Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas KIBS

APROXIMACIÓN A LA TRANSFORMACIÓN DIGITAL EN LA GESTIÓN DE LAS PYMES: ESPECIAL REFERENCIA A LAS EMPRESAS KIBS Doctorando: Jorge A. Mariño Romero Directores: Dr. Félix Velicia Martín y Dr. Pedro R. Palos Sánchez SEVILLA, 2024 A lo más importante que uno tiene, la familia. Agradecimientos Presentar esta tesis doctoral a la comunidad científica es posiblemente uno de los mayores retos a los que me he enfrentado. Conseguir este objetivo supone un esfuerzo personal titánico, con muchos altibajos, de cuyos resultados me siento ciertamente orgulloso. Obviamente, este largo recorrido no lo he transitado en solitario, y a mi lado han estado una serie de personas que me han ayudado a superar todos los obstáculos para cubrir esta etapa como futuro investigador. A todos ellos les estoy profundamente agradecido. En primer lugar, debo destacar los conocimientos legados por mis directores de tesis, y la perfecta planificación elaborada de las temáticas a publicar necesarias para poder sacar adelante esta investigación doctoral. Claramente su relación ha ido más allá de lo meramente académico, mostrando gran confianza en mis capacidades para formarme como investigador y motivándome en los momentos más complicados. Pedro y Félix, Félix y Pedro este es el principio de un largo camino a recorrer, gracias por todo. Mención especial merece el grupo de investigación del que soy miembro, Marketur, el cual me ha permitido a lo largo de estos años crecer como futuro investigador, permitiéndome colaborar en diversos proyectos, congresos y seminarios, y mostrarme el camino a seguir para comprender los entresijos de este apasionante mundo de la ciencia. Gracias Mané por creer en mí, ayudarme en los inicios de mi etapa investigadora y mostrarme tu apoyo incondicional por este camino emprendido. También quiero agradecer profundamente los ánimos recibidos de mis compañeros de la facultad de Empresas, Finanzas y Turismo de Cáceres en esos momentos difíciles en los que uno no anda sobrado de ideas, y no ve el final del túnel. Gracias a mi amigo Fol, no solo por ser mi compañero incondicional de la facultad, de llamadas de teléfono, de infinitas comidas, sino porque ha sido una de las personas que más me ha apoyado en los momentos más difíciles. Mi otro gran apoyo que siempre ha estado a mi lado, como si fuera mi guía espiritual, ha sido mi gran amigo Rafa, destacar su humildad, cercanía y sabios consejos que siempre me ha transmitido. Dejo para el final la razón de ser y existir, lo que hace que uno siga adelante, la familia. Sin lugar a duda, más que agradecer el apoyo recibido, que ha sido mucho e incondicional, hay que pedir disculpas por las continuas ausencias de la esfera familiar, aunque mostrando siempre su cara más amable tanto mi mujer, Ana, como mis hijos, Alberto y Adrián. Ciertamente, no tengo del todo claro que comprendan la ingente cantidad de horas, días, semanas y meses que he pasado delante del ordenador para sacar adelante los artículos científicos a publicar. Gracias infinitas por vuestros ánimos que es lo que me ha permitido, me permite y me permitirá continuar en esta apasionante carrera de fondo. No debo olvidar el apoyo recibido por mis amigos y familiares más cercanos; mi madre (siempre presente); mis suegros y mis hermanos. En particular, manifiesto mi profunda gratitud a Jose Manuel por su complicidad y entusiasmo en el desempeño de este proceso doctoral. Me gustaría acabar con un recuerdo de los que siempre te han apoyado y ya no están. La memoria de mi padre eternamente presente en este largo recorrido, y con la plena convicción de lo orgulloso y feliz que se sentirá al ver que voy cumpliendo importantes objetivos. “Nada en la vida es para ser temido, es sólo para ser comprendido. Ahora es el momento de entender más, de modo que podamos temer menos” Marie Curie. Resumen Esta Tesis Doctoral está formada por el compendio de tres artículos de investigación publicados en revistas de impacto científico, pertenecientes al Journal Citation Reports (JCR) de la Web of Science (WOS), con el objetivo de proporcionar un análisis exploratorio de los procesos de transformación digital (TD) en las pymes, con especial referencia a pequeñas empresas que ofertan servicios intensivos en conocimientos (Kibs) con alto valor añadido para sus clientes. La evolución de esta tesis refleja la complejidad de esta temática ya que se considera un concepto multidisciplinar y ha sido objeto de muchas investigaciones. El primer proceso analítico que se efectúa es una revisión sistemática de la literatura a través de la bibliometría, con el objetivo de resumir la información existente a través de diferentes métricas y de ordenar su estructura conceptual. El propósito es conocer el tamaño del efecto y mostrar evidencias del comportamiento en un subgrupo conceptual de la TD, que estudia los factores que intervienen en la gestión organizativa de las pymes en el ámbito de la TD. Una vez aplicados los filtros metodológicos, se identificaron 311 artículos en el periodo 2015-2022 obtenidos de la base de datos WOS y Scopus por ser los más representativos de esta temática. Los resultados muestran que existe una orientación clara de la TD a modificar los procesos organizativos en las pymes, para que sean más ágiles y así poder responder ante los cambios bruscos que se originan en los mercados. Los elementos que delimitan la TD se basan en las tecnologías digitales a implementar, las estrategias a seguir y las capacidades digitales a comprender, y se muestra el impacto que estos elementos propician en la arquitectura de las organizaciones. Una vez identificada la necesidad de investigación de la enorme producción científica que analiza la TD de forma holística. Se deben recopilar estudios cualitativos y cuantitativos que recojan evidencias empíricas, concretas y verificables de la temática basada en la TD en la gestión de las pymes. Sobre el esquema analizado en la investigación teórica, se estudia el papel decisivo de las tecnologías de la información para llevar a cabo una TD en la gestión de las empresas Kibs. En este sentido, se necesita una respuesta estratégica orientada hacia la innovación de las tecnologías que debe ser impulsada por la gestión de las capacidades digitales, a través de la gestión de los recursos para formular y desarrollar productos y procesos basados en el conocimiento, el talento y la experiencia. Así mismo, se evalúa el rendimiento organizativo de CAPÍTULO 1. Introducción y objetivos Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 7 1. Introducción En la actualidad nos encontramos con un entorno empresarial en evolución constante y con un fuerte proceso de digitalización, por lo que se deben aprovechar las oportunidades que ofrece la transformación digital (TD) a través de la implantación y explotación de las tecnologías digitales (Nambisan et al., 2017). Las investigaciones orientadas a implantar la TD en las organizaciones empresariales se han realizado a partir del siglo XXI. Los resultados de estos estudios muestran que estamos ante un fenómeno complejo y difícil (Hess et al., 2016) con una terminología poco clara que revela cierta confusión en sus conceptos, debido a su generalidad en las temáticas analizadas (Loonam et al., 2018). Tal es así que hasta la fecha no existe una definición comúnmente aceptada del término de TD. A continuación, se recoge en la tabla nº1 diferentes definiciones identificadas en la literatura analizada. Tabla 1º. Muestra de definiciones de la TD Recurso científico. Definiciones de la TD. (Liu et al., 2011) La TD es una transformación organizativa que integra tecnologías digitales y procesos empresariales en una economía digital. (Lucas, et al., 2013) La TD es un proceso que implica la adopción de tecnologías digitales transformacionales, que impactan en las funciones, habilidades y estrategias de la organización. (Fitzgerald et al., 2013) La TD es el uso de las nuevas tecnologías digitales, como las redes sociales, la tecnología móvil, los análisis o los dispositivos integrados, para lograr importantes mejoras empresariales (experiencia del cliente, nuevos modelos de negocio, etc.). (Matt et al., 2015) Las estrategias de TD adoptan una perspectiva diferente y persiguen objetivos distintos. Desde una perspectiva centrada en la empresa, estas estrategias se centran en la transformación de productos, procesos y aspectos organizativos debido a las nuevas tecnologías. (Hess et al., 2016) La TD o digitalización muestra los cambios que las tecnologías digitales pueden provocar en el modelo de negocio, los productos, los procesos y la estructura organizativa de una empresa. (Bondar et al., 2017) La TD es una interconexión coherente de todos los sectores económicos y una adaptación de los agentes a las nuevas circunstancias de la economía digital. (Hinings et al., 2018) La TD es el efecto combinado de varias innovaciones digitales que dan lugar a nuevos actores (y agrupaciones de actores), estructuras, prácticas, valores y creencias que cambian, amenazan, sustituyen o complementan las reglas del juego existentes en organizaciones, ecosistemas, sectores o campos. (Vial, 2019) La TD es un proceso que pretende mejorar una entidad desencadenando cambios significativos en sus propiedades mediante combinaciones de tecnologías de la información, la informática, las comunicaciones y la conectividad. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 8 (Warner & Wäger, 2019) La TD es un proceso continuo de renovación estratégica que utiliza los avances de las tecnologías digitales para crear capacidades que renueven o sustituyan el modelo empresarial, el enfoque colaborativo y la cultura de una organización. (Munim et al., 2020) Se efectúa un estudio sobre la aplicación de big data e Inteligencia Artificial en la industria marítima. Se expone cuál es su aportación a la TD en dicha industria. (Sott et al., 2021) Identifica las relaciones existentes entre el modelo de procesos empresariales y la industria 4.0 más utilizados en las fábricas inteligentes. (Chawla & Goyal, 2021) Estudio multidisciplinar de la TD en el sector industrial. Hay cuatro áreas de investigación (organizativa, instrumentos aplicados, procesos operativos y aspectos sociales). Fuente: elaboración propia La naturaleza diversa de la TD afecta a la actividad mercantil y social en general. En la tabla anterior, se han podido mostrar un resumen de las cuantiosas publicaciones que intentan conceptualizar la TD desde diversos aspectos. Se percibe como un factor de cambio en todos los contextos, concretamente en la esfera empresarial. Las definiciones muestran una TD que se alinean en determinados ámbitos, desde el uso de nuevas tecnologías como habilitadores tecnológicos1, la mejora de las operaciones y procesos empresariales, hasta la creación de estrategias y modelos de negocios digitales que buscan optimizar las relaciones con sus proveedores-clientes y el rendimiento empresarial, analizando los posibles impactos en el entorno. Los investigadores creen que la TD propicia el desarrollo de las organizaciones existentes y son el detonante de las nuevas organizaciones. Así mismo la literatura científica analiza en mayor medida la innovación basada en el producto, no prestando atención a un factor determinante para la generación de otra fuente de ganancias competitivas como es la innovación de procesos (Gallouj & Savona, 2008), que genera cambios y mejoras en los procesos empresariales (Nwankpa & Roumani, 2016; Lizano-Mora et al., 2021) a través de la búsqueda de la TD. La TD se considera un elemento esencial de la cuarta revolución industrial que cambia la forma de entender las organizaciones (Fachrunnisa et al., 2020). Este proceso digitalizador tiene múltiples estudios científicos en diferentes sectores industriales, pero hay una ausencia de trabajos científicos en el sector servicios en general. 1 Se entiende por habilitadores tecnológicos las distintas tecnologías utilizadas en las funcionalidades de las empresas, tales como internet de las cosas (IoT), cloud computing, analítica de big data, realidad aumentada, simulación virtual, etc. (Kagermann et al., 2013). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 9 Las pequeñas y medianas empresas (pymes), ya sean como entidades emergentes o establecidas, han impulsado los procesos de TD e innovación (Apostolov & Coco, 2021). No obstante, aunque en muchos estudios las iniciativas de la TD han tenido éxito y conducen a un rendimiento óptimo (Loonam et al., 2018; Vial, 2019), hay múltiples informes y literatura científica que muestran el fracaso de las organizaciones empresariales en la implantación de estrategias orientadas a la TD, debido a que se enfrentan a la necesidad de adaptarse rápidamente a los factores volátiles del entorno digital (Sailer et al., 2019). Las pymes son un elemento básico de la economía mundial y desempeñan un papel importante en el impulso del crecimiento económico, ya que representan el 99% de las empresas y alrededor del 60% del valor añadido del sector empresarial. Se necesita aprovechar su potencial para contribuir a las grandes transiciones económicas y para realizar un mundo más inclusivo (OECD, 2023). Asimismo, los servicios son el factor productivo más importante de las economías mundiales. En lo relativo a las economías más desarrolladas, hay que destacar a la UE y Norte- América con un 65% y 76,74% respectivamente de aportación del sector servicios sobre el producto interior bruto total (gráfico 1º). Gráfico 1º. Aportación de los sectores económicos al producto interior bruto (PIB) ejercicio 2021 Fuente: World Bank, (2022) 1,02% 1,62% 1,53% 2,02% 5,84% 6,88% 4,98% 17,24% 16,70% 18,31% 22,79% 22,42% 23,70% 36,74% 29,89% 42,69% 27,18% 25,94% 76,74% 65,00% 65,72% 64,03% 59,10% 65,08% 49,55% 48,13% 48,53% Agricultura Industria Servicios Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 10 Dentro del sector servicios de las pymes, encontramos las industrias de servicios empresariales intensivos en conocimiento (Kibs) que muestran tasas de crecimiento elevadas en las economías mundiales (Janger et al., 2017). Esta rama de servicios es una de las mejores posicionadas ante el reto de la transformación tecnológica y digital, destacando los servicios de actividades profesionales y tecnológicos, entre otros. Los Kibs se especializan en diversas áreas de conocimiento en las que se involucran profesionales altamente cualificados. Comprenden empresas que prestan servicios de carácter multidisciplinar, destacando: servicios fiscales, contables, jurídicos, de asesoramiento y otros servicios de consultorías de gestión, así como de diseño y de mantenimiento de sistemas informáticos (Miles et al., 2017). Los servicios prestados a sus clientes generan conocimiento con alto valor añadido, satisfacen sus necesidades a través de la difusión de información y conocimientos de alta calidad (Chung & Tseng, 2019). Los rasgos distintivos de las empresas Kibs son el conocimiento y la innovación y representan los factores determinantes que componen los servicios que prestan (Lafuente et al., 2017). Estos dos elementos se relacionan con la creación y transferencia de nuevas tecnologías, que incurren en niveles altos de I+D e intensivas actividades de formación de su personal, que permiten adquirir habilidades y transferir esos conocimientos a través del uso de las herramientas tecnológicas prestando servicios de alto nivel profesional. El objetivo es resolver problemas complejos a sus clientes, complementando sus procesos productivos mediante los conocimientos legados de alto valor añadido (Ashok,2018). Una economía moderna y competitiva necesita este tipo de servicios intensivos en conocimientos, donde las empresas Kibs requieren nuevos conocimientos y desafíos tecnológicos para entornos cambiantes (Wyszkowska-Kuna, 2016). Si se examinan los datos relativos a España todos los sectores más representativos de las empresas Kibs, a excepción de los servicios de I+D que forman un subsector con menor impacto productivo, representan un crecimiento relevante en los indicadores macroeconómicos mostrados en la tabla nº2. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 11 Tabla nº2. Magnitudes del sector servicio de las empresas Kibs españolas (pymes) 2020 2021 Sector servicios Excedente bruto de explotación Valor añadido Cifra de Negocios Excedente bruto de explotación Valor añadido Cifra de Negocios 62. Consultoría relacionadas con la actividad informática 1.631.275 6.828.462 12.139.056 1.838.295 7.596.936 12.582.172 69. Actividades jurídicas y de contabilidad 6.310.558 12.072.403 18.456.122 6.757.719 12.394.480 18.739.111 70. Servicios y consultoría de administración de empresas 1.939.307 7.203.782 12.354.282 2.190.031 7.824.816 14.208.461 71. Servicios de arquitectura e ingeniería 2.887.237 7.463.171 16.371.608 3.368.481 7.946.552 16.842.999 72. Investigación y desarrollo 652.544 2.122.353 2.405.699 429.437 1.455.568 2.534.828 73. Publicidad y estudios de mercado 1.137.965 3.110.211 9.703.095 1.501.300 3.622.809 10.987.420 Nota: Unidades: Miles de euros Fuente: adaptación del INE, (2021) El crecimiento de las empresas que realizan este tipo de servicios se debe a que desempeñan funciones que sus usuarios encuentran muy útiles. Las empresas Kibs aplican el conocimiento especializado que intercambian con sus clientes, originándose una retroalimentación entre ambas partes, por un lado, se enfrentan a los problemas organizativos/productivos de sus clientes, y por otro, el cliente proporciona conocimiento sobre su industria, entorno competitivo, tecnologías disponibles, regulaciones, problemas laborales, etc., de tal forma que la información fluye en ambos sentidos. En esta tesis doctoral el sector de empresas Kibs a estudiar es la agrupación profesional de gestores administrativos de España2. Se componen de gestorías administrativas y de empresas de I+D. La totalidad de gestorías administrativas analizadas en este estudio son pymes que emplean a menos de 250 trabajadores y tienen unos ingresos anuales inferiores a 50 millones de euros. En concreto, la mayor proporción procede de microempresas con menos de 10 empleados y un volumen de negocio inferior a 2 millones de euros. La clasificación de microempresas, pequeñas y medianas empresas se basa en el número de empleados y el volumen de ingresos anuales de acuerdo con la metodología que aplica la Comisión Europea (European Commission, 2003). 2 Los servicios de la agrupación profesional de gestores administrativos se encuadran en la rama de actividad 62. Consultoría relacionada con la actividad informática, 69. Actividades jurídicas y de contabilidad. y 70. Servicios y consultoría de administración de empresas, que representan los indicadores productivos más representativos de todos los sectores de las empresas Kibs. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 12 Las gestorías administrativas prestan servicios profesionales de carácter multidisciplinar. Se destaca la elaboración de trámites fiscales, laborales y administrativos a sus clientes ante las administraciones públicas en régimen de representación. Otra de las actividades importantes que desarrollan es la consultoría empresarial de organizaciones que quieran externalizar sus procesos. Esto supone ofertar una gran multiplicidad de servicios a las empresas de forma integrada, aunando servicios de asesoría fiscal, jurídicos, auditoría, contabilidad y teneduría de libros, entre otras. Las empresas de I+D participan de forma independiente en actividades innovadoras (Tseng et al., 2011) y apoyan a las gestorías en el conocimiento y desarrollo de la innovación tecnológica, cumpliendo las tres funciones básicas que tienen las Kibs dentro de su sistema de innovación: 1º como facilitadores de la innovación cuando apoyan a las gestorías en sus procesos de innovación (implantación de programas informáticos de gestión fiscal, administrativa, contable, etc.); 2º como portadores de la innovación, cuando transfieren el conocimiento existente entre el ecosistema de empresas que conforman el sector profesional de gestores administrativos (formación continua sobre las innovaciones tecnológicas a aplicar) y 3º como generadores de la innovación cuando desempeñan un papel decisivo en el inicio y desarrollo de los servicios que prestan las gestorías (implementación de plataformas digitales que conectan a las administraciones públicas con las gestorías y permiten realizar sus trámites de forma efectiva y segura) (Gallouj, 2002; He & Wong, 2009). El ejercicio de la profesión de los gestores administrativos se realiza de forma colegiada a través de los colegios profesionales3 como órgano representativo, los cuales tienen como ámbito de actuación principal el apoyo y control de los gestores administrativos, velando por el correcto cumplimiento de las normas legales de sus actuaciones profesionales y respetando el código deontológico al que están sometidos (Decreto 424/1963). La representación, coordinación y la defensa de la profesión y de los colegios profesionales ante las administraciones del estado, como único interlocutor válido, se efectúa a través del Consejo General de los Gestores Administrativos, considerada una corporación de derecho público con personalidad jurídica propia (Decreto 424/1963). En este sentido, cuentan con la posibilidad de 3 Los colegios profesionales son corporaciones de derecho público, amparadas por la ley y reconocidas por el Estado Español, con personalidad jurídica propia y plena capacidad para el cumplimiento de sus fines (Ley 2/1974). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 13 firmar múltiples acuerdos y convenios de la más variada tipología con las distintas administraciones públicas existentes. Estos acuerdos son muy relevantes ya que sientan las bases de actuación para llevar a cabo las gestiones administrativas, y son garantes de los derechos de los ciudadanos. En este contexto, el estado español apuesta por la transformación digital en los procesos de negocio de su tejido empresarial, tal es así que ocupa el puesto número 7 de los 27 estados miembros de la UE en el año 2022 dentro del Índice de la Economía y de la Sociedad Digitales (DESI) elaborado por la Comisión Europea4, que evalúa el desarrollo de las competencias digitales en los países de la UE. Estos resultados mejoran el comportamiento obtenido en años anteriores, destacando el indicador de integración de tecnología digital en las empresas con una evolución actual en sus resultados muy positiva con respecto a la media del resto de países de la UE, especialmente en lo relativo al nivel de intensidad digital básico adquirido por las pymes, el intercambio electrónico de información de las empresas y las TIC (tecnología de la información y comunicación) para la sostenibilidad medioambiental. El resto de las dimensiones también tienen un comportamiento favorable, el indicador conectividad digital mantiene uno de los rendimientos más altos de la UE.; y los servicios públicos digitales y el capital humano mejoran ligeramente su competitividad con respecto a años anteriores (European Commission, 2022). El estado español para conseguir sus objetivos de digitalización está adoptando una amplia gama de medidas para impulsar el tejido empresarial, y en concreto a la pequeña empresa, a través del plan de recuperación y resiliencia que incluye proyectos de innovación digital, como por ejemplo el suministro de herramientas digitales y otras medidas en los procesos de digitalización (Orden ETD/1498/2021). Las ayudas se centran en las pequeñas empresas ya que en la mayoría de los sectores la TD es aún incipiente. Uno de los principales objetivos se centra en potenciar tres tecnologías clave para la TD empresarial: cloud computing, inteligencia artificial y big data, ya que su implantación en las pymes es poco significativa y es necesario su impulso para el desarrollo de los negocios. 4 El Índice de Economía y Sociedad Digital (DESI) mide cinco dimensiones relacionadas con la digitalización: conectividad, capital humano, uso de servicios de internet, integración de la tecnología digital en las empresas y servicios públicos digitales. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 20 posibilitando la reestructuración del modelo de negocio de las empresas, lo que conduce a la transformación (Bataineh et al., 2015; Kahre et al., 2017). Las estrategias digitales buscan una estructura organizada con diseños jerárquicos flexibles que abarcan a todos los recursos digitales de los negocios (Banker et al., 2006; Kohli & Grover, 2008; Becker & Schmid, 2020). Las empresas deben reconocer el papel de las tecnologías de la información y poder desarrollarlas y explotarlas, bien mediante el uso de las tecnologías existentes en el mercado o creando nuevas tecnologías si actúan como líderes en el mercado (Horlacher & Hess, 2016; Becker et al., 2018). La orientación y la integración de la nueva tecnología suelen crear cambios en la creación de valor añadido en toda la empresa. Se requiere una estructura organizativa ágil, unida a métodos de trabajo flexibles con un personal cualificado en habilidades tecnológicas, integrando de forma óptima las nuevas actividades digitales dentro de las estructuras corporativas y su influencia en la elaboración de los productos y procesos de la empresa (A. Bharadwaj et al., 2013; Nowotarski & Paslawski, 2015; Sebastian et al., 2017). Para llevar a cabo los cambios estratégicos el aspecto financiero es muy relevante, y se deben usar de forma orientada a los objetivos, ya que errores de inversión por parte de las pymes suelen ser problemáticos para adoptar las estrategias digitales; por ser más limitados sus recursos financieros que las grandes empresas (Pullen et al., 2009; Bidan et al., 2012). Investigaciones recientes amplían la visión estratégica basada únicamente en la tecnología de la información, por no ser eficaz para impulsar y apoyar las iniciativas estratégicas de digitalización actuales, hacia una combinación de estrategias centradas: en el mercado, en la empresa y en el aprendizaje (Quinton et al., 2018). Se muestran avances en el conocimiento de las estrategias, a través de investigaciones longitudinales en las que se fusionan cuatro dimensiones de la orientación digital: alcance de la tecnología digital (características de las funcionalidades de las tecnologías orientadas a los clientes), capacidades digitales (Habilidades humanas y organizativas de las tecnologías), coordinación del ecosistema digital (ámbito externo y organizativo en el que las empresas interactúan con las partes interesadas a través de los ecosistemas tecnológicos abiertos) y la configuración de la arquitectura digital (capacidad de la tecnología digital para orientar a las organizaciones a la generatividad) (Kindermann et al., 2021). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 21 3. Tipos de estrategias transformadoras. Existe una amplia variedad de estrategias basadas en implementar el crecimiento digital en las empresas. Hay que destacar estrategias de desarrollo de plataformas digitales basadas en la innovación de servicios abiertos (Hagiu & Wright, 2015; Cusumano et al., 2019). Su implantación está motivada por dos factores principales: la gran escalabilidad de la plataforma que permite conectar a un número creciente de usuarios a bajos costes (clientes, proveedores y prestadores de servicios complementarios), y los efectos de red que la refuerzan (Eisenmann et al., 2006; Min & Kim, 2021). Otro tipo de estrategias están basadas en la gestión del conocimiento, con el objetivo de responder a los rápidos cambios tecnológicos mediante el intercambio de conocimiento y experiencias entre el capital humano de la organización, que permite adquirir nuevas habilidades/conocimientos para alcanzar sus objetivos a nivel personal y organizativo (Liao et al., 2007; Castagna et al., 2020). Por último, hay que destacar la relevancia investigadora que representa el fenómeno estratégico de la ambidestreza, cuyo objetivo es buscar la eficiencia en la gestión empresarial junto a la adaptación a los cambios en el entorno disruptivo. Se debe lograr un equilibrio entre la exploración y la explotación tecnológica (Scuotto et al., 2019; Del Giudice et al., 2021) 4. Rendimiento organizativo. Las características organizativas son los factores clave que permiten el rendimiento de las pymes, desde la gestión de la innovación, la gestión del conocimiento, la gestión de los recursos humanos y organizativos hasta la planificación estratégica (Poudel et al., 2019; Rehman et al., 2019). Estos elementos organizativos se deben orientar hacia los factores que originan una TD plena, tales como los recursos y capacidades digitales (Nwankpa & Datta, 2017; Wang et al., 2020). Por un lado, hay que destacar las capacidades digitales individuales relacionadas con el capital humano de la organización (Scuotto et al., 2021), en el que el comportamiento del líder a través del liderazgo transformacional es clave para impulsar el intercambio de conocimiento innovador entre los empleados (Nguyen et al., 2017; Ritala et al., 2018). Por otro lado, también son relevantes las capacidades organizacionales motivadas por la aparición de las tecnologías digitales, entre las que se pueden destacar aplicaciones informáticas de gestión, plataformas móviles, redes sociales, analítica big data, etc. (Nwankpa & Datta, 2017; Wiesböck et al., 2020). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 22 El rendimiento empresarial es un indicador de éxito o de fracaso de las organizaciones (Rehman et al., 2019) y puede medirse por aspectos financieros (Rentabilidad de las inversiones (ROI), rentabilidad financiera (ROE), los beneficios, crecimiento del volumen de operaciones, etc.) y no financieros (tamaño de la plantilla, crecimiento de cuota de mercado, satisfacción del cliente, ingresos por empleado, etc.) (AlMujaini et al., 2021). 3. Proceso metodológico El diseño de investigación se efectúa para realizar un adecuado balance conceptual en el que se encuentra la TD en el ámbito organizativo de la gestión de las pymes. A continuación, se va a mostrar el esquema metodológico de este estudio. Figura nº2. Fases metodológicas para la prospección de la TD Fuente: elaboración propia -En primer lugar, se efectúa una revisión sistemática de la literatura mediante un proceso de análisis bibliométrico, que explora de forma cuantitativa la literatura sobre la TD en las pymes y proporciona un mapa de la estructura de conocimiento (Rojas-Sánchez et al., 2022). Se utiliza el paquete de software Bibliometrix basado en el lenguaje R y complementado por la función Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 23 Biblioshiny (Aria & Cuccurullo, 2017). Para complementar la revisión bibliométrica, se realiza un análisis de contenido a texto completo de los artículos más relevante objeto de este estudio. El análisis bibliométrico se inicia con la recogida de recursos bibliográficos de dos bases de datos (WOS y Scopus). Para ello, se buscaron metadatos de autor, fuentes y documentos para el periodo investigado: 2015-2022. Se utiliza la metodología PRISMA para sistematizar y filtrar la búsqueda de los artículos identificados en las bases de datos, seleccionando normas de exclusión de los documentos extraídos6 (Moher et al., 2009). Para garantizar que se identificaban los documentos más relevantes tratando de minimizar los errores, se organizan cadenas de búsqueda de las palabras clave para todas las bases de datos, tal y como se indica a continuación: "digit* transfor*"OR “digital capabilit*” OR “digital technolog*” y “SME”. Se utilizó un asterisco en nuestra búsqueda como símbolo de truncamiento. Se identificaron 1804 artículos relacionados con la TD en las pymes. Una vez aplicados los filtros de exclusión, se validan 169 artículos de WOS y 262 artículos de Scopus. La revisión bibliométrica se enfoca, por un lado, hacia un análisis de las métricas más relevantes basadas en los autores, recursos y documentos, y por otro, hacia la estructura del conocimiento basada en las redes de co-ocurrencia por palabras de autor (análisis conceptual) junto a un análisis de redes de co-citaciones (análisis intelectual). Además de incorporar la automatización y bibliometría en los resultados de esta tesis, se efectúa un análisis a texto completo de los 59 artículos más relevantes de la muestra seleccionada. El objetivo es mejorar la comprensión y ordenar el corpus del conocimiento existentes en los aspectos más específicos de la TD en la gestión interna de las pymes. -En segundo lugar, se debe analizar el entorno real de las pymes mediante la exploración de sus experiencias y percepciones sobre el grado de TD que tienen implantadas en sus organizaciones, y la manera de gestionar sus procesos para adaptarse a los mercados disruptivos en los que desarrolla su actividad. Para ello se efectúan dos estudios: 6 Criterios de exclusión de los artículos: 1º. Los resultados de la investigación deben incluir solo artículos publicados de investigación o de revisión científica, 2º. Los resultados deben incluir únicamente estudios publicados en inglés, ya que son los más difundidos en todo el mundo, 3º. Los documentos seleccionados deben aportar una clara relación con la temática estudiada en los procesos de TD en las pymes, 4º. Los artículos seleccionados deben estar clara y suficientemente descritos y explicados, debe estar perfectamente definida la metodología, los objetivos principales y las preguntas de investigación de los artículos. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 24 1. Uno de carácter cuantitativo, mediante encuesta a los propietarios de las gestorías administrativas de España y a través de un análisis estadístico de mínimos cuadrados parciales de ecuaciones estructurales (PLS-SEM). Se utilizó un cuestionario autoadministrado online para la recogida de datos. Los participantes fueron los propietarios de las gestorías administrativas. Para determinar la validez, la legibilidad y la utilidad de los instrumentos de medición se efectúo un pretest (MacKenzie et al., 2011) con 45 gestores. Se obtuvo una muestra válida de 335 cuestionarios bajo la técnica de muestreo a conveniencia. La encuesta incluye cinco medidas que tratan de acotar el término de la TD a través del análisis de la gestión de la innovación existente en las empresas Kibs: capacidad digital, tecnología digital, estrategia digital, apoyo de la dirección y rendimiento organizativo. Las opciones de respuestas se basan en una escala Likert de 5 niveles. Para validar la fiabilidad de las escalas se ha calculado el Coeficiente de Correlación Intraclase (Koo & Li, 2016), herramienta estadística que estudia la homogeneidad y correlación interna de los constructos. Este índice muestra unos resultados óptimos por lo que las mediciones utilizadas en los indicadores muestran una concordancia alta y por tanto sus conclusiones son válidas. El análisis del modelo diseñado se efectúa a través de ecuaciones estructurales de mínimos cuadrados parciales (PLS-SEM). Esta metodología utiliza bloques de variables para estimar los parámetros del modelo a través de la maximización de la varianza explicada de las variables dependientes (Chin, 1998). Analiza datos multivariantes para modelar las variables latentes denominadas compuestos, las cuales se forman de combinaciones lineales de sus indicadores (Henseler et al., 2014). Por tanto, este estudio relacionado con cinco componentes de la TD (capacidad digital, tecnología digital, estrategia digital, apoyo de la dirección y rendimiento organizativo) solo se puede modelar a través de compuestos para realizar buenas estimaciones. El objetivo de la investigación es confirmatorio por lo que es necesario establece las relaciones causales entre variables que especifican cómo y por qué ocurren ciertos fenómenos empíricos. Para evaluar el modelo estructural se utilizó la versión del software SmartPLS 3.3.6 (Ringle et al., 2015), que ofrece una serie de criterios estadísticos para realizar un análisis sistemático e integrador del modelo de medida y estructural. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 25 2. Otro de carácter cualitativo a través de la teoría fundamentada, para mostrar empíricamente los procesos de la TD que inciden en la gestión organizativa de la agrupación profesional de gestorías administrativas en España. Se efectúan 18 entrevistas personales a diferentes expertos y profesionales relacionados con la actividad que se circunscribe al ámbito profesional de los gestores administrativos de España7. La selección de los candidatos se efectúa a través de un muestreo intencional por ser el método más utilizado en los análisis cualitativos (Elo et al., 2014). Para analizar los datos que se obtienen de las preguntas formuladas se siguieron los principios de la teoría Fundamentada, basados en las etapas de la codificación abierta, axial y selectiva (Corbin & Strauss, 2014). En este tipo de estudio el investigador visualiza los datos a través de la interpretación de la realidad social y reconstruye las experiencias y los significados de los expertos entrevistados (Charmaz, 2006). Este proceso se efectúa a través del software de análisis de datos cualitativos MAXQDA10. En primer lugar, se realizó una codificación abierta, leyendo las transcripciones párrafo a párrafo para identificar las interconexiones entre los códigos. Todos los temas emergentes se codificaron utilizando códigos descriptivos (Corbin & Strauss, 2014) y se elaboró un mapa de codificación inicial. En la fase de codificación axial, se investigaron más a fondo las propiedades y dimensiones de los conceptos identificados inicialmente mediante el proceso de comparación constante, se trazaron relaciones y posteriormente surgen categorías y subcategorías de la temática estudiada (Glaser & Strauss, 2009). En la fase de codificación selectiva, las dimensiones, los resultados y los factores se sintetizaron en un marco conceptual. En la última fase se refinaron la redacción y la coherencia interna, y finaliza el proceso de la codificación con la saturación de los datos garantizando la validez de las conclusiones, por haber llegado a este nivel de análisis conceptual mediante el descubrimiento de las categorías centrales, que organizan el resto de las subcategorías para llegar a la teoría formal. La participación de dos investigadores y expertos en TD en el proceso de codificación, así como el alto grado de acuerdo en la codificación y la saturación de los datos garantizaron la validez de las conclusiones. 7Participantes de las entrevistas: 1º propietarios de las gestorías administrativas con una dilatada experiencia en el sector, que han desempeñado funciones gerenciales de diversa índole. 2º consultores expertos, especialistas en implementar proyectos relacionados con la actividad profesional de los gestores administrativos. 3º funcionario público que desempeña labores directivas en la delegación especial de la Agencia Estatal de la Administración Tributaria (AEAT) de Andalucía, Ceuta y Melilla y es experto en nuevas tecnologías. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 26 4. Objetivos La TD presenta diferentes enfoques centrados en la gestión empresarial. De manera muy concisa se van a exponer los principales objetivos que aborda esta tesis doctoral. A través de un enfoque teórico se trata de contextualizar la relevancia de las pymes en los mercados disruptivos en los que desarrolla su actividad económica. Para ello, se ofrece una visión estructurada sobre la temática relacionada con la TD en las pymes, basándonos en un enfoque interno de la organización. Se analizan los habilitadores de la TD que permiten a las pymes resolver de forma prioritaria su complejo proceso de TD para ser competitivas ante las circunstancias cambiantes del mercado. Como complemento a esta revisión exploratoria de la literatura, que permite construir un estudio teórico, se efectúa una validación empírica que confirma y confronta en el campo práctico el primer paso teórico. Se efectúan dos investigaciones: una de carácter cuantitativa y otra de índole cualitativa basadas en dos modelos empíricos, que analizan un sector económico formado por pymes, que ofertan servicios profesionales intensivos en conocimiento y se caracterizan por generar importantes fuentes de conocimiento y valor en la economía. 5. Estructura de la tesis Esta tesis doctoral se ha elaborado por compilación según lo establecido en el artículo 62, 63 y 64 de la normativa de estudios de doctorado de la Universidad de Sevilla. Se ha estructurado en 5 capítulos, mostrando el primer capítulo la idoneidad del tema a tratar a través de la justificación teórico-académica y práctica, así como los objetivos propuestos. Los tres capítulos siguientes muestran los artículos publicados en revistas de la colección Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI)8, que cuentan con un índice de calidad JCR con un factor de impacto (JIF) que se encuentran entre el primer y el tercer cuartil. El quinto capítulo expone un resumen de los principales resultados expuestos en la compilación de artículos publicados en la colección principal de la WOS, así como su discusión y las principales conclusiones, contribuciones y limitaciones del universo del estudio efectuado con sus procedimientos metodológicos. 8 Technological Forecasting and Social Change. Elsevier Science inc.. (JIF 2022:12.0;JIF Rank:11/154; JIF Quartile:Q1). Frontiers in Psychology. Frontiers Media SA ( JIF 2022: 3.8;JIF Rank: 34/147; JIF Quartile: Q1). Journal of Service Theory and Practice. Emerald Group Publishing LTD (JIF 2022:4.6;JIF Rank:84/154; JIF Quartile:Q3). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 27 Esta tesis doctoral opta a la mención Doctorado Internacional en el título de doctor y, para cumplir con lo establecido en el artículo 68 de la normativa de estudios de doctorado de la Universidad de Sevilla, se va a redactar en inglés el apartado del resumen y las conclusiones. CAPÍTULO 2. Evolution of digital transformation in SMEs management through a bibliometric analysis Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 36 New information technology (IT) solutions, such as Internet-based innovations, strengthen the internationalization of SMEs, improve the quality and speed of communications and increase the digital presence of SMEs at a reduced cost (L. Li et al., 2018; Olvera-Lobo & Castillo-Rodríguez, 2018). 2.1.2 Study of the capacities needed to implement DT in SMEs Dynamic capabilities have been recognized as one of the mechanisms that can facilitate DT in organizations (Fischer et al., 2020; Warner & Wäger, 2019). There is a debate about whether they have the potential to provide a competitive advantage in changing environments, where the strategic foundations are speed and adaptability. (Eisenhardt & Martin, 2000; Peteraf et al., 2013). Overall, researchers believe that companies need dynamic capabilities to remain competitive in a digital environment. (Svahn et al., 2017; Raj et al., 2020). Dynamic capabilities mean using innovation to provide a series of skills that allow the company to create new products and processes, responding to changing market needs. This has three stages, 1) detecting opportunities/threats, 2) seizing opportunities and 3) transforming the business model of the company (Teece, 2007; Pavlou & El Sawy, 2011). To develop dynamic capabilities both the behavior of the individuals in the company and the organizational processes must be identified. (Wilden et al., 2013; Bendig et al., 2018). The scientific literature considers dynamic capacity as the digital capacity or DT, and studies how this adapts to changes in the business environment by identifying or reorienting digital technologies, and where appropriate, using other new technologies. The goal is to know the motivational factors of customers, address their needs and create personalized value (Goerzig & Bauernhansl, 2018; Matarazzo et al., 2021). DT capabilities are developed in two ways by focusing on individual skills and using organizational competencies. Individual digital capabilities are seen as the driving force for the adoption of new technology as a central aspect of the industrial revolution (Tams et al., 2014; Kohli & Grover, 2008). The role of employees and managers is essential to correctly manage this type of skill and can differentiate SMEs from large companies because people in SMEs deploy digital skills more effectively than in Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 37 large companies (Sousa & Rocha, 2019; Scuotto et al., 2021). On the other hand, the lack of access to technologies due to not having qualified employees is a factor that widens the digital divide with large companies (van Laar et al., 2017; Nguyen, 2009). Among the capabilities that affect organizational processes in SMEs are the following: creating a digital mindset, establishing R+D alliances to achieve innovation ecosystems and developing generative detection capabilities, which means gathering information about market developments using technology (Warner & Wäger, 2019). Management skills are very relevant for the development of DT in SMEs, usually focusing on the use of IT elements, such as digital collaboration platforms (Soluk & Kammerlander, 2021), social media platforms, blogs and social media (Bouwman et al., 2018). 