Construction of Digital Transformation Capability of Manufacturing Enterprises: Qualitative Meta-Analysis Based on Current Research

Abstract

Competitive advantage in enterprises can be substantially enhanced by the strategic deployment of digital transformation capabilities, which can be considered as distinctive resources. Within the domain of manufacturing enterprises, the discernment and classification of the structural dimensions inherent in digital transformation capabilities can serve as a pivotal factor in facilitating a more adaptable and seamless progression through the digital transformation journey. In pursuit of this objective, 22 typical manufacturing enterprises are selected as data samples, and a four-dimensional digital transformation capability system is constructed through the processes of excerpt, coding, classification, reliability and validity, etc. Combined with the view of capability hierarchy, a three-level capability structure model of digital transformation capability is constructed. The results show that digital transformation capability includes digital technology capability, digital operation capability, digital organization capability and digital strategic capability, and it is found that there is a hierarchical relationship among the capabilities of each dimension. The research findings have extended the theoretical boundaries of digital transformation, augmented the applicability scenarios of dynamic capability theory, and established a foundational framework for future empirical investigations into the digital capabilities of manufacturing enterprises.

1. Introduction

In March 2023, at the 14th People’s Congress, the Political Bureau of the Central Committee emphasized that in 2023 we ought to vigorously promote the growth of the digital economy, expedite the digitalization process within traditional sectors and small to medium-sized enterprises, and endeavor to enhance the sophistication of high-end, intelligent, and environmentally sustainable practices [1]. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the core role of a digital economy has been gradually enlarged. As the pillar of the national economy, accelerating the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises is not only to meet the requirements of environmental development, but also a necessary condition for themselves to gain sustainable competitiveness. In the “14th Five-Year Plan for Intelligent Manufacturing Development”, it is posited that the profound integration of advanced manufacturing technology and digital technology serves as the foundational catalyst for empowering traditional manufacturing enterprises in their pursuit of transformation [2]. Facing the impact of policy guidance and an Internet platform, manufacturing enterprises still invest financial resources, material resources, and manpower for digital transformation under the pressure of market and technology [3], but their transformation effects are different.

Due to the weak digital foundation, outdated management concept, untimely equipment update, and huge whole business process chain, traditional manufacturing enterprises lack effective management and operation means internally, and it is difficult to grasp the development opportunity externally. Therefore, it often wavers on when and how to undertake digital transformation, which directly leads to only 16% of Chinese enterprises achieving positive results [4,5,6]. Based on dynamic capability theory, capability is an important support for enterprises to obtain core competitiveness when resources are transparent and easily available. Digital transformation capability innovates products and processes by extensively integrating digital assets and business resources and drives consumers and other partners to create new value together, so that enterprises can gain sustainable innovation advantages. With the full integration of organizational strategy, this ability has played a role in the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises.

Although existing research has disassembled the characteristics of digital transformation capability, what exactly does digital transformation capability contain? What are the special features of the digital transformation capability of manufacturing enterprises? What capabilities are the essential core elements in the process of digital transformation? What is its micro-foundation? In order to effectively solve the above problems, this study employs a qualitative meta-analysis method, collecting 22 enterprise cases from published literature and using coding to identify the types of digital transformation capabilities and the components. The main research contributions are as follows: ① In accordance with the constituent elements of the digital transformation process, this study has distilled four dimensions of digital transformation capability. This contributes to addressing a deficiency identified in prior research, wherein the focus was predominantly directed towards the dynamic capability perspective in the examination of digital transformation capability. ② The four dimensions of digital transformation capability model are divided into three levels, and the levels of digital transformation capability are refined. ③ The proposed theoretical model can fully and accurately reflect the attributes inherent in enterprises’ digital transformation capability and holds practical and instructive implications for enterprises seeking to enhance their own digital transformation capabilities.

This paper is structured in the following manner: Section 1 is the Introduction, Section 2 summarizes the process of conducting a systematic review of the literature. Section 3 describes the methodology used while Section 4 presents the findings, followed by the discussion. Section 6 lists the conclusion, including contribution and limitations.

2. Theoretical Basis and Literature Review

2.1. Theoretical Basis

2.1.1. Resource-Based View

In the 20th century, the global economy suffered heavy losses. Enterprise managers and relevant scholars began to focus on how to avoid industry risks and maintain the competitive advantages of enterprises, and the concept of strategic management gradually began to take form. Traditional industrial organization school thinks that enterprises can make profits only when they are in advantageous industries [7], but when other American airlines were hit hard, Southwest Airlines broke the Five Force model and S-C-P research paradigm proposed by Porter with a high profit rate [8]. The Chicago School thinks that high profit is the return of highly specialized and high-quality resources or capabilities [8], which lays a hypothetical foundation for the development of a resource-based view.

Since Wernerfelt put forward the theory of a “resource-based view” for the first time in 1984, people’s views on strategy have changed, and they commenced the search for internal factors that contribute to enterprise success. This theory holds that the industrial school attributed the success of enterprises to external conditions, such as industry and market environment, ignoring the role of internal resources owned by enterprises [9,10]. However, internal resources are often the key elements that determine the core competitiveness of enterprises. Barney also values the advantages of internal resources [11,12,13]. Barney introduced the concept of resources by studying the influence of organizational culture management on the financial performance of enterprises. He emphasized that organizational culture—yielding sustainable competitive advantages—stands as a pivotal resource for enterprises. In addition, Barney further developed strategic tools to explain how organizations use resource characteristics to maintain their leading position in the industry. It is the four attributes of strategic resources: value, scarcity, difficulty in imitation, and irreplaceability. According to the resource-based view, in a fixed market environment, the unique capabilities possessed by enterprises can bring sustainable competitive advantages to enterprises, while the uniqueness is reflected in four aspects: valuable, rare, unimitated, and irreplaceable. If an enterprise’s latent capabilities can withstand the test of time and resist external replication, its accrued advantages often exhibit sustainability [14]. Specifically, value and rarity can bring a competitive advantage to enterprises, and the combination of them with imitation and irreplaceability can provide support for enterprises to compete continuously.

2.1.2. Dynamic Capability Theory

A resource-based view reveals the source of competitive advantage from within the enterprise, but it lacks a dynamic perspective in a complex environment. In fact, core capability is often affected by the indivisibility and illiquidity of resources [15,16], which will make enterprises fail to cope with unexpected situations or drastic changes in the environment, thus losing their competitive advantages. Therefore, Teece and other scholars introduced the dynamic capability theory as an extension and complement to the resource-based theory. Dynamic capability theory plays an important role in the field of management, which systematically explains the ability of enterprises to maintain competitive advantage in a dynamic environment [17,18]. According to Schumpeter’s definition, dynamic capability mainly includes two aspects: one is the ability to integrate, construct, and reconfigure internal and external, and the other is the ability to cope with a changing environment. In the subsequent research process, Schumpeter further decomposed dynamic ability into perceiving threats and shaping opportunities, seizing the opportunities, and reconfiguring enterprise resources into three aspects [19]. In contrast to the resource-based view, the dynamic capability theory focuses on how to maintain competitiveness in a turbulent and changing environment. Dynamic capability undertakes the responsibility of obtaining, modifying, integrating, and releasing resources for enterprises. Eisenhardt and Martin [20,21] believe that stable markets are predictable and linear, although their elements are complex. In contrast, the rapidly changing market experiences non-linear and unpredictable changes. In a rapidly changing market, organizations often lack experience and the link between knowledge is relatively low. In this case, it becomes very difficult to find the answer and path for the future development of enterprises. Enterprises are required to align their ability to perceive novel and unique aspects of the external environment in specific market conditions, continually monitor shifts in markets and technology, and demonstrate a readiness to adopt optimal approaches [22]. The development of dynamic capabilities necessitates the integration of existing knowledge in a sequential manner and the assimilation of new information. This process relies heavily on cross-functional communication within the enterprise.

