Corvello Vincenzo, Verteramo Saverino, Nocella Isabella, Ammirato Salvatore
Department of Mechanical, Energy and Management Engineering, University of Calabria, Rende, Italy.
J Ambient Intell Humaniz Comput. 2022 Mar 22:1-13. doi: 10.1007/s12652-022-03816-x.
The crisis triggered by the COVID-19 emergency is changing the competitive landscape by pushing companies to adapt to sudden change. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that want to survive must innovate their business. Antifragility represents the capability of a system to absorb shocks and get better, allowing it to overcome a crisis and improve its performance. The use of digital technologies by enterprises is expected to play an important role in building antifragility. The aim of this paper is to study how digital technologies can contribute to the development of antifragility in SMEs. This study analyzed the responses to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis of six small and medium-sized enterprises located in Calabria, South of Italy. All the six enterprises have turned the crisis into a business opportunity developing new products, investing in marketing and communication, or starting new collaborations. The research identifies the factors leveraged by the investigated organizations that enabled this anti fragile behavior. They include slack financial resources, strategic agility, and relations with research institutions. The study highlights the positive impact of digital technologies in developing antifragility. Results were summarized into research propositions to be tested in future confirmatory studies. The findings of the study are useful for researchers interested in antifragility and digital technologies in SMEs. The results are also important for entrepreneurs and managers of SMEs, since they can support their decisions in terms of survival and transformation of their companies.
由新冠疫情紧急情况引发的危机正在改变竞争格局，促使企业适应突然的变化。想要生存的中小企业必须对其业务进行创新。反脆弱性代表了一个系统吸收冲击并变得更好的能力，使其能够克服危机并提升其绩效。企业对数字技术的运用有望在构建反脆弱性方面发挥重要作用。本文的目的是研究数字技术如何促进中小企业反脆弱性的发展。本研究分析了位于意大利南部卡拉布里亚的六家中小企业对新冠疫情危机的应对措施。这六家企业都将危机转化为商业机会，开发新产品、投资营销与传播，或开展新的合作。该研究确定了被调查组织所利用的促成这种反脆弱行为的因素。这些因素包括充裕的财务资源、战略敏捷性以及与研究机构的关系。该研究突出了数字技术在发展反脆弱性方面的积极影响。研究结果被总结为研究命题，以待在未来的验证性研究中进行检验。该研究的发现对关注中小企业反脆弱性和数字技术的研究人员很有用。研究结果对中小企业的企业家和管理者也很重要，因为它们可以在企业的生存和转型方面为其决策提供支持。