2.1.3 Types of digital strategy used by SMEs The current trend is to merge digital technologies with strategic systems to generate added value for organizations (Kohli & Grover, 2008; Iafrate, 2018). Competition between companies is increasingly based on leveraging digital media, enabling the restructuring of company business models, leading to transformation (Bataineh et al., 2015; Kahre et al., 2017). Separating these two concepts (digital strategy and IT) can diminish a company’s potential for synergies that take advantage of digital resources and create differential value (Mithas et al., 2013). Digital strategies are being transformed into modular and multifunctional strategies, which allow for global business processes to be established. These include all the digital resources of the business into an organizational structure with the flat and flexible hierarchies needed to survive in the digital age (Kohli & Grover, 2008; Becker & Schmid, 2020). Recent research shows that digital strategy merges four dimensions of digital orientation: the reach of digital technology, digital capabilities, coordination of the digital ecosystem and digital architecture configuration. Finance is a very relevant aspect when implementing strategic changes that must be carried out in an objective-oriented manner (Pullen et al., 2009; Bidan et al., 2012). Dynamic capabilities provide a series of competencies which are needed for strategic orientation capable of organizing digital resources when facing changing market conditions, such as unexpected consumer behaviors and disruptive competition (Yeow et al., 2018; Wiesböck et al., 2020; Wang et al., 2020). Technological orientation for the acceptance and use of technology is Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 38 also required for the employees and managers of the organization (C. Chen et al., 2017; Franco et al., 2021). Finally, Vial, (2019), considers that to improve knowledge about the digital orientation of companies, there must be research to improve our understanding of the interactions between companies and their environment when using digital technologies. 2.1.4 Organizational performance in SMEs Organizational performance plays a critical role in meeting the objectives and goals of companies in a disruptive environment (Richard et al., 2009). This requires a strategy aimed at successful DT to develop a wide range of technological resources and digital skills to respond to market needs (Rialti et al., 2019; Wang et al., 2020). It has been shown that successful DT-related initiatives lead to improved and sustainable performance (Dalenogare et al., 2018; Tortorella et al., 2020). The digital capability of the organization to quickly respond to market needs is needed to understand the effect of DT on the performance of an organization. Teece,(2007) y Scuotto, Nicotra, et al.,(2021) show the importance of the individual human digital capabilities of workers and senior management and highlight the direct relationship these have on the performance of innovation and the results of the organization. The document also analyzes the ability of IT at an organizational level to drive business performance, motivated by the emergence of digital technologies, such as management applications, mobile platforms, big data, and social networks (Nwankpa & Datta, 2017; Wiesböck et al., 2020; Wang et al., 2020). An extension of resource-based theory is knowledge-based vision, which establishes strategies for achieving organizational performance, encouraging knowledge sharing in companies through open innovation (Singh et al., 2021; Popa et al., 2017). Performance is an indicator of the success or failure of organizations (Richard et al., 2009; Rehman et al., 2019). Approaches to performance measurement in SMEs are multidimensional and take into account all stakeholders in the organization. Performance quantification is closely linked to the degree to which organizations meet and exceed objectives, which can be a critical requirement for success (Kafetzopoulos, 2022; Simpson et al., 2012). As this is a complex concept, different types of measurement methods appear in the literature. Neely et al., (2000) establish two types of measurements, one for financial results and the other for the factors that Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 39 determine those financial results (quality, flexibility, use of innovation resources). Ali et al., (2018) measures the organizational performance of an organization by its ability to acquire and manage the resources with which it achieves its objectives. 2.2 Current status of DT in SMEs Figure 1 shows the periods in which scientific production on DT in SMEs is concentrated. Figure 1. Annual Scientific Production A selection of research on the systematic review of TD is shown below. The search used the WOS and Scopus analytical database to find studies with scientific impact about the economy and markets. (see table 1). Table 1. DT-based studies using a bibliometric analysis Authors Articles Area of research Year Topic (Svadberg et al., 2019) Beyond the Hype: A Bibliometric Analysis Deconstructing Research on Digitalization Business & Economics 2019 DT is conceptualised into three strategic dimensions: value creation instruments, operational processes and social aspects). (Ruiz-Real et al., 2020) Artificial intelligence in business and economics research: trends and future. Business & Economics 2020 Studies Artificial Intelligence in business organizations. (Munim et al., 2020) Big data and artificial intelligence in the maritime industry: a bibliometric review and future research directions Social Sciences 2020 A study of the application of big data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the maritime industry. (Pizzi et al., 2021) Assessing the impacts of digital transformation on internal auditing: A bibliometric analysis Social Sciences 2021 How DT affects management auditing: continuous auditing, fraud detection, data analytics and technological innovation. (Chawla & Goyal, 2021) Emerging trends in digital transformation: a bibliometric analysis Business & Economics 2021 Multidisciplinary study of DT in the industrial sector concentrating on four areas of research (organizational, applied instruments, operational processes and social aspects). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 40 (Cruz-Cárdenas et al., 2021) COVID-19, consumer behavior, technology, and society: A literature review and bibliometric analysis Business, Management and Accounting 2021 Studies how Covid-19 affected behavior in technological and digital formats. (Sott et al., 2021) Process modeling for smart factories: using science mapping to understand the strategic themes, main challenges and future themes Business, Management and Accounting 2021 This identifies the relationships between the business process model and Industry 4.0 in smart factories. There are numerous bibliometric publications that try to conceptualize TD in commerce and social activity in general. An example is the importance that some technological enablers deserve, such as Big Data, AI, social media, virtual reality, internet of things (IoT), etc. Research has been carried out on the penetration of DT in different types of sectors like agricultural, industrial, technological, construction, telecommunications and computing, etc. Scientific literature on the subject also contains a comprehensive analysis of the evolution of DT giving a complete review of the subject with bibliometric and network analysis techniques to give a complete overview of this topic for the strategic management of business organizations. The work of Svadberg et al., (2019) and Chawla & Goyal, (2021) provide an exhaustive overview of the structure and knowledge of DT as they show the relevant authors and research themes after examining the existing literature. However, gaps have been detected in the literature reviews of the organizational factors for SMEs that have tried to manage DT when adapting to the disruptive markets in which they operate. 3. Methodology This study used the four common stages of a systematic literature review (Durach et al., 2017) as shown in figure 2. The PRISMA methodological approach (Page et al., 2021) was used as it establishes flowchart review protocols for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (Kraus et al., 2022). In the first stage, a systematic review of the literature about TD in companies was made using keyword searches on the Wos and Scopus databases. Of the 267 documents found, no revisions were prior to 2016 and the research limits could be defined. No document was found to have a definition of TD related to SME management. In the second stage, bibliographic data collected from two databases (WOS and Scopus). These were selected for the following reasons, a) the data in WOS has a JCR quality index, b) the information covers a long period of time, and c) many citations can be downloaded Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 41 simultaneously (Abarca et al., 2020). Scopus can be considered a complementary database to WOS with approximately 20% more research coverage, a quality index of SJR and it also allows many references to be downloaded simultaneously (Hassan et al., 2019). The study searched for author, source and document metadata over the 2015-2022 time period. The search was limited to articles containing the keywords "digit* transfor*"OR “digital capabilit*” OR “digital technolog*” y “SME”. These keywords had to appear in the title, abstract, or metadata of the article. The results contained 1804 articles about DT in SMEs. An asterisk was used as a truncation symbol in the search. Figure 2. Procedure and justification of the selected data The third stage established the exclusion rules for the selected documents, which were 1) the results of the research should only include articles from scientific journals which are considered certified knowledge as these publications have been reviewed and approved by other researchers (Ramos-Rodríguez & Ruíz-Navarro, 2004), 2) the results should only include studies published in English, as these are the most widespread worldwide, 3) the period considered is Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 42 2015-2022 as no documents prior to 2015 were found in the initial search. The search is limited to 2022 to only include complete years, 4) The selected documents must provide a clear relationship with the subject of DT processes in SMEs and the search is limited to areas closely related to the management of organizations, such as "Management or Business or Economics", "Business", "Management and Accounting" and "Social Sciences", and 5) the selected articles must be clearly and sufficiently described and explained along with the methodology used in each study. Once the filters had been applied, 169 WOS articles and 262 Scopus articles were validated. In the fourth stage, a literature review was performed with a bibliometric analysis which used measurements taken with the Biblioshiny tool that was chosen because its superior features compared to other tools, such as SciMAT, VOSviewer, Citan, etc. (Moral-Muñoz et al., 2020). provides. The Bibliometrix version 4.0 software package using the R-language (Aria & Cuccurullo, 2017) provides a very visual web interface. The files obtained from the WOS and Scopus database with the selection of the articles were exported in bibtex format and the two resulting files were combined into one. This file was used for the bibliometric analysis and must contain high-quality data and therefore duplicated elements must be detected and eliminated (Aria & Cuccurullo, 2017). This process was performed using the "mergeDBSource" routine of the Bibliometrix package executed in the statistical software Rstudio version 2023.06.0 Build 421. Once the duplicates (120 documents) had been discarded, the final sample contained 311 articles. The literature review analyzes domain-centered hybrids (concept-discipline) conceptualizing DT in SME business management. The SRL was made using the Biblioshiny software and has two levels of analysis: one is based on metrics (resources, authors and documents) and the other on knowledge structure (conceptual and intellectual). In addition to the Bibliometric study, a complete analysis of the title, abstract and keywords of the most relevant articles was made by the three authors of this study. The complete texts of the articles considered to have the greatest impact in terms of citations (59 articles) were analyzed. Subsequently, the selected articles were compared and discussed by the authors. This content analysis is subjective in nature and depends on the evaluation of the researchers (see figure 3). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 43 Figure 3. SRL methodology 4. Results The scheme for the results proposed in Annex 2 shows the results. The first analysis is domain-focused and provides an overview of the number of sources, publications, citations, and types of documents to which the metadata refers. Next, the conceptual and intellectual structure, internal gaps and future research directions for the effects of DT on SME management are mapped. These results focus on citation analysis, co-citations and co-occurrence of authors' keywords. To minimize errors when interpreting the results, a synthesis of the analysis of the 59 full-text articles reviewed by the authors is shown and the main research streams are grouped by subject. 4.1. Metric Analysis 4.1.1. Reference Publication Year Spectroscopy (RPYS) The SRL establishes an empirical base to find the main articles of the research after reducing the bias of the researcher (Tranfield et al., 2003). Therefore, the historical roots of the seminal documents on DT in SMEs are analyzed and represent the origins of the research fields and topics. These were found by considering the metadata of the references, including works not Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 44 indexed in Wos and Scopus. This analysis used Reference Publication Year Spectroscopy (RPSY) which is a quantitative method to identify the historical origins of research fields and topics. (Marx et al., 2014). The seminal documents can be considered the crucial impulse for new theories and applications of the subject (see figure 4). Figure 4. Reference publication year spectroscopy This figure shows two lines with the black one showing the number of references cited (NRC) per year while the red one indicates the absolute deviation from the 5-year median, which is useful for finding the most cited historical publications. The greater the deviation, the more pronounced the peak of the red line and this shows the years of publication with the largest number of cited documents compared to other years. The most relevant publications are those listed in table 2, which gives the year of publication in the first column, the title of the document in the second column and the description of the main topic in the last column. Table 2. Seminal documents Year Seminal document Main theme 2000 Bharadwaj, A. S. (2000). A Resource-Based Perspective on Information Technology Capability and Firm Performance: An Empirical Investigation. MIS Quarterly, 24(1), 169-196. Resource-based theory and its relevance in fostering competitive SMEs. 2000 Eisenhardt, K. M., & Martin, J. A. (2000). Dynamic capabilities: What are they? Strategic Management Journal, 21(10-11), 1105-1121. The resources and capabilities needed for a company to be competitive 2003 Lewis, W., Agarwal, R., & Sambamurthy, vallabh. (2003). Sources of Influence on Beliefs about Information Technology Use: An Empirical Study of Knowledge Workers. MIS Quarterly, 27(4), 657. Examines the factors that influence individual beliefs about technology use. 2003 Venkatesh, V., Morris, M. G., Davis, G. B., & Davis, F. D. Reviews the literature and gives a model of the Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 45 (2003). User Acceptance of Information Technology: Toward a Unified View. MIS Quarterly, 27(3), 425. 0 acceptance of information technologies 2010 Teece, D. J. (2010). Business Models, Business Strategy and Innovation. Long Range Planning, 43(2-3), 172-194. Explore business models and their connections to business strategy and innovation management. 2010 Chesbrough, H. (2010). Business Model Innovation: Opportunities and Barriers. Long Range Planning, 43(2-3), 354-363. Analyzes the obstacles and barriers to innovation when implementing business models in companies. 2013 Bharadwaj, A., El Sawy, O. A., Pavlou, P. A., &Venkatraman, N. (2013). Digital Business Strategy: Toward a Next Generation of Insights. MIS Quarterly, 37(2), 471-482. Studies the process of merging business strategy (IT- based) and functional strategy into a digital business strategy 2013 Fitzgerald, M., Kruschwitz, N., Bonnet, D., & Welch, M. (2013). Embracing digital technology: A new strategic imperative. MIT sloan management review, 55(2), 1. DT is based on new technologies (social networks, mobiles, devices, etc.) 2014 Lasi, H., Fettke, P., Kemper, H.-G., Feld, T., & Hoffmann, M. (2014). Industry 4.0. Business & Information Systems Engineering, 6(4), 239-242. Defines Industry 4.0 based on digital production networks. 2015 Matt, C., Hess, T., & Benlian, A. (2015). Digital Transformation Strategies. Business & Information Systems Engineering, 57(5), 339-343. Global conceptual exploration of DT strategies. 2016 Hess, T., Matt, C., Benlian, A., & Wiesboeck, F. (2016). Options for Formulating a Digital Transformation Strategy. Mis Quarterly Executive, 15(2), 123-139. Establishes a guide for managers to implement a digital transformation strategy. 2017 Nambisan, S. (2017). Digital Entrepreneurship: Toward a Digital Technology Perspective of Entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 41(6), 1029-1055. https://doi.org/10.1111/etap.12254 Studies of the intersections between new technologies and digital business initiatives. 2017 Scuotto, V., Del Giudice, M., & Carayannis, E. G. (2017). The effect of social networking sites and absorptive capacity on SMES’ innovation performance. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 42(2), 409-424. Studies the implications of innovation capacity for SMEs. 2018 Moeuf, A., Pellerin, R., Lamouri, S., Tamayo-Giraldo, S., & Barbaray, R. (2018). The industrial management of SMEs in the era of Industry 4.0. International Journal of Production Research, 56(3), 1118-1136. Analyzes the new paradigms that Industry 4.0 offers for the industrial management of SMEs. 2018 Müller, J. M., Buliga, O., & Voigt, K.-I. (2018). Fortune favors the prepared: How SMEs approach business model innovations in Industry 4.0. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 132, 2-17. Investigates the changes that Industry 4.0 has made to the business models of SMEs. Articles prior to 2000 are not considered because they are not relevant to studying DT in SMEs with current organizational processes. From 2000 to 2014. Research focused on the technological resources of companies to find the competitive advantages generated and obtain improved performance by modifying the specific, non-substitutable and inimitable tangible and intangible resources of the company (A. S. Bharadwaj, 2000). The correct use of technology in SMEs is different in each context and mainly comes from the commitment of senior management to new technology and self-efficiency (Lewis et al., 2003; Venkatesh et al., 2003). The dynamic capabilities framework begins to be addressed by broadening the static perspective of the company's resource-based vision, focusing on intentional modifications of the resource base to adapt to the external environment and gain competitive advantages in changing conditions (Eisenhardt & Martin, 2000). