Paper Number
ECIS2026-1670
Paper Type
CRP
Abstract
Digital transformation (DT) has become a strategic imperative, yet many organizations continue to struggle with its successful implementation. To understand how firms can navigate the complexity and uncertainty of digital environments, research increasingly draws on the concept of dynamic capabilities (DCs). This paper conducts a structured literature review following Webster and Watson (2002) to synthesize existing studies on DCs in the context of DT. Using Teece’s (2007) sensing, seizing, and transforming framework, the review identifies how DCs are manifested, mobilized, and shaped by contextual factors in digital transformation processes. The findings reveal digitally enabled and heterogeneous micro-activities, blurred boundaries between capability dimensions, and strong dependencies on organizational and environmental conditions. The paper contributes an integrated synthesis of DCs in DT and outlines promising directions for future research.
Recommended Citation
Scheerschmidt, Tim and Klein, Jonathan Elia, "Dynamic Capabilities In Digital Transformation: A Structured Literature Review and Concept-Centric Synthesis" (2026). ECIS 2026 Proceedings. 3.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/ecis2026/digitrans/digitrans/3
Dynamic Capabilities In Digital Transformation: A Structured Literature Review and Concept-Centric Synthesis
Digital transformation (DT) has become a strategic imperative, yet many organizations continue to struggle with its successful implementation. To understand how firms can navigate the complexity and uncertainty of digital environments, research increasingly draws on the concept of dynamic capabilities (DCs). This paper conducts a structured literature review following Webster and Watson (2002) to synthesize existing studies on DCs in the context of DT. Using Teece’s (2007) sensing, seizing, and transforming framework, the review identifies how DCs are manifested, mobilized, and shaped by contextual factors in digital transformation processes. The findings reveal digitally enabled and heterogeneous micro-activities, blurred boundaries between capability dimensions, and strong dependencies on organizational and environmental conditions. The paper contributes an integrated synthesis of DCs in DT and outlines promising directions for future research.
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