, resulting in adoption intentions. The complexity perceptions act as a
significant moderator to adoption intentions in the framework. This study underlines
the need for an adequate infrastructure capable of collecting and disseminating
reliable data among decision-makers for imparting confidence among managers to
adopt data-driven approaches. The main contribution of the study is that the
managers hold a favourable view towards new technology adoption and prefers the
ease of use for better decision-making.
Keywords: data-driven decisions; data quality; technology readiness; Lean Six Sigma
(LSS); complexity perceptions

1. Introduction
Across the globe, now, firms are attempting to restructure their business strategies to with-
stand the multi-faceted transformations in the business environment (Mendelson, 2000). In
business, major drivers of lasting competitiveness are quality decisions taken during times
of exigencies. Decisions based on quantifiable measures that track and assess the perform-
ance of critical business activities have become an emerging trend with the advent of tech-
nology-enabled applications. Data dependence for rational decisions has percolated into all
levels of management, and effective use of data has become a core competency for success.
Usage of current data for accurate assessment of performance indicators (Garbelli, 2008)
related to major functional areas in management has become the order of the day for
market leaders (Jeffery, 2010). A metric is a quantifiable measure that is used to track
and assess trends, dynamisms or characteristics of a particular business process (Ambler,
2000). Now, firms rely upon much metrics calculated from existing data for decision-
making. A critical factor that influences a company’s decision to adopt data-driven concepts
in management pertains to favourable perceptions of managers about potential benefits
from such approaches. Managers are finding it hard to bring radical improvements in

*Corresponding author. Email: rajasreedharan@hotmail.com

© 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group

2 G. Rejikumar et al.

performance for survival and success. A data-driven approach can significantly help them in
understanding emerging trends in business environment and contribute to developing strat-
egies to remain competitive. India, having substantial market growth potential due to
favourable demographics and increasing disposable income, has become a desirable desti-
nation for major global players. Efficient use of data-driven approaches in evaluating man-
agerial efficiency in India is still in its infancy. Data-driven strategy formulations suffer
significant challenges in India due to multiple reasons related to technology adoption
levels, lack of proper awareness, issues in ensuring data quality and deficiencies in analytic
capabilities (Ramanathan & Sarulatha, 2013), etc.

1.1. Motivation for the study

Managers understand that data-driven approaches require analytic skills and higher-order
thinking other than intuitive for useful application of insights gained. Skills for thinking
data analytically ( Provost & Fawcett, 2013) to get accurate insights from data are critical
in decision-making. Many managers perceive LSS metrics as difficult to use or hard to
understand. Such complexity felt by managers in understanding and analysing data pre-
vents many from adopting data-driven approaches. The extent to which an innovation is
perceived as relatively difficult to understand and use explains the complexity level (Pan
& Jang, 2008). Also, the main challenges are quantifying the data for decision-making,
which is a difficult task. Moreover, the employee should be technologically ready for
improving the performance and its outcome (Albliwi, Antony, & Lim, 2015). But, com-
plexity inhibits the adoption intention in an LSS environment (De Groot, Alkemade,
Braat, Hein, & & Willemen, 2010; Snee, 2010). Many studies have identified that complex-
ity is a significant barrier to LSS adoption in an efficient manner (Näslund, 2008; Albliwi
et al., 2017; Srinivas & Sreedharan, in press).
Most of the industries rely on efficiency and effectiveness to remain competitive; the
data-driven technologies have made many new business opportunities (Chen, Chiang, &
Storey, 2012; Kim, Park, & Choi, 2017). But, data-driven decision-making appears to be
a challenge in many organisation due to the vast amounts of data generation complicating
the decision-making process (Riggins & Wamba, 2015). A data misinterpretation could
make the organisation less competitive. On the other hand, those who handle the data suc-
cessfully will get the competitive advantages among the competitors. So, data-driven
decision-making has the potential for excellence, and organisations have to evaluate the
manager’s perception (Vince, 2008; Dubey, Gunasekaran, Childe, Fosso Wamba,& Papa-
dopoulos,2016). Moreover, with the evolution of internet of Things (IoT), Cyber-physical
systems and Big data managers have to adopt the new technology for better decision-
making in their day to day activities (Liao, Deschamps, Loures, & Ramos, 2017). But,
so far, very few studies have made an effort to explore the mangers’ perception towards
the adoption of new technology. Thus, the researchers are motivated to evaluate the man-
ager’s perception in decision-making using TAM model in the LSS context.
A comprehensive attempt is needed to understand the manager’s perception about adop-
tion of new technology for data-driven decisions in emerging economy. Therefore, this
study attempted to understand the perceptions of managers in emerging economy like
India about various aspects related to efficient use of data-driven approaches in decision-
making in an LSS environment (Antony, 2004; Ferguson, 2007; Tsironis & Psychogios,
2016). Therefore, the objectives of this study are:
. To explore and understand the perceptions of practising managers in India about
various aspects related to efficient use of data-driven decision-making.
 Total Quality Management 3

. To understand the linkages between critical antecedents that can be integrated in data-
driven decision-making among practising managers in an LSS organisation.