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 52 Figure 8. Most Frequent Words As the calculation of keywords by frequency is not very exhaustive (Wen et al., 2016), the representation of the content of the article is improved by including the time evolution of the terms. Figure 9 helps to analyze the trend of keywords during the period analyzed and shows a substantial increase in the analysis of articles using the study as basic elements to find the conceptual framework of DT in SMEs. Figure 9. Word Growth The following table shows the most globally cited articles from the entire bibliometrix database, which comprises 1,035 records and 44,588 references from 377 different sources (Lizano-Mora et al., 2021). There are three documents with a great impact in the field of global appointments: Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 53 Li, (2018) with 467 citations, followed by Coreynen et al., (2017) with 312 citations and in third place a Papadopoulos et al., (2020) with 298 citations. On deeper inspection, there are 41 articles that had no citation (13%), 151 articles that were cited between one and ten times (48.5%), and 59 articles that were cited more than 28 times (19%). Table 8. Most globally cited articles 4.2 Knowledge structure analysis 4.2.1 Study of the conceptual structure and the sample "synthesis" A network diagram of co-occurrences of the study keywords used by the authors was used to understand the knowledge structure and research trends. In co-occurrence analysis the size of the nodes represents the number of documents included in the node and the line between two nodes represents a link between two groups and means a cooccurrence of the keywords. The thickness of the line represents its thematic link (Y.-M. Guo et al., 2019). The clusters represent the most linked and repeated keywords in posts. The red ones are those which were found the most and the main keywords are "smes", "digital transformation" and "digitalization". Secondly, the brown cluster appears with the following main keywords "digital technology" and "digital entrepreneurship". In third place, there is the orange cluster with "business model" and "social media" as the most relevant terms. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 54 Figure 10. Study keyword co-occurrence network and clusters (2 number of Edges) The cluster analysis found three groups of closely associated keywords. Each cluster was assigned a different color to display the topics contained by the displayed words. To label each cluster, the 59 most cited articles were selected, and the full text of each was analyzed. The results are shown in section 4.2.2. Three thematic areas were identified a. (Red cluster) "Process of digital transformation of SMEs", b. (brown cluster) "Digital Technologies" and c. (Orange Cluster) "Digital business models". 4.2.2 Research currents analyzed using the most relevant clusters The content of the literature was analyzed to improve the understanding of TD in SMEs. The objective is to use this and the bibliometric analysis to identify and examine the main research paths of TD in SMEs. The full-text literature analysis was done with a sample of 59 articles. The selection of articles was made using the results of the study in point 4.1.5 above on the most globally cited documents of the whole bibliographic database. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 55 Table 9. Full list of reviewed and summarised works Area of research Flow of research Research resource DT components that originate the disruptive processes of SMEs. a) Digital transformation process in SMEs. - Organizational dynamic capabilities. -Individual dynamic capabilities. -Strategic response. -Strategies based on knowledge management -Strategies based on certain elements of technological innovation. -Organizational performance. (North et al., 2019);(Elia et al., 2021); (Troise et al., 2022); (Foroudi et al., 2017); (Soluk & Kammerlander, 2021); (H. Guo et al., 2020); (Papadopoulos et al., 2020); (Dethine et al., 2020) (Garbellano & Da Veiga, 2019); (Fachrunnisa et al., 2020); (Saunila et al., 2018);(Zangiacomi et al., 2020) (Nwaiwu et al., 2020); (Ghobakhloo & Iranmanesh, 2021); (Müller et al., 2021); (Coreynen et al., 2017) (Ricci et al., 2021); (Bonfanti et al., 2018); ;(Becker & Schmid, 2020); (Peter et al., 2020); (Castagna et al., 2020); (Crupi et al., 2020); (Klein & Todesco, 2021); (Audretsch & Belitski, 2021); (Scuotto et al., 2019); Papadopoulos et al., 2020); (Del Giudice et al., 2021);(Quinton et al., 2018). (Trașcă et al., 2019); (Bouwman et al., 2018); (Bouwman et al., 2019;(Nasiri et al., 2020);(Y.-Y. K. Chen et al., 2016); (Ramdani et al., 2022); (Ukko et al., 2019); (Teng et al., 2022) b) Digital technologies. -ICT in an organizational context. -Internationalization. -ICT for emerging countries development. (Garzoni et al., 2020); (Dutta et al., 2020); ;(Relf- Eckstein et al., 2019); (Dalenogare et al., 2018; (L. Li, 2018); (Agostini & Nosella, 2019); (Del Giudice et al., 2019); (Soluk & Kammerlander, 2021); (Lutfi et al., 2022); (Mazzarol, 2015); ;(Sharma et al., 2020);(Moretto & Caniato, 2021);. ( W. Li et al., 2016). (Cassetta et al., 2020);(Hervé et al., 2020); (Del Giudice et al., 2019) (Pergelova et al., 2019);(Denicolai et al., 2021) (Akpan et al., 2022); (Chatterjee et al., 2021); c) Business models. (Priyono et al., 2020); (Zhen et al., 2021); (Matarazzo et al., 2021); (Stentoft et al., 2021); (Gregurec et al., 2021); Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 56 Table 9 shows the main areas of research found in the clusters that appeared in the bibliometric search and gives a structured view of the research of the corresponding authors. a) The digital transformation process in SMEs This is the most relevant thematic area of this study. It uses the articles that analyze the adoption of DT in SMEs with an internal perspective of resources and theories of dynamic capabilities and how these favor the development of value creation strategies. - Organizational dynamic capabilities Existing research is based on the innovative capacity of the resources of SMEs (North et al., 2019; Elia et al., 2021; Troise et al., 2022), of external relations and digital marketing capabilities with similar characteristics as the dynamic capabilities approach for studying the use of internet ICTs that facilitate interaction and relationship with customers (Foroudi et al., 2017). The global capabilities of organizations are studied, with special attention on digital technology skills, relational skills and innovation capacity. (Troise et al., 2022). Soluk & Kammerlander, (2021) consider dynamic capabilities a basic requirement for SMEs to successfully implement DT, as they are involved in the following phases, digitalization of products and services (ability to reorganize routines, ability to market new information, effective strategic decision-making and digitization of the business model (capacity for continuous renewal, strategic partnerships, employee learning capacity and brand management). Dethine et al., (2020) compares the capacity of electronic commerce (online transactions), electronic marketing (aimed at promotion and communication) and electronic business (modification of the internal organization of a company, as well as its supply chain) to digital facilitators that favor the internationalization of SMEs. Using dynamic capacities to overcome the global crisis caused by COVID is considered of the utmost importance (H. Guo et al., 2020; Papadopoulos et al., 2020). -Individual dynamic capabilities. Individual capabilities are considered an essential strategic value for innovation and business growth. The most relevant individual capacity may be the human capital of the organization (Saunila et al., 2018). An important part of human capital is the role of the management team and their knowledge about implementing technology (Garbellano & Da Veiga, 2019) by using flexible leadership (Fachrunnisa et al., 2020). Human factors are emphasized when co-creating value with the capabilities of digital services as a driving force of SME employees. These capabilities allow employees to understand their customers better, improve the delivery of the service and respond to customer needs. (Saunila et al., 2018). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 57 Zangiacomi et al., (2020) explains three managerial capabilities needed in the manufacturing value chain for Industry 4.0, which are the ability to see the advantages of DT, knowledge sharing and investment in the adoption of technology. -Strategic responses. There is research on the integration of innovation strategies to redesign established business models to incorporate industry 4.0 (Nwaiwu et al., 2020) based on technological, environmental and organizational factors (Nwaiwu et al., 2020; Ghobakhloo & Iranmanesh, 2021). Müller et al.,( 2021) claim that the aim of performing exploratory innovation strategies is to search for new ideas in organizations to report and resolve non-routine problems. This type of strategy is associated with efficiency. Other researchers argue that Industry 4.0 strategies are based on the ability of SMEs to recognize digital opportunities (digital design, digital manufacturing and digital servitization) in their industrial ecosystem. A wider view is required for the search for external knowledge, which positively influences the adoption of information and digital technologies (IoT, Big Data Analytics, simulation, etc.) (Coreynen et al., 2017; Ricci et al., 2021). Other studies maintain the global vision of the strategies that should be implemented in SMEs to increase the degree of digitalization and increase the efficiency of the tasks maintaining the global vision of the SMEs to increase digitalization and increase the efficiency of the tasks performed (Bonfanti et al., 2018; Becker & Schmid, 2020; Peter et al., 2020). - Knowledge management is a basic strategic element of the response to rapid technological changes in SMEs (Castagna et al., 2020; Crupi et al., 2020; Klein & Todesco, 2021). Interorganizational collaboration between company managers improve the internal operational capabilities of SMEs for projects to improve things like the collaboration on applications and IT infrastructures (Audretsch & Belitski, 2021). - Scientific research of ambidextral scientific capabilities is important for current knowledge. The objective is to find a balance between practical research and technological exploitation (Scuotto et al., 2019; Papadopoulos et al., 2020; Del Giudice et al., 2021). There are authors who, in order to achieve DT in SMEs, use marketing strategies with digital technologies to respond to the push factors of the environment (regulatory pressures of a region, coercive pressures of suppliers and customers, and mimetic pressures), and to the internal attraction factors of the company that Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 58 generate knowledge and adaptation to the environment (integration of digital technology in the important functions of the organization with priority) (Quinton et al., 2018). -Organizational performance. The objective of digital technology is to propose digital solutions to companies to improve their competitiveness and optimize company performance (productivity and exports) (Trașcă et al., 2019). There are studies that highlight the importance of adopting strategies and business models aimed at implementing new digital resources that generate organizational returns (Bouwman et al., 2018, 2019). As an example, the implementation and use of web portals, cloud computing, data analysis and social media platforms (Y.-Y. K. Chen et al., 2016). Other authors consider that the tools that generate the most organizational performance are the so-called smart technologies (smartphones, driverless cars, computers, etc.) (Nasiri et al., 2020). The digital innovation process in SMEs has four stages, which are intention, adoption, application and use. This process has an impact on the performance of the organization (Ramdani et al., 2022). The success or failure of organizational performance can be evaluated in different ways. This study uses financial performance and return on investment (ROI) to measure this statistic (Ukko et al., 2019; Teng et al., 2022). b) Digital technologies The digital technologies used by industry 4.0 in the literature are considered the main driving force of SMEs in the industrial sector (Garzoni et al., 2020; Dutta et al., 2020) and are those which can influence machine design and factory problems (Relf-Eckstein et al., 2019). The most important technologies are, AI, the use of IoT in manufacturing, the use of digital production networks to create intelligent manufacturing systems, machines in CPS (cyber-physical systems), etc. (Dalenogare et al., 2018; L. Li, 2018). This industrial revolution is based on manufacturing systems with advanced technologies which require a very important financial effort from SMEs, and intense relationships with internal social capital (collaborative relationships between leaders and all work units of the organization) and external social capital (networks of relationships with which SMEs interact, such as ICT providers, other competing companies, research centers, consultants and intermediaries) (Agostini & Nosella, 2019). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 59 In other sectors, the use of information technologies that offer solutions and influence the competitiveness of SMEs are virtual reality, augmented reality, new applications and digital platforms, IoT, cloud computing, Blockchain and ERP systems (Del Giudice et al., 2019; Soluk & Kammerlander, 2021). Lutfi et al., (2022) consider Big Data analytics as an important element of DT in SMEs. To correctly adopt it, the organizational disposition, the support of senior management and strong encouragement by public institutions are necessary. E-Leadership has the challenge of promoting an effective and productive alignment of the business strategy with the digital technology that is expected to improve the growth of SMEs (W. Li et al., 2016). Other studies link the technological innovation of SMEs with the electronic marketing communication tools which must be integrated into pre-sales and post-sales marketing activities to improve customer loyalty. The use of web 2.0, social media, CRM platforms, adoption of mobile applications and blogs are all important nowadays (Mazzarol, 2015; Sharma et al., 2020). Moretto & Caniato, (2021) suggest that e-commerce platforms are tools that improve the SME supply chain for Fintech activities. Technological innovation has an impact on SMEs when it is integrated as an innovation for organizational processes and investments are made in digital skills (Cassetta et al., 2020; Hervé et al., 2020). Technological tools that promote relationships between SMEs have an impact on their international growth (spillover effect) (Del Giudice et al., 2019). AI, as a digitizing factor for SMEs has a positive influence on business internationalization (Pergelova et al., 2019; Denicolai et al., 2021). Digital technologies also impact the markets of emerging countries (Africa and Asia) and SMEs face the challenge of adopting cutting-edge technologies that allow them to create a strategic business advantage. Innovation in the financial sector using FinTech technology causes an increase in the credit of SMEs and could improve their results. Examples include, web or internet banking, mobile money transactions, point of sale and mobile ATMs. Promoting Start-Up organizations and the use of technology in SMEs are two essential aspects of the industrial manufacturing processes called product and process innovation (Akpan et al., 2022). Other authors have studied the impact of different technology in SMEs. AI can be seen as a way to analyze large amounts of data and CRMs that manage customer relations (Chatterjee et al., 2021). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 60 c) Digital business models SMEs must change their business model to cope with changes in the environment by using digital technologies. The success of digital transformation depends on several factors, such as the digital capabilities in the company, the learning culture, its history of digital technology adoption and its ability incorporate innovation (Priyono et al., 2020). Zhen et al., (2021) states that in digital business models the organizational disposition or preparation mediates between digital capabilities, digital organization and digital innovation. Gregurec et al., (2021) consider that the business models implemented must be supported by digital technologies to guarantee the continuity and improvement of business activities focusing on customers and internal organizational capabilities. In another study on SMEs operating in traditional industries, Matarazzo et al., (2021) argue that the change in business models due to DT must have the goal of creating value for customers. These processes identify certain dynamic capabilities (the managers willingness to transform processes and learning from human resources to coordinate and integrate digital knowledge) needed for the effective use of certain digital tools (Social Networks, Big Data, QR codes and chatbots). The literature analyzes the positive factors (solid strategy for innovation, owners involved in innovation, customer demands on delivery times and profitable solutions) and barriers (lack of knowledge of employees, need for greater resources to exploit technologies) that must be considered when making changes to digital business models (Stentoft et al., 2021). 4.2.3 Intellectual structure The intellectual structure was found by analyzing co-citations of published references to demonstrate the association of topics and authors. The objective was to achieve a deeper idea of the theoretical implications of the 311 selected publications on DT with the most cited references as a basis for the analysis (figure 11). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 61 Figure 11. Network of co-cited authors Each cluster in Figure 11 is a different color and are assigned to different groups of related items connected by arrows showing collaborative networks and cooperation strength. The bubble defines an article published by an author. The size of the bubble indicates the total number of citations of that author in other publications. The four clusters show that research on DT has multidimensional origins. Some of the main references of the most cited authors on network analysis are "Vial, G. (2019). Understanding digital transformation: A review and a research agenda.", "Matt, C., Hess, T., & Benlian, A. (2015). Digital Transformation Strategies. Business & Information Systems Engineering", "Müller, J.M., Kiel, D. and Voigt, K.I. (2018), What drives the adoption of industry 4.0? The role of opportunities and challenges in the context of sustainability" and "Verhoef, P. C., Broekhuizen, T., Bart, Y., Bhattacharya, A., Dong, J. Q., Fabian, N., & Haenlein, M. (2021). Digital transformation: A multidisciplinary reflection and research agenda". These authors define DT holistically, so most co-citations are made from documents that are not part of the bibliometric analysis carried out. This means that the area of DT analyzed is currently important, but because it is a new topic, has not created a research corpus of co-citations sufficiently consolidated to show relevant collaboration networks. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 68 Bornmann, L., & Marx, W. (2018). Critical rationalism and the search for standard (field-normalized) indicators in bibliometrics. Journal of Informetrics, 12(3), 598-604. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joi.2018.05.002. Bouwman, H., Nikou, S., & de Reuver, M. (2019). Digitalization, business models, and SMEs: How do business model innovation practices improve performance of digitalizing SMEs? Telecommunications Policy, 43(9), 101828. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2019.101828 Bouwman, H., Nikou, S., Molina-Castillo, F. J., & de Reuver, M. (2018). The impact of digitalization on business models. Digital Policy, Regulation and Governance, 20(2), 105-124. https://doi.org/10.1108/DPRG-07-2017-0039. Breunig, K. J., & Skjølsvik, T. (2017). Digitalization-effects on the legal industry: Emerging business models. Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, 15. Cassetta, E., Monarca, U., Dileo, I., Di Berardino, C., & Pini, M. (2020). The relationship between digital technologies and internationalisation. Evidence from Italian SMEs. Industry and Innovation, 27(4), 311-339. https://doi.org/10.1080/13662716.2019.1696182. Castagna, F., Centobelli, P., Cerchione, R., Esposito, E., Oropallo, E., & Passaro, R. (2020). Customer Knowledge Management in SMEs Facing Digital Transformation. Sustainability, 12(9), Article 9. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12093899. Chatterjee, S., Chaudhuri, R., Vrontis, D., & Basile, G. (2021). Digital transformation and entrepreneurship process in SMEs of India: A moderating role of adoption of AI-CRM capability and strategic planning. Journal of Strategy and Management, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print). https://doi.org/10.1108/JSMA-02-2021-0049. Chawla, R. N., & Goyal, P. (2021). Emerging trends in digital transformation: A bibliometric analysis. Benchmarking: An International Journal, ahead-of-print(ahead-of-print). https://doi.org/10.1108/BIJ-01-2021-0009. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 69 Chen, C., Xu, X., & Arpan, L. (2017). Between the technology acceptance model and sustainable energy technology acceptance model: Investigating smart meter acceptance in the United States. Energy Research & Social Science, 25, 93-104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2016.12.011. Chen, Y.-Y. K., Jaw, Y.-L., & Wu, B.-L. (2016). Effect of digital transformation on organisational performance of SMEs: Evidence from the Taiwanese textile industry’s web portal. Internet Research, 26(1), 186-212. https://doi.org/10.1108/IntR-12-2013-0265. Cheng, F.-F., Yu-Wen, H., Hsin-Chun, Y., & Chin-Shan, W. (2018). Mapping knowledge structure by keyword co-occurrence and social network analysis: Evidence from Library Hi Tech between 2006 and 2017. Library Hi Tech, 36(4), 636-650. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHT-01-2018-0004. Chesbrough, H. (2010). Business Model Innovation: Opportunities and Barriers. Long Range Planning, 43(2-3), 354-363. