Digital Transformation in Organisations

The line of research “Digital Transformation and Innovation in Organizations (TDIO)! has digital transformation as a transversal theme to the different research topics. Digital transformation can happen in organizations in general and in educational organizations in particular. Regarding teaching organizations, it is necessary to intervene in the teaching/learning processes to lead to their transformation/adaptation to the current context. In some areas, namely in education and training, these transformations will allow new and future professionals to be the engine of the required change in organizations. For this purpose, the paradigm shift in teaching is increasingly a concern and an open question within educational institutions, given the existing inertia to disrupt something that has, in many cases, centuries of existence.

Digital transformation in organizations entails implications at several levels, namely in integrating the organization’s strategy with technology and the impact on the business model, which needs to be developed upstream and downstream. Upstream during the training period and downstream in direct intervention in organizations, launching research challenges. That could only be analyzed and worked on through an interdisciplinary approach, namely in the teaching/training dimension of current and future professionals (lifelong learning). The organizational dimension lacks research work for digital transformation because, according to Forbes, in a global study, 87% of companies believe that “digital” will revolutionize their industries. Still, only 44% are prepared for this transformation.

Additionally, the same study indicated that 70% of organizations have a digital transformation strategy or are working towards that objective. In comparison, 55% of companies that have yet to transform believe that they have less than a year until they start losing market share. However, in the Portuguese market, according to a study by the consultancy IDC, half of the companies already use the technologies of the so-called third platform (cloud, mobility, Big Data and social business), together with cutting-edge technologies in the areas of collaboration (IoT and 5G), with cybersecurity issues as a common denominator. This second dimension includes, among others, the internationalization of organizations.

Research Group: Digital Transformation and Innovation in Organisations (DTIO)