2. Literature review and theory development

TAM was proposed as an instrument to forecast the likelihood of a fresh technology being
adopted within an organisation (Davis, 1989). A firm’s survival in competitive environment
critically depends upon the success of management activities. The traditional belief that
management is an art rather than a science made many managers comfortable with intuitive
ways of decision-making. Managers also feel that quantitative approaches are complex
(Clark & Ambler, 2001) and are not effective in realistically portraying consumer behaviour
in a multi-faceted context like India. The conventional way of measuring performance using
market return metrics, such as market share and sales volume (Gruca & Rego, 2005), was
considered appropriate by them. Emerging challenges to firms from unrealistic and ever-
escalating customer expectations (Gyung Kim, and, & Mattila, 2013) and multichannel cus-
tomer management issues (Neslin & Shankar, 2009) made managers think about new
approaches to rational decision-making. Media selection confusions and service failure/
recovery concerns (Petzer & Steyn, 2006), now make managers more sceptic than ever
before. Firms realised the need for measuring marketing-mix and similar performances
using appropriate financial and non-financial metrics (Mintz & Currim, 2013) for re-align-
ing their strategic focus to areas of concern. The scope of using business metrics increased
substantially with advancements in technology-driven analytic platforms and use of such
metrics for assessing non-financial performance such as customer satisfaction, loyalty,
social mentions and concepts such as marketing orientation, efficiency and effectiveness
have become common. Firms started believing that actions on the strength of proper analy-
sis of related data are significantly bound to improve performance (Davenport, 2006).
Many authors have used LSS because of its applicability to various problems in a differ-
ent environment (Snee, 2010; Psychogios, Atanasovski, & Tsironis, 2012; Furterer, 2016).
But the decision-making process in LSS environment is complex. Mostly it requires an
MCDM approach to make the decisions (Albliwi et al., 2015). But, there is an opportunity
to enhance the LSS capability for problem-solving. So, to improve the decision-making
process, an approach is needed to understand the manager’s perception about the adoption
of new technologies for better decision-making (Antony, Krishan, Cullen, & Kumar, 2012).
So, the researchers reviewed various management concepts to identify a model which is
easy to use and less complicated. Also, many firms use the enormous amount of data
they possess for formulating effective strategies for improved performance (McAfee &
Brynjolfsson, 2012). In this context, an individual manager attempting to adopt the
concept is important. His beliefs and attitudes will critically decide the speed at which a
firm adopts such innovative methods in decision-making. The technology acceptance
model (TAM) attempts to demonstrate an individual’s intention to adopt a new technology,
application or process (Davis, 1989; Venkatesh & Davis, 2000) and seems apt in under-
standing the manager’s perception on new technology adoption for decision-making.
A visible gap exists in strategy formulation among market leaders and laggards (Jeffery,
2010) and that applications of data-driven approaches for better decisions predominantly
remain as the prerogative of larger multinational firms. The adoption of such practices is
limited in the majority of companies even in developed countries (Jeffery, 2010). Many
companies, even though, recognise business metrics and the potential benefits of adoption,
struggle to get started (Best, 2010). Data-driven decision-making forms a continuum in
4 G. Rejikumar et al.

which data get transformed into information and, ultimately to executable knowledge
through a set of cognitive skills (Mandinach, Honey, & Light, 2006).
In fact, TAM has its core philosophy embedded within the theory of reasoned action
(Fishbein & Ajzen, 1980), which postulates that intention towards a behaviour is an
outcome of an attitude and subjective norm. Here, attitude demonstrates the belief that
the behaviour has positive results, and subjective norm refers to the belief that the behaviour
will have approval from fellow beings. As per TAM, two constructs namely perceived use-
fulness and perceived ease use (Davis, 1993) act as reasons for a favourable attitude towards
a new technology or application. From the above reviews, TAM found to be a suitable
model for evaluating the manger’s perception on data-driven decision-making. So, the
researchers further reviewed the literature to find the antecedents of TAM-like perceived
usefulness and perceived ease of use.
The mediating role of these variables in causing a favourable attitude from certain exter-
nal variables (Dishaw & Strong, 1999) (Venkatesh & Davis, 2000) (Venkatesh & Brown,
2001) has widened the scope of the model. An external variable represents the facilitating
conditions provided to individuals to adopt the new technology (Venkatesh, Davis, &
Morris, 2007). External variables may include existing organisational and technical infra-
structure that supports the use of technology or application. Moreover, studies have ident-
ified demographic factors (Akinbobola & Adeleke, 2016), individual characteristics (Pituch
& Lee, 2006), self-efficacy (Bandura, 1977), organisational context factors (Thong, Hong,
& Tam, 2002), trust (Chen & Tan, 2004), etc. as significant antecedents to TAM variables.
In the extended TAM model, determinants of perceived usefulness are job relevance, output
quality, and result demonstrability (Venkatesh & Davis, 2000) Here, job relevance posits
the ability of new technology or application in offering support to individual’s job function.
Output quality refers to an individual’s perception of how well the application performs a
particular task in an LSS environment. Result demonstrability implies the ability of the
application to provide visible positive results on adoption. The concept requires right tech-
nology infrastructure (LaValle, Lesser, Shockley, Hopkins, & Kruschwitz, 2011, Sreed-
haran, Raju,& Srivatsa Srinivas, 2017) and quality data (Strong, Lee, & Wang, 1997;
Albliwi et al., 2015). Also, the practising manager’s perceptions about data source credi-
bility (Nicolaou & McKnight, 2006) and the analytic possibility of data (Brown, Chui,
& Manyika, 2011) can have a significant impact on his data-driven decisions.

