Firms and Digital Technologies in Italy: The Network Moves Forward

Abstract

Implementation of new digital technologies in Italian firms has not been as rapid as might have been expected, even though they have started to change the way in which businesses are organized. After the disillusionment that followed the euphoria of the nineties, many firms have postponed their e-business investments as they look for more certain answers to their questions. We tried to find at least some of these answers in this study of the development of e-business in Italy by meta-analyzing relevant research studies (including the results of 16 case analyses developed at SDA Bocconi by colleagues working in different management disciplines), and by interviewing 56 e-business managers in firms of different sizes operating in various industries. The results of the study indicate that digital technologies and e-business have already changed the nature and organization of businesses, but perhaps in a different way from that originally expected. The use and impact of BtoC e-commerce is limited. Instead firms have mainly used digital networking technologies in order to reorganise their internal processes and relationships in the supply chain. The role of culture and of intangible resources has proved important.