Impact of Digital Transformation on Business Research

It is hardly surprising that research on digital transformation (DT) has piqued academics' interest in recent decades. Countries, towns, sectors, businesses, and individuals all confront the same challenge: adjusting to a digital environment. The purpose of the paper is twofold. First, trace the thematic evolution of DT research in business and management, as previous research has been limited to specific domains. Articles published in Chartered Association of Business Schools (ABS) ≥ 2-star journals were reviewed. Based on these findings, the second goal of this study will be to present a synergistic framework that connects existing research on DT to the fields of business and management, hence forming the evolutionary approach taken in this paper.

Given the emerging development of the topic under consideration, the framework is viewed as a solid foundation for future discussion and research.It is hardly surprising that research on digital transformation (DT) has piqued academics' interest in recent decades. Countries, towns, sectors, businesses, and individuals all confront the same challenge: adjusting to a digital environment. The purpose of the paper is twofold. First, trace the thematic evolution of DT research in business and management, as previous research has been limited to specific domains. Articles published in Chartered Association of Business Schools (ABS) ≥ 2-star journals were reviewed. Based on these findings, the second goal of this study will be to present a synergistic framework that connects existing research on DT to the fields of business and management, hence forming the evolutionary approach taken in this paper.

Given the emerging development of the topic under consideration, the framework is viewed as a solid foundation for future discussion and research

According to Parviainen et al. (2017), the industrial world is shifting towards digitalization. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this occurrence. Priyono, Moin, and Putri, 2020. Digital transformation (DT) has evolved from a technology opportunity to a pure requirement for managing the needs and expectations of the world's rising population. Kraus et al. (2021) These advances have resulted in significant changes in many companies, with DT establishing new procedures and mechanisms that can have an impact on the fundamental structures of how a firm conducts business. According to Heavin & Power (2018) The major goal of DT is to solve difficulties related to efficiency and effectiveness, while Hess, Benlian, Matt, & Wiesböck (2016) Companies that do not promptly create and implement DT strategies will struggle to keep up and compete in the new digital reality. However, the shift to this new reality should not be underestimated because, like with any change process, it carries various dangers and obstacles.

Andriole, 2017. Horváth & Szabó, 2019. Vial, 201 Previous study has shown that any change in organizations is difficult to implement. Deline, 2018. and up to 70% of major organizational changes fail. Barrett and Stephens, 2017; Burke, 2011). Companies are also known to be slow to respond to change. Wright, Van der Heijden, Bradfield, Burt, & Cairns (2004) lowering the chances of businesses adopting and executing DT initiatives. Also, reports by Kane, Palmer, Phillips, Kiron, & Buckley (2015) and Carr (2003) claim that there is a widespread assumption that technology drives DT when, in fact, the authors argue that it is a strategy. The COVID-19 pandemic, on the other hand, demonstrated the impact of a crisis (in this case, an external one) on the quick adaption of DT. Dwivedi et al.,2020 Fletcher & Griffiths, 2020 Iivari et al. (2020) Kodama. 2020. Osiyevskyy et al. (2020) Papagiannidis et al. (2020)Rowe, 2020 DT is a significant problem not only for individual businesses, but also for whole economies. Švarc, Lažnjak, and Dabić, 2020 To become a digital nation, i.e. a country in which residents, governments, and enterprises live in a digital society that interacts and provides value for all stakeholders, national governments can/must learn from the experiments undertaken in smart cities.

Research is typically very specialized and focused to specific topics

There is currently a rapid increase in the number of publications that give outcomes from many disciplines and points of view each year. As a result, the greater area of DT has become extremely complex and difficult to comprehend. Hanelt et al. (2021) Hausberg et al., 2019. With all of this in mind, it is not surprise that an increasing number of scholars from various management and business sectors, including as accounting, marketing, entrepreneurship, and manufacturing, are interested in contributing to the study of DT and its progress. It also demonstrates that expectations are high, as early assessments of the topic are already accessible. As an example, Hofacker, Golgeci, Pillai, and Gligor(2020) did a review of the relevant literature on digital marketing and B2B connections. Li (2020b) A systematic literature review was conducted to investigate how digital technologies enable business model innovation in creative sectors.

Knudsen (2020 conducted a systematic literature review on digitalization in accounting. The existing assessments all have one thing in common: they focus on very specific areas of business and management; they have a very restricted perspective. Furthermore, these assessments have not defined how the word DT has evolved in the fields of business and management. The rigorous research of DT is often still in its early stages. Chanias, Myers, and Hess, 2019. and the research undertaken on it are typically unduly hopeful about it. Kar et al., 2019. n this backdrop, the goal of this study is to provide a complete evaluation of current research on DT in business and management. More specifically, the overarching goal of this study is to structure existing research, identify current trends, and provide an overview of recent research strands and subjects in DT to assess their thematic evolution as represented in the business and management literature.

This study is divided into two parts mapping the thematic evolution

of DT research in the areas of business and management by focusing on papers published in the Chartered Association of Business Schools' (ABS) ≥ 2-star journals during the period 2010-2020; and (2) proposing a synergistic framework that relates existing research on DT to the areas of business and management. This work contributes to DT research in the fields of business and management by offering extensive information about its evolution. The key findings are summarized within a synergistic framework. Given the topic's growing state, the proposed framework is considered as a sound foundation for discussion, critique, and/or support of future research.

The paper is organized as follows. The next section introduces DT and distinguishes it from other similar terminologies in order to facilitate a shared understanding. This section also includes many meanings of DT. Section three discusses the methods. Sections four and five present the study's distinct findings. Section six emphasizes the work's contribution to theory, while section seven finishes the paper by discussing the study's shortcomings and future research prospects. The following research questions are asked: (i) How has the concept of DT evolved in the fields of business and management? (ii) What themes have been explored in existing business and management literature surrounding digital transformation? The emphasis is here made on business and management to consider the importance attributed to these areas in connection with DT.