| dc.description.abstract | New digital technologies are constantly transforming our everyday life as well as the business world. Dynamic Capabilities is a key asset of a firm in order to deeply understand and integrate into the new digital era. Having mechanisms to identify and exploit innovation, research and development and analyzing the surrounding environment are important to sense the benefits that new technologies might offer to the company. Furthermore, it is crucial for a firm to redesign its business model, arrange alliances, upgrade and encourage the creative thinking of its employees in order to seize the sensed opportunities. The transformation and reconfiguration of its tangible and intangible assets is the last significant step for a firm to gain a competitive advantage and enhance its performance in the digital era.
The apparel industry is one good example where digital transformation is radically reshaping the way enterprises use technologies to enhance their performance and survive in this fast-changing world. But how Dynamic Capabilities can influence the digital transformation of an apparel firm? The purpose of this research study is to recognize the role of the Dynamic Capabilities in the digital transformation of seven different apparel manufacturing firms in Greece so far. A qualitative case study was applied to provide insight into the implications of the digital transformation in the apparel industry and to examine in depth the role of each aspect of Dynamic Capability and its influence. The data was collected from semi-structured interviews and complemented with secondary data collected from online databases and reports.
The results show that Greek apparel manufacturers have limited awareness of the digital technologies. They have the mechanisms to identify how the new digital era can influence their performance and transform its structures to gain a competitive advantage. Nevertheless, due to the financial situation in Greece, there is a slow pace of this transformation. At the same time other international large-sized firms have already undergone a digital transformation in its manufacturing process having gained the advantages from it.
The current research has some limitations regarding the sample size and case selection. In this research, it is shown that there are indications that large-sized apparel firms have already experienced fully digitalized transformation and have already obtained a competitive advantage. Further research on international apparel firms and medium and large-sized firms will provide a broader insight of how apparel industry is facing the digital transformation and more specific information on the influential role of the Dynamic Capabilities on this transition. | |