2.1. Model development

Many external variables are relevant in developing usefulness and ease of use perceptions
among practising managers towards data-bound approaches in decision-making. The
success of data-driven decision-making relies greatly on the quality of data organisation,
its analysis and the process of drawing meaningful information (Jeffery, 2010). No doubt
exists about the link between data, information and knowledge (Vinodh & Vimal, 2012;
Arpaci, 2016). Data which are otherwise just raw numbers can provide actionable infor-
mation if duly processed. Active application of such knowledge acts as a source of competi-
tive advantage for firms (Alavi & Leidner, 2001). A business needs to possess quality
knowledge management systems to offer confidence to practising managers to adopt
data-driven approaches. Knowledge management encompasses all methods adopted in
firms to capture, organise and share knowledge (Bhatt, 2000) for the benefit of the
company. Expectations of the practising managers that firms in India possess such knowl-
edge management capabilities will have a positive impact on their usefulness perceptions
towards data-driven approaches. Thus, it appeared that knowledge management capabilities
 Total Quality Management 5

within the firm could significantly influence perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use
among managers to data-driven approaches. These observations merit empirical examin-
ation in the study (H1 and H2).
Now firms have huge volumes of data in hand; but they use very little of it and often, do
not have the data that serve the purpose of inquiry (Levitin & Redman, 1998). Although
firms have emerged successful in assimilating data from multiple sources, practising man-
agers are not confident that they have correct enough, reliable, consistent and timely data
upon which to take decisions (Koronios, Lin, & Gao, 2005; Snee, 2010). The concept of
data quality has gone beyond the popular notion of accuracy to describe the fitness of
the data for efficient use to a data customer (Wang & Strong, 1996). Wang and Strong
(1996) have empirically identified dimensions of data quality as accuracy, reliability,
importance, consistency, precision, timeliness, fineness, understandability, conciseness
and usefulness. Achieving data quality to the utmost level is often acknowledged as a
great challenge to firms but is critical to effective decision-making. The manager’s percep-
tion of the availability of quality data that provide required information and knowledge for
rational decisions will have a positive impact on their usefulness perceptions towards data-
driven approaches. Therefore, the hypotheses that data quality perceptions significantly
influence perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use among managers to data-driven
approaches are proposed (H3 and H4).
Tree aspects related to technology, organisation and environment firm as documented in
Technology Organisational Environmental (TOE) framework decides every firm’s decision
to adopt an innovation or new approach (Hoerl & Gardner, 2010; Jugulum & Samuel, 2010;
Albliwi et al., 2015). Here, the technological context describes both the existing technol-
ogies in use, the organisational context refers to characteristics of the organisation such
as structure and culture and the environmental context explains competition, government
role, etc. A technology resource available to firms demonstrates the competence of them
in collecting and utilising data for the benefit of the company. Technology readiness
(Zhu, Kraemer, & Xu, 2006) of a company reveals its technology infrastructure and
human resources to adopt data-driven approaches. No doubt exists about the link
between technology readiness and information technology adoption (Hong & Zhu,
2006). Practising managers should feel that the firm has achieved required technology
readiness to guarantee data quality and related information technology infrastructure for
the efficient use of data. Therefore, the hypothesis that technology readiness perceptions
significantly influence perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use among managers
to data-driven approaches is proposed (H5 and H6).
Diffusion of innovations theory (Pan & Jang, 2008) explains the process of dissemi-
nation of a new idea or technology. The rate of adoption of an idea depends on percep-
tions of individuals about relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, trainability and
observability of the innovation (Wang & Chen, 2010). To evaluate relative advantage,
considerations of economic advantage, convenience or satisfaction are useful. Compatibil-
ity with existing procedure and practices, simplicity to adopt and use, easy to experiment
and to achieve visible results on adoption are other factors that significantly determine the
rate of adoption. The decision process to adopt an innovation starts from knowledge of the
innovation followed by persuasion, decision, implementation and confirmation sought
from peers. An individual is likely to perceive a relative advantage in adopting an
approach if better performance results. The ability of a method to help a person in enhan-
cing the performance explains the Performance Expectancy (PE) perceptions in him (Ven-
katesh et al., 2007). Therefore, the hypothesis that PE significantly influences perceived
6 G. Rejikumar et al.

