A PLS SEM MODEL OF E BUSINESS INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND MARKETING ETHICS

Abstract

As the digital economy changes and adopts the new E-Business Information Systems (EBIS), efficiency in organizations has transformed exponentially but the ethical nature of these technologies in marketing strategies is not well researched. Since companies are under pressure to be more transparent and fairer, it is essential to understand the structural motivations behind ethical actions. This research is an exploration of the association between EBIS, corporate governance practices, and marketing ethics. In applying a quantitative research design, data was collected through a structured survey comprising of the marketing and IT professionals. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze the conceptual model to evaluate the measurement as well as the structural relationships. The study used bootstrapping (5000 subsamples) to test the significance of the hypothesized paths. As it can be seen in the structural model analysis, EBIS plays a major role in advancing ethical marketing practice (β= 0.45, p =, 0.03) which supports. Moreover, the corporate governance models, such as the board supervision and audit systems, became a strong predictor of ethical conduct that was statistically significant (t = 4.3, p < 0.01). It is worth noting that the model predicts marketing ethics with great strength, with the amount of 60 per cent of variance (R2 = 0.60) being explained. The reliability of the framework is ensured by the model fit indices (CFI = 0.91, RMSEA = 0.06). The findings provide evidence that though EBIS provides technical infrastructure of transparency, the secret ingredient in ensuring that these systems are applied in an ethical manner is a strong corporate governance. The study offers a strategic guide to organizations on how their digital transformation can be in line with the ethical standards in order to build a long-term trust among the consumers.