IMPACT OF LEADERSHIP STYLE ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE ADOPTION AMONG SME: A CASE OF AD DAKHILIYYAH GOVERNORATE IN OMAN

Today's rapidly evolving technology has an impact on businesses as it offers new ways and means of conducting business. Undoubtedly, e-commerce has created new opportunities to change the way businesses operate. In such a critical situation, leaders need to develop visions and make important preparations to keep their companies afloat. The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) was used to explore the relationship between leadership style and e-commerce adoption among managers of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Ad Dakhiliyah Governorate. Managers of 9104 SMEs in Ad Dakhiliyah responded to the questionnaire with 367 responses. SmartPLS 4 was used to analyse the data. The study found that there is a significant and positive relationship between transactional leadership and e-commerce adoption. However, the results show that there is a positive but not significant relationship between transformational leadership and e-commerce adoption. This study has important implications for how SME managers should demonstrate the right leadership style to support e-commerce adoption. This study provides SME managers with a better knowledge of the influence of leadership style on the adoption of e-commerce in Ad Dakhiliyah. Keywords: Leadership Style, E-commerce, Technology Adoption, SME, Oman, SmartPLS.