usefulness and perceived ease of use among managers to data-driven approaches is pro-
posed (H7 and H8).
Several studies have documented the relationship between perceived usefulness and
perceived ease of use in developing adoption intentions towards a new technology or appli-
cation (Rogers, 2004; Chang & Tung, 2008; Saeed & Abdinnour-Helm, 2008) (H9 and
H10). Also, empirical evidence exists for the fact that perceived ease of use significantly
develops usefulness perceptions among individuals (H11). Lower perception of complex-
ities resulted in higher adoption intentions (Ramamurthy, Sen, & Sinha, 2008), and greater
complexities made employees continue traditional approaches (Bradford & Florin, 2003;
Sahay & Ranjan, 2008) Therefore, hypotheses follow that complexity perceived signifi-
cantly moderates adoption intentions caused from perceived usefulness and perceived
ease of use (H12 and H13). Incorporating all the hypotheses proposed above, the research
model illustrated in Figure 1 is tested for examining linkages hypothesised.

3. Methods
The research design was descriptive and involved causal investigations. Cross-sectional
data containing manager’s perceptions on items identified to measure variables of interest
were collected using a questionnaire. The sample unit for the study was a manager working
in India. Using purposive sampling, the respondents were located from the Confederation of
Indian Industries (CII, 2016) directory. The target companies were organisation practising
LSS. Then potential participants contact info was verified by LinkedIn’s ‘in mail’ messa-
ging service to ensure whether the respondent belongs to an LSS organisation as shown
in the CII directory. The Participants, who expressed an interest, were emailed an introduc-
tory explanation of the study and link to the questionnaire which is adapted from tailored
design method (Dillman, 2007). Respondents were selected purely by chance, and since no
bias was there in the selection, randomness was assumed. However, statistical verification
of randomness using ‘runs test’ and normality using skewness and kurtosis values (Lee &
You, 2016) confirmed the existence of acceptable levels of randomness in the sample. The
questionnaire was sent to 324 managers found in the LinkedIn’s, 2017. Out of 324, the

Figure 1. Research model.

 Total Quality Management 7

researchers received 173 responses. The sample size is adequate for studying the hypoth-
eses developed in this study, which is similar to the response rates achieved in studies
on TQM and LSS research (Kureshi, Qureshi,& Sajid, 2010; Sreedharan et al., 2017).
Among the respondents, 10% belong to the senior management like CTO, CFO, CEO, Pre-
sident, Director and the remaining were middle management, consisting of managers com-
prising planner, scheduler, buyer and analyst. About 29% of the respondents have Black
Belts, and 41% of the interviewees were trained on decision support system. While the
remaining 20% respondents were preparing for data analyst certification. Remaining
respondents did not have any certifications. Over 64% of the respondents were under the
age of 45 years, and 30% of the respondents were ranging from 50 to 60. And, 6% of
the respondents were over 60 years of age.
WarpPLS.5.0, a partial least square-based structural equation modelling tool having
superior capabilities in handling multivariate data having normality deviations and
sample size inadequacies (Kock, 2013), was used for the estimation of path coefficients
and significant levels to understand linkages among constructs. Most of the items used
for measuring constructs were from the previous literature identified with the support of
experts. A two-stage procedure helped in finalising the items to be included in the
scales. The first stage involved shortlisting of items relevant in the context and capable
of explaining the ambit of construct definitions from literature. So identified 48 items
after review for relevance, clarity and conciseness by a panel of five senior managers in
decision support systems and academicians are used in the pretest the questionnaire.
Each item was in the form of statements to which respondents were asked to cast their
opinion on a five-point Likert scale ranging from ‘strongly disagree’ to ‘strongly agree.’
The entire questionnaire was subjected to scrutiny by experts for content and face vali-
dation. Moreover, understanding the impact of data-driven decision-making in LSS
environment seems to be fresh. So, the researcher performed the substantive validity to
conform that the items were relevant to the study (Lawshe, 1975; Sreedharan, Raju, Raj-
kanth, & Nagaraj, 2016).
The panel members were asked to:

− Rate the information captured by the item was essential or not essential for the
study.
− Substantive validity coefficient (CSV) is represented as