2.1.3. The View of Hierarchy Capability

Capability exists in tacit knowledge, which is considered as the expression of a certain activity. From the perspective of capability hierarchy, scholars categorize organizational capabilities into two distinct groups: high-order dynamic capabilities and low-order functional capabilities [23]. The low-level functional ability provides basic support for the daily operation of enterprises and can make enterprises successfully complete the functions of personnel adjustment, supply chain management, and marketing, while the high-level dynamic ability provides the possibility for enterprises to develop strategically and dynamically adapt to environmental changes. High-order dynamic capability examines the ability of enterprises to adjust and utilize existing capabilities according to the changes of external environment [24]. High-order dynamic capabilities can change existing capabilities to more softly adapt to new products and new markets. Comparing the two, it is not difficult to find that high-order dynamic ability has higher requirements for leaders, which requires not only rich knowledge reserves, but also excellent insight and random response ability. Teece and others believe that enterprises cannot simply obtain high-order capabilities externally but must strengthen their own construction and gradually form their own high-order capabilities internally [11]. The formation of ability cannot be separated from the accumulation and transformation of original resources. Low-level capabilities provide support for the survival of enterprises, but this ability is easily copied, and low-level capabilities cannot carry the core competitiveness of enterprises. High-order capability controls the change of low-order capability and can effectively optimize the management mode of enterprises.

2.2. Literature Review

2.2.1. Digital Transformation of Enterprises

The related topics of digital transformation have been widely reviewed in academic circles. Although scholars give different definitions of digitalization from different angles, the existing research results have reached a consensus in the following three aspects: First, digital transformation is related to organization. Secondly, the different definitions mainly lie in the different digital technologies used by enterprises and the different departments undergoing digital transformation [25]. Finally, scholars often cannot explain the definition of digital transformation without digital technology [26]. Digital transformation is defined as a disruptive technological achievement, which can create new business models and be applied in various departments. In addition, Bekkhus and other scholars define digital transformation from the perspective of results and believe that digital transformation can effectively improve enterprise performance, customer satisfaction, and expand business scope [27]. From a strategic point of view, Matt and other scholars believe that using digital technology can create new business models for enterprises, and digital transformation strategy is the blueprint for future governance of enterprises [28]. In addition, some scholars mentioned the role of capability in the process of defining digital transformation. Digital transformation includes not only process digitalization focusing on efficiency, but also enhancing digital innovation of existing products with digital transformation capability.

In contrast to platform enterprises and Internet enterprises, the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises involves multi-links and multi-processes, which means that manufacturing enterprises collect and utilize data to drive manufacturing based on data technology, which doubles the delivery value [29] and is a process in which digital technology continuously optimizes traditional business models. In recent years, academia has increasingly recognized that the digital transformation of enterprises extends beyond the realm of digital technology; it encompasses an organizational transformation process. Digital technology permeates every link of the production and demand of enterprises, innovates products and services, and optimizes enterprise functions and efficiency. Therefore, this paper argues that the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises includes the technical level, operational level, organizational level, and strategic level from bottom to top. Nambisan divides the digital transformation at the technical level into digital components, digital platforms, and digital infrastructure according to the degree of integration and creativity of digital technology application [30]. The industrial organization school believes that the platform is used to promote transactions between two or more parties [31]. In the production process of manufacturing enterprises, massive data will be generated every day and every link. Constrained by the limitations of digital infrastructure, enterprises have generated vast amounts of data during their operational processes. However, they have often struggled to effectively harness this data, leading to the emergence of information silos among enterprises [32]. Organizational digital transformation involves the transformation of organizational structure, organizational culture and leadership, and has the characteristics of structural flexibility, cultural identity, leadership empowerment, and employee autonomy [33,34,35]. Digital transformation strategy is an important part of enterprise strategy. In the digital age, the influence of digital technology is getting wider and wider, which profoundly affects the business model and profit model of enterprises [36]. The strategic transformation of enterprises emphasizes the continuous and profound transformation and change of organizational elements, which runs through the development strategy of enterprises [37].

2.2.2. Digital Transformation Capability

Based on the resource-based view, the essence of an enterprise is a heterogeneous resource aggregation. Through the analysis and application of the unique resources of enterprises, the sustainable competitive advantage of enterprises can be built [38]. Furthermore, Wernerfelt thinks that organizational capability which is referred to as a resource-based view, is also an important resource, which explains that capability accumulation within an enterprise is the key factor for an enterprise to obtain excess returns and maintain its competitive advantage. In the digital situation, the resources, information, and knowledge of enterprises are shared, and the sense of boundary between organizations becomes increasingly blurred. Therefore, it is the different capabilities of enterprises that results in differences in performance outcomes among enterprises [39]. Different scholars have different definitions based on different theories, but most of them can be divided into the following categories: (1) Information systems: using information technology or digital technology to build customer-oriented platforms and employee-oriented software [2,3,4]. (2) Innovation: The result of digitalization is innovation, mining the potential needs of customers through data analysis, innovating products, and innovating business service processes [28,36]. (3) Strategy: Digital transformation is far from being merely the utilization of digital platforms; rather, it constitutes a strategic matter intertwined with business models, value creation, and competitive advantage [33,37]. This paper argues that digital transformation capability exists at each stage of the enterprise digital transformation process, and each stage has its own characteristics. It is a higher-order dynamic capability by means of digital technology. Through extensive integration of digital assets and business resources, it can innovate products and processes, drive consumers and other partners to create new value, and obtain sustainable innovation advantages.

From the perspective of a resource-based view, scholars believe that resources are the premise of generating capability. Digital transformation capability is the ability to assimilate, transform, and utilize resources continuously under the continuous accumulation of resources, which is collectively referred to as higher-order dynamic ability [40]. From the perspective of disruptive innovation theory, digital transformation capability is related to behavioral changes related to destructive information technology innovation and should be universal and radical. It is able to detect and meet customer needs, invest enough in assets, and create social technology networks so as to facilitate learning with new technologies [9]. From the perspective of dynamic capability, the definition of digital transformation capability is the ability to combine different information technology and business resources in a complex way and gain competitive advantage through innovative behavior in products, services, and channels [34]. Hence, numerous scholars draw insights from the classification dimension of dynamic capability and divide digital transformation capability into digital perception capability, digital capture capability, and digital transformation capability [17]. Coreynen, a foreign scholar, divides the digital transformation ability into the ability to expand, modify and create ordinary abilities [41]. Albanese et al. divides the digital transformation capability into six levels, including people, processes, platforms, products, channels, and experiences [20]. Warner and Wäger [42] emphasized that digital transformation capability is a special dynamic capability of an organization, and the digital transformation model of an enterprise is constructed through digital perception capability, digital acquisition capability, and digital transformation capability. Ji Feng and other scholars divide digital transformation capabilities into digital basic capabilities, digital analysis capabilities, digital application capabilities, and digital development capabilities [43]. Chi Renyong decomposes digital transformation capabilities into digital infrastructure, digital management capabilities, and digital strategic capabilities [44]. Jiang Junlei divided digital transformation capability into digital learning and digital agility according to different stages of digital transformation [45].

3. Research Methods

A meta-analysis is a method of re-statistics and re-analysis of many independent empirical research results with the same purpose; this approach is also referred to as “analysis within analysis”, a term predominantly employed in the early stages within the medical field. In reality, beyond quantitative research, meta-analysis methods also encompass qualitative meta-analyses. In the 1980s, the method of qualitative research meta-synthesis rose in medicine, pedagogy, and sociology, and was later named “qualitative meta-analysis”. Hoon formally introduced the idea of meta-synthesis based on qualitative case study in his paper published in 2013, and systematically discussed the concept and process of a comprehensive qualitative case study, which also marked that the qualitative meta-analysis method was confirmed to be introduced into organization and management research [46,47].

The main reasons for choosing qualitative meta-analysis in this paper are as follows: ① The purpose of this paper is to identify the capabilities and components needed in the process of digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises. Qualitative meta-analysis based on multiple case samples can ensure the universality and rigor of research conclusions, break the phenomenon of data islands, and have more advantages than single case analysis. ② The purpose of qualitative meta-analysis lies in construction of theory, which can compare with different enterprises carrying out different digital activities, so as to comprehensively discover the combination and formation path of manufacturing enterprises’ capabilities in different digital transformation stages, and enrich the situational description of the transformation process. ③ Case samples come from published channels, which not only ensures the number of samples, but also has high reliability and collection convenience. Researchers can distill valuable insights from prior studies through the analysis of case practices to inform their own research inquiries.

