IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jbusin/v4y2024i4p38-695d1521113.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Impact of Big Data on SME Performance: A Systematic Review

Author

Listed:
  • Mpho Kgakatsi

    (Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2092, South Africa)

  • Onthatile P. Galeboe

    (Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2092, South Africa)

  • Kopo K. Molelekwa

    (Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2092, South Africa)

  • Bonginkosi A. Thango

    (Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg 2092, South Africa)

Abstract

Big Data (BD) has emerged as a pivotal tool for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), offering substantial benefits in enhancing business performance and growth. This review investigates the impact of BD on SMEs, specifically focusing on business improvement, economic performance, and revenue growth. The objective of this systematic review is to evaluate the drivers and barriers of BD adoption in SMEs and assess its overall impact on operational efficiency and business outcomes. A comprehensive systematic review of 93 research papers published between 2014 and 2024 was conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework. The methodology included detailed analysis of research approaches, addressing biases and gaps in the literature. BD adoption in SMEs led to significant improvements in operational efficiency, revenue generation, and competitiveness. However, the studies reveal persistent challenges, such as limited financial resources and technical expertise. The review identified a reporting bias, with 47% of studies using quantitative methods, 28% employing case studies, and mixed-method and qualitative studies underrepresented (22% and 17%, respectively). This imbalance highlights a potential overreliance on quantitative approaches, which may limit the depth of insights gained. While BD offers considerable potential for driving innovation and enhancing competitiveness in SMEs, addressing the current methodological biases and resource-related barriers is crucial to fully harness its benefits. Future research should focus on diverse approaches to provide a holistic understanding of BD’s impact on SMEs.