CSV = (nc − n0 )/N,

where nc – number of respondents represented an item as essential; n0 – number of respon-

dents represented an item as non-essential; N – number of total respondents.
From the CSV value if an item possesses a value (≥0.5), then the item is considered for
the study. But, if the CSV value is <0.5, then the specific item is dropped from the study,
leading to a total of 33 items for the final study. A pairwise t-test was conducted on the final
sample by dividing the sample into two group based on their collection dates. The initial
group consisted of 64 responses, and the latter group had 72 responses. The t-tests were
performed on the responses for the ‘data quality’ and ‘perceived usefulness’, and these
groups yielded p-values of .513 and .176, respectively. So, the researchers conducted
that the study does not possess non-response bias. The subsequent pilot study could not
find any confusion among respondents in understanding the questions. The measures
were considered as reflective in nature as correlations among them were justified.
8 G. Rejikumar et al.

4. Data analysis
4.1. Reliability and validity assessment
The pre-processing of the data included in the algorithm of Warp PLS 5.0 confirmed the
quality of data for further analysis about missing values, zero variance, etc. The model esti-
mation using PLS regression algorithm with bootstrapping procedure that maximises the
variance explained by the latent variable indicators (Kock, 2013) produces various fit
indices for evaluating the validity of the model. Fit criteria such as average path coefficient
(APC), average R-squared (ARC) and average adjusted R-squared (AARS) to be with
p < .05 and average block variance inflation factor (AVIF) was less than 3.3, confirmed
the validity of the model as good for drawing conclusions on causality assumptions. The
loading of the indicators was above 0.5 at p < .05 to establish the relevance of items in sig-
nificantly measuring the concept under investigation (DeVellis, 2016). Composite
reliability (CR) and Cronbach alpha values above 0.7 confirmed the reliability of measure-
ment. Average variance extracted (AVE) above 0.5 and high positive values of R-squared,
as well as Q-squared, confirmed predictive validity (DeVellis, 2016). The square root of
AVE of all constructs was more than any of the correlations involved with a particular
latent variable to confirm discriminant validity. All these observations confirmed the
reliability and validity of the constructs (Table 1).
Figure 2 illustrates the estimated models with all path coefficients and corresponding p-
values.

4.2. Examination of path coefficients

All the proposed hypotheses get supported at p < .05 except one that assumed the signifi-
cant relationship between knowledge management and perceived usefulness. Endorsing
the TAM model, the results indicated that usefulness and ease of use perceptions signifi-
cantly develop adoption intentions. Perceived ease of use was found more predicting
adoption intentions (β = 0.25) compared to perceived usefulness (β = 0.22). In most of
the previous TAM studies related to technology adoption, perceived usefulness was
found having higher predictive power than perceived ease of use (Venkatesh & Davis,
2000; Burton-Jones & Hubona, 2006; Godoe & Johansen, 2012). A meta-analysis of
88 published TAM studies observed that the average ‘β’ value between usefulness and
intentions was 0.505 and that between ease of use and intentions was 0.186 (King &
He, 2006). To estimate the impact of moderator variable ‘complexity perceptions’ in alter-
ing the predictive power of TAM variables, a separate analysis excluding moderator was
conducted. The corresponding ‘β’ values were 0.28 and 0.25. The results confirmed the
moderating effect of complexity perceptions, but further endorsed the observation that
perceived ease of use has better predictive power in adoption intentions on data-driven
decision-making. Thus, it appears that managers are willing to adopt innovative
decision-making approaches, but the ease of use considerations override usefulness per-
ceptions. It implies that managers are inclined to adopt new methods in decision-
making if they believe that the new approach will be effortless as well as easy to under-
stand and follow. A possible reason for this reversed importance of TAM variables may
be the fact that many managers participated in the study had limited opportunity to experi-
ence the usefulness feeling from data-driven approaches. The ability of ease of use to sig-
nificantly predict usefulness has already confirmed in many prior studies. Organisations
should develop tools and systems that make data usage and related knowledge manage-
ment easy.
 Total Quality Management 9

