Organizations’ digital transformation—toward a systematic approach to organizations’ digital transformation

Abstract

Rapidly evolving, emerging digital technologies create opportunities for organizations, but simultaneously, organizations are hesitant to embed and deploy novel digital technologies in their activities. Organizations consider that novel digital technologies contain uncertainties and that the process of digital transformation is multifaceted and complex. This dissertation investigates organizations’ digital transformation (ODT) and examines the elements that improve robust deployment of novel digital technologies within organizations. This dissertation based on qualitative research methods contributes to the literature on ODT and draws on findings from selected research papers. This dissertation presents a proposed framework for ODT formulated around four main dimensions: strategy, technology, governance, and stakeholders, each complemented by sub-elements. The ODT framework’s dimensions and subelements have interlinked relationships, and the objective of the framework is to provide a systematic approach to carrying out ODT in an effective way. The strategy dimension highlights top management’s long-term commitment and involvement in creating digital leadership and cultures that increase organizations’ digital maturity to deliver digital transformation. The strategy dimension acknowledges digital technologies’ impacts on organizations’ processes and structures and evaluates the investment needs, risks, and disruptiveness caused by novel technologies in business models and value networks. The technology dimension focuses on digital technologies and the creation of technology experimental practices embedded in either organizations’ current activities or separate business units. The technology dimension supports organizations in discovering testable business cases and considering vertical and horizontal scopes and data collection. The governance dimension refers to the robust deployment of novel digital technologies by setting measurable indicators to monitor the outcomes of digital transformation. Finally, the stakeholder dimension encompasses the relevant stakeholders, business models, and value propositions of ODT. Keywords: Digital technology, Digital transformation, Digitalization, Organization