Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Technological Forecasting & Social Change

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/techfore

Analysis of the adoption of emergent technologies for risk management in

the era of digital manufacturing
Oscar Rodríguez-Espíndola a, *, Soumyadeb Chowdhury b, Prasanta Kumar Dey a, Pavel Albores a,
Ali Emrouznejad c
a
Aston Business School, Aston University, Birmingham, United Kingdom
b
Information, Operations and Management Sciences, Toulouse Business School, Toulouse, France
c
Surrey Business School, Surrey University, Guildford, United Kingdom

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: The Industry 4.0 (I4.0) revolution has led to rapid digital transformation, automation of manufacturing processes
Risk management and efficient decision-making in business operations. Despite the potential benefits of I4.0 technologies in op­
Emergent technologies erations management reported in the extant literature, there has been a paucity of empirical research examining
Digital manufacturing
the intention to adopt I4.0 technologies for managing risks. Risk management identifies, assesses, and introduces
Industry 4.0
responses for risks to avert crises. This study combines institutional theory, the resource-based view and the
Structural equation modelling
technology acceptance model to develop a novel behavioural model examining the adoption of big data, artificial
intelligence, cloud computing, and blockchain for risk management from the operations manager’s perspective,
which has never been examined in the literature. The model was tested for each I4.0 technology using data
collected from 117 operations managers in the UK manufacturing industry which were analysed using structural
equation modelling. We contribute to the theory on I4.0 in digital manufacturing by showing the impact of
digital transformation maturity, market pressure, regulations, and resilience on the perceived usefulness and
adoption of these technologies for managing risks in business operations. Based on the findings, we discuss
implications for operations managers effectively and efficiently to adopt I4.0 technologies aiming to boost
operational productivity.

1. Introduction (Mwangi et al., 2021). Currently, risk management faces a combination

of massive amounts of information collected (Papadopoulos et al., 2017)
The survival of organisations has been threatened by challenges and the uncertainty about vulnerabilities and disruptions, which affects
ranging from internal disruptions to global catastrophes (Baghersad and the efficiency and effectiveness of operations (Comes et al., 2020). Risk
Zobel, 2021; de Sousa Jabbour, et al., 2018; Rodríguez-Espíndola et al., management requires consolidating and compiling multiple datasets in
2020). The way companies handle those situations is currently in the heterogenous formats, deriving strategic insights from voluminous and
spotlight due to the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. Given the high-velocity data, undertaking complex financial monitoring, man­
importance of understanding potential threats and alternatives to react aging poor visibility and traceability in the supply chain, reducing dis­
and adapt to uncertain, chaotic, and changing conditions, risk man­ crepancies stemming from manual reporting, and managing conflicting
agement has gained increasing attention in global supply chains (Mac­ information because of the absence of a central shared database. The
Carthy et al., 2016). It allows companies to identify, analyse, respond to, effectiveness of these activities has a significant effect on risk planning,
and control vulnerabilities to manage disruptions (Kodym et al., 2020), prediction and crisis management (Lee and Marc, 2003). For instance,
which can have significant effects on resilience and business continuity. the data breach in Fargo Wells showed the importance of risk manage­
Risk management, however, is a complex function facing multiple ment when looking at cybersecurity and the management of informa­
challenges. The increasing interconnectedness of stakeholders in supply tion. To reap the benefits of improved information management,
chains has improved operations, but at the same time, it has created a automated decision support systems need to become a liaison between
dependency amongst firms, causing vulnerability to disturbances stakeholders and management stages (Ozdamar and Ertem, 2015),

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: [email protected] (O. Rodríguez-Espíndola).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2022.121562
Received 28 February 2021; Received in revised form 2 February 2022; Accepted 5 February 2022
Available online 14 February 2022
0040-1625/© 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