Table 1. Provides details and various statistics of items used to measure constructs.
Std.
Measurement items Loadings Mean dev
Knowledge management (KM) (CR = 0.87; α = 0.81; AVE = 0.64)
Firms require digital platforms for sharing knowledge from data 0.75 3.83 0.93
Firms should provide easy access for managers to documents and 0.75 3.37 0.97
reports created from data.
Firms should possess capabilities for documentation of prior reports 0.87 3.64 0.96
of data use
There should be collaboration for effective use of data for better 0.80 3.26 0.97
decisions
Data quality (DQ) (CR = 0.89; α = 0.83; AVE = 0.70)
Reliable data are needed for decision-making 0.87 3.51 0.92
Proper data management helps in collecting useful data 0.96 3.71 0.92
Data from credible sources make conclusions reliable 0.43 3.71 0.93
Data should be readily available for decision purpose 0.96 4.06 0.88
Technology readiness (TR) (CR = 0.83; α = 0.72; AVE = 0.55)
Firms should focus to build adequate technology for efficient data 0.69 3.82 0.83
management
Appropriate technology make data-driven decision-making easy 0.62 3.57 0.95
Technically qualified workforce required for data-driven decision- 0.83 4.17 0.81
making
Firms should invest on technology for better use of data 0.79 3.95 0.90
Performance expectancy (PE) (CR = 0.78; α = 0.72; AVE = 0.57)
Goals are easily achievable with data support 0.64 3.52 0.87
Firms get clarity on its actions from studying past data 0.77 3.52 0.82
Monitoring of employee performance is possible through data support 0.73 3.41 0.98
Strategy formulation for success is easy with data support 0.59 4.03 0.95
Perceived ease of use (PEU) (CR = 0.83; α = 0.71; AVE = 0.62)
Data-driven approaches make decision-making easy 0.67 3.71 0.92
Data-driven approaches are easy to understand and practice 0.81 3.71 0.93
Acquiring skills for data-driven decision-making is easy 0.85 3.41 0.98
Knowledge management systems are easy to learn 0.05a 3.30 1.03
Perceived usefulness (PU) (CR = 0.84; α = 0.82; AVE = 0.72)
Using data-driven approaches improves quality of decisions 0.91 4.20 0.86
Using data-driven approaches helps in setting targets and achieving it 0.91 4.15 0.88
Using data-driven approaches helps in sharing knowledge 0.90 4.03 0.95
Using data-driven approaches improves overall employee 0.89 4.05 0.89
productivity
Adoption intentions (AI) (CR = 0.90; α = 0.86; AVE = 0.65)
Data-driven decisions helps in meeting future challenges 0.91 3.58 0.91
Data-driven decisions helps in facing competition 0.57 3.56 0.97
Data can bring success to firms quickly 0.83 3.62 0.96
Data-driven approaches makes job meaningful 0.78 3.61 0.93
Data-driven decisions make managers life easy 0.91 3.58 0.91
Complexity perceptions (CP) (CR = 0.83; α = 0.73; AVE = 0.58)
Data-driven approaches are easy to adopt 0.55 2.02 1.04
Data-driven decision-making does not involve complex calculations 0.88 2.37 0.96
Many data are easy to understand 0.88 2.38 0.93
Huge volume of data provide better clarity in usage 0.79 2.28 0.91
Note: CR: composite reliability; α: Cronbach alpha; AVE: average variance extracted.
a
Dropped due to poor loading.

This study deployed many external variables as antecedents to belief variables. They
were perceptions about knowledge management capabilities of the firm, data quality, tech-
nology readiness of firm and PE. All the corresponding hypotheses except one linking
10 G. Rejikumar et al.

Figure 2. Estimated model.

Notes: Average path coefficient (APC) = 0.256, p < .001. Average R-squared (ARS) = 0.593, p < .001.
Average adjusted R-squared (AARS) = 0.589, p < .001. Average block VIF (AVIF) = 2.441, accepta-
ble if ≤5, ideally ≤3.3. Average full collinearity VIF (AFVIF) = 3.080, acceptable if ≤5, ideally ≤3.3.
Tenenhaus GoF (GoF) = 0.590, small ≥0.1, medium ≥0.25, large ≥0.36.

knowledge management to ease of use were found significant with different magnitudes of
association. Examination of path coefficients revealed that the strongest antecedent to use-
fulness and ease of use was PE (β’s = 0.73 and 0.55, respectively). Technology readiness
perceptions (β’s = 0.28 and 0.23) emerged as the second important factor followed by data
quality (β’s = 0.12and 0.12). No significant relationship existed between knowledge man-
agement and ease of use. The observation implied that managers feel knowledge manage-
ment systems are complex and difficult to follow in everyday decision-making. Poor
loadings reported for the specific item related to knowledge management used for measur-
ing ease of use underlined this observation.

4.3. Examination of mediating effect of perceived ease of use

An attempt was made to examine the mediating effect of ease of use construct in developing
usefulness perceptions from four external variables. Table 2 presents indirect effects, direct
effects, total effects and Sobel’s ‘t’ statistic to verify the mediating effect.
Mediating effect on knowledge management to usefulness could not be established. In
all other linkages, the direct effect significantly dropped on the introduction of mediator,
and the indirect effect was found significant. The total effect on usefulness also greatly
improved. The observation implies that in usefulness perceptions on experiencing the
ease of use feel is having a higher effect on adoption intentions. A dynamic interplay
among these belief variables is essential in imparting adoption intentions to data-driven
approaches.
 Total Quality Management 11

Table 2. Mediation analysis of PEU.