In order to improve the rigor of the research, this paper draws lessons from Habersang’s operation process for the qualitative meta-analysis method, which is mainly divided into three steps: data collection, data analysis, and validity analysis [48].

3.1. Data Collection

The data source for a qualitative meta-analysis is the existing qualitative research results. According to the purpose of this study, research issues and qualitative meta-analysis for data requirements, this paper developed the following detailed data retrieval process.

(1)

Time span: 2016–2022. In 2016, the General Secretary emphasized the digital economy in the G20 Digital Economy Development and Cooperation Initiative issued at the G20 Summit. In 2022, the State Council issued the “14th Five-Year Plan for Digital Economy Development”, which holds that digital economy has become an important strategic force in China and the core of Chinese digital strategy. Therefore, the research samples come from published papers during the last seven years (2016–2022).

(2)

Retrieval keywords: the retrieval theme of Chinese literature is “theme = digitalization” and “capability” and “abstract = manufacturing enterprise”. English literature retrieval uses fuzzy subject keywords “digital*” and “capabilit*” or “digital innovation” to search.

(3)

Literature types: In order to ensure the reliability of the research, this paper uniformly selects peer-reviewed journal papers. Conference papers, books, teaching cases, and other unmentioned publications are not included because peer-reviewed journal articles are usually regarded as scientifically verified knowledge and scientific research achievements that can have a great impact on this field.

(4)

Literature sources: In order to ensure the authenticity and reliability of the original data, this paper limits the Chinese literature source journals to the core journals of Peking University and CSSCI journals. Referring to the journal orientation and selection of relevant scholars, the English literature of this paper comes from SSCI journals, and the database is selected from Web of Science.

(5)

Subject selection: Chinese literature is limited to a management-related scope, while English literature is limited to international business, strategy management, and general management. The preliminary retrieval results show that 40 of the 20 Chinese journals meet the retrieval requirements, and 173 of the 13 English journals meet the retrieval requirements.

(6)

Literature content: First, only rigorous case studies are included in the selection of literature types. According to Lin Haifen and Su Jingqin’s classification of case studies and the description of case studies’ characteristics, in order to ensure the consistency of literature types, this paper excludes quantitative research and non-empirical research. Secondly, in the selection of literature research objects, this paper only considers the cases of traditional manufacturing enterprises, excluding other types of research objects, such as Internet enterprises and platform enterprises. Third, the non-overall transformation of manufacturing enterprises is excluded; that is, only the samples of business transformation in a certain aspect, such as supply chains, are described. Fourth, the micro-cases with a limited text description, or multi-case studies and samples with an insufficient description of digital transformation and the capacity building process were eliminated. Fifthly, considering the length of the paper, the high homogeneity, and incomplete process of multi-case papers in describing the specific behavior of enterprises, this paper selects the samples of multi-case studies twice and eliminates some multi-case studies (n > 3).

In this step, 17 Chinese essays and 167 English essays were eliminated. In the end, only 23 Chinese essays and 7 English essays are retained as the final data sources of this paper. After merging the same cases, 22 sample cases are finally obtained. These cases belong to the manufacturing industry, which is subdivided into clothing manufacturing, furniture manufacturing, home appliance manufacturing, service manufacturing, equipment manufacturing, and so on.

Table 1. Sample case information.

NO	Name	State	Sub- Division	DT Duration	Process	Effect	Sample Source
1	HDYS	China	Garment	9	Energy storage Energy cultivation Energy empowerment	It not only opens up new combination opportunities for both new business and new market, but also wins the ecological advantages of the platform.	CNKI
2	KT	China	Garment	20	Demand side Digital management system Personalized customization Production side.	The management cost is reduced by more than 50%, and the overall efficiency is improved by 20%.	CNKI
3	SP	China	Furniture	3	Small-scale customization of offline Digitalization of production materials Digitalization of platform Digitalization of delivery value	Through design system, order management system and mixed scheduling system, the front-end foundation is gradually laid, and finally mass customization is realized.	CNKI
⋮							⋮
22	MS	India	Automob-ile	8	Customers, design New product development Branding, and marketing Dealer management.	At the top of the sales list in August 2022, with a total sales volume of 134,166 vehicles.	WOS

shows only partial data, which includes the key information, such as the name of the case, the country to which it belongs, the sub-sectors, the duration of digital transformation, the transformation process, the transformation effect, and the sample source—see Appendix A for detailed data.

3.2. Data Analysis

To gain a profound comprehension of the specific research details concerning the 22 sample enterprises, this paper initially formulates a coding table comprising six distinct elements, which are: literature information, research object name, research question, research perspective, digital transformation process, and research results. Following the operation steps of qualitative meta-analysis, these 22 sample enterprises were excerpted, coded, and classified.

Table 2. Typical evidence cited.

Excerpt	Code	Classify	Aggregate
Handu uses information technology to master a large amount of consumer data (E11), add digital structural components, and add data acquisition equipment (E62)	Data collection and connection	Digital integration capability	Digital technology capability
Visitor information is stored in the store system and authorized to suppliers (E81), departments cooperate with each other, and the data storage level is greatly improved (E106), etc.	Open data storage and interface
Make full use of data by digital technology (E95), establish a big data center, and realize the interconnection of equipment, people and materials (E162)	Information interconnection
Build an intelligent management system inside, develop a travel system (E56) outside, and launch an industrial Internet platform (E145)	Build digital infrastructure	Digital infrastructure
Introduce ERP, CAD, OA and other information systems (E23) from the outside, introduce employee punch card system and build a digital middle station (E91), etc.	Introducing information system
Introduce technologies such as Internet of Things and 3D printing (E25)	Introduce digital technology
Offline stores use ERP system for simulation operation (E13), and use IT technology and powerful algorithms to continuously optimize the mobile design process (E31)	Digital technology optimizes operation	Application
Get factory data in real time, and guide and process them with current accurate data (E64). With the technical support of big data, Volvo’s management team decided to use digital innovation of products to enhance competitiveness (E193)	Use digital technology to make decisions
The intelligent production system empowers employees and customers (E35), and automatically screens fans for fault early warning through data analysis (E107), etc.	Intelligent system empowerment
Accurately grasp user behavior characteristics by using big data algorithm (E42)	Using technology to strengthen computing power

shows only partial data—see Appendix B for detailed data.

The first step is to extract the research samples. In order to analyze the data in detail, this paper extracts descriptive statements of the digital transformation process of sample enterprises. Finally, 149 words and sentences were extracted from 22 sample enterprises.

The second step is to encode the extracted 149 statements. Drawing lessons from the coding strategy of Gioia [49], this paper labels the main topics and words with classification labels in the first-order coding, such as the collection and connection of data presented in Table 2, the horizontal communication within departments, and the optimized operation of digital technology.

The third step is to classify the coding results. Classification is the process of further abstracting the coding results. According to the research [50], the number of classification categories is reduced in order to obtain more abstract classification results, as shown in Table 2. According to the similarities and differences, the contents of the first-order coding are distinguished, clustered according to different topics, and then these categories are described, thus obtaining the second-order topics in Table 2. Taking “digital technology capability” as an example, by extracting sample documents, 10 codes, including data collection and connection, data storage and interface opening, information interconnection, building digital infrastructure, introducing information system, introducing digital technology, optimizing operation by digital technology, making decisions by digital technology, empowering intelligent systems, and strengthening computing power by technology, are obtained—as shown in Table 2. According to the similarities and differences, the content of the first-order coding is distinguished, classified according to different topics, and then these categories are described, thus obtaining the second-order topics, namely digital integration capability, digital infrastructure, and digital technology application. Finally, these three categories are aggregated into digital technical capabilities.

3.3. Validity Analysis

The reliability and validity of the results were tested. In case screening, according to the established criteria for strict screening of cases, a qualitative meta-analysis is a synthesis of the results of multiple cases, which can improve the universality of the theory, thereby improving the validity. In data analysis, the coding method proposed by Gioia [49] is adopted to ensure the scientificity, correctness, and rigor of the coding process, and the dimensions and sub-dimensions extracted from the cases are analyzed. Finally, triangular verification is used to improve the effectiveness of the research [48].

