Drivers of digital transformation in SMEs

Omrani, Nessrine (author), Rejeb, Nada (author), Maalaoui, Adnane (author), Dabić, Marina (author), Kraus, Sascha (author)

This study aims to identify and analyze factors determining the adoption of digital technologies in SMEs. Drawing on the technology–organization–environment framework, the study highlights enabling factors from three different contexts and hypothesizes their relationship with digital technology adoption. The data used were collected from 15 346 European Union and non-European Union SMEs to test an ordered logit regression model that highlights the factors associated with an increased level of digital technologies adoption in SMEs. The empirical results show that the technology context (IT infrastructure and digital tools) along with the existing level of innovation are the main drivers that act as stepping stones in digital technology adoption. Corporate regulation, available skills, and financial resources (as organizational variables) also play a significant role in the adoption decision. Unexpectedly, the influence of the environmental context is marginal. The implications of this study are emphasized for theory and practice, laying a foundation for further empirical studies in this field. Managerial relevance statement: This article reviews the empirical research on digital technologies adoption and examines the drivers of such adoption in SMEs. The factors identified provide guidance for practitioners adopting digital technologies in SMEs, by suggesting they assess the readiness of their firms before investing in digital technology. This research helps advance the conversation on digitalization drivers especially by bringing the discussion into the organization boundaries, as our findings highlight the predominance of organizational drivers over the technological and environmental ones. SMEs have to overcome the challenges associated with constructing an IT infrastructure capable of implementing new technologies. Indeed, while striving to adopt new digital technologies (e.g., AI, big data, IoT), many SMEs are still unprepared. Therefore, rather than adopting mimetic behaviors based on external pressure, SMEs that aim for digitalization should first assess their existing technologies, and further develop a meticulous technological roadmap that includes skills upgrades and investments in upskilling employees’ capabilities. Therefore, developing a fully integrated strategic approach is crucial before the adoption of digital technologies

• Language: English
• Keywords: business economics, innovation, blockchain technology, digitalization, digital technology adoption, digital transformation, SMEs, TOE model
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: EF - School of Economics and Business
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2022
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-144515
• UDC: 659.2:004
• ISSN on article: 0018-9391
• DOI: 10.1109/TEM.2022.3215727
• COBISS.SI-ID: 130078211
• Publication date in RUL: 27.02.2023

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: IEEE transactions on engineering management
• Shortened title: IEEE trans. eng. manage.
• Publisher: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• ISSN: 0018-9391
• COBISS.SI-ID: 8721669

Licences

• License: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
• Description: This is the standard Creative Commons license that gives others maximum freedom to do what they want with the work as long as they credit the author.

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: ekonomika podjetja, inovacije, tehnologija veriženja podatkovnih blokov, digitalizacija

Projects

• Funder: ARRS - Slovenian Research Agency
• Project number: J5-2555
• Name: Oblikovanje organizacije v digitalni dobi

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Funding programme: H2020
• Project number: 823971
• Name: Open Innovation – Research Translation and Applied Knowledge Exchange in Practice through University-Industry-Cooperation
• Acronym: OpenInnoTrain