enabling managers to make sense of the information and use it to sup­ because of their capacity to mitigate risk at different stages (Khajavi
port decision-making (Comes et al., 2020). Indeed, in many cases, the et al., 2015). For instance, Cepham has introduced blockchain to assess
problem has shifted from collecting and storing data to turning the in­ the quality of the products before they are consumed by the customers to
formation obtained from digital data streams into knowledge and alleviate risks of product quality at the production and consumption
actionable insights (Günther et al., 2017). Emergent technologies com­ stages.
ing from digital manufacturing have been suggested as suitable options Despite the potential benefits studied in the literature (Bag et al.,
to improve data-centric mechanisms to identify, analyse, and develop 2021) and outlined in research reviews (Frank et al., 2019; Papado­
responses to risk and vulnerabilities. poulos et al., 2021; Zheng et al., 2021), the adoption of emergent
Digital manufacturing involves the use of digital models and ontol­ technologies in risk management is at an early stage (Baryannis et al.,
ogies to digitalise the different stages of a networked company (Bor­ 2019). Leveraging I4.0 technologies is far from trivial. The challenges to
angiu et al., 2019). Digital manufacturing is seen as “the effect of digital adopting these new-age I4.0 technologies are myriad due to lack of
transformation in manufacturing, driven by technology enablers such as skilled labour and technical know-how, financial constraints, opera­
the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing (CC), artificial intelli­ tional complexities, lack of information management strategy, limited
gence, big data analytics, virtualisation and augmented reality” (Szala­ understanding of the return of investment, resistance to adopting and
vetz, 2019). Therefore, digital manufacturing and information systems adapting their existing business models and practices, and lack of stra­
can allow integrated operations through the implementation of I4.0 tegic alignment between business priorities and technological needs of
(Annarelli et al., 2021; Büchi et al., 2020; Lopes de Sousa Jabbour et al., the organisation (Bag et al., 2018; Raj et al., 2020). User acceptance is
2018; Szalavetz, 2019), which will lead to connectedness and autono­ key to successfully implementing technology. For example, when Cit­
mous intelligence, where humans and technology have to collaborate to igroup Inc. wired $900 million by mistake to Revlon’s lenders in August
create strategic value for organisations (Reiman et al., 2021). I4.0 can be 2020, the company claimed the issue was due to human error. Eventu­
defined as a technological revolution redefining the manufacturing in­ ally, the problem was traced back to new software with a highly complex
dustry through the implementation of technologies that can improve the user interface (Alcántara, 2021), suggesting that user experience and
management of value supply chains and their related processes (Büchi acceptance was not properly considered for implementation. Therefore,
et al., 2020; Reischauer, 2018). It allows the introduction of emergent it is important to look at the adoption of these technologies in the risk
technologies, allowing manufacturing companies to improve and inno­ management context from the managerial perspective (Meindl et al.,
vate (Reischauer, 2018). 2021) to leverage their capabilities and enhance implementation
Following the debate about the way new digital technologies are (Fagundes et al., 2020; Gillani et al., 2020).
changing manufacturing (Reischauer, 2018), I4.0 technologies (e.g. This is a grey area where we need to examine and understand how
artificial intelligence, blockchain, CC and big data) have shown several the existing digital know-how within the organisation and the business
potential benefits in supply chains to improve robustness, accuracy, competitiveness created by market pressure will affect the intention to
transparency, accountability, and decision-making (Dubey et al., 2020; adopt these technologies to build resilience through technology-driven
Dwivedi et al., 2019; Fosso-Wamba and Queiroz, 2020). For example, risk management in business operations. To fill this void, the current
the Denver-based organisation Bext360 has integrated artificial intelli­ study aspires to understand how the influence of internal organisational
gence (AI) systems and blockchain technology into a cloud platform that and external factors can help managers successfully plan the imple­
will help to enhance supply chain efficiency and transparency in the mentation of these technologies for managing risks in manufacturing
mineral, timber, coffee, and seafood sectors (Bext360, 2019). Common companies by tackling the following research questions:
examples of advantages that can benefit risk management in supply
chains include information sharing, consolidation and knowledge min­ • RQ1: What is the impact of the level of digital transformation,
ing across the supply chain (Dev et al., 2020), resource efficiency, asset awareness of requirements, market pressure, and regulations on the
utilisation and higher throughput due to accurate forecasting (Teluk­ behavioural intention to adopt emergent I4.0 technologies for
darie et al., 2018), data-driven management decision-making from managing risks in the UK manufacturing industry?
sensor-based technologies (Dalenogare et al., 2018), operational flexi­ • RQ2: What is the effect of organisational resilience on the behav­
bility, efficiency and performance (Frank et al., 2019), and aid digital ioural intention to adopt emergent technologies for managing risks
transformation within organisations to help achieve sustainable busi­ in the UK manufacturing industry?
ness performance through business model innovation (Bag et al., 2021; • RQ3: What are the differences between the factors influencing big
Lopes de Sousa Jabbouret al., 2018). For instance, DHL worked with data, AI, CC, and blockchain adoption intention for managing risks in
Accenture to improve information resilience by using blockchain to the UK manufacturing industry?
reduce tampering or counterfeiting drug issues in the pharma industry,
thereby increasing transparency, traceability and trackability. Another Answering these questions is important because I4.0 technologies
example is the way production managers can gain a remote digital view will help companies to develop advanced manufacturing capabilities,
of all machines in a factory by using a cloud monitoring software solu­ providing scope and opportunity for cleaner, responsible production,
tion, which will enable them to view the performance and efficiency of minimising their environmental carbon footprint and leading to
each piece of equipment (IBM, 2019). Hence, managers are becoming competitive advantage in the business environment (Bag et al., 2021;
increasingly aware of the value of I4.0 technologies for risk manage­ Telukdarie et al., 2018). An important dimension to achieve sustain­
ment. A survey of 3000 C-suite executives found that a total of 29% and ability and business competitiveness in the manufacturing sector is the
56% of them in banking and insurance, respectively, identified AI as a ability of the organisations to identify, manage and mitigate risks using
function that could benefit their operations (Deloitte, 2021). I4.0 technologies, which will ensure that critical business processes
Another advantage of digital manufacturing technologies is that they remain unaffected to achieve economic productivity (Giannakis and
can potentially enhance the resilience of stakeholders affected by Papadopoulos, 2016). In the context of using I4.0 for risk management
damaged supply chains resulting from climate change and other shocks in the manufacturing sector, this paper aims to provide empirical evi­
(James, 2017). This has resulted in calls for novel research looking to dence on the adoption of I4.0 technologies (big data, AI, CC and
support the transformation of manufacturing through the improvement blockchain) for managing risks and building resilience within industrial
of adaptation to dynamic environments and enhanced risk management operations. The contributions to knowledge in this article are as follows:
(Borangiu et al., 2019). Harnessing I4.0 technologies’ potential for risk This study develops and empirically tests a model for user acceptance of
management would allow companies to create more robust systems and I4.0 technologies in risk management combining the resource-based
become more resilient to disruptions (Rodríguez-Espíndola et al., 2020) view (RBV), the technology acceptance model (TAM), and