Suggested Citation

  • Mpho Kgakatsi & Onthatile P. Galeboe & Kopo K. Molelekwa & Bonginkosi A. Thango, 2024. "The Impact of Big Data on SME Performance: A Systematic Review," Businesses, MDPI, vol. 4(4), pages 1-64, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jbusin:v:4:y:2024:i:4:p:38-695:d:1521113
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7116/4/4/38/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7116/4/4/38/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Abdalwali Lutfi & Adi Alsyouf & Mohammed Amin Almaiah & Mahmaod Alrawad & Ahmed Abdullah Khalil Abdo & Akif Lutfi Al-Khasawneh & Nahla Ibrahim & Mohamed Saad, 2022. "Factors Influencing the Adoption of Big Data Analytics in the Digital Transformation Era: Case Study of Jordanian SMEs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-17, February.
    2. Justy, Théo & Pellegrin-Boucher, Estelle & Lescop, Denis & Granata, Julien & Gupta, Shivam, 2023. "On the edge of Big Data: Drivers and barriers to data analytics adoption in SMEs," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    3. Arwa Mohammed Asiri & Sabah Abdullah Al-Somali & Rozan Omar Maghrabi, 2024. "The Integration of Sustainable Technology and Big Data Analytics in Saudi Arabian SMEs: A Path to Improved Business Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-28, April.
    4. Maria C. Solano & Juan C. Cruz, 2024. "Integrating Analytics in Enterprise Systems: A Systematic Literature Review of Impacts and Innovations," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-26, June.
    5. Demetris Vrontis & Ranjan Chaudhuri & Sheshadri Chatterjee, 2022. "Adoption of Digital Technologies by SMEs for Sustainability and Value Creation: Moderating Role of Entrepreneurial Orientation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(13), pages 1-19, June.
    6. Rafael Martínez-Peláez & Alberto Ochoa-Brust & Solange Rivera & Vanessa G. Félix & Rodolfo Ostos & Héctor Brito & Ramón A. Félix & Luis J. Mena, 2023. "Role of Digital Transformation for Achieving Sustainability: Mediated Role of Stakeholders, Key Capabilities, and Technology," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-27, July.
    7. Eun Sun Kim & Yunjeong Choi & Jeongeun Byun, 2019. "Big Data Analytics in Government: Improving Decision Making for R&D Investment in Korean SMEs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-14, December.
    8. Showimy Aldossari & Umi Asma’ Mokhtar & Ahmad Tarmizi Abdul Ghani, 2023. "Factor Influencing the Adoption of Big Data Analytics: A Systematic Literature and Experts Review," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Abhishek Tripathi, 2024. "Mapping the digitalization in SMEs of Middle East region: trends and insights from bibliometric analysis," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 1-16, December.
    2. Hussain Abdalla Sajwani & Bassel Soudan & Abdul Ghani Olabi, 2024. "Empowering Sustainability: Understanding Determinants of Consumer Investment in Microgrid Technology in the UAE," Energies, MDPI, vol. 17(9), pages 1-28, May.
    3. Lutfi, Abdalwali & Alrawad, Mahmaod & Alsyouf, Adi & Almaiah, Mohammed Amin & Al-Khasawneh, Ahmad & Al-Khasawneh, Akif Lutfi & Alshira'h, Ahmad Farhan & Alshirah, Malek Hamed & Saad, Mohamed & Ibrahim, 2023. "Drivers and impact of big data analytic adoption in the retail industry: A quantitative investigation applying structural equation modeling," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    4. Hongni Zhang & Xiangyi Xu, 2023. "Innovative Technology Method Based on Evolutionary Game Model of Enterprise Sustainable Development and CNN–GRU," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-17, February.
    5. Khaled Naser Yousef Magableh & Selvi Kannan & Aladeen Yousef Rashid Hmoud, 2024. "Innovation Business Model: Adoption of Blockchain Technology and Big Data Analytics," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-25, July.
    6. Wiweko Probojakti & Hamidah Nayati Utami & Arik Prasetya & Muhammad Faisal Riza, 2024. "Building Sustainable Competitive Advantage in Banking through Organizational Agility," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-15, September.
    7. Alrawad, Mahmaod & Lutfi, Abdalwali & Alyatama, Sundus & Al Khattab, Adel & Alsoboa, Sliman S. & Almaiah, Mohammed Amin & Ramadan, Mujtaba Hashim & Arafa, Hussin Mostafa & Ahmed, Nazar Ali & Alsyouf, , 2023. "Assessing customers perception of online shopping risks: A structural equation modeling–based multigroup analysis," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    8. Shaik, Aqueeb Sohail & Nazrul, Asif & Alshibani, Safiya Mukhtar & Agarwal, Vaishali & Papa, Armando, 2024. "Environmental and economical sustainability and stakeholder satisfaction in SMEs. Critical technological success factors of big data analytics," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 204(C).
    9. Yutong Sun & Meili Zhang & Chenggang Wang & Mingmin Li, 2025. "How the Digital Transformation of Chinese Traditional Manufacturing Enterprises Drives Green Innovation: A Moderated Mediation Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(4), pages 1-28, February.
    10. Taner, Oznur Oztuna, 2024. "Sustainable Food and Agriculture Production: Reducing Food Waste through Technological Advancements and Assessing its Economic Impact," Research on World Agricultural Economy, Nan Yang Academy of Sciences Pte Ltd (NASS), vol. 5(3), September.
    11. Rhatsarun Tanapaisankit & Somboon Sirisunhirun & Somsak Amornsiriphong & Krish Rugchatjaroen & Phut Ploywan, 2024. "How Could Digital Transformation Help Medium-Sized Enterprises Access Thailand’s New Capital Market Financing (LiVEx) to Support Sustainable Growth in the Digital Economy Era?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-20, April.
    12. Ampedu Raphael & Antwi Agyei Bright & Mang'ati Frank Peter & Boadi Joana Ankobea & Boakye Boateng Gifty & Nunoo Linda Ofeibea & Mensah Cornelius Nii Odoi & Mensah Richmond, 2024. "An Empirical Study on the Influence of ESG Ratings on Earnings Management among Listed Companies in China," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 8(8), pages 3678-3693, August.
    13. Maha Shehadeh & Ahmad Almohtaseb & Jehad Aldehayyat & Ibrahim A. Abu-AlSondos, 2023. "Digital Transformation and Competitive Advantage in the Service Sector: A Moderated-Mediation Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-21, January.
    14. Yasir Hassan & Taher M. Ghazal & Saleha Yasir & Ahmad Samed Al-Adwan & Sayed S. Younes & Marwan Ali Albahar & Munir Ahmad & Atif Ikram, 2025. "Exploring the Mediating Role of Information Security Culture in Enhancing Sustainable Practices Through Integrated Systems Infrastructure," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-20, January.
    15. Kwabena Abrokwah-Larbi, 2024. "The nexus between customer value analytics and SME performance in emerging market: a resource-based view perspective," Journal of Global Entrepreneurship Research, Springer;UNESCO Chair in Entrepreneurship, vol. 14(1), pages 1-20, December.
    16. Yu Sang & Kannan Loganathan & Lu Lin, 2024. "Digital Transformation and Firm ESG Performance: The Mediating Role of Corporate Risk-Taking and the Moderating Role of Top Management Team," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-18, July.
    17. Longjin Yu & Man Ji & Fazli Haleem & Yilong Gong & Yang Shen & Shaolong Zeng, 2024. "A Case Study on the Innovative Development of Digital Supply Chain Finance Based on MYbank in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(17), pages 1-22, August.
    18. Guanqiao Zhang & Tao Wang & Yuhan Wang & Shuai Zhang & Wenhao Lin & Zixin Dou & Haitao Du, 2023. "Study on the Influencing Factors of Digital Transformation of Construction Enterprises from the Perspective of Dual Effects—A Hybrid Approach Based on PLS-SEM and fsQCA," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-22, April.
    19. Abdalwali Lutfi & Hamza Alqudah & Mahmaod Alrawad & Ahmad Farhan Alshira’h & Malek Hamed Alshirah & Mohammed Amin Almaiah & Adi Alsyouf & Mohammed Faisal Hassan, 2023. "Green Environmental Management System to Support Environmental Performance: What Factors Influence SMEs to Adopt Green Innovations?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-20, July.
    20. Asuamah Yeboah, Samuel, 2024. "Winning Strategies for Launching a Successful Business in Developing Markets," MPRA Paper 122661, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 18 Oct 2024.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jbusin:v:4:y:2024:i:4:p:38-695:d:1521113. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.