Role of CDOs in the Digital Transformation of SMEs and LSEs - An Empirical Analysis

In recent years, the economy and companies of all sizes operating within it have undergone a progressive transformation that implied increased market complexity and dominance of the buyer market. This development is the result of the third industrial revolution and has been fostered during the last 40 years by major innovations in digital computer technology. This first digital revolution resulted in the development of the first computers and the associated entry of new electronics and information and communication technology (ICT) in companies being able to automate production processes and make them more efficient. Digitalization means not only the change of individual processes rather the fundamental transformation of entire business areas or the entire business model. In order not only to master, but also to cope with, the challenges of digital transformation, companies need a member in the management board that provides specific expertise and encourages these digital changes. In the process, the position of Chief Digital Officer (CDO) has been created precisely to meet these challenges of the digital transformation of a business model. The present work is based on various case studies analyzing what role the CDO plays in the framework of digital transformation in various company sizes (SMEs and LSEs). In particular, the responsibility, specific obligations and rights and the role - namely, functions and tasks - and the change in the role have been examined since taking over the position

Digitalisation and Change in the Management of IT

As digitalisation sweeps through industries, companies are having to deal with the resultant changes in business models, core processes and organisational structures. This includes the reassessment of the role of the IT department, traditionally the guardians of technology standards and providers of corporate systems and infrastructure, and their ongoing maintenance. This article investigates this dynamic in two research studies. Study 1 focuses on the German automotive industry and adopts a qualitative inductive approach based on interviews with IT practitioners to ascertain the key aspects of digitalisation impacting the industry and to chart the emergence of a new model for the management of IT. Study 2 then reviews the deployment of digital technologies in other industry sectors via questionnaire responses from senior IT professionals in eight organisations. The results suggest that the transfer of IT roles and responsibilities to business functions, evident in the German automotive industry, is being replicated in other organisations in which digital technologies are now embedded in an organisation’s products or services. This article concludes with a model for cross-referencing the role of the IT function with the impact of digital technologies, representing a contribution to the growing literature on digital technology deployment in organisations