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institutional theory; it investigates the relationship of organisational by embracing emergent technologies (Lohmer et al., 2020; Rane et al.,
resilience with technology user acceptance in risk management, and it 2021), as these technologies can help in situations ranging from
provides insights into the differences between the user acceptance of company-related risks to major general disruptions such as the
four different emergent technologies in this context. COVID-19 pandemic (Spieske and Birkel, 2021). This section will pre­
From a theoretical perspective, this article uses the lens of the RBV sent an overview of the existing literature regarding the four I4.0 tech­
(Wernerfelt, 1984) and institutional theory (Meyer and Rowan, 1977; nologies under study, their application in risk management, and current
Meyer and Scott, 1983), along with TAM (Davis, 1989) to examine the literature about their adoption in light of the research questions. That is
intentions to use each of these I4.0 technologies from an operations followed by the theoretical lens employed to develop the conceptual
manager’s perspective. The intention to adopt I4.0 technologies in the model. Finally, the knowledge gaps stemming from this review are
context of risk management will depend on the perceived usefulness and presented and linked to the contribution of this article.
easiness of using these technologies in business manufacturing opera­
tions. Therefore, it can be modelled using the TAM, which stems from 2.1. Big data [DA]
information systems theory to examine the acceptance and use of
technologies. The perceived usefulness and easiness of use will depend Big data is characterised by its high volume, velocity, variability,
on both digital capabilities and readiness of the organisation and can be variety and capability of being visualised, which will create value for
conceptually modelled using RBV, which posits digital culture and consumers and business organisations (Fosso-Wamba et al., 2017;
technology usage within organisations as strategic tangible resources to Gunasekaran et al., 2017; Kava et al., 2021; Sena et al., 2019). For
achieve both business productivity and competitiveness (Wernerfelt, example, automobile manufacturing companies such as Ford and Mer­
1984). Therefore, RBV helps to model the relationship between organ­ cedes generate real-time data from millions of vehicles on the road
isational resources (I4.0 technologies) and their impact on intention to through onboard sensors. The data are used to facilitate regulatory
adopt. Finally, institutional theory considers the impact of pressures compliance, keep the consumer informed (build trust), and provide
created by the market and regulations, i.e., the external organismal automated diagnostics for roadside emergency assistance (Ford, 2020).
environment (Meyer and Scott, 1983) on the intention to adopt I4.0 DA has opened new possibilities and avenues in the field of hu­
technologies. The purpose of integrating RBV, TAM and institutional manitarian logistics (Horita et al., 2017), crisis and disaster manage­
theory is to account for the internal resources of the company and the ment (Akter and Fosso-Wamba, 2019), organisational resilience
external pressures affecting the implementation of I4.0 for risk man­ (Rodger et al., 2019), sustainability (Sivarajah et al., 2020), and emer­
agement. Therefore, the theoretical relevance of the current study is the gencies (Chen et al., 2020). DA introduces risk mitigation abilities whose
focus on four interesting and cross-disciplinary concepts within the forecasts can shape innovative solutions, enhance fraud detection
OSCM literature: (1) information management (TAM and I4.0 technol­ (Maheshwari et al., 2021), assess supply chain risks (Ivanov et al.,
ogies); (2) digital manufacturing (risk management); (3) strategic 2019), and undertake real-time monitoring (Spieske and Birkel, 2021).
management (RBV); (4) organisational studies (institutional theory). The reason is that data captured from various digital streams, i.e., from
The proposed novel behavioural adoption model is tested by capturing the IoT (sensors) and experiences (social media and similar channels),
the insights of 117 operations managers in the UK manufacturing in­ are critical for identifying risks (Nateghi and Aven, 2021), prioritising
dustry through a survey instrument; these insights are analysed using them (Blekanov et al., 2019), simulating disruption scenarios (Zheng
structural equation modelling (SEM). The analysis is used to validate the et al., 2021), reducing uncertainty (Bechtsis et al., 2021), and devising
proposed novel behavioural adoption model for four I4.0 technologies; risk mitigation approaches (Ivanov, 2018).
namely big data, AI, CC and blockchain, using the sample population. Despite the significant potential to transform and enhance processes,
RBV, institutional theory and TAM are used theoretically to provide a Singh and El-Kassar (2019) mention that resource allocation to unlock
deeper understanding of the adoption behaviour and influences to adopt value from DA to facilitate data-driven decision-making is still in its
these technologies for managing risks in the UK manufacturing sector, i. infancy, as managers are reluctant to engage more. Similarly, Chen et al.
e., from a developed economy perspective, where I4.0 adoption and (2015) mention that the majority of companies have not engaged with
implementation is a priority agenda (BEIS, 2019). Therefore, the study DA yet and are still learning about the risks and skills involved for its
reported in this article makes practical contributions for two stake­ implementation. This implementation is a crucial step to reap the ben­
holders: (1) managers – effectively and efficiently to leverage, adopt and efits from DA. Therefore, it is important to look at the factors affecting
implement I4.0 for risk management and build organisational resilience; the successful adoption of this technology.
(2) government policy makers – to understand the influence of tech­ Chen et al. (2015) use SEM to examine a model based on the
nology policies, regulations and financial incentives on the intention to technology-organisation-environment (TOE) framework by looking at
adopt I4.0 technologies, especially managing risks stemming from the antecedents of DA implementation and its effect on value creation.
advanced manufacturing capabilities to achieve sustainable business Their results suggest that expected benefits, technological compatibility,
performance. top management support, organisation readiness, and competitive
The article is organised into eight sections. Section 2 critically ana­ pressure affect DA implementation. Sun et al. (2018) employ content
lyses contemporary knowledge on the topic and identifies the knowl­ analysis to produce a framework looking into the factors affecting the
edge gaps. Section 3 introduces the model and its constructs, whilst adoption of DA based on TOE and diffusion-of-innovation (DOI). They
Section 4 elaborates the methodology used and Section 5 presents the produced a list of 26 factors led by relative advantage, human resources,
SEM analysis of the four models. Section 6 presents the discussion of the technology resources, management support, and cost of adoption in
findings, Section 7 elaborates on the practical implications, and Section terms of frequency. Integrating RBV and institutional theory, Dubey
8 delivers the conclusion and final remarks. et al. (2019) aim to understand the relationship between institutional
factors, internal resources of the company and business performance in
2. Literature review the context of DA. The SEM analysis confirms the influence of human
skills and tangible resources on the adoption of DA. Dubey et al. (2020)
I4.0 technologies (the full list of abbreviations can be found on report the role of external pressure to select the tangible and intangible
Table 12) can represent a significant opportunity for risk and crisis resources pertaining to developing DA powered AI capability and its
management in manufacturing firms. Ivanov (2019) argues that, as relationship with the organisational culture and capability utilisation to
digital technologies are an aspect affecting supply chains and supply enhance economic and operations performance in the organisations.
chains are affected by risks, digital technologies and risk management Bag et al. (2021) explore the antecedents of DA powered AI and its
must be linked. The risk management field can make significant strides impact on sustainable manufacturing and circular economy capabilities.

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The SEM analysis shows that tangible resources and workforce skills organisational resources, knowledge, culture, and data management
influence DA adoption. strategy as key dimensions that will facilitate the adoption of AI. Pillai
Considering the importance of adoption and implementation, the and Sivathanu (2020) consider TOE and task-technology-fit frameworks
lack of impact of DA in the risk management area (Baryannis et al., to examine the AI adoption for human resource recruitment. The anal­
2019) can be linked to the absence of studies looking at the imple­ ysis showed that competitive advantage, organisational leadership,
mentation of DA in this context. Hence, it is important to develop further digital readiness, external market pressure and partnership with AI
research to facilitate the adoption of big data in risk management, vendors significantly and positively influence the intent to adopt.
looking to leverage its capacities (Fagundes et al., 2020). Chatterjee et al. (2021) combine the TAM and TOE models to examine AI
adoption in manufacturing companies. They show how the intention to
2.2. Artificial intelligence [AI] adopt AI is influenced by perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use,
which are preceded by factors from the internal and external environ­
AI refers to a set of techniques and algorithms that can automatically ment. Their results suggest internal (competency, complexity, readiness,
integrate, process and learn from data and apply those learnings to compatibility) and external (competitive advantage, partner support)
achieve specific objectives and tasks (Haenlein and Kaplan, 2019). From factors affect perceived usefulness, whereas only complexity (internal)
the risk management perspective, AI algorithms can provide analytical and competitive advantage (external) affect perceived ease of use. These
capability to organisations that will help them to understand the impact studies, however, are focused on a variety of contexts with little atten­
of the risks (Bechtsis et al., 2021), introduce automated recommenda­ tion paid to risk management.
tions to mitigate and manage these risks (Larkin et al., 2021), react
quickly to the changing environment (Yang et al., 2021), identify trends 2.3. Blockchain technology [BC]
to inform policy (Johnson et al., 2021), and enhance firm resilience
(Bechtsis et al., 2021). This is achieved by systematically and efficiently BC is a decentralised and distributed digital ledger accessible
managing risks and recovering from crises (Rodríguez-Espíndola et al., through a cloud platform, which can record immutable transactions in a
2020) and major disruptions (Naz et al., 2021) through: (1) reducing secure, transparent, efficient, low-cost way (Schatsky et al., 2015). Ac­
aggregating latency, i.e. capturing and consolidating digital data cording to the International Chamber of Commerce, counterfeit goods
streams automatically (Dubey et al., 2020); (2) reducing processing la­ are projected to cost the global economy US $4.2 trillion and are likely to
tency, i.e. automatically processing and summarising huge streams of put around five million jobs at risk by 2022, representing around 7% of
data, and visualising them using intuitive and aesthetically pleasing global trade (ICC, 2017). Therefore, luxury brand manufacturing com­
interfaces (Mariani and Fosso-Wamba, 2020); (3) reducing decision la­ panies in the fashion industry such as Louis Vuitton and Givenchy and
tency, i.e. augmenting human intelligence through automated recom­ shipping companies such as Maersk and DHL are using BC platforms and
mendations (Borges et al., 2020); and (4) increasing analytics agility, i.e. collaborating with technology providers such as IBM and Microsoft
increasing the foresight of decision-makers by extracting and identifying (Kramer, 2020; Mansour, 2020) to validate the supply chain (a crypto­
interesting trends and patterns within digital assets and data streams graphically secure and signed online certificate by all those involved in
(Bieda, 2020). the supply chain - design, raw materials, manufacturing, distribution).
Despite these benefits, the adoption of AI systems in business orga­ Current implementations of BC in the humanitarian and develop­
nisations has been limited and slow (Barro and Davenport, 2019). In ment sectors include the creation of digital identities for the distribution
their literature review, Baryannis et al. (2019) mention that the pre­ of aid and financial inclusion, support for tracing and vaccine passports
dictive and learning capabilities of AI for supply chain risk management after COVID-19 (Ricci et al., 2021), the fight against fraud and corrup­
are still in their infancy, as little attention has been given to the devel­ tion (Luciano et al., 2020), the improvement of land tenure and property
opment of automated solutions for decision-making. That is reflected in rights in developing nations (Kshetri and Voas, 2018), the support of
the low number of implementations in practice (Bechtsis et al., 2021). gender equality, thus contributing to UN Sustainability Development
The reasons are linked to the preference of users to obtain risk man­ Goals (Kamath, 2018), the protection of children and young women
agement advice from humans rather than from AI, lack of skilled talent, from being illegally trafficked (Zwitter and Boisse-Despiaux, 2018), the
limited budget and financial resources, poor access to technology, lack implementation of fully digitised and automated contract negotiation,
of leadership and commitment from senior management, absence of and the support of procurement through the use of smart contracts
experience, limited knowledge and awareness of managers and teams, (Rodríguez-Espíndola et al., 2020).
oversight, fear of the unknown, organisational culture and dynamism, BC has the potential to enable more proactive and connected risk
poor digital environment readiness of the organisation, and the exis­ management, which can identify intangible risks and provide multiple
tence or lack of government regulatory guidance and incentives (Larkin, layers of protection (Kouhizadeh et al., 2020; Min, 2019). Its enhanced
Drummond Otten and Árvai, 2021; Brock and von Wangenheim, 2019). visibility allows the inclusion of provenance knowledge and reduces
Adoption has to be carefully considered, as important risks of an AI consumer risk perception for purchasing decisions (Montecchi et al.,
crisis would involve the implementation of unprepared and underde­ 2019), as well as adding transparency and ensuring security and privacy
veloped solutions that could generate failures paralysing the production of donations for humanitarian operations (Khan et al., 2021). It can
process (Popkova et al., 2020). In this context, Grover et al. (2020) have enhance the risk management function by strengthening information
identified through a structured literary review that perceived ease of security (Kodym et al., 2020), reducing information uncertainty in
using the technology, performance expectancy, social influencers, and credit decisions (Dashottar and Srivastava, 2021), and enhancing cyber
facilitating conditions significantly impact adoption behaviour. Kuber­ threat intelligence sharing systems to manage risks (Riesco et al., 2020).
kar and Singhal (2020) use the unified theory of acceptance and use of On top of its value for security, it can increase connectivity between
technology (UTAUT) model to determine that performance expectancy, partners (Min, 2019). However, it is important to recognise that poor
effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, anthropo­ implementation can hinder the potential of BC and increase risks,
morphism, and trust significantly and positively influence the intention endangering the impact of the investment (Kodym et al., 2020).
to adopt AI for automating routine tasks. AlSheibani et al. (2018) inte­ The intention to adopt BC in Indian supply chains has been studied
grate the TOE framework and DOI to develop a model looking at the by Kamble et al. (2018), using a model combining TAM, the technology
impact of digital readiness, organisational readiness and external con­ readiness index (TRI) and the theory of planned behaviour. Kamble
structs (market pressure and regulations) on readiness to implement AI et al. (2020) extend that study by combining TAM and TOE. Their
and its adoption. Jöhnk et al. (2020) propose a strategic alignment be­ findings suggest that TAM constructs significantly and positively in­
tween business goals and understanding the capabilities of AI, fluences behavioural intention. Queiroz and Fosso-Wamba (2019)