4. Research Findings

After data analysis and coding, it is found from 22 cases that manufacturing enterprises need a variety of capabilities to cooperate in the process of digital transformation, including digital technology capability, digital operation capability, digital organization capability, and digital strategy capability from different levels. Digital technology capability includes digital integration capability, digital infrastructure, and digital technology application. Digital operation capability includes supply chain integration capability, market shaping capability, digital R&D capability, and digital production capability. Digital organization ability includes executive management cognition, mutual communication ability, digital leadership, and reorganization ability. Digital strategy capability includes digital dual capability, and digital ecological capability.

4.1. Construction of Digital Transformation Capability System

4.1.1. Digital Technology Capability

Digital technology capability is the basis for manufacturing enterprises to carry out digital transformation. It is a yardstick to measure whether enterprises can promote digital transformation [51]. The construction of digital technology capability includes the whole process from collecting data to processing and utilizing data to comprehensively analyzing data. Under the background of digital economy, digital technology is the basic framework and underlying logic for enterprises to implement digital transformation strategy, mainly including cloud computing, big data, artificial intelligence, and so on. From the user data connection at the consumer end to the construction of the enterprise information platform and algorithm support, digital technology promotes the whole process transformation of enterprise digital transformation. In the sample enterprises, most of the interviewees introduced the advantages of digital technology mastered by the company in the process of digital transformation. Whether it is directly introduced and utilized externally or strengthened learning and cultivation internally, digital technology has become the foundation in the process of enterprise transformation. For example, in e5, Buke (Shanghai, China) completed the underlying data information collection through self-developed digital components. The editability of digital components realizes the interconnection of materials and equipment. In e2, Kute (Qingdao, China), a garment manufacturing enterprise, introduced ERP, CAD, OA, and other information systems from the outside to complete the construction of digital infrastructure. In addition, Fanjia (Hangzhou, China) makes management decisions and business decisions on the established digital platform. Herbert Alexander Simon thinks that decision-making is greatly influenced by the uncertainty of the external environment, and is easily limited by cognition, information, and resources; given this, people can only achieve relative rationality in the decision-making process. At present, it is no longer impossible for enterprises to improve their computing power, break the physical interval, and strengthen the application of digital technology with the help of big data technology. The process of data coding is shown in

Table 3. Data coding of digital technology capability.

First-Order Coding	Second-Order Theme	Aggregation Dimension
Open data storage and interface, data collection and connection, information interconnection and intercommunication	Digital integration capability	Digital technology capability
Build digital infrastructure, introduce information systems and introduce digital technology	Digital infrastructure
Digital technology optimizes operations, uses digital technology to make decisions, empowers intelligent systems, and uses technology to strengthen computing power	Application of digital technology

.

(1)

Digital Integration Capability

Digital integration refers to the ability of enterprises to collect, process, and share data in the early stage in order to utilize data resources in the process of digital transformation, including data storage and interface opening, data collection and connection, and information interconnection. With the development of digital technology, enterprises can quickly capture a large amount of customized information from consumers. Consumer characteristics, behavioral preferences, online data, and commodity data have all become collection objects. The platforms of different enterprises are interconnected, realizing digital integration based on the Internet of Things. From the perspective of data flow, integration ability is mainly reflected in data capture, storage, connection, and interoperability. When the traditional manufacturing industry chooses to collect data, it often chooses to cooperate with other platforms for the sake of cost. In e9, Red Dragonfly (Wenzhou, China), a garment manufacturing enterprise, as a traditional large-scale retail enterprise, began digital transformation in 2018 with the help of the data integration capability of the Alibaba platform. In this process, Red Dragonfly (Wenzhou, China) actively expanded the connection of mobile Internet devices, strengthened its cloud computing capability, and cooperated with Alibaba Cloud (Hangzhou, China) and Little Black Box to strengthen its IT capability. There are also many manufacturing enterprises that choose to conduct internal self-research and development. After Sofia (Guangzhou, China), a customized furniture industry, faced a sharp decline in the growth rate of the industry in 2017, Sofia (Guangzhou, China)gradually unified the data caliber between organizations and built interconnection technology; built a collaborative system that can be inquired and traced in the whole process, including design, transportation, and production; and connected all links of front-end and back-end delivery.

(2)

Digital Infrastructure

Digital infrastructure is an infrastructure system driven by data innovation and providing communication, collaboration, and computing capabilities. It includes a series of emerging communication technologies and various digital platforms built on this basis. The wide application of digital technology and digital innovation are based on digital infrastructure, and easy-to-access digital infrastructure is very important for creating and developing new digital enterprises and digital markets. When introducing external digital infrastructure, most manufacturing enterprises choose Kingdee Cloud Platform, which connects finance, sales, planning, and other links. In the report of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, it is clearly pointed out that only on the basis of the comprehensive outbreak of digital infrastructure construction can the digital economy achieve substantial take-off. In e6, the equipment manufacturing industry, Buke (Shanghai, China), has maintained a cooperative relationship with the Kingdee ERP system for eight years. With the help of Kingdee, Buke realized the integration of ERP, MES, and WMS systems, and completed the collaborative utilization of data. In addition, in order to meet the actual needs, the company built an equipment housekeeper, warehouse maintenance system, and other components on the existing platform, and realized the matching of the technology and resources to the greatest extent. In addition to introducing infrastructure from professional digital service providers, Chunmi Technology (Shanghai, China) (e4), which relies on the development of millet ecosystem, independently developed Chunmi App, which uses the software community section to predict and test the unexpressed needs of consumers in advance and iterate and optimize its functions. In addition to completely independent research and development, in e16, Gree (Zhuhai, China) developed a PLM system platform, production real-time monitoring system, and other systems on ERP system and MES system, and realized closed-loop management of the whole chain according to its own production needs. In the management system, human error was successfully avoided. Whether or not with the help of external digital service providers, manufacturing enterprises have built a complete digital infrastructure for smoothly promoting the digital transformation of enterprises, mainly including introducing information systems, introducing digital technologies, and building digital infrastructure independently.

(3)

Application of Digital Technology

The application of digital technology refers to making full use of digital technology and digital infrastructure, improving algorithms and computing power, coordinating technology with internal resources, and optimizing operation and decision-making. Chunmi Technology (Shanghai, China) (e4) matches 100,000 intelligent temperature curves for rice cookers by using algorithm computing power, which can match the actual needs of different altitudes, different regions, and different temperatures in real time and optimize the functional requirements of products. In the whole vehicle manufacturing industry, the Volvo (Shanghai, China) (e19) management team made a comprehensive SWOT analysis of the internal and external environment by using big data and decided to use digital innovation of products to enhance competitiveness. In 2020, Volvo launched the digital marketing service platform “Newbie”, which successfully simplified the after-sales service process of automobiles. In e10, Goldwind (Wulumuqi, China) implanted digital technology into manufacturing and strengthened refined management. In addition, Goldwind (Wulumuqi, China) has established a big data operation analysis platform for wind power, which has realized risk prediction and digital maintenance. Manufacturing enterprises use big data to make decisions, which shakes the assumption of “bounded rational” people and can achieve optimal decisions to a certain extent.

4.1.2. Digital Operation Capability

Compared with platform-based enterprises, the biggest feature of manufacturing enterprises is weak information foundation and high standardization and processing. Therefore, manufacturing enterprises need to pay attention to the whole process of operation, open up the whole data link of the business process, and integrate digitalization into the value chain of products from R&D, production to processing, and sales so as to improve product quality and operational efficiency [52]. With the progress of digital technology, enterprises can more easily capture changes in the external environment, have deeper insight into all aspects of operation, respond to market demand more quickly, and adjust operational decisions in time. For the operation link, insight into the consumer market is the most important. Enterprises need to optimize product functions according to consumer demand, and then develop corresponding pricing strategies to reshape the market. Moreover, the operation management decision in the current business environment is no longer a matter for a single enterprise itself but must be considered more systematically from the perspective of a supply chain. According to product characteristics, combined with consumer demand, enterprises should be equipped with corresponding inventory management decisions, and adjust production and R&D links. In a word, digitalization should spread all over every link of enterprise operation process, including R&D, design, procurement, logistics, manufacturing, and so on. Therefore, digital operation capability includes supply chain integration capability, market shaping capability, digital R&D capability, and digital production capability. The process of data coding is shown in

Table 4. Data coding of digital operation capability.

