Digital Transformation: How enterprises build dynamic capabilities for business model innovation : A multiple-case study within the logistics and transportation industry

Background: With the emergence of new digital technologies, the ongoing digital transformation is argued to heavily impact core societal pillars such as logistics and transportation. This has generated unique challenges and introduced an increasing need for organizations to take steps towards innovating their business models. Thus, a popular theoretical lens for keeping up with disruptive changes through business model innovation (BMI) is via the dynamic capability framework – consisting of sensing, seizing as well as transforming microfoundations. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis was to explore digital transformation through the framework of dynamic capabilities within the logistics and transportation industry. The study aimed at investigating the nature of building dynamic capabilities for business model innovation towards the ongoing digital transformation. Methodology: To explore how organizations build dynamic capabilities for business model innovation towards digital transformation, this study was carried out using semi-structured interviews. The interviews consisted of 11 participants in various senior management positions at 6 case companies whom are all global actors in the logistics and transportation industry. Additionally, documentary secondary data was included to provide additional information about the case companies. Findings: Our study revealed that business model innovation for digital transformation consisted of processes within 3 domains – new digital products & services, new markets & segments, as well as key partnerships. Additionally, the findings of our study acknowledged that logistics and transportation enterprises build dynamic capabilities via a total of 13 activities. These included: digital scanning and information management; digital learning; internal communication; digital asset investment; agile working; external partnerships; organizational restructuring; dynamic mindset; change management; and power redistribution. Finally, our study found that the main challenges for building dynamic capabilities towards BMI involved: size, agile working, data management and the changing of old mindsets.