Digital innovations for micro, small and medium enterprises in the net zero economy: A strategic perspective

Abstract

AbstractIn order to achieve a net zero economy, there must be a thorough digital revolution where sustainability is given top priority by spurring innovation, generating efficiencies, and improving services. Data show that digitalization is essential to reaching sustainable development goals as the world community struggles to meet the urgent need to combat climate change. Therefore, this study aims at identifying important barriers to digital innovation for MSMEs in a net‐zero economy. This study used past academic literature and the fuzzy‐Delphi method to identify important barriers and the weighted influence nonlinear gauge system (WINGS) method to prioritize and develop contextual relationships between identified barriers. As per the findings, lack of organizational resources and support is the most crucial barrier to digital innovation. This is followed by challenges in designing a digital strategy. The novelty of this study is the identification of digital innovation barriers for MSMEs from net‐zero perspectives and prioritizing them using the WINGS method. This work will help practitioners to define clear organizational policies on digital innovation which will offer great promise for MSMEs to increase their performance.