First-Order Coding	Second-ORDER Theme	Aggregation Dimension
Adjust pricing, change business models, and identify opportunities	Market shaping capability	Digital operation capability
Optimize supply chain, procurement, logistics, inventory and capital management under data	Supply chain integration capability
Research and development of new products according to requirements, research and development of trial and error	Digital R&D capability
Production automation and visualization, avoiding production risks, environmental protection and resource utilization	Digital production capability

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Market Shaping Capability

Market shaping ability refers to enterprises using digital technology and digital platforms to identify internal and external market opportunities, develop or optimize product functions, open up new markets, and change business models. Identifying opportunities is the basis of operation and management for enterprises entering the digital age. Compared with the past, today’s data indicate that the demand of consumers changes faster and the personalized characteristics of demand are more obvious. At the same time, the type and amount of data that enterprises can obtain are far richer than in the past. Under the background of turbulent changes in the environment, it is particularly important for enterprises to quickly and accurately identify external conditions and give full play to their own capabilities and advantages. With the support of the government, Hikvision (Hangzhou, China)(e11) successfully explored the digital technology paradigm of video surveillance, continuously tracked the technology development trend of overseas markets, and paid attention to the front-end products of the industry. In 2005, Hikvision (Hangzhou, China) successfully locked in the domestic security intelligent products industry, which laid a solid foundation for its future development. At present, Hikvision (Hangzhou, China) has become a leading supplier of monitoring products in China, and its business covers more than 150 countries and regions around the world. After successfully identifying the consumption situation in the Chinese market, Hummel (Aalborg, Denmark) (e17) gave up the traditional offline shopping malls and chose to cooperate with the Taobao platform in China, changing the original business model and quickly setting up the China Division. As a leader of the sports trend brand, Hummel (Aalborg, Denmark) has been innovating and transforming continuously during the past century.

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Supply Chain Integration Capability

The core purpose of supply chain integration is to achieve the best combination between value activities and personality characteristics, and also optimize vertical integration and produce a better enterprise performance. The supply chain integration capability of the manufacturing industry refers to the integration degree of the physical, financial, and information flow between enterprises and supply chain partners, which reflects the ability of enterprises to integrate external resources by using free resources in the existing competitive environment. This ability is the main factor influencing the formation of competitive advantage of enterprises, which is embodied in the service to customers in the downstream of the supply chain and the degree of cooperation with upstream suppliers. In 2012, Media (Foshan, China) (e13) began to contact with digital transformation, and gradually upgraded from a traditional home appliance manufacturing enterprise to the first industrial Internet platform provider with manufacturing knowledge, software, and hardware in China. In the process of digital transformation, Media has chosen the AWS cloud platform to build IT business infrastructure for its overseas business; acquired Kuka, a robot giant company, to fill an important part of intelligent manufacturing; cooperated with Shenzhen Meiyun Zhishu Technology (Shenzhen, China) to further promote the Chinese market; and actively responded to the call for two industries. On the basis of optimizing the selection of supply chain partners, Media has further strengthened the real-time contact between suppliers. At the 10th China Economic Foresight Forum, Fang Hongbo said that all suppliers cooperating with Media can communicate in different places, contact the supply chain through mobile phones, and complete transactions completely independently. In order to assist the flexible supply of the Group, Media introduced Kingdee (Shenzhen, China) and other financial systems to realize the transparent management of financial data.

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Digital R&D Capability

At present, the biggest problem facing manufacturing enterprises in the process of digital transformation is how to make use of the current technology and facilities to deeply integrate with R&D, production, service, and management. With the drastic changes in the consumer market, more and more enterprises have initiated a mass customization development mode. Enterprises dig deep into the needs behind consumers and pay close attention to the research and development of high-value products. For manufacturing enterprises, the digital foundation of enterprises is weak, so even if a large amount of original data is generated in the process of developing new products, it is difficult for manufacturing enterprises to effectively mine and store it, which hinders the research and development process of new products or new functions to a certain extent. Therefore, manufacturing enterprises standardize the data generated by the first-line production lines, build a unified database, and further promote the product research and development of enterprises. Zongshen (Chongqing, China) (e15) improves its digital R&D capability in the cycle of R&D, verification, and testing. Zongshen (Chongqing, China) began digital transformation in 2015 and hatched the Humi.com project, known as “Industrial Alibaba”, internally. Backed by Zongshen’s Humi.com, it quickly accumulated certain digital technology and production preferences. After developing new products, Humi.com can first carry out product tests internally, and then put them into external use after passing the tests, thus promoting the technology to be transformed into a solution that can serve the outside world.

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Digital Production Capability

Digital production capability refers to the automation of the production process of mainstream business on the basis of using digital technology to analyze, transform, and utilize data resources, which visually reflects the effective application of industrial technology by manufacturing enterprises and effectively improves the production control level of enterprises. Manufacturing enterprises realize the automatic development of the machining process by managing and monitoring machinery and equipment, and reducing unnecessary manpower and financial resources. In addition, the production visualization technology is used to manage the production operation process, and the data analysis, quality inspection, and monitoring of the production process are carried out on the basis of visualization, which is helpful for intelligent production decision-making. Compared with Internet enterprises, manufacturing enterprises pay more attention to the quality of physical products, and it is very important to provide customers with products with stable quality and reliable performance, which directly determines the position of enterprises in the industry, and also urges enterprises to provide customers with full-process product services by means of digital technology. Finally, the successful digital transformation not only limits its vision to production capacity, but also includes responding to the call of the state and the government to the maximum extent, actively practicing environmental protection, saving energy, and contributing to sustainable economic development.

4.1.3. Digital Organization Capability

Compared with Internet enterprises, the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises is not only a change in technology and operation, but also an extremely important change in organization. At the organizational level, we should rethink the supporting system and process of digital transformation from the perspective of system and process design [53], establish team knowledge map, strengthen knowledge management, push team knowledge management to organizational knowledge management, precipitate the laws found in data, form new cognition, and establish a case base. In the aspect of organizational construction, informationalization is both the foundation and the means, and the construction of software should be strengthened through the process of intelligent hardware facilities construction. When manufacturing enterprises attach importance to the utilization of digital technology, they must match the corresponding governance system and organizational structure in time to escort the sustainable development of digital transformation. The ability of digital organization reflects the management’s emphasis on digital transformation and the degree of coordination and adaptation within the organization. Therefore, when an organization adapts to the digital transformation strategy, it first needs to reach an agreement at the ideological level, deconstruct the original cognition, and reshape the new system and new culture [54]. In order to create a good atmosphere in the enterprise, the role of leaders is particularly important. It is necessary not only to comprehensively consider all kinds of data, but also to continuously learn and lead the organization to carry out digital transformation smoothly. In addition to top-to-bottom communication, horizontal communication between departments has become easy to obtain because of the emergence and development of social media and communication technology. After completing the unification of employees’ thoughts and the preparation of leadership, organizations should strengthen their restructuring ability and reconstruct the original resource base to better adapt to the digital transformation environment. The process of data coding is shown in

Table 5. Data coding of digitized organization ability.

