DIGITAL HESITANCY: Examining the Organisational Mindset Required for the Adoption of Digitalised Textile Supply Chain Transparency

Abstract

Fashion firms are increasingly digitalising their supply chains (Majeed and Rupasinghe in Int J Suppl Chain Manag 6:25–40, 2017]) in response to demands for more accurate and verifiable supply chain transparency (Gualandris et al. in J Oper Manag 38:1–13, 2015; Unece 2021). However, beyond pilot schemes, few fashion industry stakeholders have fully implemented digitalised systems into their operations. This has several reasons including, cost, software maturity and digital mindset (Heim and Hopper in Int J Fash Des Technol Educ (Special Issue), 2021). Adjustment to the digitalisation of the supply chain represents significant changes in organisational culture and systems management. According to Davis et al. (in Manag Sci 35:982–1003, 1989), a prevalent issue in the process of digital transformation is the opposition to end user systems. To improve the industry’s ability to forecast, explain, and boost user acceptance of digital applications, a deeper understanding of why and how digital transformation occurs is required. This study examines the organisational mindset necessary for adopting digitalised textile supply chain transparency—based on the user experience measures of intention, attitudes, subjective norms, perceived usefulness and other characteristics. Through a qualitative approach, including primary data gathered from interviews with industry stakeholders, this study aims to identify the challenges facing the industry that have arisen alongside the emergence of digital technologies and seeks an explanation for adoption hesitancy. It finds that the investment in training, operational upheaval, and the lack of ‘digital mindset’ are some of the challenges yet to be overcome by firms. Importantly, the true globalisation of supply chain transparency is set to have a feasible future if digital transformation of the supply can be achieved.