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combine TAM and UTAUT to study the adoption of BC in India and the Through empirical evaluation, Jianwen and Wakil (2019) show that the
US, and their empirical testing showed that performance expectancy key factors affecting cloud adoption in business organisations are
influenced the intention to use in both countries, whereas social influ­ innovation and knowledge within the organisations; limited resources
ence only affects the intention to adopt in India and facilitating condi­ and commitment from senior management; systems integration and
tions only affect the intention to adopt in the US. Queiroz et al. (2020) cyberspace security; regulatory environment and competitive pressure.
use UTAUT to examine BC adoption in Brazil and find that facilitating Khayer et al. (2020) investigate the impact of CC on the business per­
conditions, social influence, trust, and effort expectancy significantly formance of organisations from the perspectives of users, technology
influence BC adoption. Wong et al. (2020) use UTAUT to examine BC and IT capability of the organisation, drawing upon constructs from
adoption in Malaysian companies and find that relative advantage, technology acceptance models, RBV theory and
complexity, and competitive pressure affect the behavioural intention to expectation-conformation theory to identify end-user satisfaction, in­
adopt BC, whereas Wong et al. (2020) adopt TOE to show that tech­ formation quality, system quality, managerial information technology
nology readiness, facilitating conditions, and technology affinity have a (IT) capability and technical IT capability as drivers affecting successful
positive meaningful influence on the behavioural intention to adopt BC. implementation of CC. Despite the value of CC to facilitate the cooper­
However, users’ perceptions of the implementation of emergent tech­ ation between different stakeholders and support other front-end tech­
nologies such as BC in the area of risk management have been scantly nologies, research in the area of risk management is largely absent.
investigated.
2.5. Resilience
2.4. Cloud computing technology [CC]
Supply chain resilience has received significant attention in the last
CC provides on-demand access to data repositories and computing two decades. It is considered a key element to help businesses plan,
systems customised to the user’s needs, with minimal intervention from prepare, develop strategies for emergency operations, respond to un­
the service provider, i.e. users can access the required services at their predictable disruptions, and efficiently recover from such disruptions
convenience from their personal machines (Khayer et al., 2020). It can (Macdonald et al., 2018; Sheffi, 2007).
be very useful to collect, appraise and evaluate data efficiently (Bhat­ Existing research in this domain has acknowledged the role of people
tacharya and Chatterjee, 2021). CC provides the technology infrastruc­ (i.e. individuals and teams, their knowledge and behaviour) as crucial
ture, resources on-demand, and service to host and execute the software, elements in developing resilient business processes and models (Croson
and enables collaboration between the various stakeholders involved. It et al., 2013). Studies have highlighted the ways organisational leader­
can support identifying, assessing, managing and mitigating various ship, strategy, resource capacity and human resource capability can
risks in real-time, irrespective of the complexities, geographical barriers facilitate restructuring supply chain operations to deal with unprece­
and uncertainties posed during crises (Gourley, 2021). dented events (Ambulkar et al., 2015).
Agility, cost savings, flexibility, and better cooperation and efficacy Organisational and supply chain resilience has been studied in the
for mobile and digital settings have been considered advantages of CC field of humanitarian logistics and disaster management, examining the
during emergencies (Brender and Markov, 2013). CC technology has impact of disasters on managing supply chain operations to deliver
been used in these instances to: (1) store business information on mul­ goods and services to the affected population (Kovács and Spens, 2007;
tiple data servers across the globe; (2) ensure data availability, back-up, Kunz et al., 2017). These studies have concluded the significance of
and secure and safe storage; (3) provide failover capabilities; scalability information sharing, collaboration and coordination between the
and load balancing based on the traffic and usage, sharing data across stakeholders and process optimisation using innovative technology to
multiple organisations; (4) host web-based social networks able to increase process, people, service, and product resilience. Additionally,
provide stakeholders (i.e. workers, first-responders, local they have emphasised the significance of risk management to avoid
disaster-related non-profit organisations, volunteers, and local resi­ service disruption during humanitarian operations. Indeed, resilience
dents) with access to information, communication, and collaboration; can be supported by the use of emergent technologies such as blockchain
(5) make available storage in multiple, geographically dispersed data to enhance collaboration between stakeholders (Lohmer et al., 2020).
centres with extensive back-up and archives; (6) assure reliable service However, studies looking at the effect of organisational resilience on the
availability during emergencies; (7) lower data recovery costs that are successful adoption of emergent technologies are lacking.
protected far from disaster sites; (8) replicate data across multiple
servers and assurance of the security of the data (Brender and Markov, 2.6. Theoretical lens
2013; Nezih et al., 2018; Velev and Zlateva, 2012).
Gillani et al. (2020) argue that it is important to look at the imple­ We use an overarching theoretical lens based on institutional theory
mentation of technologies such as CC as it is a base technology that (Meyer and Rowan, 1977; Meyer and Scott, 1983), the resource-based
provides the infrastructure for front-end technologies such as smart view (RBV) (Wernerfelt, 1984) and the technology acceptance model
manufacturing. Cloud technology adoption within business organisa­ (TAM) (Davis, 1989). This section elaborates on the perspectives un­
tions has been examined in the literature deriving constructs from the derpinning the investigation of the impact of internal and external fac­
TOE framework (Hsu et al., 2014; Lin et al., 2018), institutional theory tors on the adoption of emergent technologies, and their impact on
(Low et al., 2011), and TAM, UTAUT and use of technology (Gangwar performance.
et al., 2015). Using information from companies in Portugal, Oliveira
et al. (2014) combine the TOE and DOI frameworks to point out the 2.6.1. Technology acceptance model (TAM)
determinants of CC. The SEM analysis suggests that relative advantage, TAM has been used in the existing research studies dealing with
complexity, technological readiness, top management support, and firm behavioural intentions and usage of technology, for example, enterprise
size influence the implementation of CC. Lian et al. (2014) look at the resource planning (Amoako-Gyampah and Salam, 2004), customer
hospital industry in Taiwan. Using an ANOVA with responses from 60 relationship management (Wu and Wu, 2005), CC (Gangwar et al.,
questionnaires, their analysis identifies data security, perceived tech­ 2015), software as a service (Wu, 2011), data warehousing (Wixom and
nical competence, cost, top management support, and complexity as Watson, 2001), big data analytics (Verma et al., 2018), and AI (Kuber­
critical factors affecting the implementation of CC. Gutierrez et al. kar and Singhal, 2020). It is adapted from the theory of reasoned action
(2015) use exploratory factor analysis and logistics regression to identify model (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975) specifically for explaining the user
competitive pressure, complexity, technology readiness and trading acceptance and behavioural intention to adopt IT. The outcome variable
partner pressure as factors influencing the adoption of CC in the UK. (behavioural intention) is explained using perceived usefulness (impact

