Successful Digitalization Strategies of Lower Austrian family-managed SME in the production sector: The influence of digitalization orientation and digitalization resources

Regional Government of Lower Austria

Today, digital change is permeating all areas of private and public life. Established family firms are increasingly under pressure from dynamic market entrants who use digitalization to their advantage. Digitalization can revolutionise production, marketing, planning, logistics, communication or entire business models by enabling new functionalities and making processes more reliable and efficient. In this way, it contributes to value creation and increases competitiveness. The adaptation of digital technologies is therefore indispensable for family firms. However, it implies rethinking and re-learning tried and trusted practices in sometimes radically ways.

This study draws a comprehensive picture of prerequisites for successful digitalization in Lower Austrian family-managed SME by taking a mixed methods approach. Specifically, (1) it explores the digitalization context identifying triggers and restraints for digitalization, (2) it observes digitalization measures already taken or planned by the family firms to portrait the Lower Austrian digitalization status, (3) it takes a look at the organizational culture to investigate why many family firms find it so difficult to identify and exploit entrepreneurial opportunities for digitalization, (4) it identifies key resources needed for digitalization and (5) it measures the objective and subjective success of implemented digitalization measures.