Indirect effects Total effects Sobel’s
To PEU From PEU To PU (PU) (PU) ‘t’ statistic
KM 0.045a 0.21 0.125 0.009a 0.135 0.98 (p = .16)
DQ 0.123 0.21 0.117 0.026 0.143 2.37 (p < .05)
TR 0.226 0.21 0.286 0.047 0.334 3.46 (p < .05)
PE 0.554 0.21 0.724 0.116 0.841 4.45 (p < .05)
a
Not significant.

4.4. Moderation effect of complexity perceptions

Moderation effects are difficult to interpret without a graph. Graphs help in evaluating the
effect of the independent variable at different values of the moderator. Figure 3 illustrates
the significant moderating effect of complexity perceptions on the relationship between use-
fulness and adoption intentions. The moderation effect depends on the sign and the power
of the path coefficient of a moderated relationship.
The path coefficient of the moderating link was estimated at −0.28 at p < .01. Since the
effect is negative on a positive direct relationship, the causal power of usefulness will
reduce as complexity perceptions increase. It implies that even when managers perceive
higher levels of complexity in adopting data-driven approaches adoption intentions
suffer significantly. However, with the increase in usefulness perceptions adoption inten-
tions improve. Higher adoption intentions are visible among managers who perceive low
levels of complexity. A relatively similar moderation effect (β = −0.16) observed in the
case of the link between ease of use and adoption intentions is presented in Figure 4.
Complexity perceptions have the potential to significantly reduce the predictive power
of causal variables in the framework.

Figure 3. Moderation effect of CP on PU and AI.

12 G. Rejikumar et al.

Figure 4. Moderation effect of CP on PEU and AI.

As evident in Table 3, the role of the Complexity perceptions in the Perceived ease of
use (PEU) is found to be significant, which proves that managers require a less complex
approach for better adoption of new technology in work environment.

5. Results and discussion

The study has examined the manager’s intention to adopt new technology in LSS environ-
ment using TAM model. Similarly, Hilton and Sohal (2012) developed a conceptual model
to successful implement LSS. Later, Psychogios et al. (2012) conducted a study to evaluate
the impact of LSS in a telecommunication industry. But, very few studies have explored the
manager’s intention to new technology adoption in LSS. It can be inferred from analysis
that Knowledge Management (KM) (CR = 0.87; α=0.81; AVE = 0.64); data quality (DQ)
(CR = 0.89; α = 0.83; AVE = 0.70); technology readiness (TR) (CR = 0.83; α=0.72; AVE
= 0.55); PE (CR = 0.78; α = 0.72; AVE = 0.57); Perceived ease of use (PEU) (CR = 0.83;
α = 0.71; AVE = 0.62); perceived usefulness (PU) (CR = 0.84; α = 0.82; AVE = 0.72);
adoption intentions (AI) (CR = 0.90; α = 0.86; AVE = 0.65); complexity perceptions (CP)
(CR = 0.83; α = 0.73; AVE = 0.58). It is evident from the results that each of this construct
is found to be valid with higher reliability. Moreover, from the TAM model, it is found that

Table 3. Moderation effect of CP in the model.

AI (with CP) AI (without CP)
Indirect effects Total effects Indirect effects Total effect
KM 0.041* 0.041* 0.046* 0.046*
DQ 0.063** 0.063** 0.070** 0.070**
TR 0.131 0.131 0.145 0.145
PE 0.326 0.326 0.362 0.362
PEU 0.047** 0.295 0.052** 0.331
PU 0.223 0.246
*Not significant.
**Significant at p < .1.
 Total Quality Management 13