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

on job performance, i.e., value creation), and ease of use (minimal effort 2.7. Knowledge gaps
to implement, i.e., resources and capability) (Huang et al., 2011). TAM
is used to model the behavioural intention to adopt I4.0 technologies, Table 1 shows a summary of the contributions presented in the
which is determined and influenced by an individual’s (in a business literature review. Despite the reported value of I4.0 technologies for risk
environment, a manager’s) attitude towards the technology and its and crisis management and in digital manufacturing (Akter and Fos­
usefulness. so-Wamba, 2019; Akter et al., 2020; Fosso-Wamba et al., 2020; Kshetri,
2018), we found limited empirical evidence in the existing research
2.6.2. The resource-based view (RBV) focused on examining the intention to adopt these technologies for risk
RBV emphasises the role of internal resources in influencing orga­ management. Although examining and understanding the factors
nisation strategies and performance (Wernerfelt, 1984). We examine the influencing the adoption of emerging technologies is slowly gaining
use of I4.0 technologies to manage operational risks as a strategic momentum within Operations Management research (Zheng et al.,
resource, considering the RBV theory. Resources can be both tangible 2021), it has rarely addressed the context of risk management, which is a
and intangible assets associated with the firm (Caves, 1992). In this critical dimension in achieving sustainable performance, business
context, I4.0 software technologies are tangible because they represent competitiveness and organisational resilience (Marcucci et al., 2021)
physical assets augmenting strategic human decision-making (Haibe-­ The context of risk management and use of I4.0 technologies has been
Kains et al., 2020). From a firm’s perspective, technology is often one of increasingly discussed and gained momentum in light of the COVID-19
its core strategic resources and is essential to gain and sustain a pandemic, which has led to supply chain disruptions on all fronts
competitive advantage (Alalie et al., 2018). The effectiveness of a stemming from demand uncertainties, government lockdown strategies
technological resource greatly depends on its adoption and context of and limited availability of labour, making it difficult to work on-site
use (Wernerfelt, 1984). Lack of understanding, purpose, usefulness and (Mubarik et al., 2021). Whilst the COVID-19 pandemic is an unprece­
trust in technologies will negatively impact its adoption and subsequent dented crisis, the adoption of I4.0 technologies is likely to facilitate
use to generate value (Andriopoulos and Lewis, 2009). Regardless of enhancing resilience in the manufacturing sector whilst addressing the
how good the decision support tool or model is, its purpose will fail rising regulatory and cost pressures (recovering productivity). There­
without managerial adoption and strategic alignment to the business fore, the context of this study (risk management) fully aligns with the
goals and priorities. Therefore, from the RBV perspective, the digital current business environment created by the pandemic, which is unex­
readiness of organisations and awareness of technical requirements can plored, and rightly examines the factors influencing the perception of
be modelled as antecedents influencing the usefulness and ease of using operations managers to adopt I4.0 technologies, as poor implementation
I4.0 technologies, which will determine the intention to adopt (ac­ of emergent technologies can have counterproductive effects (Lohmer
cording to TAM). et al., 2020).
Many of the studies presented concerning the adoption of these
2.6.3. Institutional theory technologies have been reported in India, the US, Brazil, and Malaysia,
Based on the seminar work published by DiMaggio and Powell with little analysis in other countries such as the UK, where the gov­
(1983), institutional theory introduces isomorphic processes resulting ernment has put in place strategies, incentives and policies for
from formal and informal pressures exerted on organisations by gov­ increasing the adoption of I4.0 in the manufacturing sector (BEIS, 2019).
ernment policies and regulations, other organisations in the dynamic Furthermore, the context of adoption in most of these studies is unclear,
business environment, and uncertainty in technology and market dy­ except for the articles explicitly examining the relationship between the
namics. This leads to decision-makers within an organisation adopting intention to adopt and organisational performance. Additionally, the
structures and practices like other organisations in their respective do­ behavioural intention to adopt all four of these technologies (in any
mains to remain competitive and relevant. Following the tenets of context) has never been empirically examined in a single piece of
institutional theory, conformity to social norms such as market pressure research using the same sample population, except Akter et al. (2020),
and governmental policies will contribute to organisational productivity who have comprehensively reported various applications of these
(Kauppi, 2013), especially in the context of adopting I4.0 technologies technologies and their role in digitally transforming business operations.
such as DA (Dubey et al., 2019). The theory considers dimensions Nevertheless, their study does not cover risk management.
external to the organisations within a social framework governed by This review highlights that much of the existing work in supply chain
economic and social practices, which will impact organisational prac­ resilience has emphasised the significance of risk management to avoid
tices, including the adoption of I4.0 technologies in varying contexts. service disruption. However, resilience is yet to be examined as a critical
The research constructs (market pressure and government policies) influencing factor in the adoption of I4.0 technologies. Moreover, the
derived from this theory will help to shed light on the impact of these global SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has clearly shown how digitalisation and
external factors on the intention to adopt I4.0 technologies. adoption of technologies support business processes, people and ser­
In our study, TAM (information management literature) is used to vices, and make businesses resilient to combat negative impacts on
model the outcome variable (intention to adopt), whereas RBV (strategic economies (Verma and Gustafsson, 2020). Therefore, the study makes a
management literature) and institutional theory (organisational man­ unique contribution by examining the relationship between the digital
agement literature) are used to derive the theoretical constructs per­ readiness of the organisation, building operational resilience within the
taining to internal digital resources within the organisation and external organisation, and the intention to adopt I4.0 technologies from a
business environment, respectively, acting as antecedents influencing managerial perspective in risk management (Fatorachian and Kazemi,
intention to adopt. By integrating these theories, the conceptual model 2021).
will provide a better understanding of how the internal organisational In summary, this research intends to examine adapting I4.0 tech­
resources (digital readiness) and certain institutional constructs external nologies, namely DA, AI, CC and BC, to improve the identification,
to the organisation will impact operations managers’ intention to adopt analysis, and development of responses to risks through actionable in­
I4.0 technologies for managing risks and building organisational resil­ sights into the UK manufacturing sector. It is important to consider the
ience. Therefore, our proposed theoretical model meets Dubin’s critical impact of organisational resources (i.e., digital readiness), market
needs (Lynham, 2002) in the sense that it offers improved understanding pressure, existing regulations and policies, and usage perceptions when
and interesting insights stemming from the relationship between the evaluating operations managers’ intentions to adopt these technologies.
literature-informed theoretical constructs, comprises variables This paper sets out to achieve that aim.
measured using proxies, contains no composite variables, and includes
boundary criteria governed by control variables.