First-Order Coding	Second-Order Theme	Aggregation Dimension
Understand the current state of the enterprise, form new systems and standards, unify thoughts, and keep the management learning	Executive management cognition	Digital organization capability
Talent development, more rational decision-making, more cautious implementation, and communication skills between superiors and subordinates	Digital leadership
Imagine business development and information sharing	Communication with each other
Digitalization of internal management, integration of knowledge and resources, organizational structure reform, resource reconstruction and coordination	Reorganization

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Executive Management Cognition

Digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises means that organizations make timely use of data and technology according to the changes of the digital environment and change business models. Therefore, R&D, production, supply, marketing, and organizational structure need to be adjusted in time to meet the future development requirements of enterprises. In this fierce transformation, executives’ management cognitive ability can alleviate employees’ resistance caused by digital transformation, especially their fear of innovation and resistance to increased workload; unify their thinking for the organization; and then form new systems and standards within the organization that adapt to the internal and external environment. In the sample enterprises, Haier Group (Qingdao, China) (e7) gradually unified the management cognition of all levels of management, and finally made Haier Group achieve “unity of knowledge and practice”. During the interview, Zhang Ruimin mentioned that the formation of his management cognition comes from daily study, summing up Chinese traditional philosophy, and taking the water culture in Tao Te Ching as Haier’s organizational culture. Second, rich experience has been accumulated in the underlying practice. With the accumulation of knowledge in two aspects, Zhang Ruimin can accurately grasp the current state of the company. Even if other high-level officials fiercely oppose it when implementing the transformation strategy, Zhang Ruimin is determined to persuade it. Liu Jianguo, chief technology officer, said that in order to enable grass-roots employees to dig, process, and reflect on the strategic knowledge of their superiors, the Human Resources Department specially held professional training and organized the push of related transformation content, such as the WeChat official account and official website to create employees’ cognition. Faced with the cognitive barrier of digital transformation from top to bottom of the group, Haier Group chose a pilot project, on the premise of not changing the usual path of the organization, so that the employees of the group could see many practical benefits brought by digital transformation, and then gain employees’ recognition of the digital transformation of the enterprise and enhance the unity of cognition. In addition to achieving a high degree of cognitive unity within the organization, in order to better shape the external market and build the brand effect, Chunmi Technology (Shanghai, China) (e4) deeply understands the importance of the system and uses new terms and labels to strengthen the position of products in the consumers’ minds. “We prefer to call tokit a related cooking machine”.

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Digital Leadership

Digital leadership is defined as “successfully doing the right thing for the digital strategy of enterprises and their business ecosystems”, which is a new and higher requirement for managers under the background of digital strategy. In traditional management theory, leadership function is the process of directing, leading, guiding, and encouraging subordinates to work hard to achieve their goals. Compared with traditional leadership, although the thinking ability and action ability that leaders should have in a digital situation are similar, due to the existence of digital technology, the effect of leaders influencing subordinates will change due to the intermediary of technology. Digital technology has changed the way of communication and emotional expression between superiors and subordinates. When refining and summarizing the dimensions of digital organizational ability, this paper sums up the thinking ability that leaders should have in the digital situation as the second-order theme “executive management cognition”, so the digital leadership discussed here only includes action ability. In the sample enterprises, the chief operating officer of Fanjia (Hangzhou, China) (e5) once said when describing how to use the digital management system: “All the data of enterprises are made according to efficiency. After the platform is built, I can make decisions according to the order quantity, profit and loss calculation and other data every day, which is much easier.” And “through the data fed back by customers, we know that customers’ wishes for service quality are sometimes even higher than their sensitivity to price.” Under the situation of big data, leaders make decisions more rationally. However, massive data also has higher requirements for leaders’ information screening and utilization ability, which requires leaders to keep a high degree of sobriety, be more cautious in implementation, and have the ability to distinguish true and false information.

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Communication with Each Other

In manufacturing enterprises, besides the influence of digital technology on the communication of leaders, the horizontal communication ability within the organization has also changed. With the development of social media and communication technology, enterprises can share internal information in real time, and different departments can jointly imagine the future business development direction of enterprises and cooperate with relevant measures. In e7, Haier (Qingdao, China) exchanged work ideas and shared resources through the online virtual scene platform, and invented ideas named after ordinary employees, such as Yunyan Mirror and Xiaoling Wrench. Employees produced a series of new scene products. In the process of digital transformation, the improvement of communication ability is not only reflected among individual employees, but also in the internal supply chain. In e17, Hummel (Aalborg, Denmark), as a royal Danish clothing brand, takes the lead in occupying the market on the Taobao platform, from design to procurement to ready-to-wear sales.

In the context of digital leadership and communication with each other, it is imperative to consider the cultural environment. This study is centered on China, a rapidly developing nation in the realm of technology. Various industries in China are actively engaged in digital transformation endeavors to secure a larger market share. Notably, the digital transformation efforts within Internet-based companies have yielded remarkable outcomes. Consequently, in comparison to other nations, China possesses a wealth of practical experience. While leaders may encounter resistance when guiding enterprises through the transformation process, the distinctive leadership styles of internal leaders, coupled with the utilization of the Chinese-style ‘guanxi’ to foster trust within organizations, enable China to take more proactive measures in achieving digital transformation. These attributes are indicative of digital leadership.

Furthermore, among the 22 enterprises surveyed, it is evident that internal employee relationships are intricate; diverse communication styles and methods directly impact internal alignment. However, under strong leadership within the organization, internal employees demonstrate a high level of compliance, share common goals, and actively prepare for digital transformation.

Throughout the digital transformation journey, cultural factors cannot be underestimated. In the case of China, its cultural attributes provide a solid foundation for enterprises embarking on digital transformation initiatives.

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Reorganization

Reorganization capability refers to the ability of enterprises to reconfigure existing resources to establish new combat capability and cope with urgent, unpredictable, and novel environmental conditions. When manufacturing enterprises carry out digital transformation, they need to adjust the organizational framework in time in order to support the top-level strategic activities more flexibly, that is, the organization rearranges the existing resources, and the main activities include organizational structure reform, establishment of new departments, digitalization of internal management, and so on. In e21, Audi (Beijing, China), a traditional automobile manufacturer, established Audi Business Innovation Company (ABI) in 2013, which undertook the task of expanding IT, marketing, and other departments to develop digital business innovation. At the same time, enterprises set up interdepartmental work teams to jointly carry out digital innovation activities. In e15, Zongshen (Chongqing, China) actively responded to the call of “accelerating the pace of transformation and upgrading”, optimized the organizational structure in a timely manner, and established an industrial Internet company, which is responsible for integrating characteristic Internet operating companies, such as Humi.com (Chongqing, China) and Zuo Shifu (Chongqing, China). An ecological department has been set up to assess suppliers. In e11, Hikvision (Hangzhou, China) regards the integration of scattered technical knowledge and resources learned from internal and external searches of enterprises, and has successively acquired Beijing Node Swiftness Technology (Beijing, China), Beijing Bangnuo Storage Technology (Beijing, China), and Henan Huaan Security Intelligent (Zhengzhou, China).

4.1.4. Digital Strategy Capability

Digital strategy is a process of deep integration of digital technology and enterprise strategy. Digital strategy is attached to the enterprise strategic system, which supports enterprises to create and maintain long-term competitive advantages by triggering business models, competitive methods, and building enterprise ecosystems. Digital strategic capability mainly includes digital dual capability and digital ecological capability. The process of data coding is shown in

Table 6. Data coding of digital strategic capability.

First-Order Coding	Second-Order Theme	Aggregation Dimension
Utilization ability, exploration ability	Digital dual capability	Digital strategy capability
Strategic alliance, consumer value creation, external knowledge sharing and ecological circle construction	Digital ecological capability

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Digital dual capability

Dual capability means that under the drastic changes in the external environment, enterprises should not only make further use of the existing knowledge and resources of the company, but also explore the unknown boundaries of the enterprise outward. Under the agitation of digital transformation, the realization of dual capability requires the exploration ability of constantly contacting new external resources and creating new solutions. For example, in e8, a sample enterprise, Sophia (Guangzhou, China), under the drastic changes in the environment, has fiercely discussed with dealers, exchanged roles, and started an omnichannel strategy. In e6, Buke (Shanghai, China) adopted digital solutions and a flexible manufacturing production line, and it takes less than one month to complete the production line from implementation to completion to production recovery. At the same time, dual capability also needs to make continuous use of existing management knowledge and experience cases, such as Haier Group (Qingdao, China) (e7) and B Company (Berne, China)(e21), to successfully get rid of the current dilemma.

