Developing a Strategy for the Digital Transformation of an Enterprise with Allowance for the Capabilities of Business Ecosystems

Abstract

The presented study analyzes the processes of creating ecosystems in the context of external challenges and increasing the level of competitive market environment and global digitalization of business to develop a strategy for the digital transformation of an enterprise.Aim. The study aims to assess the practicability of creating ecosystems when developing a strategy for the digital transformation of traditional (“defensive”) enterprises and to provide recommendations for their utilization.Tasks. The authors analyze the characteristics, features, and typology of business ecosystems; substantiate the need to analyze and use the capabilities of business ecosystems in the development of a strategy for corporate development in the digital environment; describe the essence, key aspects of development, and propose a modular structure for the strategy of the digital transformation of an enterprise; develop a conceptual framework for the strategic management of the digital transformation of an enterprise; formulate recommendations for selecting ecosystems that would enhance the enterprise’s competitiveness.Methods. This study uses general scientific methods of cognition in various aspects to propose approaches and a conceptual model of the corporate digital transformation strategy with allowance for the capabilities of business ecosystems.Results. The authors show that in the context of the developing digital economy, business ecosystems have become a new way to organize economic activity due to their high efficiency and rapid scaling. There are two major types of ecosystems: centralized (transaction) ecosystems in the form of digital platforms and adaptive (solution) ecosystems formed by the orchestrating company to create a new value proposition by joint efforts of partners from various industries through direct interaction with each other. The study identifies stages in the development of a digital transformation strategy based on enhancing the enterprise’s competitiveness through its participation in the ecosystem(s) and formulate recommendations for selecting ecosystems that would improve the efficiency of the enterprise.Conclusions. Ecosystem development is a business trend that determines the competitiveness of enterprises and improves the efficiency of their operation in the digital environment. Therefore, under modern conditions, an enterprise should develop its digital transformation strategy based on the creation and/or use of business ecosystems.