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Table 1
Summary of the literature.
Authors Theory/Framework Antecedents to DA Antecedents to AI Antecedents to BC Antecedents to CC Risk
mgmt

Chen et al. (2015) TOE Expected benefits X X X X

technological
compatibility
top management support
organization readiness
competitive pressure
Sun et al. (2018) TOE, DOI and Institutional Relative advantage X X X X
Theory Human resources
Technology resources
Management support
Cost of adoption
Security privacy and ethics
concerns in collecting data
Technology readiness
Trading partner readiness
Complexity
Regulatory environment
Uncertainty/risk concern
Institutional based trust
Organization/IT structure
Decision-making culture
Business strategy
orientation
Business resources
Change efficacy
IS strategy orientation
Competitive pressure
Firm size
Appropriateness
Compatibility
Market turbulence
Observability
Trialability
IS fashion
Dubey et al. (2019) RBV and institutional Theory Human skills X X X X
Tangible resources
Dubey et al. Dynamic capabilities and Entrepreneurial orientation X X X
(2020b) contingency theory
Bag et al. (2021b) Institutional theory and RBV Tangible resources X X X
workforce skills
Grover et al. (2020) Extension of the factors used X Perceived ease of using X X X
by Thompson et al. (1991) the technology
performance expectancy
social influencers
facilitating conditions
Kuberkar and UTAUT X Performance expectancy X X X
Singhal (2020) effort expectancy
social influence
facilitating conditions
anthropomorphism
trust
AlSheibani et al. TOE and DOI X Relative advantage X X X
(2018) Compatibility
top management support
organisation size
resources
competitive pressure
government regulatory
issues
Jöhnk et al. (2020) Readiness for change, X Strategic alignment X X X
Readiness in IS, TAM, TRA, Resources
TPB, DOI, TOE Knowledge
culture and data
management strategy
Pillai and TOE and Task-Technology- X Competitive advantage X X X
Sivathanu (2020) Fit organisational
leadership
digital readiness
external market pressure
partnership with AI
vendors
Chatterjee et al. TAM and TOE X Perceived usefulness X X X
(2021) perceived ease of use
(continued on next page)

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

Table 1 (continued )
Authors Theory/Framework Antecedents to DA Antecedents to AI Antecedents to BC Antecedents to CC Risk
mgmt

Kamble et al. (2018) TAM, TRI and TPB X X Attitude X X

perceived usefulness
Kamble et al. (2020) TAM and Technology- X X Perceived usefulness X X
organisation-Environment perceived ease of use
framework
Queiroz and TAM and UTAUT X X Performance X X
Fosso-Wamba expectancy (both
(2019) countries)
social influence
(India)
facilitating
conditions (USA)
Queiroz et al. UTAUT X X Facilitating X X
(2020) conditions
social influence
trust
effort expectancy
Wong et al. (2020b) UTAUT X X Relative advantage X X
Complexity
competitive pressure
Wong et al. (2020a) TOE X X Technology X X
readiness
facilitating
conditions
technology affinity
Oliveira et al. TOE and DOI X X X Relative advantage X
(2014) Complexity
technological readiness
top management support
firm size
Lian et al. (2014) TOE and HOT-fit X X X Data security X
perceived technical
competence
cost
top manager support
complexity
Gutierrez et al. TOE X X X Competitive pressure X
(2015) Complexity
technology readiness
trading partner pressure
Khayer et al. (2020) RBV, expectation- X X X End-user satisfaction X
conformation theory information quality
system quality
managerial information
technology (IT) capability
technical IT capability
Jianwen and Wakil – X X X Innovation and knowledge X
(2019) within the organisations
limited resources and
commitment from senior
management
systems integration and
cyberspace security
regulatory environment
competitive pressure

3. Model development 3.1. External factors

The model proposed in this research examines the effects of RBV and Institutional theory considers the environments in which companies
institutional theory on managers’ perceptions of the adoption of emer­ work and evolve and the structures they develop to comply with rules
gent technologies for risk management. The integration of both views and acquire legitimacy (Euske and Euske, 1991; Meyer and Rowan,
has been found very useful in the past to account for internal and 1977). A company’s environment has a social framework of norms that
external factors affecting organisations (Dubey et al., 2019; Hughes defines acceptable behaviour (Dubey et al., 2019). Market pressures can
et al., 2017). The purpose is to look at the way these factors influence cause firms to strategically plan their activities and innovate their pro­
user acceptance for risk management in organisations. The impact of cesses (Paulraj and Chen, 2007; Thanki and Thakkar, 2018). The regu­
manager perceptions on user acceptance is analysed through the use of latory framework and the pressure caused by the interaction of
TAM. TAM was useful to examine the adoption of emergent technologies stakeholders in the market are relevant components of that environment
in previous research (Albayati et al., 2020; Kamble et al., 2018). (Chen et al., 2015). The effects of regulatory support and market pres­
sure on the intention of adopting a technology have been studied in the
context of blockchain for operations management (Wong et al., 2020).
The model proposed in this research, however, looks at their role as

