This study aims to deconstruct the adaptation mechanism of digital business models (DBMs) in traditional manufacturing enterprises by examining how it aligns enterprise contexts, strategic goals and digital combinations.
Grounded in ecosystem-specific advantages and contingency theories, this study proposes a framework to analyze the alignment and validate it through case studies and the Borcha algorithm.
The study identifies a contingency-based adaptation mechanism – specific contexts determine strategic goals, which in turn necessitate aligned digital combinations. Four coherent patterns emerge: (1) specialization-focused pattern (selective cooperation/intranet platform/universal capability) yields a boundary-setting DBM. (2) Refinement-focused pattern (complementary cooperation/supply chain management – supply chain management platform/deconstruction capability) produces a thick-planting DBM. (3) Differentiation-focused pattern (affinity cooperation/ecosystem platform/hybrid capability) leads to a freshness-seeking DBM. (4) Innovation-focused pattern (integrative cooperation/element platform/disruption capability) creates a pioneering-creation DBM. The evolution of DBMs progresses dynamically through the adaptation of digital combinations.
It establishes a causal linkage between specific contexts and strategic goals [specialized-refined-differential-innovative (SRDI)], resolving theoretical ambiguities in prior research regarding how environmental pressures determine strategic orientations; it uncovers the adaptation mechanism among contexts, strategies and digital combinations, breaking through the limitation of isolated analysis in existing studies; it proposes an evolutionary path of DBMs based on SRDI attributes, offering B2B marketers a dynamic roadmap for advancing from transactional models to platform-enabled partnership.
