The adoption of cloud accounting in Indonesian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs): exploring drivers, challenges and implications for performance

This study examines the adoption of cloud accounting among Indonesian SMEs by exploring its drivers, adoption processes, challenges, and performance implications. Using an interpretive qualitative design with a transcendental phenomenological approach, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with experts, vendors, SME owners, and government representatives. Thematic analysis shows that SMEs adopt cloud accounting to improve efficiency, transparency, real-time reporting, and operational flexibility. Adoption is shaped by feature trials, peer recommendations, and cost-security considerations, while barriers include low digital literacy, limited resources, high training costs and weak ecosystem support. Despite these challenges, cloud accounting enhances reporting accuracy, supports decision-making and provides scalable solutions aligned with business growth. By extending the TOE framework into TOEO (Technology, Organization, Environment, Ownership), this study offers new insights into SME decision-making in emerging economies and provides practical implications for policymakers, vendors and business owners in advancing digital transformation.