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

factors affecting managers’ perceptions. Investigation into the role of organisational requirements for the introduction of technology in the
governmental policies for the successful adoption of emergent technol­ company. These include the importance of preparing human resources,
ogy is needed (Kamble et al., 2018) because policy changes can hinder understanding organisational change, promoting a culture of innova­
investment and prevent technology implementation (Bonnín Roca, tion, and acquiring an adaptive capacity. Given the perceived risk
Vaishnav, Morgan, Fuchs, and Mendonça, 2021). At the same time, associated with using emergent technologies and the limited informa­
regulatory guidance and support can provide more information to tion about them (Arora et al., 2014), we argue that the level of aware­
managers about emergent technologies, thereby providing further in­ ness of the requirements influences perceptions of the easiness of use
sights about their usefulness and reducing the uncertainty that could and usefulness of implementing emergent technologies. Achieving more
cause insecurity amongst users. Additionally, some companies are efficient and effective risk management leverages from a high level of
discouraged by the large investments required for digital manufacturing awareness about the requirements, especially because it reduces un­
(Horváth and Szabó, 2019), especially less obvious investments such as certainty about factors affecting successful implementation. Therefore,
training to facilitate the use of technology (Bag et al., 2021). Overall, the following hypothesis are tested in this research:
regulatory guidance can provide information about best practices using
emergent technologies for risk management and motivate organisations • H5: Awareness of the organisational requirements has a significant
to make investments that can mitigate the impact of disruptions in effect on the level of digital transformation.
productive systems. • H6: Awareness of the organisational requirements has a significant
The importance of supply chain trading partners and stakeholders effect on the perceived ease of use of the technology.
and the relationships between them in the global supply chain • H7: Awareness of the organisational requirements has a significant
ecosystem have been investigated as part of pressures in the market effect on the perceived usefulness of the technology.
(Scholten and Schilder, 2015). Emerging I4.0 technologies can face
limited diffusion because of their technological uncertainty (Bonnín The experience gained through previous investment in infrastructure
Roca, Vaishnav, Morgan, Fuchs, and Mendonça, 2021). New technolo­ and human resources can influence the perception of the usefulness and
gies are perceived as risky because of the limited information available ease of use of emergent technologies. Digital transformation involves the
about their use and implementation (Arora et al., 2014), which makes transformation and evolution of processes, activities and competencies
them seem overly complicated. The adoption of technologies by net­ to take advantage of emergent technologies (He et al., 2020). Organi­
works of partners and competitors can increase the diffusion of infor­ sations with more technological expertise and knowledge can become
mation through communication (Geroski, 2000) because when enough early adopters because they are more capable of understanding new
stakeholders decide to engage with an innovation, the motivation of all technologies at early stages than other companies, which become
the stakeholders related to them increases (Chakravorti, 2004). This late-stage adopters (Geroski, 2000). A higher level of digital trans­
allows the development of reports, white papers, user guides, and formation is reflected in more prepared human resources and infra­
training that can affect users’ perception and ultimately support the structure to manage multiple sensors, capture, and analyse information,
intention to use the technology. Similarly, more information about and identify and react swiftly to relevant risks.
practical implementations can highlight key advantages for the orga­ Additionally, claims have been made about the value of harnessing
nisation, thereby encouraging the adoption of technology. In the context emergent technologies to strengthen organisations facing disruptions
of the study, this is relevant because it can facilitate the integration of because these technologies can introduce flexibility and robustness in
the supply chain to identify, analyse and manage risks. Thus, the operations (Gejke, 2018Ivanov et al., 2019; Lohmer et al., 2020). This
following hypotheses are tested in this research: means that engaging with technology can enhance the level of resilience
in organisations (Yang et al., 2021) because it affects the capacity of
• H1: Regulatory guidance and support have a significant effect on the organisations to absorb disruptions, adapt quickly and react effectively.
perceived ease of use of the technology. Likewise, claims have been made about the importance of risk man­
• H2: Regulatory guidance and support have a significant effect on the agement in building resilience because it can help organisations mitigate
perceived usefulness of the technology. the impact of disruptions and ensure continuity (El Baz and Ruel, 2021).
• H3: Market pressure has a significant effect on the perceived ease of This can be further supported by the introduction of emergent tech­
use of the technology. nologies because these can facilitate, expedite, and increase the accu­
• H4: Market pressure has a significant effect on the perceived use­ racy of risk management activities. However, little empirical evidence
fulness of the technology. has been provided to examine that relationship. Hence, Hypotheses 8 –
10 investigated in this research are as follows:
3.2. Organisational factors
• H8: Digital transformation has a significant effect on the perceived
The RBV looks at the relationship between a company’s internal ease of use of the technology.
resources its performance (Bowman and Ambrosini, 2003). It argues • H9: Digital transformation has a significant effect on the perceived
that an organisation can produce a competitive advantage through the usefulness of the technology.
use or development of internal resources and capabilities (Dubey et al., • H10: Digital transformation has a significant effect on organisational
2019; Hughes et al., 2017). Hence, this theory suggests that the company resilience.
can achieve higher performance through the production of internal
unique resource-based advantages (Hughes et al., 2017). Nandi Madhavi On the other hand, Asamoah et al. (2020) argue that RBV resources
et al. (2020) argue that information and communication technology can support the development of capabilities such as resilience that can
capabilities are key resources that can be used to produce a competitive drive performance and enhance customer satisfaction. Embedding
advantage in companies. This research agrees with that view and in­ resilience in the company can affect the intention to implement emer­
vestigates the role of technological readiness in the adoption of emer­ gent technologies, because of the emphasis on continuous improvement
gent technologies for risk management. Technological readiness, and the benefits of leveraging the advantages of these technologies. The
referred to here as the level of digital transformation, involves the capability of organisations constantly to monitor risks, cope with dis­
inclination to embrace new technologies (Ramírez-Correa, Grandón and ruptions, and quickly adapt and respond to changing situations is a
Rondán-Cataluña, 2020) and can be achieved through investment in desirable quality shaping the organisational culture. Therefore, the
infrastructure and the training of human resources. That investment is following hypothesis is tested:
commonly preceded by understanding and acknowledging the

