20.500.12556/RUL-179340 A situational approach to Industry 4.0 maturity assessment supporting strategic decision-making in top management teams Purpose – This study aims to address the limitations of current Industry 4.0 evaluation approaches, which often rely on a one-size-fits-all philosophy. It introduces a novel situational evaluation method tailored to the unique contexts of organizations, with a focus on aligning Industry 4.0 initiatives with strategic goals. Design/methodology/approach – A case study methodology was employed involving a large multinational company with over 30 subsidiaries in 14 countries across Europe and Asia. The company operates in three core EU industries: automotive, electric power transformers, and construction. The study involved the entire top management team (TMT) in order to comprehensively assess the effectiveness of the proposed evaluation approach. Findings – The results demonstrate that the TMT highly valued the customized nature of the situational evaluation approach. The proposed Industry 4.0 evaluation approach significantly improved the alignment of the organization’s strategic objectives between TMT members. Originality/value – The study provides a novel approach to Industry 4.0 evaluation that starts with selecting and structuring digital maturity dimensions according to the needs, context, and characteristics of a specific enterprise; continues with evaluations of individual TMT use and completes with group discussion to achieve final strategic alignment and address common challenges in Industry 4.0 adoption (TMT alignment, workforce readiness, and technology integration). Keywords Industry 4.0, Manufacturing strategy, Type of firm – multinational companies, Type of manufacturing process – continuous process,Data collection method – case study (including grounded theory, iterative-pragmatic, and deductive approaches), Data collection method – survey (in-person interviews and written questionnaires) Paper type Research article Industry 4.0 manufacturing strategy multinational companies continuous process case study business management Industrija 4.0 proizvodna strategija multinacionalna podjetja neprekinjen proces študija primera poslovni menedžment true false true Angleški jezik Slovenski jezik Članek v reviji 2026-02-11 09:56:38 2026-02-11 09:56:40 2026-02-12 04:36:29 0000-00-00 00:00:00 2026 0 0 Str. 18-38 iss. 13 Vol. 55 Dec. 2026 0000-00-00 Zaloznikova NiDoloceno apc 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 0000-00-00 659.2:004 0368-492X 10.1108/K-06-2025-1518 267751171 RAZ_Vavpotic_Damjan_2026.pdf RAZ_Vavpotic_Damjan_2026.pdf 1 859C4F7F6824C33C600EE76D4B4C165A 72d47ffe8e3a3f21afd69db02c2575e7cda49bbbb466a49078431b0a46640ac7 ed49e8a4-0728-11f1-a1ba-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=227756 https://www.emerald.com/k/article/55/13/18/1339709/A-situational-approach-to-Industry-4-0-maturity 1 6d89c6c8-0727-11f1-a1ba-0050569b8976 https://repozitorij.uni-lj.si/Dokument.php?lang=slv&id=227755 Fakulteta za računalništvo in informatiko 0 0 0