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2009.07.010. Coreynen, W., Matthyssens, P., & Van Bockhaven, W. (2017). Boosting servitization through digitization: Pathways and dynamic resource configurations for manufacturers. Industrial Marketing Management, 60, 42-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2016.04.012. Crupi, A., Del Sarto, N., Di Minin, A., Gregori, G. L., Lepore, D., Marinelli, L., & Spigarelli, F. (2020). The digital transformation of SMEs – a new knowledge broker called the digital innovation hub. Journal of Knowledge Management, 24(6), 1263-1288. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-11-2019- 0623. Cruz-Cárdenas, J., Zabelina, E., Guadalupe-Lanas, J., Palacio-Fierro, A., & Ramos-Galarza, C. (2021). COVID- 19, consumer behavior, technology, and society: A literature review and bibliometric analysis. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 173, 121179. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.121179. Dalenogare, L. S., Benitez, G. B., Ayala, N. F., & Frank, A. G. (2018). The expected contribution of Industry 4.0 technologies for industrial performance. International Journal of Production Economics, 204, 383-394. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpe.2018.08.019. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 70 Daradkeh, M. K. (2021). An Empirical Examination of the Relationship Between Data Storytelling Competency and Business Performance: The Mediating Role of Decision-Making Quality. Journal of Organizational and End User Computing, 33(5), 42-73. https://doi.org/10.4018/JOEUC.20210901.oa3. Del Giudice, M., Scuotto, V., Garcia-Perez, A., & Messeni Petruzzelli, A. (2019). Shifting Wealth II in Chinese economy. The effect of the horizontal technology spillover for SMEs for international growth. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 145, 307-316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2018.03.013. Del Giudice, M., Scuotto, V., Papa, A., Tarba, S. Y., Bresciani, S., & Warkentin, M. (2021). A Self-Tuning Model for Smart Manufacturing SMEs: Effects on Digital Innovation. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 38(1), 68-89. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpim.12560. Denicolai, S., Zucchella, A., & Magnani, G. (2021). Internationalization, digitalization, and sustainability: Are SMEs ready? A survey on synergies and substituting effects among growth paths. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 166, 120650. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.120650. Dethine, B., Enjolras, M., & Monticolo, D. (2020). Digitalization and SMEs’ export management: Impacts on resources and capabilities. Technology Innovation Management Review, 10(4), 18-34. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.22215/TIMREVIEW/1344. Donthu, N., Kumar, S., Mukherjee, D., Pandey, N., & Lim, W. M. (2021). How to conduct a bibliometric analysis: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 133, 285-296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.070. Durach, C. F., Kembro, J., & Wieland, A. (2017). A New Paradigm for Systematic Literature Reviews in Supply Chain Management. Journal of Supply Chain Management, 53(4), 67-85. https://doi.org/10.1111/jscm.12145. Dutta, G., Kumar, R., Sindhwani, R., & Singh, R. K. (2020). Digital transformation priorities of India’s discrete manufacturing SMEs – a conceptual study in perspective of Industry 4.0. Competitiveness Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 71 Review: An International Business Journal, 30(3), 289-314. https://doi.org/10.1108/CR-03-2019- 0031. Eisenhardt, K. M., & Martin, J. A. (2000). Dynamic capabilities: What are they? Strategic Management Journal, 21(10-11), 1105-1121. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097- 0266(200010/11)21:10/11<1105::AID-SMJ133>3.0.CO;2-E. Elia, S., Giuffrida, M., Mariani, M. M., & Bresciani, S. (2021). Resources and digital export: An RBV perspective on the role of digital technologies and capabilities in cross-border e-commerce. Journal of Business Research, 132, 158-169. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.010. Fachrunnisa, O., Adhiatma, A., Lukman, N., & Majid, M. N. A. (2020). Towards SMEs’ digital transformation: The role of agile leadership and strategic flexibility. Journal of Small Business Strategy, 30(3), 65-85. Scopus. Fischer, M., Imgrund, F., Janiesch, C., & Winkelmann, A. (2020). Strategy archetypes for digital transformation: Defining meta objectives using business process management. Information & Management, 57(5), 103262. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2019.103262. Fitzgerald, M., Kruschwitz, N., Bonnet, D., & Welch, M. (2013). Embracing digital technology: A new strategic imperative. MIT sloan management review, 55(2), 1. Fletcher, G., & Griffiths, M. (2020). Digital transformation during a lockdown. International Journal of Information Management, 55, 102185. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2020.102185. Foroudi, P., Gupta, S., Nazarian, A., & Duda, M. (2017). Digital technology and marketing management capability: Achieving growth in SMEs. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 20(2), 230-246. https://doi.org/10.1108/QMR-01-2017-0014. Franco, M., Godinho, L., & Rodrigues, M. (2021). Exploring the influence of digital entrepreneurship on SME digitalization and management. SMALL ENTERPRISE RESEARCH, 28(3), 269-292. https://doi.org/10.1080/13215906.2021.1938651. Garbellano, S., & Da Veiga, M. do R. (2019). Dynamic capabilities in Italian leading SMEs adopting industry 4.0. Measuring Business Excellence, 23(4), 472-483. https://doi.org/10.1108/MBE-06-2019-0058. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 72 Garzella, S., Fiorentino, R., Caputo, A., & Lardo, A. (2021). Business model innovation in SMEs: The role of boundaries in the digital era. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 33(1), 31-43. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537325.2020.1787374. Garzoni, A., De Turi, I., Secundo, G., & Del Vecchio, P. (2020). Fostering digital transformation of SMEs: A four levels approach. Management Decision, 58(8), 1543-1562. https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-07- 2019-0939. Gawer, A., & Cusumano, M. A. (2014). Industry Platforms and Ecosystem Innovation. Journal of Product Innovation Management, 31(3), 417-433. https://doi.org/10.1111/jpim.12105. Ghobakhloo, M., & Iranmanesh, M. (2021). Digital transformation success under Industry 4.0: A strategic guideline for manufacturing SMEs. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 32(8), 1533-1556. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMTM-11-2020-0455. Goerzig, D., & Bauernhansl, T. (2018). Enterprise Architectures for the Digital Transformation in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. Procedia CIRP, 67, 540-545. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procir.2017.12.257. Gorgels, S., & Priem, M. (2022). Annual report on European SMEs 2021/2022: SMEs and environmental sustainability : background document. (Karen Hope). Publications Office. https://data.europa.eu/doi/10.2826/164089. Gregurec, I., Tomičić Furjan, M., & Tomičić-Pupek, K. (2021). The Impact of COVID-19 on Sustainable Business Models in SMEs. Sustainability, 13(3), Article 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13031098. Guo, H., Yang, Z., Huang, R., & Guo, A. (2020). The digitalization and public crisis responses of small and medium enterprises: Implications from a COVID-19 survey. Frontiers of Business Research in China, 14(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.1186/s11782-020-00087-1. Guo, Y.-M., Huang, Z.-L., Guo, J., Li, H., Guo, X.-R., & Nkeli, M. J. (2019). Bibliometric Analysis on Smart Cities Research. Sustainability, 11(13), Article 13. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11133606. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 73 Hai, N. T. (2021). Digital transformation barriers for small and medium enterprises in Vietnam today. LAPLAGE EM REVISTA, 7(3A), 416-426. https://doi.org/10.24115/S2446-6220202173A1424p.416- 426. Hassan, S.-U., Visvizi, A., & Waheed, H. (2019). The ‘who’ and the ‘what’ in international migration research: Data-driven analysis of Scopus-indexed scientific literature. Behaviour & Information Technology, 38(9), 924-939. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2019.1583282. Hauer, G., Naumann, N., & Harte, P. (2021). Digital transformation challenges successful enterprises—An exploration of the collaboration of marketing and sales department in German organizations. Innovation & Management Review, 18(2), 164-174. https://doi.org/10.1108/INMR-05-2019-0066. Hervé, A., Schmitt, C., & Baldegger, R. (Eds.). (2020). Internationalization and digitalization: Applying digital technologies to the internationalization process of small and medium-sized enterprises. Technology Innovation Management Review, 10(7), 28-40. Hess, T., Matt, C., Benlian, A., & Wiesboeck, F. (2016). Options for Formulating a Digital Transformation Strategy. Mis Quarterly Executive, 15(2), 123-139. Iafrate, F. (2018). Artificial Intelligence and Big Data: The Birth of a New Intelligence. John Wiley & Sons. Kafetzopoulos, D. (2022). Performance management of SMEs: A systematic literature review for antecedents and moderators. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 71(1), 289-315. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPPM-07-2020-0349. Kahre, C., Hoffmann, D., & Ahlemann, F. (2017). Beyond Business-IT Alignment - Digital Business Strategies as a Paradigmatic Shift: A Review and Research Agenda. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. https://doi.org/10.24251/HICSS.2017.574. Karimi, J., & Walter, Z. (2015). The Role of Dynamic Capabilities in Responding to Digital Disruption: A Factor-Based Study of the Newspaper Industry. Journal of Management Information Systems, 32(1), 39-81. https://doi.org/10.1080/07421222.2015.1029380. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 74 Kazim, F. A. (2021). Digital Transformation in Communities of Africa. International Journal of Digital Strategy, Governance, and Business Transformation (IJDSGBT), 11(1), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJDSGBT.287100. Klein, V. B., & Todesco, J. L. (2021). COVID-19 crisis and SMEs responses: The role of digital transformation. Knowledge and Process Management, 28(2), 117-133. https://doi.org/10.1002/kpm.1660. Kohli, R., & Grover, V. (2008). Business value of IT: An essay on expanding research directions to keep up with the times. Journal of the association for information systems, 9(1), 1. Kraus, S., Durst, S., Ferreira, J. J., Veiga, P., Kailer, N., & Weinmann, A. (2022). Digital transformation in business and management research: An overview of the current status quo. International Journal of Information Management, 63, 102466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2021.102466. Lanzolla, G., Lorenz, A., Miron-Spektor, E., Schilling, M., Solinas, G., & Tucci, C. L. (2018). Digital transformation: What is new if anything? Academy of Management Discoveries, 4(3), 378-387. https://journals.aom.org/doi/full/10.5465/amd.2020.0144. Lasi, H., Fettke, P., Kemper, H.-G., Feld, T., & Hoffmann, M. (2014). Industry 4.0. Business & Information Systems Engineering, 6(4), 239-242. Lewis, W., Agarwal, R., & Sambamurthy, vallabh. (2003). Sources of Influence on Beliefs about Information Technology Use: An Empirical Study of Knowledge Workers. MIS Quarterly, 27(4), 657. https://doi.org/10.2307/30036552. Li, L. (2018). China’s manufacturing locus in 2025: With a comparison of “Made-in-China 2025” and “Industry 4.0”. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 135, 66-74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2017.05.028. Li, L., Su, F., Zhang, W., & Mao, J.-Y. (2018). Digital transformation by SME entrepreneurs: A capability perspective. Information Systems Journal, 28(6), 1129-1157. https://doi.org/10.1111/isj.12153. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 75 Li, W., Liu, K., Belitski, M., Ghobadian, A., & O’Regan, N. (2016). E-Leadership through Strategic Alignment: An Empirical Study of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises in the Digital Age. Journal of Information Technology, 31(2), 185-206. https://doi.org/10.1057/jit.2016.10. Lichtenthaler, U. (2021). Profiting From Digital Transformation?: Combining Data Management and Artificial Intelligence. International Journal of Service Science, Management, Engineering, and Technology (IJSSMET), 12(5), 68-79. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJSSMET.2021090105. Lizano-Mora, H., Palos-Sanchez, P. R., & Aguayo-Camacho, M. (2021). The Evolution of Business Process Management: A Bibliometric Analysis. IEEE Access, 9, 51088-51105. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3066340. Lotka, A. J. (1926). The frequency distribution of scientific productivity. Journal of the Washington Academy of Sciences, 16(12), 317-323. https://www.jstor.org/stable/24529203. Lutfi, A., Alsyouf, A., Almaiah, M. A., Alrawad, M., Abdo, A. A. K., Al-Khasawneh, A. L., Ibrahim, N., & Saad, M. (2022). Factors Influencing the Adoption of Big Data Analytics in the Digital Transformation Era: Case Study of Jordanian SMEs. Sustainability, 14(3), Article 3. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031802. Marx, W., Bornmann, L., Barth, A., & Leydesdorff, L. (2014). Detecting the historical roots of research fields by reference publication year spectroscopy (RPYS). Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology, 65(4), 751-764. https://doi.org/10.1002/asi.23089 Matarazzo, M., Penco, L., Profumo, G., & Quaglia, R. (2021). Digital transformation and customer value creation in Made in Italy SMEs: A dynamic capabilities perspective. Journal of Business Research, 123, 642-656. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.10.033. Matt, C., Hess, T., & Benlian, A. (2015). Digital Transformation Strategies. Business & Information Systems Engineering, 57(5), 339-343. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12599-015-0401-5. Mazzarol, T. (2015). SMEs engagement with e-commerce, e-business and e-marketing. Small Enterprise Research, 22(1), 79-90. https://doi.org/10.1080/13215906.2015.1018400. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 76 Melović, B., Jocović, M., Dabić, M., Vulić, T. B., & Dudic, B. (2020). The impact of digital transformation and digital marketing on the brand promotion, positioning and electronic business in Montenegro. Technology in Society, 63, 101425. 62. Mithas, S., Tafti, A., & Mitchell, W. (2013). How a Firm’s Competitive Environment and Digital Strategic Posture Influence Digital Business Strategy. MIS Quarterly, 37(2), 511-536. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43825921. Moeuf, A., Pellerin, R., Lamouri, S., Tamayo-Giraldo, S., & Barbaray, R. (2018). The industrial management of SMEs in the era of Industry 4.0. International Journal of Production Research, 56(3), 1118-1136. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207543.2017.1372647. Moral-Muñoz, J. A., Herrera-Viedma, E., Santisteban-Espejo, A., & Cobo, M. J. (2020). Software tools for conducting bibliometric analysis in science: An up-to-date review. Profesional de La Información, 29(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.3145/epi.2020.ene.03. Moretto, A., & Caniato, F. (2021). Can Supply Chain Finance help mitigate the financial disruption brought by Covid-19? Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management, 27(4), 100713. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pursup.2021.100713. Müller, J. M., Buliga, O., & Voigt, K.-I. (2018). Fortune favors the prepared: How SMEs approach business model innovations in Industry 4.0. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 132, 2-17. Müller, J. M., Buliga, O., & Voigt, K.-I. (2021). The role of absorptive capacity and innovation strategy in the design of industry 4.0 business Models—A comparison between SMEs and large enterprises. European Management Journal, 39(3), 333-343. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2020.01.002. Munim, Z. H., Dushenko, M., Jimenez, V. J., Shakil, M. H., & Imset, M. (2020). Big data and artificial intelligence in the maritime industry: A bibliometric review and future research directions. Maritime Policy & Management, 47(5), 577-597. https://doi.org/10.1080/03088839.2020.1788731. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 77 Nambisan, S. (2017). Digital Entrepreneurship: Toward a Digital Technology Perspective of Entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 41(6), 1029-1055. https://doi.org/10.1111/etap.12254. Nambisan, S., Lyytinen, K., Majchrzak, A., & Song, M. (2017). Digital Innovation Management: Reinventing Innovation Management Research in a Digital World. Mis Quarterly, 41(1), 223-238. https://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcAuth=DynamicD OIArticle&SrcApp=UA&KeyAID=10.25300%2FMISQ%2F2017%2F41%3A1.03&DestApp=DOI&SrcAp pSID=C2FMvKwnBFY4ElZ55ZB&SrcJTitle=MIS+QUARTERLY&DestDOIRegistrantName=MIS+Quarte rly. Nasiri, M., Ukko, J., Saunila, M., & Rantala, T. (2020). Managing the digital supply chain: The role of smart technologies. Technovation, 96-97, 102121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2020.102121. Neely, A., Mills, J., Platts, K., Richards, H., Gregory, M., Bourne, M., & Kennerley, M. (2000). Performance measurement system design: Developing and testing a process-based approach. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 20(10), 1119-1145. https://doi.org/10.1108/01443570010343708. Nguyen, T. H. (2009). Information technology adoption in SMEs: An integrated framework. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 15(2), 162-186. https://doi.org/10.1108/13552550910944566. North, K., Aramburu, N., & Lorenzo, O. J. (2019). Promoting digitally enabled growth in SMEs: A framework proposal. Journal of Enterprise Information Management, 33(1), 238-262. https://doi.org/10.1108/JEIM-04-2019-0103. Nwaiwu, F., Duduci, M., Chromjakova, F., & Otekhile, C.-A. F. (2020). Industry 4.0 concepts within the Czech SME manufacturing sector: An empirical assessment of critical success factors. Business: Theory and Practice, 21(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.3846/btp.2020.10712. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 84 Wang, Z., Rafait Mahmood, M., Ullah, H., Hanif, I., Abbas, Q., & Mohsin, M. (2020). Multidimensional Perspective of Firms’ IT Capability Between Digital Business Strategy and Firms’ Efficiency: A Case of Chinese SMEs. SAGE Open, 10(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020970564. Warner, K. S. R., & Wäger, M. (2019). Building dynamic capabilities for digital transformation: An ongoing process of strategic renewal. Long Range Planning, 52(3), 326-349. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2018.12.001. Wen, Y., Yuan, H., & Zhang, P. (2016). Research on keyword extraction based on Word2Vec weighted TextRank. 2016 2nd IEEE International Conference on Computer and Communications (ICCC), 2109-2113. https://doi.org/10.1109/CompComm.2016.7925072. Wiesböck, F., Hess, T., & Spanjol, J. (2020). The dual role of IT capabilities in the development of digital products and services. Information & Management, 57(8). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2020.103389. Wilden, R., Gudergan, S. P., Nielsen, B. B., & Lings, I. (2013). Dynamic Capabilities and Performance: Strategy, Structure and Environment. Long Range Planning, 46(1), 72-96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2012.12.001. Yadav, M. S., & Pavlou, P. A. (2020). Technology-enabled interactions in digital environments:a conceptual foundation for current and future research. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 48(1), 132-136. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-019-00712-3. Yeow, A., Soh, C., & Hansen, R. (2018). Aligning with new digital strategy: A dynamic capabilities approach. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 27(1), 43-58. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsis.2017.09.001. Zangiacomi, A., Pessot, E., Fornasiero, R., Bertetti, M., & Sacco, M. (2020). Moving towards digitalization: A multiple case study in manufacturing. Production Planning & Control, 31(2-3), 143-157. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537287.2019.1631468. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 85 Zhen, Z., Yousaf, Z., Radulescu, M., & Yasir, M. (2021). Nexus of Digital Organizational Culture, Capabilities, Organizational Readiness, and Innovation: Investigation of SMEs Operating in the Digital Economy. Sustainability, 13(2), 720. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13020720. Zott, C., & Amit, R. (2017). Business Model Innovation: How to Create Value in a Digital World. GfK Marketing Intelligence Review, 9(1), 18-23. https://www.proquest.com/docview/1917344973/abstract/75C70C8A61FD4D29PQ/1. CAPÍTULO 3. Improving KIBS performance using Digital Transformation. Study based on the theory of resources and capabilities Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 89 Referencia bibliográfica Marino-Romero, J. A., Palos-Sanchez, P. R., & Velicia-Martin, F. (2022). Improving KIBS performance using digital transformation: study based on the theory of resources and capabilities. Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 33(2), 169-197. https://doi.org 10.1108/JSTP-04-2022-0095 Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 91 Improving KIBS performance using Digital Transformation. Study based on the theory of resources and capabilities Jorge Alberto Marino-Romero Department of Business Administration and Marketing, University of Seville Faculty of Economics and Business Sciences, Sevilla, Spain and Department of Financial Economics and Accounting, University of Extremadura, Badajoz, Spain Pedro R. Palos-Sanchez Department of Financial Economy and Operation Management, University of Seville Faculty of Economics and Business Sciences, Sevilla, Spain, and Felix Velicia-Martin Department of Business Administration and Marketing, University of Seville Faculty of Economics and Business Sciences, Sevilla, Spain Abstracts. Existing literature defines Digital Transformation (DT) as the process by which digital technologies create changes in organizations in order to alter their value creation processes and affect their results. This research studies the central role of information technologies (IT), which the literature describes as inherently disruptive in the management of KIBS companies with digital capabilities. To test the formulated hypotheses, partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique is used with the following analysis of the gathered data in a survey of KIBS companies that are part of the professional group of administrative managers in Spain. Objective. The aim of this research is to analyze the success of DT in the management and performance of organizations. To do so, the role of IT and its ability to integrate in organizations that provide professional services with high added value for their clients are investigated. These services require highly developed skills as they solve complex problems for the clients and this means that success depends on gathering knowledge from different sources (customers, public administrations, competitors). This study analyses the decisive and complementary role of IT in this process. Design/methodology/approach. The analysis combines quantitative and qualitative methods. After questioning managers of Spanish KIBS companies about certain components of DT, the gathered data is subsequently processed with PLS-SEM to establish causal relationships. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 92 findings. The results show that digital capability is the determinant of DT. It has a positive effect on the digital resources integrated in Kibs companies and on their organizational performances. Originality/value. The development of digital technologies and the ability to manage them is one of the decisive factors that conceptualizes DT and improves organizational performance. This research contributes to the understanding of the need for managers of KIBS companies to follow strategies oriented towards the digitization of their organizations and for the collaborators to have a high level of IT training, especially in the use of cloud technology. Keywords: digital capability, digital strategy, technologies, organizational performance. Introduction Digital transformation, as an essential element of the fourth industrial revolution, changes the way we understand organizations (Fachrunnisa et al., 2020). Adapting to these disruptive processes generates the need to learn a range of digital capabilities, which allow the use of a range of strategies promoting digitization and thus stimulating the culture of technological innovation. In this sense, knowledge-intensive professional services can channel the advantages of this technological revolution to create value in the relationships between customers and suppliers (Muller & Doloreux, 2007). The digitization process in different industrial sectors has been studied in detail in the scientific literature, but there is an absence of scientific work in the service sector in general, and in particular in companies that offer knowledge-intensive services (KIBS) which are considered facilitators, coordinators and generators of innovation (He & Wong, 2009). The service sector represents an important part of the GDP of each of the main OECD countries, with forecasts for increases over the coming years (Lin et al., 2013) and it plays a key role in boosting employment and increasing public welfare in these countries (Miles et al., 2017). The services sector contributed 72.80% of the GDP in the United Kingdom, 63.31% of the GDP in Germany and 67.7% of the GDP in Spain in 2020, having increased slightly over the previous fiscal year (Statista, 2022). KIBS should be considered as a service sector industry that uses high levels of technological capital and labor (Lin et al., 2013). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 93 The Fourth Industrial Revolution is characterized by the complete automation and digitalization of organizations with the use of IT and information technologies in both production and services (Benešová et al., 2020). Companies that prioritize acquiring knowledge and using it effectively will be among the first to offer better, faster and less expensive solutions than their competitors (Metcalfe & Miles, 2000). Despite this, there is a large proportion, between 50 and 90%, of relevant research that shows failures in the analyzed innovation projects which are abandoned because they involve large investments or are put into practice but do not achieve the expected results (Abdolvand et al., 2008). Scientific literature has put more emphasis on the innovation of products rather than the innovation of processes as a source of competitive gains (Gallouj & Savona, 2008), which generate changes and improvements in business processes (Horlacher & Hess, 2016; Lizano- Mora et al., 2021; Nwankpa & Roumani, 2016) with the pursuit of DT. This study examines the factors of innovation management in companies which supply KIBS services. These factors are necessary in order to improve the companies’ competitiveness and organizational performance. This has been researched less than the same topic in productive sectors ((Benešová et al., 2020). The challenge is to examine how the management of KIBS is affected by certain components of DT, such as, the digital capability, which top management must transmit to the rest of the organization, the strategies followed in the use of information technology, such as cloud computing, which make real "economies of scale" possible in the provision of services with the use of Internet, reducing costs and increasing scalability (Palos- Sánchez et al., 2017; Palos-Sanchez et al., 2019b) as well as the corporate use of digital tools and platforms (Concha et al., 2018). Finally, the possible generation of favorable organizational returns provided by a combination of these factors will be considered. The target population of study are Spanish administrative managers/owners of SMEs throughout the national territory. The professional services they provide support the business processes of clients in the accounting and commercial areas, as well as providing standardized services by processing the administrative procedures of different public administration agencies on behalf of the clients. These companies have been selected due to their national importance. The main research question is “What factors of digital transformation drive organizational performance in KIBS?.” Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 100 KIBS companies need to use digital or DT capabilities to implement their digital strategy, which involves not only identifying and taking advantage of the opportunities provided by digital technology (Warner & Wäger, 2019), but also having the ability to transform the company resource base (Agarwal & Helfat, 2009). The strategy identifies and promotes the capabilities of information technology and helps the company achieve a competitive position in the market (Schryen, 2013). To ensure the success of DT, KIBS companies have to prepare a digital strategy that suits them based on the following aspects, the use of digital technology, changes in the creation of value, structural changes and financial investment (Matt et al., 2015). The following hypothesis was proposed after considering the above: H2: Digital capability positively affects digital strategy. 3.2 Effect of digital strategy and technology on the support for Digital Transformation by the company management The leadership and support of top management is one of the most important factors for the successful implementation of information systems and changing the organizational culture (Vera & Crossan, 2004). Leaders influence the employees’ perceptions of the benefits of digital technology and the positive results gained by adopting it. The manager is the determining factor for the success of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) adoption (Al-Mudimigh et al., 2001; Umble et al., 2003). The managers who perform these functions are transformational leaders (Akkermans & van Helden, 2002) and are the people who make up the management of the KIBS companies in this study. Therefore, the leader's ability to properly align strategy and digital technology to leverage its potential and implementation is considered a critical challenge for companies(Li et al., 2016). The following hypotheses are formulated with the above ideas: H3: Digital strategy is positively associated with management support. H4: Digital cloud technology is positively associated with management support. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 101 3.3 Effect of digital capability, digital strategy and management support on organizational performance One of the results of DT is organizational performance, which reflects the positive impact of digital technologies and the strategies used to change the methods of value creation in a company (Vial, 2019). The literature describes the relevance of integrating technologies into the business to obtain returns (Troise et al., 2022). This capability is called IT capability (Ravichandran, 2018) or digital capability (Proksch et al., 2021). DT leaders need to ensure that there is a digital mindset in their organizations, and that the disruptions associated with the use of digital technology can be overcome(Benlian & Haffke, 2016; Hansen et al., 2011). Studies recognize that leadership style can influence the performance of the organization and the HR team (Abarca et al., 2020; Birasnav et al., 2011; Braun et al., 2013; Folgado-Fernández et al., 2020; Garro-Abarca et al., 2021). The management of KIBS companies must be seen as leaders and their commitment to supporting digitization is vital for success (Berghaus & Back, 2016; Schreckling & Steiger, 2017). The theoretical framework above provides the basis of the following hypotheses: H5: Digital capability is positively related to organizational performance. H6: Digital strategy is positively related to organizational performance. H7: Management support is related to organizational performance. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 102 Figure 1. Theoretical model Source(s). Authors own 4. Measurement method This study used a quantitative research analysis of the results of a self-administered data collection questionnaire. 4.1 Data and sample selection The data for this study was obtained from an online questionnaire survey designed and created for the managers of the KIBS companies. A pretest (MacKenzie et al., 2011), given to 45 managers, determined the validity, readability and usefulness of the measurement instruments. 618 SMEs received the final questionnaire by email, resulting in a valid sample of 335 companies, with the 54% response rate adequate for the subsequent analysis of the results (Babbie, 2007). The population of SMEs analyzed is drawn using the convenience sample technique. The data was collected between September and November 2019 in five fortnightly campaigns. The closest professional association to the registered company manager sent an email with an introductory text from the General Secretary of the Administrative Managers Council and a brief description of the purpose of the study, including the link that gave access to the questionnaire. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 103 The companies included in the survey have extensive experience and market penetration and most of them, 42.69%, are more than 25 years old SMEs with a turnover ranging from less than 50,000€ to 500,000€ (85.07%). The KIBS companies surveyed in this study had between 1 to 10 employees (85.38%) and were located in towns with more than 10,000 inhabitants (78.80%) (see appendix 1). 4.2 Measurements The questionnaire included five constructs: digital capability, digital technology, digital strategy, management support and organizational performance. The questions were prepared after consulting various scientific articles dealing with the subject. They were grouped according to the latent variables of DT in order to show the innovation management processes used by KIBS companies. The questions had five possible answers on a Likert scale ranging from 1="totally disagree" to 5="totally agree". The scales included measurements from previous literature to analyze the constructs so that the validity of the content of the survey could be guaranteed (see Appendix 2). When necessary, the scales were adapted to increase clarity and to fit the research context of certain components of DT such as digital resources and capabilities, digital strategies, support from leaders and organizational performance in a way that complied with standardized procedures (MacKenzie et al., 2011). The consistency of the scales was validated by calculating the test-retest reliability using the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC). The analysis included using the two-way mixed effects model and absolute agreement, based on the mean of multiple measurements: eleven of the digital capability variables, three of the Cloud digital technology variables, ten of the digital strategies variables, three of the leader support variables and twelve of the organizational performance variables (Koo & Li, 2016). The statistical RStudio software version 2022.02.3+492 for Windows calculated the ICC in order to find the reliability. The statistical work package installed was install.packages ("psych"), which includes the ICC() function calculating the intraclass correlation as a measure of association when studying the reliability of indicators. This function allows for six ways of calculating ICC, depending on the experimental design chosen (Shrout & Fleiss, 1979) (see Appendix 3). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 104 The ICC estimate was at a 95% confidence interval, showing an excellent level of reliability. The digital strategies and organizational performance constructs were above 90%, and the rest of the constructs had a good level of reliability with values between 75% and 90% (Koo & Li, 2016). These results show a high degree of correlation and agreement between the measurements and therefore the conclusions are valid (see Appendix 3). The selected sample technique has a high internal validity with methodologically sound and trustworthy results (Andrade, 2021). 4.2.1 Digital capability The analysis used nine indicators to measure the digital capability of the companies. Six of them (RA1, RA2, RA4, RA5, CD1 and CD2) show the variety of different information technology resources, and assess the capability and commitment of KIBS companies to using digital technology(Khin & Ho, 2019). Resource theory suggests evaluating the information technology capabilities of a company by comparing them with the company competitors (Wiesböck et al., 2020). Items CP2, TR1 and TR2 evaluate this aspect. 4.2.2 Digital technology This construct measures the digital technologies adopted by the organization. The items evaluate the most relevant digital tools used in companies (Troise et al., 2022) highlighting the implementation of document and administrative/tax management software and the improvement of the digital processes in the organization by integrating ERP and CRM using remote access to cloud computing (Nair et al., 2019). 4.2.3 Digital strategy This section examined the strategic alignment of the information technology used in the company. The selected indicators measure the company objectives for the digital transformation of key business processes (Ko et al., 2021; Wang et al., 2020). 4.2.4 Management support The analysis measured the commitment of company management to technological innovation with three indicators (TMS1, TMS2 and TMS3). The objective was to measure a latent variable Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 105 that indicates the interest of management in making a strategic change in the organization's operations by using digitization (Ko et al., 2021). These measurement instruments assess whether the knowledge-oriented leadership perceives and effectively exploits innovation opportunities (Singh et al., 2021). A transformational leader who is dedicated to promoting the capacity for innovation in the organization can achieve this goal (Le & Lei, 2019). 4.2.5 Company performance Organizational performance is the key dependent variable. It was measured subjectively as this is considered a valid proxy for objective measures (Tajeddini & Ratten, 2017). Its indicators reflect the perceptions of the administrative managers in the interviews with the questions about how effectively the companies will achieve their long-term goals. The questionnaire included questions about the managers’ opinions of the performance of their company compared to the main competitors in the last three years using items adapted from the research by Rehman & Anwar, (2019) and Wang et al., (2020). 5. Analysis and Results The research model was analyzed using empirical validation with partial least squares structural equations (PLS-SEM). This data analysis technique uses variance to test the model (Henseler et al., 2016). The rationale behind the use of PLS is that all variables in the model are composite (Rigdon et al., 2017) and the objective was to investigate relationships between directly latent variables which act as constructs measured by the indicators (Hair, Sarstedt, et al., 2019). PLS-SEM analysis uses confirmatory research in order to understand the causal relationships between variables. It involves hypothesis testing of a particular research model maximizing the explained variance of the dependent variable and calculating the model fit indices (Henseler, 2018). Researchers in the social sciences fields of Management (Velicia-Martin et al., 2021), Information Systems (Palos-Sanchez, Hernandez-Mogollon, et al., 2017), eco-friendliness (Sánchez et al., 2021), Hospitality (Hernandez-Rojas et al., 2021), apps (Palos-Sanchez, Correia, et al., 2019), m- Commerce (Velicia-Martin et al., 2022) and m-Health (Palos-Sanchez et al., 2021) use this type of analysis method. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 106 The researchers used a two-phase PLS-SEM analysis to evaluate the causal model, firstly by evaluating the measurement model (external model) and secondly by evaluating the structural model (internal model) (Hair, Sarstedt, et al., 2019). This sequence ensures reliable and valid proxy measurements, which is a necessary condition when drawing conclusions about the relationships between the constructs (Roldán & Sánchez-Franco, 2012). The researchers used the SmartPLS version 3.3.6 software package to analyze the data (Ringle et al., 2015). The PLS algorithm minimizes the residual variances of the dependent variables (Chin, 1998). The next step was a bootstrapping procedure to test the statistical significance of several of the PLS-SEM results, such as path coefficients, Cronbach's alpha, HTMT and R² values. The final stage was blindfolding which is a sample reuse technique to try to estimate the predictive relevance of the reflective dependent constructs (Chin, 1998). 5.1 Evaluation of the measurement model The research model uses a B-mode composite construct (formative) and four A-mode composite constructs (reflective). The first results shown in the evaluation of the measurement model are the results of the estimation variable in formative mode. The next step of the research was a variance inflation factor (VIF) collinearity test based on the work by Diamantopoulos & Siguaw, (2006). The result was higher than 3.3, which indicates possible multicollinearity problems. The present model had a maximum VIF of 3 with the rest of the indicators scoring well below this amount. This indicates that the model used does not have multicollinearity problems (see appendix 4). The Weights of the most relevant indicators of the digital competence training composite construct give information about the relative contribution to the construct of each indicator, and Loading establishes the correlation between the indicator and its construct (see appendix 4). The value of this measurement must have a significance level of at least 0.05 to be relevant, which is a necessary requirement and the bootstrapping process of resampling 5,000 samples must have p-values < 0.05 (Hair, Sarstedt, et al., 2019). Although there are four non-significant indicators (CD1, RA2, TR1 and TR2) that contribute little to the explained variance, the measurement model must include them because eliminating them would reduce the value of the explanation of the construct. Only two indicators of the construct (CP1, RA3) were removed because of high multicollinearity (Roberts & Thatcher, 2009). Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 107 The analysis method of composite A-mode (reflective) constructs by Hair, Risher, et al., (2019). provided the results for reliability and validity. This assessment of reliability and validity is not applicable to formative measures as they do not have to be correlated and are assumed to be error-free (Bagozzi, 1994). The individual reliability was sufficient as all the indicators of the constructs have external loadings (λ) greater than 0.707. Three items of the digital strategy construct (PLAN2, PLAN3 and PLAN7) and four items of organizational performance (BEN1, BEN3, BEN7 and BEN10) had loadings below 0.7 and were eliminated. The second step was to examine the reliability of the constructs. The analysis found the values of Cronbach's alpha, composite reliability and (rho-A) for the indices, all of them having values above 0.8, which means that the constructs have high internal consistency (Table 1). The next stage was to find the validity of the indicators with respect to the construct by calculating the value of the average variance extracted (AVE), which must exceed the threshold of 0.5 for convergent validity (see Table 1). The conclusion was that all constructs have discriminant validity, since the conditions for correlation criterion explained by Fornell & Larcker, (1981) and the Heterotrait-Monotrait (HTMT) indicators (Henseler et al., 2015) are met. The results are shown in Table 2. Table 1. Construct reliability and convergent validity Constructs Cronbach’s alpha Rho-A* Composite reliability AVE Management support 0.830 0.834 0.898 0.746 Digital strategy 0.921 0.924 0.937 0.680 Organizational performance 0.934 0.936 0.946 0.685 Digital cloud technology 0.854 0.861 0.912 0.775 Note*: Dijkstra-Henseler (ρA) → Rho-A Source(s): authors own Table 2. Discriminant validity Constructs Manageme nt support Digital capability Digital strategy Organizational performance Digital cloud technology Fornell & Larcker HTMT (Heterotrait-Monotrait) Management support 0.864 0.495 0.634 0.334 Digital capability 0.568 n.a. 0.740 0.307 Digital strategy 0.437 0.627 0.824 0.333 Organizational performance 0.563 0.769 0.688 0.828 Digital cloud technology 0.284 0.348 0.272 0.299 0.880 Fornell & Larcker: The values shown on the diagonal elements in bold are the square roots of the AVE and are higher than the values outside the diagonal, which correspond to their correlations with the rest of the constructs, For satisfactory discriminant validity according to Fornell & Larcker, (1981). HTMT. < a 0.85 all its elements present discriminant validity (Henseler et al., 2015). n.a.-> non-availability. Source(s): authors own Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 108 5.2 Evaluation of the structural model The objective was to analyze the relationships of the unobservable variables. The PLS-SEM algorithm does this by maximizing the explained variance of the dependent variables or minimizing the residual variances, which are the error factors of each one. The first calculation found the collinearity of the exogenous latent constructs with the endogenous latent variables. All the variables of the model have a VIF lower than 3, so there are no multicollinearity problems as they do not exceed the threshold suggested by Hair, Risher, et al., (2019). The next stage evaluated the algebraic sign, the size (see Figure 2) and the significance of the path coefficients. The final step used the indications of Hair, Sarstedt, et al., (2019) to make a bootstrapping technique with 5000 resamples to find the standard errors, confidence intervals and t-values (t-statistics) which were then used to evaluate the statistical significance of the hypothesized relationships (see Table 3). The Bootstrap test shows that all seven relationships in the model are significant and supported. The values of R2 indicate the variance explained of the dependent variable by the predictor variables (see Table 4). The endogenous variable "organizational performance" has an R2 value of 67.63%, which shows the variance explained by three antecedent constructs (management support, 8.39%, digital capability, 37.30% and digital strategy, 21.95%). The R2 values show a reasonable predictive significance for all the variables analyzed as they exceed the minimum threshold of 0.1 (Falk & Miller, 1992) with the dependent variable "organizational performance" having the highest predictive ability with a value of 0.6763 (Chin, 1998). Table 3. Structural model results Relationships Path Coefficient Confidence Interval P-Value 5%lower 95% Upper Management support -> Organizational performance 0.149** (2.517) 0.054 0.247 0.006 Digital capability -> Digital strategy 0.627*** (13.762) 0.530 0.688 0.000 Digital capability -> Organizational performance 0.485*** (7.807) 0.379 0.585 0.000 Digital capability -> Digital cloud technology 0.348*** (6.182) 0.241 0.429 0.000 Digital strategy -> Management support 0.389*** (6.658) 0.284 0.477 0.000 Digital strategy -> Organizational performance 0.319*** (4.218) 0.202 0.451 0.000 Digital cloud technology -> Management support 0.179*** (3.105) 0.080 0.271 0.001 Notes: t Values in parentheses: t(0.05, 4999) = 1.645 ; t(0.01, 4999) = 2.327; t(0.001, 4999) = 3.092. P*<0.05; P**<0,01, P***<0.001. All hypotheses are significant. Confidence Interval to the 90%, there is no change of sign and therefore the hypotheses are supported. Source(s): authors own Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 109 Table 4. R2 decomposition of the construct "Organizational performance" Hypotheses Path Coefficient Correlation of indicators R2 Management support → Organizational performance 0.149 0.563 0.0839 Digital capability → Organizational performance 0.485 0.769 0.3730 Digital strategy → Organizational performance 0.319 0.688 0.2195 R2 for the dependent construct "Organizational Performance". 0.6763 Source(s): authors own Figure 2. Estimation model Source(s): authors own The predictive qualities of the model were evaluated last. Identifying the structural paths and statistically testing them found the predictive power of the out-of-sample structural paths (Danks et al., 2019). Using the indications of (Shmueli et al., 2019) the researchers could find the predictive power of the dependent variable Organizational Performance using SmartPLS version 3.3.6 software with the PLS-predictive option. The results are shown in Table 5. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 116 Appendix 2. Measurement Element Construct Items Source Digital capability (construct formative). CD1. [The electronic mandate is a basic document for the administrative manager.]. Remote signature of any type of document. (Wiesböck et al., 2020) (Khin & Ho, 2018) CD2. [The remote signature of documents has become an essential tool for the administrative manager.]. Remote signature of any type of document. CP1: [Administrative agencies believes that digital transformation has an impact on being more competitive in its sector. CP2: [Administrative agencies has begun its digital transformation under pressure from competitors, which have done so ]. RA1: [The cloud enables you to manage business operations efficiently]. RA2: [The use of cloud services improves the quality of operations]. RA3: [Using the cloud allows you to perform specific tasks more quickly]. RA4: [Cloud usage offers new opportunities]. RA5: [Use of the cloud allows managers to increase business productivity]. TR1: [Administrative agencies knows how the benefits of digital transformation can be used to support operations]. TR2: [Within administrative agencies there are the skills needed to implement digital transformation]. digital cloud technology (construct Reflective). Degree of implementation of digital tools in administrative agencies: (Troise et al., 2022) IMP: [cloud data storage device]. IMP: [Integral management software -CRM Cloud o ERP Cloud-]. IMP: [Professional management applications in the cloud]. digital strategy. (construct Reflective). [PLAN1: Efficiency improvement]. (Wang et al., 2020) (Hai, 2021) [PLAN2: Decentralize decisions]. [PLAN3: Reduce costs]. [PLAN4: Adaptation to New Technologies]. [PLAN5: Improve Customer Service]. [PLAN6: Increase customer loyalty]. [PLAN7: Increased productivity]. [PLAN8: Market share increase]. [PLAN9: Information management]. [PLAN10: Decentralizing decisions]. management support. (construct Reflective). [TMS1: Administrative agencies management admits to implementing digital transformation]. (Ko et al., 2021) [TMS2: Administrative agencies management leads and is involved in the process when it comes to digital transformation]. [TMS3: Administrative agencie's management is willing to assume the risks (financial and organizational) involved in the adoption of digital transformation]. organizational performance. (construct Reflective). [BEN1: Some of our competitors have already started to implement digital transformation]. (Nwankpa & Roumani, 2016) (Bouwman et al., 2019) [BEN2: Access to new markets]. [BEN3: Improved access to information]. [BEN4: Improved communication]. [BEN5: New business lines]. [BEN6: More productivity]. [BEN7: Customer knowledge]. [BEN8: New customers]. [BEN9: Time optimization]. [BEN10: Time flexibility]. [BEN11: Effectiveness decisions]. [BEN12: Employee satisfaction]. Source(s): authors own Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 117 Appendix 3. ICC results according to RStudio construct: Digital capability 95% Confidence Interval3 Type1 ICC2 F-Test df1 df2 P-Value lower bound upper bound Average_random_raters ICC2k 0.82 6.5 334 3340 6.8e-191 0.81 0.83 Construct: digital cloud technology 95% Confidence Interval 3 Type1 ICC2 F-Test df1 df2 P-Value lower bound upper bound Average_random_raters ICC2K 0.85 6.9 334 668 1.1e-98 0.83 0.86 construct: digital strategy 95% Confidence Interval3 Type1 ICC2 F-Test df1 df2 P-Value lower bound upper bound Average_random_raters ICC2K 0.92 16 334 3006 0 0.92 0.93 Construct: management support 95% Confidence Interval 3 Type1 ICC2 F-Test df1 df2 P-Value lower bound upper bound Average_random_raters ICC2K 0.79 5.5 334 668 1.7e-78 0.76 0.81 construct: organizational performance 95% Confidence Interval3 Type1 ICC2 F-Test df1 df2 P-Value lower bound upper bound ICC2K 0.94 18 334 3674 0 0.94 0.94 1Type= CC2K is the two-way Mixed Effect Model convention using the mean value of K raters. Its calculation in RStudio is carried out by means of the following function: ICC(dataframe, missing = TRUE, alpha = 0.5, lmer = TRUE, check.keys = FALSE). 2CCI: Values between 0.75 and 0.9 indicate good reliability and values greater than 0.9 indicate excellent reliability. (Koo & Li, 2016) 3 At 95% confidence all CCI values are between the lower and upper limits. Source(s): authors own Appendix 4. formative constructs Construct: “Digital capability” Indicators VIF Weight P values< 0.05* Loadings P values <0,05* [RA1] 1.368 0.128 0.033 0.563 0.000 [RA2] 2.218 0.004 0.956 0.716 0.000 [RA4] 2.404 0.251 0.003 0.830 0.000 [RA5] 3.047 0.547 0.000 0.904 0.000 [CD1] 2.554 -0.041 0.624 0.377 0.000 [CD2] 2.646 0.278 0.001 0.497 0.000 [CP2] 1.069 0.130 0.007 0.323 0.000 [TR1] 2.003 0.045 0.558 0.486 0.000 [TR2] 1.891 0.085 0.258 0.413 0.000 P values is significant for <0.05 Source(s): authors own Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 118 References Abarca, V. M. G., Palos-Sanchez, P. R., & Rus-Arias, E. (2020). Working in Virtual Teams: A Systematic Literature Review and a Bibliometric Analysis. IEEE Access, 8, 168923-168940. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2020.3023546. Abdolvand, N., Albadvi, A., & Ferdowsi, Z. (2008). Assessing readiness for business process reengineering. Business Process Management Journal, 14(4), 497-511. https://doi.org/10.1108/14637150810888046. Abu Hasan, N., Abd Rahim, M., Ahmad, S. H., & Meliza, M. (2022). Digitization of Business for Small And Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs). Environment-Behaviour Proceedings Journal, 7(19), 11-16. https://doi.org/10.21834/ebpj.v7i19.3270. Agarwal, R., Gao, G. (Gordon), DesRoches, C., & Jha, A. K. (2010). Research Commentary—The Digital Transformation of Healthcare: Current Status and the Road Ahead. Information Systems Research, 21(4), 796-809. https://doi.org/10.1287/isre.1100.0327. Agarwal, R., & Helfat, C. E. (2009). Strategic Renewal of Organizations. Organization Science, 20(2), 281- 293. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.1090.0423. Akkermans, H., & van Helden, K. (2002). Vicious and virtuous cycles in ERP implementation: A case study of interrelations between critical success factors. European Journal of Information Systems, 11(1), 35-46. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.ejis.3000418. Alhaqbani, A., Reed, D. M., Savage, B. M., & Ries, J. (2016). The impact of middle management commitment on improvement initiatives in public organisations. Business Process Management Journal, 22(5), 924-938. https://doi.org/10.1108/BPMJ-01-2016-0018. Alhathal, F. T., Sharma, P., & Kingshott, R. P. J. (2019). Moderating effects of service separation on customer relationships with service firms: A social-exchange perspective. Journal of Service Theory and Practice, 29(1), 71-92. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSTP-09-2017-0149. Ali, F., Rasoolimanesh, S. M., Sarstedt, M., Ringle, C. M., & Ryu, K. (2018). An assessment of the use of partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) in hospitality research. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 30(1), 514-538. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-10-2016-0568. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 119 Al-Mudimigh, A., Zairi, M., & Al-Mashari, M. (2001). ERP software implementation: An integrative framework. European Journal of Information Systems, 10(4), 216-226. https://doi.org/10.1057/palgrave.ejis.3000406. AlMujaini, H., Hilmi, M. F., Abudaqa, A., & Alzahmi, R. (2021). Corporate foresight organizational learning and performance: The moderating role of digital transformation and mediating role of innovativeness in SMEs. International Journal of Data and Network Science, 5(4), 703-712. https://doi.org/10.5267/j.ijdns.2021.7.011. AlMulhim, A. F. (2021). Smart supply chain and firm performance: The role of digital technologies. Business Process Management Journal, 27(5), 1353-1372. https://doi.org/10.1108/BPMJ-12-2020- 0573. Andrade, C. (2021). The Inconvenient Truth About Convenience and Purposive Samples. Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 43(1), 86-88. https://doi.org/10.1177/0253717620977000. Babbie, E. R. (2007). The Practice of Social Research. Istanbul bilgi. University Library. Badrinarayanan, V., Ramachandran, I., & Madhavaram, S. (2019). Resource orchestration and dynamic managerial capabilities: Focusing on sales managers as effective resource orchestrators. Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, 39(1), 23-41. https://doi.org/10.1080/08853134.2018.1466308. Bagozzi, R. (1994). Structural equation models in marketing research: Basic principles (Principles of marketing research). Oxford, UK: Blackwell. Bass, B. M. (1990). FromTransactionatol TransformationaLleadership: Learningto Sharethe Vision. 18(3), 19-31. https://doi-org.ezproxy.unex.es/10.1016/0090-2616(90)90061-S. Becker, W., & Schmid, O. (2020). The right digital strategy for your business: An empirical analysis of the design and implementation of digital strategies in SMEs and LSEs. Business Research, 13(3), 985- 1005. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40685-020-00124-y. Bednall, T. C., E. Rafferty, A., Shipton, H., Sanders, K., & J. Jackson, C. (2018). Innovative Behaviour: How Much Transformational Leadership Do You Need? British Journal of Management, 29(4), 796-816. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12275. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 120 Benešová, D., Kubičková, V., & Prváková, M. (2020). Open innovation model in the knowledge intensive business services in the Slovak Republic. Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, 8(2), 1340- 1358. https://doi.org/10.9770/jesi.2020.8.2(79). Benlian, A., & Haffke, I. (2016). Does mutuality matter? Examining the bilateral nature and effects of CEO– CIO mutual understanding. The Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 25(2), 104-126. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsis.2016.01.001. Berghaus, S., & Back, A. (2016). Stages in Digital Business Transformation: Results of an Empirical Maturity Study. MCIS 2016 Proceedings, 22, 18. Bharadwaj, A., El Sawy, O. A., University of Southern California, Pavlou, P. A., Temple University, & Venkatraman, N. (2013). Digital Business Strategy: Toward a Next Generation of Insights. MIS Quarterly, 37(2), 471-482. https://doi.org/10.25300/MISQ/2013/37:2.3. Bharadwaj, A. S. (2000). A Resource-Based Perspective on Information Technology Capability and Firm Performance: An Empirical Investigation. MIS Quarterly, 24(1), 169-196. https://doi.org/10.2307/3250983. Birasnav, M., Rangnekar, S., & Dalpati, A. (2011). Transformational leadership and human capital benefits: The role of knowledge management. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 32(2), 106- 126. https://doi-org.ezproxy.unex.es/10.1108/01437731111112962. Braun, S., Peus, C., Weisweiler, S., & Frey, D. (2013). Transformational leadership, job satisfaction, and team performance: A multilevel mediation model of trust. The Leadership Quarterly, 24(1), 270- 283. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2012.11.006. Breunig, K. J., & Skjølsvik, T. (2017). Digitalization-effects on the legal industry: Emerging business models. 15. Brynjolfsson, E., & Mcfee, A. (2014). The second machine age: Work, progress, and prosperity in a time of brilliant technologies: W W Norton & Company. Cania, L. (2014). The Impact of Strategic Human Resource Management on Organizational Performance. Economia. Seria Management, 17, 373-383. Chan, C. M. L., Teoh, S. Y., Yeow, A., & Pan, G. (2019). Agility in responding to disruptive digital innovation: Case study of an SME. Information Systems Journal, 29(2), 436-455. https://doi.org/10.1111/isj.12215. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 121 Chi, M., Zhao, J., & Li, Y. (2016). Digital Business Strategy and Firm Performance: The Mediation Effects of E-collaboration Capability. En Y. P. Tu (Ed.), Fifteenth Wuhan International Conference on E- Business (pp. 86-97). Alfred Univ. Chin, W. W. (1998). The partial least squares approach to structural equation modeling. Moderm methods for business research (Vol. 295). Psyhology Press. Chung, T.-A., & Tseng, C.-Y. (2019). The knowledge intensity and the economic performance in Taiwan’s knowledge intensity business services. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja, 32(1), 797- 811. https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2019.1583586. Cole, R. E., Bacdayan, P., & White, B. J. (1993). Quality, Participation, and Competitiveness. California Management Review, 35(3), 68-81. https://doi.org/10.2307/41166744. Concha, C. E. S., Marino, C. M., & Rodriguez, J. C. (2018). E-commerce in Chile: What factors affect the purchase decision? Revista Academia & Negocios, 4(1), 1-14. http://ran.udec.cl/ojs/index.php/ran/article/view/64. Consoli, D., Elche, D., & Rullani, F. (2015). Employment and Skill Configurations in KIBS Sectors: A Longitudinal Analysis. En R. Agarwal, W. Selen, G. Roos, & R. Green (Eds.), The Handbook of Service Innovation (pp. 213-235). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4471-6590-3_11. Contractor, A. A., Frankfurt, S. B., Weiss, N. H., & Elhai, J. D. (2017). Latent-level relations between DSM-5 PTSD symptom clusters and problematic smartphone use. Computers in Human Behavior, 72, 170- 177. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.02.051. Danks, N. P., Ray, S., & Shmueli, G. (2019). Predictive Analysis and Out-of-Sample Generalizability of Construct-based Models. 3. Diamantopoulos, A., & Siguaw, J. A. (2006). Formative Versus Reflective Indicators in Organizational Measure Development: A Comparison and Empirical Illustration. British Journal of Management, 17(4), 263-282. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2006.00500.x. Du, W., Pan, S. L., & Huang, J. (2016). How a Latecomer Company Used IT to Redeploy Slack Resources. Mis Quarterly Executive, 15(3), 195-213. https://www.webofscience.com/wos/alldb/fullrecord/WOS:000391204700003. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 122 Eklof, J., Podkorytova, O., & Malova, A. (2020). Linking customer satisfaction with financial performance: An empirical study of Scandinavian banks. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 31(15-16), 1684-1702. https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2018.1504621. Evans, G. L. (2017). Disruptive Technology and the Board: The Tip of the Iceberg. Economics and Business Review, 3 (17)(1), 205-223. https://doi.org/10.18559/ebr.2017.1.11. Fachrunnisa, O., Adhiatma, A., Lukman, N., & Majid, M. N. A. (2020). Towards SMEs’ digital transformation: The role of agile leadership and strategic flexibility. Journal of Small Business Strategy, 30(3), 65-85. Scopus.. Falk, R. F., & Miller, N. B. (1992). A primer for soft modeling (pp. xiv, 103). University of Akron Press. Folgado-Fernandez, J. A., Palos-Sanchez, P. R., & Camacho, M. A. (2020). MOTIVACIONES, FORMACIÓN Y PLANIFICACIÓN DEL TRABAJO EN EQUIPO PARA ENTORNOS DE APRENDIZAJE VIRTUAL - ProQuest. interciencia, 45(2), 102-109. https://www.proquest.com/openview/bfca1c9f401522fe82af8b22fa72f6a8/1?pqorigsite=gscholar&cbl=27688. Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating Structural Equation Models with Unobservable Variables and Measurement Error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39-50. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104. Gallouj, F., & Savona, M. (2008). Innovation in services: A review of the debate and a research agenda. Journal of Evolutionary Economics, 19(2), 149. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00191-008-0126-4. García-Morales, V. J., Jiménez-Barrionuevo, M. M., & Gutiérrez-Gutiérrez, L. (2012). Transformational leadership influence on organizational performance through organizational learning and innovation. Journal of Business Research, 65(7), 1040-1050. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.03.005. Garro-Abarca, V., Palos-Sanchez, P. R., & Aguayo-Camacho, M. (2021). Virtual Teams in Times of Pandemic: Factors That Influence Performance | EndNote Click. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.62463. Goswami, M., & Kumar, G. (2018). An investigation of agile manufacturing enablers in Indian automotive SMEs using structural equation model. Measuring Business Excellence, 22(3), 276-291. https://doi.org/10.1108/MBE-10-2017-0068. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 123 Gregor. (2006). The Nature of Theory in Information Systems. MIS Quarterly, 30(3), 611. https://doi.org/10.2307/25148742. Gu, J.