Exploring the impact of information and communications technology on firms’ innovation in Nigeria

This study investigates how Online Technology Use (OTU) and Advanced ICT Use (AICTU) influence firm innovation outcomes in Nigeria and examines whether these relationships are moderated by firm age and staff strength. Adopting a deductive, quantitative approach, the study uses firm-level data from the 2016 to 2018 Nigeria National Innovation Survey, which initially surveyed approximately 2500 firms nationwide (52.5% response rate). Of the responding firms, 473 reported using ICT to support innovation activities, while 274 firms with complete observations were retained for the moderated multiple regression analysis. The results show that both OTU and AICTU are positively and significantly associated with firm innovation outcomes, with AICTU exhibiting the stronger effect. The findings further reveal that the positive influence of OTU strengthens with firm age but weakens with staff strength, whereas the innovation benefits of AICTU diminish as firms age. These results demonstrate that the effectiveness of ICT adoption depends not only on technology use but also on firm-specific characteristics. The study provides evidence to support differentiated ICT and innovation policies tailored to firms at different stages of development and extends the organizational application of the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) by demonstrating that firm heterogeneity shapes ICT-enabled innovation in a developing-country context.