Motivations for the Use of IoT Solutions by Company Managers in the Digital Age: A Romanian Case

The purpose of our study is to research and identify intrinsic and extrinsic motivations but also their impact on the behavioral intentions of using Internet of Things (IoT) solutions among company managers in Romania in the future. The research method used in the quantitative study was the sample survey, using the online questionnaire as a data collection tool. The questionnaire included a formalized set of 54 questions, being specially designed to generate a new structural model starting from the Unified Theory for Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) elements. A total of 416 respondents provided complete and useful answers for this research. The results of the study showed that the endogenous factor intrinsically motivated significantly and strongly affected the intention of managers to use IoT solutions in professional activity compared to the variable of extrinsic motivation whose action remains insignificant. At the same time, the effect of the intrinsic motivation variable was mediated by the significant influence of the endogenous extrinsic motivation factor. The implications of this study are multiple for both managers and researchers. The originality of this article lies in the empirical part of the research, which, by using a quantitative method based on the questionnaire, provides important information on the impact of the motivational spectrum on the acceptance and use of IoT solutions by managers in the next period to achieve new performance, both personal and professional. Keywords: IoT; UTAUT; intrinsic motivation; extrinsic motivation; perceived privacy; perceived security; behavioral intention; digital era