Diagnosing the implementation of digital technologies by European Union manufacturing multinationals

Abstract

Industry 4.0 is technologically transforming conventional business models. Due to their power, size, scope, and the pressures they face to meet sustainability goals, manufacturing multinational enterprises (MNEs) are considered by other organizations as references in implementing digital practices. This study aims to analyze the adoption of digital technologies by European Union MNEs and explore the relationship between technology implementation patterns and the property characteristics of these enterprises. Seven digital technologies were considered (Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing, Robotics, Smart Devices, Big Data Analytics, High-Speed Infrastructures, and Blockchain). To this end, this study uses a sample of 764 manufacturing MNEs. The results show that European manufacturing MNEs have a low implementation of digital technologies. Furthermore, the adoption patterns of these digital technologies are related to their size and foundation year. This is the first empirical study that provides a diagnosis of digital technologies adopted by manufacturing MNEs in enterprise systems.