Digital Transformation and SME Resilience: Towards a Conceptual Model Integrating Dynamic Capabilities and ESG Practices

Abstract

Digital transformation has become a major strategic lever for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) facing an increasing number of economic, technological and competitive shocks. Although the academic literature increasingly acknowledges its contribution to organizational resilience, the mechanisms through which this effect materializes remain insufficiently theorized, particularly regarding the articulation between dynamic capabilities and environmental, social and governance (ESG) practices. This article proposes a structured literature review aiming to build an integrative conceptual model linking digital transformation, dynamic capabilities, ESG practices and SME resilience. Drawing on dynamic capabilities theory, resource orchestration theory and institutional theory, the analysis highlights three explanatory mechanisms, namely a direct effect of digital transformation on resilience, an indirect effect mediated by the strengthening of dynamic capabilities of sensing, seizing and reconfiguring resources, and an indirect effect both mediated and moderated by the adoption of ESG practices. The synthesis of empirical studies conducted in diverse contexts, notably European, Chinese, Southeast Asian and African, lends support to these relationships while revealing heterogeneity linked to resource constraints, organizational culture and the institutional environment specific to SMEs. The proposed conceptual model, structured around eight research hypotheses, offers a framework for future empirical investigations, particularly in the Moroccan context, where SME digitalization and corporate social responsibility remain largely unexplored areas of academic research.