Dynamic capabilities at the digital-succession nexus : how family firms navigate dual transformation through three developmental pathways

Mihotić, Lucija (avtor), Pfajfar, Gregor (avtor)

While digital transformation is crucial for the sustainability of family businesses, existing frameworks inade- quately explain how digitalization capabilities develop during succession, particularly in emerging markets. Through a qualitative comparative case study of six Croatian family firms undergoing simultaneous first-time succession and digitalization, this study examines how founder engagement influences the development of dy- namic capabilities (DC). Drawing on DCs framework, this study identified three patterns: (1) actively supportive founders enable comprehensive capabilities (sensing, seizing, and transforming) through structured efforts, facilitating successful transitions (2) traditional control with selective permission (i.e., passive support by founders); yields moderate capabilities for partial adaptation; and (3) founders' resistance, despite successors’ enthusiasm, limits firms to basic sensing. These manifest through three pathways: technological adaptation fosters integrative capabilities, external knowledge integration builds absorptive capacity, and internal devel- opment enhances organizational learning, each shaped by founder-successor dynamics. This research advances theory by revealing how family relationships can override market forces in capability building, thereby chal- lenging assumptions about the inevitability of digital technology. Findings emphasize that success requires aligned intergenerational support, with founder attitudes as critical gatekeepers. The Croatian con- text—characterized by institutional voids and cultural tensions—makes these dynamics particularly visible for emerging economies.

• Jezik: Angleški jezik
• Ključne besede: family business, digitalization, artificial intelligence, resilience, digital transformation, succession, dynamic capabilities, digital intrapreneurship, organizational resilience, turbulent environments, emerging economies, Croatia
• Vrsta gradiva: Članek v reviji
• Tipologija: 1.01 - Izvirni znanstveni članek
• Organizacija: EF - Ekonomska fakulteta
• Status publikacije: Objavljeno
• Različica publikacije: Recenzirani rokopis
• Leto izida: 2026
• Št. strani: 16 str.
• Številčenje: Vol. 152, article no. ǂ103484
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-181649
• UDK: 005.3
• ISSN pri članku: 0166-4972
• DOI: 10.1016/j.technovation.2026.103484
• COBISS.SI-ID: 266511619
• Datum objave v RUL: 10.04.2026

Gradivo je del revije

• Naslov: Technovation
• Skrajšan naslov: Technovation
• Založnik: Elsevier
• ISSN: 0166-4972
• COBISS.SI-ID: 29223425

Licence

• Licenca: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Priznanje avtorstva-Nekomercialno-Brez predelav 4.0 Mednarodna
• Povezava: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.sl
• Opis: Najbolj omejujoča licenca Creative Commons. Uporabniki lahko prenesejo in delijo delo v nekomercialne namene in ga ne smejo uporabiti za nobene druge namene.

Sekundarni jezik

• Jezik: Slovenski jezik
• Ključne besede: družinsko podjetje, digitalizacija, umetna inteligenca, odpornost

Projekti

• Financer: ARIS - Javna agencija za znanstvenoraziskovalno in inovacijsko dejavnost Republike Slovenije
• Številka projekta: P5-0177
• Naslov: Slovenija in njeni akterji v mednarodnih odnosih in evropskih integracijah