the results indicated that usefulness and ease of use perceptions significantly develop adop-
tion intentions. Perceived ease of use was found more predicting adoption intentions (β =
0.25) compared to perceived usefulness (β = 0.22). In most of the previous TAM studies
related to technology adoption, perceived usefulness was found to have higher predictive
power than perceived ease of use.
This study deployed variables about knowledge management capabilities of the firm,
data quality, technology readiness of firm and PE. All the corresponding hypotheses
except one linking knowledge management to ease of use were found significant with
different magnitudes of association. Examination of path coefficients revealed that the
strongest antecedent to usefulness and ease of use was PE (β’s = 0.73 and 0.55, respect-
ively). Technology readiness perceptions (β’s = 0.28 and 0.23) emerged as the second
important factor followed by data quality (β’s = 0.12 and 0.12). No significant relationship
existed between knowledge management and ease of use. The observation implied that
managers feel knowledge management systems are complex and difficult to follow in
everyday decision-making.
Moreover, the study attempted to examine the mediating effect of ease of use construct
in developing usefulness perceptions, which is first of its kind in an LSS environment.
Based on the result from Table 2, it is inferred that mediating effect on knowledge and use-
fulness has greatly improved. The observation implies that usefulness perceptions on
experiencing the ease of use feel has a higher effect on adoption intentions. Figure 3 illus-
trates the significant moderating effect of complexity perceptions on the relationship
between usefulness and adoption intentions. The path coefficient of the moderating link
was estimated at −0.28 at p < .01. Since the effect is negative on a positive direct relation-
ship, the causal power of usefulness will reduce as complexity perceptions increase. It
implies that even when managers perceive higher levels of complexity in adopting data-
driven approaches, adoption intentions suffer significantly. However, with the increase in
usefulness perceptions, adoption intentions improve. Higher adoption intentions are
visible among managers who perceive low levels of complexity. A relatively similar mod-
eration effect (β = −0.16) observed in the case of the link between ease of use and adoption
intentions is presented in Figure 4. Complexity perceptions have the potential to signifi-
cantly reduce the predictive power of causal variables in the framework.
Based on the above discussion, it is clear that managers pose a positive view of new
technology adoption in their day-to-day activities. But, the decision-making is influenced
by many external variables. So, the researchers used TAM model and found it is as suitable
for evaluating the manager’s perception of adoption intention.

6. Managerial implications
6.1. Practical implication
The study has proposed a novel and simplified approach for the practitioners to follow so as
to evaluate their intention towards new technology adoption. Though the study was con-
ducted in an LSS environment, the study can be conducted in other industries. Moreover,
the study evaluates the perceived ease of use, which is essential for new upgradation in any
industries.

6.2. Societal implication

Using the TAM model, the study has evaluated the manager’s perception on perceived ease
of use for new technology adoption promoting higher uncertainty avoidance. Also, the
14 G. Rejikumar et al.

power distance between the mangers and colleagues will be reduced, leading to better per-
formance. Understanding the manager’s perception on adoption intention ensures long-
term benefits for the organisation ensuring sustained growth.

7. Conclusions
Data-driven decision-making requires analytic skills for efficient use of data. Managers
should gain confidence about technology readiness of the firm to adopt the data-driven
approach. Quality infrastructure capable of collecting and disseminating reliable data
among decision-makers is vital in imparting trust between managers. Managers feel that
scope of getting quality data will significantly improve adoption intentions. An efficient
data management system thus becomes an essential requisite for data dependence for
quality decisions. Managers acknowledge the scope of better performance through data-
driven approaches, and therefore such feelings develop adoption intentions better than
many other considerations. The prevailing mindset of taking intuitive decisions and confi-
dence so developed critically prevents the adoption of data-bound actions. Studies have
depicted the role of certain firm-level factors in deciding adoption of innovative approaches
in an LSS environment. These factors are related size, age, absorptive capacity and resource
availability (Boonsiritomachai, McGrath, & Burgess, 2014).
The study proves that mangers in India are well prepared with technological readiness
for a data-driven approach. But, the adoption intention is still minimum, which can be
increased to a better level through tailored made training programmes for the employees.
Many researchers argue that it is relatively easy to implement innovative ideas in small
(Jang, Lin, & Pan, 2009) and new firms (Flanagin, 2000) compared to large and old
ones. Absorptive capacity refers to the ability of a firm’s members in using existing or
pre-existing knowledge (Griffith, Sawyer, & Neale, 2003). Empowering managers with
adequate technical and analytical skills through training enhance absorptive capacity to
adopt data-driven approaches. Resource availability regarding capital, infrastructure, and
trained workforce induce confidence among managers to take innovative practices.
The study implies that knowledge management, data quality, technology readiness and
performance efficiency lead to the adoption of new techniques in an LSS environment. So,
this enables the managers to enhance the deployment of LSS in a better manner and can find
the complexity which hinders the adoption intention. This model derived from the TAM is
applied in an LSS environment. But, it can provide a broad application for managers in
health care, ITES, etc.
This study had many limitations. The framework developed deployed generic con-
structs to capture manager perception in an LSS environment which is first of its
kind. Moreover, the inclusion of many constructs like personal innovativeness of the
manager, micro-level organisational factors and competitive pressure would have
offered an improved scope for the study. This study had several limitations including
time constraints. Moreover, the similarity in respondent’s profile significantly limited
the scope of diverse views on the subject matter. Limited exposure of many respondents
to data-driven practices might have caused bias in their responses. The extent to which
the prevailing sceptical attitude and predispositions caused bias in the responses is a
matter of concern. This study has the scope of developing a better framework with
more variables that explore the concept in detail. Work in that direction can be con-
sidered a potential area for future research. The outcomes of this study are useful in
developing a favourable environment for enhancing confidence among managers to
use data in hand to perform better strategically.
 Total Quality Management 15

Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCID
V. Raja Sreedharan http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3601-8002

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