Industry and Regional Peer Effects in Corporate Digital Transformation: The Moderating Effects of TMT Characteristics

Abstract

Currently, the research on corporate digital transformation is mainly explored from the perspective of independent decision-making, but pays less attention to the interactive impact among peer firms. Taking the listed equipment manufacturing enterprises in China as its research sample, this paper uses theoretical analysis and empirical tests to test the impact of peer effect in corporate digital transformation and the moderating effect of top management team (TMT) characteristics. The results show that there are industry peer effects and regional peer effects in corporate digital transformation in which TMT characteristics play a moderating effect. Furthermore, the higher the proportion of females, the younger the average age, the higher the average education, and the longer the average tenure in TMT, the more significant the positive impact of industry peer effect and regional peer effect in corporate digital transformation. The above conclusions remain valid when using change variables, Tobit tests, lag period tests, and IV methods for robustness tests. Further analysis of the results shows that there is a non-linear impact between digital transformation and green technological innovation, and there are multiple mediating effects among industry and regional peer effects, digital transformation, R&D, and green technological innovation. In addition, it is necessary to further examine the social network peer effect in corporate digital transformation as well as the mechanism and economic consequences of peer effect in the future. These findings contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the driving factors that affect the digital transformation of equipment manufacturing enterprises in China and provide new evidence and theoretical contributions for enterprises to enhance the efficiency of digital transformation and strengthen the construction of a TMT.