依附式升级:平台生态系统中参与者的数字化转型战略

Platform-dependent Upgrade: Digital Transformation Strategy of Complementors in Platform-based Ecosystem

传统企业借助数字平台的赋能可以缓解数字化转型中面临的技术能力和资源不足的约束,但是其作为生态参与者又面临"如何依附平台趁势升级、却又不丧失自主性"的两难困境。本文通过对设计企业洛可可集团和钉钉平台协同升级的案例研究,构建生态参与者借助平台企业推进数字化转型的"依附式升级"模型。研究发现,生态参与者采用"依附式升级"战略包括互融、共生、自主3个阶段;参与者通过与平台企业可视化、可重组的数字化行为,逐步实现效率提升、业务增长和生态构建;参与者与平台企业间的互补和依赖关系的平衡与演化是推动数字化进程的内生动力。本文对企业数字化转型的新洞见包括:一是传统企业可以加入平台生态系统,采用"依附式升级"新战略推进数字化转型;二是平台与参与者相嵌升维,未来产业结构将朝向"多维平台嵌套"的新组织形态演进;三是生态参与者与平台企业需处理好"互补和依赖"的新二元动态关系。

Although traditional enterprises have realized the importance of digital transformation, the lack of resources and capabilities makes it difficult to solve the startup problem. The enterprises leveraging platform enabling is considered an ideal path to advance digital transformation. However, traditional enterprises are facing the dilemma of "how to depend on the platform to upgrade without losing autonomy". As complementors, traditional enterprises need to think about how to co-create with platform owners, and realize "depending on the platform to upgrade". They should also think about reducing dependence on platform owners and increasing their bargaining power. Therefore,when leveraging platform enabling to promote digital transformation, traditional enterprises need to deal with the tension of complementarity and dependence with platform owners.There are two major gaps in existing research. On the one hand, previous platform-based ecosystem research focuses on the governance and competition strategies of the platform owner. Recent research pay attention to the interaction between complementors and platform owners. However,the majority of studies concentrate on the behavior analysis of digital native enterprises. When traditional enterprises and platform owners promote the digital transformation of their industry jointly, the process becomes much more complicated. It is urgent to reveal the mechanism of the cocreation process. On the other hand, research on digital transformation focuses more on concepts and research frameworks, and case study of the digital transformation process have begun to appear. However, there is still little attention to the digital transformation of enterprises in the context of the platform-based ecosystem. Platform-based ecosystem and digitization are two relatively independent research fields.We conduct single-case longitudinal research to reveal "how traditional enterprises,as complementors,can leverage platform to promote their own digital transformation." Following the principle of theoretical sampling, we choose a case named LKK Group, a leading company in the design industry, which leverages Alibaba DingTalk platform to promote digital transformation. We collect data through documentation, semi-structured interviews and participant observations, totaling about 290 k words.Through case analysis, we find that traditional enterprise, as platform-based ecosystem complementors, adopt a "platform-dependent upgrade" strategy. Platform-dependent upgrade refers to the process in which complementors depend on platform owners to promote digital transformation and achieve independent development. Specifically, platform-dependent upgrade strategy includes three processes of convergence, symbiosis and autonomy. Through the digitalization behavior of visualization and reconfigurable, complementors can gradually realize efficiency improvement, business growth and ecological construction. The balance and evolution of the complementary and dependent relationship between complementors and platform owners is the dynamics that promotes the digital transformation.This study makes two theoretical contributions. On the one hand, we propose the "platform-dependent upgrade" strategy for traditional enterprises. On the other hand, we contribute to platform-based ecosystem research, enriching the research from the perspective of complementors. In summary, this article provides three new insights for the practice of enterprises digital transformation. "Platform-dependent upgrade", a new strategy for traditional enterprises digital transformation;"Multi-platform embedding", a new organizational form in the future industrial structure;"Complementarity and dependence", the new duality relationship between complementors and platform Owners.