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Digital Ecological Capability

From a biological point of view, the ecological circle covers the sum of biology and environment. An enterprise ecosystem refers to a platform established by various stakeholders in business activities through cooperation [55]. Organizations in the ecosystem depend on each other and benefit each other. In the ecological circle, organizations not only maintain mutual independence, but also share resources and information with each other based on cooperation. Under this definition, the competition of modern enterprises is no longer rigidly confined to the traditional one-to-one or one-to-many competition relationship, but forms an ecological circle competition based on various stakeholders, such as enterprises, suppliers, customers, and distributors, thereby emphasizing mutual benefit and symbiosis. Among all the 21 sample enterprises, there are as many as 14 enterprises involved in ecological capability. Digital transformation requires every enterprise to adjust itself, and, at the same time, it requires members to cooperate with each other to form good interactions in the ecological circle. In e12, in order to capture the consumption and lifestyle trends of the younger generation, Xiaoxiong Electric Co., Ltd (Foshan, China) cooperated with classic IP and well-known artists, and jointly created and launched joint creative small household appliances, such as the “Shining Star Dream” series, “Green Wild Fairy Dream” series, and “Xiaoxiong Smile” series. As a link in the ecological circle, enterprises use digital technology to explore and perceive opportunities. However, due to the lack of necessary capital and talent conditions in traditional manufacturing industry, and the characteristics of late innovation in Chinese traditional manufacturing industry, enterprises often first choose cross-industry cooperation when exploring the future development direction. For example, the clothing manufacturing industry cooperates with the Internet industry, and Red Dragonfly (Wenzhou, China)(e9) completes the digital transformation strategy with the help of Alibaba. Other manufacturing industries cooperated with university research institutes, and Hikvision (Hangzhou, China) (e11) and Peking University established a joint laboratory for intelligent processing of big data, which successfully realized the transformation from networked technology to intelligent technology. As a customized furniture industry, Shangpin (Guangzhou, China) (e3) transforms customers into potential designers, and customers participate in the whole process of home design, from traditional passive acceptance to active guidance of enterprise product creation, and customers are granted unprecedented rights in this process. In the process of users’ active creation, enterprises also learn customers’ usage habits in reverse, which provides the basis for the next product optimization. Zongshen (Chongqing, China)(e15) has a more perfect ecological construction in the transformation process. First, it actively obtains external cross-border support. Zongshen (Chongqing, China) has established various partnerships by using Humi.com hatched by itself, including Kingdee (Shanghai, China), UFIDA (Beijing, China), and other suppliers; China Communications Industry Association and other industry associations; and also carrying out research on the combination of industry and university with universities. Secondly, the mature ecological circle is linked, thereby allowing learning from the world-leading MindSphere platform built by Siemens (Berlin, Geramny), which established international strategic cooperation with Siemens and resulted in contact with ecologically mature enterprises such as Huawei (Shenzhen, China)and Tencent (Shenzhen, China). In addition to introducing products and solutions from partners, Zongshen also actively exerts its advantages to provide products and services for upstream and downstream companies to achieve mutual benefit and win–win results. Finally, ecological forces continue to play a role. In order to complete the closed loop of the ecosystem, Zongshen has vigorously introduced cooperative enterprises with shortcomings, forming a complete system from finance, manufacturing, to after-sales.

Through the qualitative meta-analysis method and by taking 22 manufacturing enterprises undergoing digital transformation as research samples, it is found that these enterprises pay attention to different capabilities at the technical level, operational level, organizational level, and strategic level during digital transformation. That is, digital technology capability, digital operation capability, digital organization capability, and digital strategic capability. In the process of transformation, enterprises embed digital technology into all links of R&D, production, and marketing, as well as empowering enterprises, optimizing mismatched organizational structures, and adapting to the environment constantly; then, customers, external suppliers, and industry–university research institutes are brought into the organizational ecosystem, changing business models and enhancing the competitiveness of enterprises. In addition, this paper identifies 13 secondary capabilities. After research, it is found that the digital technology capability of manufacturing enterprises includes digital integration capability, digital infrastructure, and digital technology application. Digital operation capability includes market shaping capability, supply chain integration capability, digital R&D capability, and digital production capability. Digital organization capability includes management cognition, mutual communication ability, digital leadership, and reorganization ability. Digital strategy capability includes digital dual capability, and digital dynamic capability. The digital transformation capability system is shown in Figure 1.

4.2. Analysis of Digital Transformation Capability Structure

According to the above qualitative meta-analysis, it can be seen that the digital capability of manufacturing enterprises can be divided into four dimensions, namely, digital technical capability, digital operation capability, digital organization capability, and digital strategic capability. This study combines the resource-based theory, dynamic capability theory, and capability hierarchy view, and further constructs the hierarchical structure model of digital transformation capability of manufacturing enterprises, as shown in Figure 2. This study finds that there is a relationship from low-order to high-order among the digital transformation capabilities of manufacturing enterprises.

4.2.1. Digital Zero-Order Capability

From the perspective of a resource-based theory, resources are all assets, capabilities, organizational processes, enterprise characteristics, information, and knowledge that can be used by enterprises to improve their efficiency and benefits [56]. In the context of digital transformation, the combination of digital resources and traditional resources completes the process of resource absorption, and then stimulates the development of dynamic capabilities of enterprises, resulting in digital technical capabilities. Digital technology capability is the foundation of digital transformation of enterprises. It examines whether enterprises have the conditions for digital transformation, such as the introduction of basic technologies and the construction of industrial facilities, including digital integration capabilities, digital infrastructure, and digital technology application. Drawing lessons from the hierarchical classification of organizational capabilities by C.L. Wang and P.K. Ahmed [57], this paper holds that the zero-order capabilities of digital transformation are the necessary basic resources for enterprises to carry out digital transformation. Therefore, the digital technology capability is divided into “zero-order capability”. Enterprises need to acquire and utilize massive data with the help of zero-order capability. On the one hand, this can be done through integration and analysis, which can improve efficiency for production, R&D, and supply. On the other hand, this can be done by building infrastructure, and resources for alliances can be prepared in the industry. In the context of the manufacturing industry, the adoption of digital technology and infrastructure has emerged as a hallmark of digital transformation for the majority of enterprises. However, relying solely on digital technology capabilities cannot drive enterprises to successfully complete the transformation. Digital technology capability needs to be transformed and upgraded in the next stage in combination with new resource conditions, so that it is possible to transform technology investment into enterprise revenue.

4.2.2. Digital First-Order Capability

The integration of zero-order capabilities with the learning experiences of department managers can facilitate a hierarchical leap in organizational capabilities. In this paper, the first-order capability of digital transformation is defined as the capability of deploying resources to achieve goals and having strategic importance to the competitive advantage of enterprises. Digital first-order capability involves two levels of operation and organization, including market shaping capability, supply chain integration capability, digital R&D capability, digital production capability, mutual communication capability, and reorganization capability. This level refers to the ability to apply digital technology to all levels of enterprises, realize all-round digitalization, and improve business performance. At present, the biggest problem facing manufacturing enterprises in the process of digital transformation is how to effectively promote the combination of digital technology with production, R&D, logistics, and marketing [58], which also matches the requirements put forward by the national “14th Five-Year Plan for Intelligent Manufacturing Development”. However, a considerable number of enterprises are afraid of difficulties and cowardice in this link, and their digital transformation process comes to an abrupt end. Therefore, the digital first-order capability is also difficult for many manufacturing enterprises to obtain and belongs to the higher-order digital transformation capability. Furthermore, based on the current outcomes of digital transformation, the presence of first-order digital capabilities has evolved into a critical criterion for assessing the successful implementation of digital transformation within an enterprise.

4.2.3. Digital Second-Order Capability

Similarly, the first-order ability can realize the hierarchical jump of ability by predicting the future environmental changes and combining with the cultural resources of the times. In this paper, the ability of enterprises to adapt to environmental changes and obtain future excess profits is divided into digital second-order ability.