-W., & Jung, H.-W. (2013). The effects of IS resources, capabilities, and qualities on organizational performance: An integrated approach. Information & Management, 50(2), 87-97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2013.02.001. Hair, J. F., Risher, J. J., Sarstedt, M., & Ringle, C. M. (2019). When to use and how to report the results of PLS-SEM. European Business Review, 31(1), 2-24. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBR-11-2018-0203. Hair, J. F., Sarstedt, M., & Ringle, C. M. (2019). Rethinking some of the rethinking of partial least squares. European Journal of Marketing, 53(4), 566-584. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-10-2018-0665. Hansen, A. M., Kraemmergaard, P., & Mathiassen, L. (2011). Rapid Adaptation in Digital Transformation: A Participatory Process for Engaging IS and Business Leaders. MIS Quarterly Executive, 10(4), 175- 185. He, Z.-L., & Wong, P.-K. (2009). Knowledge interaction with manufacturing clients and innovation of knowledge-intensive business services firms. Innovation, 11(3), 264-278. https://doi.org/10.5172/impp.11.3.264. Henseler, J. (2018). Partial least squares path modeling: Quo vadis? Quality & Quantity, 52(1), 1-8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-018-0689-6. Henseler, J., Hubona, G., & Ray, P. A. (2016). Using PLS path modeling in new technology research: Updated guidelines. Industrial Management and Data Systems, 116(1), 2-20. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1108/IMDS-09-2015-0382. Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(1), 115-135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8. Hernandez-Rojas, R. D., Folgado-Fernandez, J. A., & Palos-Sanchez, P. R. (2021). Influence of the restaurant brand and gastronomy on tourist loyalty. A study in Córdoba (Spain). International Journal of Gastronomy and Food Science, 23, 100305. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgfs.2021.100305. Holotiuk, F., & Beimborn, D. (2017). Critical Success Factors of Digital Business Strategy. Frankfurt School of Finance & Management, 15. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 124 Horlacher, A., & Hess, T. (2016). What does a Chief Digital Officer do? Managerial tasks and roles of a new C-level position in the context of digital transformation. 2016 49th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS), 5126-5135. Horváth, K., & Szerb, L. (2018). Managerial practices and the productivity of knowledge-intensive service businesses: An analysis of digital/IT and cash management practices. Strategic Change, 27(2), 161- 172. https://doi.org/10.1002/jsc.2191. Huang, J., Henfridsson, O., Liu, M. J., & Newell, S. (2017). Growing on Steroids: Rapidly Scaling the User Base of Digital Ventures Through Digital Innovaton. MIS Quarterly, 41(1), 301-314. https://ezproxy.unex.es/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bsx &AN=121204234&lang=es&site=eds-live. Huang, M.-H., & Rust, R. T. (2018). Artificial Intelligence in Service: Journal of Service Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670517752459. Jung, D., Wu, A., & Chow, C. W. (2008). Towards understanding the direct and indirect effects of CEOs’ transformational leadership on firm innovation. The Leadership Quarterly, 19(5), 582-594. Kahre, C., Hoffmann, D., & Ahlemann, F. (2017). Beyond Business-IT Alignment - Digital Business Strategies as a Paradigmatic Shift: A Review and Research Agenda. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. https://doi.org/10.24251/HICSS.2017.574. Karimi, J., & Walter, Z. (2015). The Role of Dynamic Capabilities in Responding to Digital Disruption: A Factor-Based Study of the Newspaper Industry. Journal of Management Information Systems, 32(1), 39-81. https://doi.org/10.1080/07421222.2015.1029380. Khin, S., & Ho, T. C. (2019). Digital technology, digital capability and organizational performance: A mediating role of digital innovation. International Journal of Innovation Science, 11(2), 177-195. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIS-08-2018-0083. Ko, A., Fehér, P., Kovacs, T., Mitev, A., & Szabó, Z. (2021). Influencing factors of digital transformation: Management or IT is the driving force? International Journal of Innovation Science. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJIS-01-2021-0007. Koo, T. K., & Li, M. Y. (2016). A Guideline of Selecting and Reporting Intraclass Correlation Coefficients for Reliability Research. Journal of Chiropractic Medicine, 15(2), 155-163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcm.2016.02.012. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 125 Le, P. B., & Lei, H. (2019). Determinants of innovation capability: The roles of transformational leadership, knowledge sharing and perceived organizational support. Journal of Knowledge Management, 23(3), 527-547. https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-09-2018-0568. Li, W., Liu, K., Belitski, M., Ghobadian, A., & O’Regan, N. (2016). E-Leadership through Strategic Alignment: An Empirical Study of Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises in the Digital Age. Journal of Information Technology, 31(2), 185-206. https://doi.org/10.1057/jit.2016.10. Lin, H.-C., Chiu, W.-H., Chang, C.-T., & Chen, S.-L. (2013). Investigation of development strategies in knowledge-intensive business services-an example from Chunghwa Telecom. 2013 10th International Conference on Service Systems and Service Management, 29-34. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICSSSM.2013.6602549. Liu, D.-Y., Chen, S.-W., & Chou, T.-C. (2011). Resource fit in digital transformation: Lessons learned from the CBC Bank global e-banking project. Management Decision, 49(10), 1728-1742. https://doi.org/10.1108/00251741111183852. Liu, K., Nakata, K., Li, W., & Baranauskas, C. (Eds.). (2018). Digitalisation, Innovation, and Transformation: 18th IFIP WG 8.1 International Conference on Informatics and Semiotics in Organisations, ICISO 2018, Reading, UK, July 16-18, 2018, Proceedings (Vol. 527). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94541-5. Lizano-Mora, H., Palos-Sanchez, P. R., & Aguayo-Camacho, M. (2021). The Evolution of Business Process Management: A Bibliometric Analysis. IEEE Access, 9, 51088-51105. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2021.3066340. Lu, & Ramamurthy, K. R. (2011). Understanding the Link Between Information Technology Capability and Organizational Agility: An Empirical Examination. MIS Quarterly, 35(4), 931. https://doi.org/10.2307/41409967. MacKenzie, Podsakoff, & Podsakoff. (2011). Construct Measurement and Validation Procedures in MIS and Behavioral Research: Integrating New and Existing Techniques. MIS Quarterly, 35(2), 293. https://doi.org/10.2307/23044045. Marchand, D. A., Kettinger, W. J., & Rollins, J. D. (2002). Knowledge-intensive business services: OUP Oxford. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 132 Vial, G. (2019). Understanding digital transformation: A review and a research agenda. Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 28(2), 118-144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsis.2019.01.003. Wang, Z., Rafait Mahmood, M., Ullah, H., Hanif, I., Abbas, Q., & Mohsin, M. (2020). Multidimensional Perspective of Firms’ IT Capability Between Digital Business Strategy and Firms’ Efficiency: A Case of Chinese SMEs. SAGE Open, 10(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244020970564. Warner, K. S. R., & Wäger, M. (2019). Building dynamic capabilities for digital transformation: An ongoing process of strategic renewal. Long Range Planning, 52(3), 326-349. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2018.12.001. Weill, P., & Aral, S. (2006). Generating Premium Returns on Your IT Investments. MIT Sloan Management Review, 47(2), 39. https://www.proquest.com/docview/224963540/abstract/58E7947237644724PQ/1 Westerman, G., Bonnet, D., & McAfee, A. (2014). Leading Digital: Turning Technology Into Business Transformation. Harvard Business Press. Wiesböck, F., Hess, T., & Spanjol, J. (2020). The dual role of IT capabilities in the development of digital products and services. Information & Management, 57(8). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2020.103389. World Bank. (2022, diciembre 30). Aportación de los sectores económicos al producto interior bruto (PIB) de cada área goegráfica en 2021 [Gráfica]. In Statista. https://es.statista.com/estadisticas/598960/participacion-de-sectores-economicos-en-el- producto-interior-bruto-pib-por-region/. Yadav, M. S., & Pavlou, P. A. (2020). Technology-enabled interactions in digital environments:a conceptual foundation for current and future research. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 48(1), 132-136. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-019-00712-3. Zhou, K. Z., & Wu, F. (2010). Technological capability, strategic flexibility, and product innovation | EndNote Click. Strategic Management Journal, 31, 547-561. https://doi.org/10.1002/smj.830. CAPÍTULO 4. A study of the factors which influence digital transformation in Kibs companies Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 135 Referencia bibliográfica Marino-Romero, J. A., Palos-Sanchez, P. R., Velicia-Martin, F. A., & Rodrigues, R. G. (2022). A study of the factors which influence digital transformation in Kibs companies. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 993972 https://doi.org 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.993972 Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 137 A study of the factors which influence Digital Transformation in Kibs companies Jorge Alberto Marino-Romero 1,2, Pedro Ramiro Palos-Sanchez 3, Félix Antonio Velicia-Martin1 and Ricardo Gouveia Rodrigues 4 1 Department of Business Administration and Marketing, University of Seville Faculty of Economics and Business Sciences, Seville, Spain, 2 Department of Financial Economics and Accounting, University of Extremadura, Cáceres, Spain, 3 Department of Financial Economy and Operation Management, University of Seville Faculty of Economics and Business Sciences, Sevilla, Spain, 4 NECE-Research Center in Business Sciences, University of Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal Abstract: eighteen interviews were used in this research to inductively conceptualize the factors that influence digital transformation (DT) in Kibs companies that provide multidisciplinary Knowledge Intensive Business Services. Two main groups were identified: factors of DT and use in the new digital environment. Using the findings obtained, a comparison was made with the existing literature and the most relevant aspects of DT as a disruptive phenomenon which can generate intra-organizational competitive advantage are exposed. Objective: To identify the factors of innovation-oriented organizational management, generated by the collaboration of the professional grouping of Kibs companies through the systematization of knowledge, which serve to conceptually delimit the DT phenomenon. Ultimately, it is expected to establish recommendations for this type of companies based on providing services with high knowledge value that strive to digitally transform their businesses. Originality: the paper contributes to advancing the conceptual understanding of DT through the study of Kibs companies, which remain understudied. Likewise, there is no known study that analyzes the factors that give rise to DT in a professional grouping of small Kibs companies. It is clear that this union of small companies generates a strong internal capacity for knowledge absorption, through daily interactions with clients and public administrations, which favors the process of implementing certain technological and strategic components that are beneficial for the development of professional activity and increases the propensity to innovate. Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 138 Methodology: qualitative content was analysed using a grounded theory methodology including interviews with experts and the managers of the Kibs companies in the professional sector to obtain a solid basis that can be used to identify the most relevant factors of DT. Findings/Results: as DT is a multidimensional phenomenon of individual companies, this study presents a conceptual framework for the term with the strategic requirements of the market, organizations, public institutions and technological infrastructures of the professional sector. By considering the disruptive factors of digital development in this macroenvironment, conclusions can be made about the basic principles and effects of DT. Keywords: digital transformation, qualitative analysis, grounded theory, professional grouping, Kibs. 1 Introduction Digital transformation (DT) is a phenomenon that tries to provide solutions to the profound changes that originate in society and in the production sector with the use of digital technologies (Majchrzak et al., 2016). Organizations must look for strategies to innovate with these technologies and accept all the implications of DT to obtain optimal operational performance (Hess et al., 2016, p. 123). Scientific literature has focussed on DT because it is a concept with multiple meanings. Research has basically contributed to understanding different elements of this term, demonstrating that technology itself is only one aspect of the complex network that organizations must manage to be competitive in a digital world (Jia et al., 2018). Services are a determining factor in developed economies and this has caused an increase in academic interest in this sector. It accounted for 70% of the added value of the sector in Japan, 73.10% in the European Union and 80.40% in the US in 2020 (OECD, 2021). Scientists consider that there is still a large amount to be learnt about service innovation (Frishammar et al., 2012), since technological progress does not only occur in industry but also in the service sector (Brynjolfsson & Mcfee, 2014). It is also affecting knowledge-intensive areas (Susskind, 2017) and, therefore, Kibs companies which develop and provide services by integrating the knowledge gained from different sources (Bolisani et al., 2016). These services are usually developed with Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 139 intense collaborative relationships between Kibs companies and their customers, which is one of their main characteristics (Chichkanov, 2021). Customers are considered collaborators when producing these services, as they are a very valuable source of external knowledge that enhances innovation (Scarso & Bolisani, 2012). To find the impact of the knowledge gained during the interactions with the Kibs customer, one the most dominant currents in the scientific literature about innovation, artificial intelligence, was studied (Dahlander & Gann, 2010). This approach is motivated by the increase in investment in Information and Communication Technology by organizations which aim to improve productivity and quality in response to customer needs, while trying to reduce operating costs (Scuotto et al., 2017). Technology is also a relevant element in Kibs companies as studies show that there is a moderate positive relationship between the degree of technological innovation and the level of innovation (Carvalho & Sarkar, 2018). Value is created for customers and companies with different levels of maturity and acceptance in the market (Manyika et al., 2013). The technologies implemented in Kibs companies in the service sector have been grouped into two types in the scientific literature (Brynjolfsson & Mcfee, 2014). The first type includes the improvements produced by machines, including different technology such as artificial intelligence, big data, augmented reality and advanced robotics. The second type focusses on the increase in connectivity with technology such as mobile internet, social networks, Skype, internet of things, cloud computing and fog computing, as well as blockchain (Breunig & Skjølsvik, 2017, p. 4). To implement technological innovation in Kibs companies in a digitalized environment and meet the demands of a rapidly changing market, organizations need professionals with leadership skills to react optimally to the changes adopted (Summa, 2016). In principle, the faster companies adapt, the more likely they are to gain an advantage over their competitors (Summa, 2016). Leadership and behaviour can be considered as one of the most important prerequisites of an increased capacity of innovation. Leadership is at the heart of promoting organisational innovation in a Kibs organisation. The research gaps are centered on the divergence of results presented by the studies on the components of DT to be implemented in Kibs companies. This is due to the fact that there is a very heterogeneous set of companies in terms of size, operation and type of activity. Consequently, small service firms find it of little interest to pursue strategies for implementing Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 140 innovation processes (Vermeulen et al., 2005), and specifically professional service firms tend to consider innovation with a low priority (Brooks et al., 2018). In general, these types of firms prefer to adopt strategic cost-cutting measures for producing immediate results. Moreover, they seem to have limited competence in defining an enabling environment for process innovation and although they maintain close relationships with their customers they seem to have difficulties in translating this commitment into value (Ashok, 2018). Finally, the impact of DT on the absorption of knowledge related to the innovation process has not been investigated. The DT phenomenon is going to be studied taking into account the macro-environment in which the professional grouping of Kibs and its relationship with governmental Institutions are involved. It is necessary to deepen the conceptualization of DT (Markus & Rowe, 2021) due to the lack of understanding of this concept, which affects multiple organizational levels (companies, markets, public institutions) and its scope requires various levels of analysis (Vial, 2019). In this research DT will be analysed by taking into account the macro-environment of Kibs and its relationship with government institutions. The following research questions were raised: What aspects of DT are incorporated in the Kibs companies of a professional sector? How does the professional group of Kibs companies respond to digital disruption in a competitive environment? The document has the following structure. In the second section, the parts of DT that affect the business processes of Kibs and that correspond to the changes that occur in their business environment are identified in the theoretical framework. Three elements are taken into consideration: digital technologies, open innovation (OI) oriented business models and leadership. The third section describes the grounded theory methodology used in this research. Sections 4 and 5 present and discuss the most relevant results of the analysis and finally, section 6 explains the conclusions. 2. Literature review The documents were selected using a systematic review of the literature with the aim of identifying the most relevant elements that define DT in the current business environment. The selection process chose relevant scientific production from the documents contained in the Wos and Scopus databases and used the PRISMA methodology (Liberati et al., 2009) to find the Aproximación a la transformación digital en la gestión de las pymes: especial referencia a las empresas Kibs 141 studies with the greatest scientific impact on the business management of SMEs. The different selection stages of the literature review were (Object, context of review and Selection of records by filtering with eligibility criteria). The following search criteria were used to find the relevant papers for this investigation: 1st, texts published between 2000-2021, 2nd, only publications written in the English language, 3rd, the keywords appear in the title of the articles, in the abstract or in the metadata, 4th, the keywords appear in the title of the articles, in the abstract or in their metadata, and 5th, the search protocol for the different databases analyzed used the same keywords organized in search strings with the Boolean operator "and". These keywords were "digital transformation and SME's and Services", "digital transformation and kibs", "digital technology and SME's and services", "digital technology and Kibs", "open Innovation and SME's and services", "open Innovation and Kibs", "transformational leadership and SME's and services " and "transformational leadership and Kibs. Three exclusion rules were applied to limit the content of the articles and documents. These were 1) Articles that are not research papers or literature reviews are discarded, 2). The selected manuscripts must have a direct relationship with the subject matter of the study, and 3) The selected articles must be clearly explained with the methodology proposing adequate ways of addressing the research topic and answering the research questions. The results of the literature review attempt to limit the multidisciplinary nature of digital transformation to the operational processes and business models which Kibs companies use to achieve digitization. These are discussed below. 2.1 The DT process in Kibs companies The concept of DT due to technological innovation poses important challenges for business organizations and researchers in terms of the identification and management of digital business models because business activity is interrupted as a radical renewal of technology takes place (Pang et al., 2019; Porter & Heppelmann, 2014; Warner & Wäger, 2019). Digital transformation is a process that involves the adoption of transformational digital technologies which effect the functions, skills and strategies of the organization (Lucas, et al.,