The TOBE playbook: identifying barriers and drivers of digital success in the service sector
The TOBE playbook: identifying barriers and drivers of digital success in the service sector

Summary/Abstract: The process of digitalization varies across organizations, with many encountering significant barriers that hinder them from fully using the benefits of digital technologies. This limitation is primarily attributed to a lack of knowledge and expertise. This study aims to answer the following research question: what are the most important factors that affect technology adoption in the service sector? Drawing from the literature findings, a semi-structured interview protocol was applied to facilitate exploratory discussions. Six service companies were analyzed. Based on the interviews conducted, organizational factors emerged as the most prevalent barriers and drivers, underscoring the importance of aligning digitalization with organizational goals. Furthermore, based on the interviews, we propose the extension of the TOE (Technology – Organization – Environment) framework to TOBE: this extension incorporates a dedicated behavior (B) dimension, which is crucial as it captures the nuances of employee actions, attitudes, and cultural influences that directly affect technology adoption and implementation. The addition of the behavior dimension allows the framework to better address the human element in digital transformation, ensuring that both technical and interpersonal dynamics are considered in strategic decision-making. During this research, 37 unique drivers and 27 barriers were identified. In both cases, organizational factors are the most frequent, followed by behavioral factors, highlighting the importance of aligning digitalization with organizational structures and considering behavioral aspects as well.

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