Digital second-order capability involves two levels: organization and strategy, including executive management cognition, digital leadership, digital dual capability, and digital ecological capability. Digital second-order capability is the highest-order capability of digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises, and it is the ability of enterprises to maximize enterprise performance, promote enterprise cooperation, openness, and actively undertake social responsibility based on the current business model. On the one hand, the cognitive ability of entrepreneurs directly determines the resource allocation of enterprises, and some scholars believe that the leadership of entrepreneurs is the source of enterprise capabilities [59]. On the other hand, the social and economic environment is changing rapidly, and the digital strategic capability can adapt to the external environment more quickly, with more agility and flexibility. Therefore, the digital second-order capability can be a reasonable tool for the planning and exploration for the future development of enterprises that have achieved the current transformation goals. In the contemporary economic development landscape, manufacturing enterprises have progressively evolved into comprehensive value chains, establishing connections with upstream suppliers, downstream customers, and industry partners. With the development of digital capability, manufacturing enterprises can even realize cross-industry ecological alliances, break through industrial barriers, and further expand the influence of the Chinese manufacturing industry. In addition, manufacturing enterprises consume huge energy, and comprehensive energy conservation, emission reduction, low carbon targets, and green development are related to the overall digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises, and are also one of the key tasks of “Made in China 2025” [60]. Therefore, whether an enterprise has the second-order digital capability has become an important symbol of whether it can move from a successful enterprise to a great enterprise.

5. Discussion

Under the background of “Made in China 2025”, the transformation and upgrading of manufacturing enterprises not only serve as a path to pursue high-quality development in the future but also constitute a measure to ensure the stable operation of these enterprises. With the development of big data, the resources and information obtained by enterprises at the interface tend to be consistent and transparent. However, judging from the transformation achievements of existing manufacturing enterprises, more than 60% of manufacturing companies are still in a dilemma. Whether it is the wrong direction of transformation, the deviation of the technical route, or the solidification of managers’ thinking, manufacturing enterprises always face greater inertia and trial-and-error risks in digital transformation. However, some manufacturing enterprises have made rich achievements in digital transformation. Behind this difference is the driving effect of ability. Under the theory of a resource-based view, resources tend to be consistent, which leads to the different performances of different enterprises under the digital background. The fundamental reason is the ability of enterprises to use and arrange all resources, i.e., the ability for digital transformation.

Firstly, through a qualitative meta-analysis and by taking 22 manufacturing enterprises undergoing or having completed digital transformation as research samples, it is found that the digital transformation capability system of manufacturing enterprises includes four dimensions, namely digital technical capability, digital operation capability, digital organization capability, and digital strategic capability. In the process of digital transformation, these enterprises usually need to coordinate with multiple capabilities from different levels. Digital technology capability is the necessary basic capability for manufacturing enterprises to carry out digital transformation, which includes the whole process from data collection to data processing and utilization to comprehensive analysis. Digital operation capability means that manufacturing enterprises need to pay attention to the whole process of operation, open up the whole data link of the business process, and integrate digitalization into the value chain links of products from R&D, production to processing, and sales so as to improve product quality and operational efficiency. Digital organization ability is the necessary guarantee for enterprises to carry out digital transformation, which means that enterprises should rethink the supporting systems and processes of digital transformation from the perspective of system and process design, establish the knowledge map of teams, and strengthen organizational management. Digital strategic capability is a process of deep integration of digital technology and enterprise strategy, which mainly includes digital dual capability and digital ecological capability.

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Digital technology capability includes three secondary capabilities, namely digital integration capability, digital infrastructure, and digital technology application. Through the collection, storage, and interface processing of data, the intercommunication and interconnection of data are preliminarily realized by using digital integration capability. Secondly, infrastructure for enterprises by introducing information technology and information management platforms is built. Finally, intelligent system empowerment within the enterprise is realized.

(2)

Digital operation capability includes four secondary capabilities, namely market shaping capability, supply chain capability, digital R&D capability, and digital production capability. By identifying external market opportunities, enterprises reorganize resources and adjust pricing strategies in time to evaluate and reshape the consumer market clearly and quickly. In addition to the consumer side, the upstream supply side starts flexible supply driven by digital technology and responds quickly to the demand of production lines. Digital R&D capability greatly reduces the trial-and-error cost during the process of new product manufacturing, and digital production capability can not only visualize and control the whole production process, but also bear a certain degree of social responsibility for environmental preservation and resource conservation.

(3)

Digital organization capability includes four secondary abilities, namely, management cognition, mutual communication ability, digital leadership, and reorganization ability. Digital transformation is a drastic change in enterprises, so managers need to guide employees in enterprises, which is the first condition for the existence of management cognition. In addition to the communication and guidance from superiors to subordinates, departments at similar hierarchical levels must also enhance communication and collaboratively envision the future direction of business development. Digital leadership is reflected in decision-making and learning. The variable quality of big data imposes new demands on leaders’ capability to discern information quality. Digital leadership requires managers to keep a learning attitude at all times and be more cautious in decision-making. Reorganization ability is an important driving force of digital organization ability. Timely adjustment of organizational structure, merger and acquisition strategy, appropriate resource coordination, and reorganization ability are important components of enterprise digital transformation ability.

(4)

Digital strategic capability includes two secondary capabilities, namely digital dual capability and digital ecological capability. In the era of digital economy with drastic changes in environment, dual capability is essential, which is the key to keep enterprises resilient. Ecological ability is the inevitable product in the process of digital transformation of enterprises. Enterprises interconnect with suppliers and customers, create a closed chain, and lead partners to digitalization and create competitive advantages in the form of “one belt with more” or “one belt with more”.

Secondly, combined with resource-based theory and capability hierarchy view, this paper disassembles the proposed digital transformation capability into digital zero-order capability, digital first-order capability, and digital second-order capability. Among them, digital zero-order capability refers to the basic resources necessary for enterprises to carry out digital transformation, including digital integration capability, digital infrastructure, and digital technology application. Digital first-order capability refers to the ability of enterprises to deploy resources to achieve their goals and have strategic importance to their competitive advantages, including market shaping capability, digital production capability, digital R&D capability, supply chain integration capability, mutual communication capability, and restructuring capability. Digital second-order capability refers to the ability of enterprises to adapt to environmental changes and obtain future excess profits, including executive management cognition, digital leadership, digital dual capability, and digital ecological capability.

Therefore, enterprises should focus on cultivating digital transformation ability. Grass-roots employees strengthen the understanding and application of new systems and functions, and actively participate in horizontal communication among departments. From a “deconstruction–reconstruction” change mode in thought, the future development strategy of enterprises with the endurance of continuous learning can be grasped and drive the coordinated development among various departments with digital leadership. On the premise of unified thinking, we attach importance to the construction of talent echelons in IT departments, and all business departments take digital technology as the starting point to improve the digital transformation level of enterprises from the market side, production side, R&D side, and supply side. When organizational ability is combined with current resources, and the ability jump can be successfully completed.

6. Conclusions

The paper constructs a three-level capability structure model of digital transformation capability, which includes digital technology capability, digital operation capability, digital organization capability, and digital strategic capability, and it is found that there is a hierarchical relationship among the capabilities of each dimension.

6.1. Contribution

This study thoroughly investigates the structural dimensions and capability framework of digital capabilities in manufacturing enterprises, yielding two theoretical contributions. Firstly, this study systematically reviews the resource-based view and capability hierarchy perspectives, expanding the theoretical boundaries of digital transformation and further enriching the applicability of the theoretical framework. Secondly, by employing a qualitative meta-analysis methodology, this study constructs a comprehensive model of digital capabilities in manufacturing enterprises. This model establishes a solid theoretical foundation for future empirical research on digital capabilities in manufacturing enterprises.

This study also holds practical significance, as the proposed capability framework comprehensively reflects the characteristics of digital capabilities in manufacturing industry enterprises. It serves as a valuable reference for guiding successful transformations in manufacturing enterprises. The digital capability framework and its developmental pathways can contribute to enhancing the overall quality and advancement of manufacturing enterprises, ultimately guiding their journey toward becoming technology-driven powerhouses, thereby offering practical guidance for the acceleration of our nation’s progress towards technological leadership.

6.2. Limitations and Directions for Future Research

Although this paper explores the structural dimension and formation path of digital transformation capability of manufacturing enterprises, there are still the following shortcomings, which need to be further explored. This study only introduces the structural dimension of digital transformation capability, but does not quantify each capability and lacks the development of relevant research scales. Therefore, there is still room for further research in this study in the future.