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

• H11: Organisational resilience has a significant effect on the interaction between stakeholders, it carries concerns about privacy,
behavioural intention of using the technology. infrastructure and effort expectancy (Ali et al., 2019). Additionally, the
expertise and infrastructure needed for the use of AI and big data need to
be balanced with the potential of big data analytics to capture and
3.3. TAM model
process large amounts of data especially for the prediction of risks
(Akter and Fosso-Wamba, 2019) and the support AI can provide for
One of the most significant barriers to the implementation of digital
decision-making before and during disruptions based on the combina­
manufacturing involves human resources (Bag et al., 2021). As a result,
tion of data from different sources (Rodríguez-Espíndola et al., 2020).
the final part of the model involves the traditional TAM model, which is
Considering the importance of the perceptions of the advantages and
based on the perceptions of the potential users. Emergent technologies
ease of use of these technologies, the hypothesis tested in this research
have significant potential to support processes undertaken under un­
include:
certain conditions such as risk management (Kim and Kim, 2020). Iva­
nov et al. (2019) mention that as digital technologies affect supply
• H12: Perceived usefulness has a significant effect on the behavioural
chains, and supply chains are affected by risks, it is logical to assume a
intention of using the technology.
link between digital technologies and risk management. The TAM model
• H13: Perceived ease of use has a significant effect on the behavioural
is based on perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use as two key
intention of using the technology.
theoretical constructs driving user behaviour (Davis, 1989). Its predic­
tive power can be a major asset to understanding user acceptance
The different constructs and hypotheses tested in this research can be
(Kamble et al., 2018). Perceived usefulness is understood as the poten­
seen in Fig. 1.
tial benefits from the implementation of the emergent technology from
the perspective of the manager (Kamble et al., 2018), whereas the
4. Research design
perceived degree of difficulty associated with any technology is referred
to as perceived ease of use, and it can hinder the willingness of managers
4.1. Construct operationalisation
to engage with that technology (Davis, 1989). The perception of the
benefits of use and the ease of use can be very important for emergent
The findings from the literature review and the theoretical under­
technologies, which often carry potential advantages but with a degree
pinning presented in Section 2 were used to produce the model pre­
of uncertainty about their easiness to adopt (Rodríguez-Espíndola et al.,
sented and explained in Section 3. The items used to measure each one of
2020). The benefits for risk management vary depending on the char­
the different constructs were obtained from scales previously validated
acteristics and uses of the technology, especially because these are
in the literature to ensure reliability and validity (Churchill, 1979).
connected to the likely impact of the disruption and the responsiveness
These constructs along with their supporting literature can be found in
gained by the firm. Blockchain carries the potential to produce a
Table 7 in the Appendix. The constructs were measured using a
decentralised database, enact the use of smart contracts, increase
five-point Likert scale (1 = completely disagree; 2 = disagree; 3 =
traceability, and introduce near real-time information, but it is at a
neither agree nor disagree; 4 = agree; 5 = completely agree) to allow for
nascent stage and concerns exist about the integration with legacy sys­
enough statistical variability amongst responses (Chen et al., 2004;
tems, scalability and resources which can affect their use (Kamble et al.,
Dubey et al., 2018). The model was pre-tested with three academics for
2020). Although CC can be a platform to share information and facilitate

Fig. 1. Model for the adoption of emergent technologies for risk management.

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

further validation to ensure the constructs were clear and appropriate Table 2. The sample gathered practitioners working on operations
for the subject area. We amended the questions according to the rec­ management, project management and risk and crisis management.
ommendations obtained before applying the survey. Inclusion criteria were incorporated as a set of screening questions in the
survey to ensure that all participants: (1) belonged to a company oper­
4.2. Sample selection ating in the UK; (2) had knowledge about risk and crisis management in
the company; and (3) had a working understanding about the use of
The UK has developed a strategy for leveraging emergent technolo­ technology in their companies. Respondents not involved in a role
gies in industry (https://tinyurl.com/y2jngwn5) and programmes pro­ linked to risk and crisis management and not being employed full-time
moting the use of emergent technologies to enhance the skillset of were excluded from the sample. The purpose was to have respondents
organisations (https://tinyurl.com/yyjpmzx3). Therefore, this research with first-hand knowledge and the capacity to make decisions that could
used a cross-sectional electronic survey to delve into the aspects deliver meaningful information for this study.
affecting user acceptance of emergent technologies for risk management As it can be seen in the table, the sample includes managers with a
in the manufacturing industry in the UK. good working knowledge of practices in a good range of organisations
Data were collected electronically using Qualrics to recruit partici­ from small and medium-sized enterprises to large companies. More than
pants. The sample size was decided considering the nature of the data two-thirds of the sample has more than five years of experience in risk
analysis method to obtain robust and reliable results. Different thresh­ and crisis management.
olds and rules of thumb were proposed to determine adequate sample
sizes for SEM. Although some traditional sources suggest including ten 4.4. Data analysis
times as many participants as variables (Nunnally, 1978), other articles
suggest a minimum of 100 and 200 responses (Boomsma, 1985) with at The sample collected was considered adequate based on the findings
least 100 respondents for average models (Bollen and Noble, 2011). from Muthén and Muthén (2002). The database was checked for any
Recent studies based on Monte Carlo simulation analysis re-evaluate the missing values and non-engaged responses, which were not found in the
standard rules of thumb for sample size selection with suggestions below data. The analysis process involved the use of exploratory factor analysis
the thresholds presented (Sideridis et al., 2014; Singh et al., 2018). (EFA), SEM and the analysis of the hypothesis.
Following those guidelines, this research obtained a sample size of 117 EFA allows identification of the main constructs or dimensions found
responses. Based on the medium complexity of our model with no in the data, to ensure only relevant items are included (Kline, 1994). It
missing values, the database collected was deemed sufficient for analysis involves data screening, analysis of descriptives, factor analysis, results
to obtain meaningful results using SEM. Further conformation about the interpretation, and a reliability test. Harman’s single-factor test was
adequacy of the sample size was undertaken using the used to test common variance. The process includes running the EFA and
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of sampling adequacy for the looking at the unrotated solution to determine the number of factors to
model. account for variance (Podsakoff et al., 2003). Once the EFA was done,
Considering the level of expertise required to provide rich informa­ the different items and constructs were included in AMOS for SEM to
tion for analysis, this research employed purposive sampling to identify compare the theoretical model presented with the information from the
potential responders (Maspaitella et al., 2018). The type of participants responses (Kline, 1994). SEM uses quantitative information to examine
recruited included operations managers, risk managers and crisis man­ casual relationships between constructs (Bollen, 1989). It is a widely
agers in companies operating in the UK. The reason these participants used approach because of its potential to create path diagrams and the
were selected was their in-depth knowledge of risk management oper­ availability of goodness-of-fit indices to allow for model validation (Dey
ations inside their manufacturing companies. et al., 2020). For the analysis, maximum likelihood was used as the
extraction method. The hypotheses presented in the previous sections
4.3. Sample details were tested for each of the four emergent technologies, namely: AI,
blockchain, CC and big data. Finally, the results of the analysis were
The survey was prepared on Qualtrics (www.qualtrics.com), the link used to evaluate the different hypotheses and draw conclusions.
was distributed amongst UK companies and the data was saved anony­
mously on the platform. Information was gathered from 117 companies 5. Results
using the online survey tool. The details of the sample are included in
5.1. Exploratory factor analysis
Table 2
Sample demographics. EFA was undertaken in SPSS Statistics 26 using principal compo­
Size of the company Frequency nents analysis for extraction. Table 3 presents Bartlett’s test and the
KMO measure for the four models, with values showing no multi­
Fewer than 10 employees 6
Between 11 and 50 employees 17
collinearity and KMO values in the range of good sample size (Hutch­
Between 51 and 100 employees 13 eson, 1999).
Between 101 and 250 employees 18 The common method bias test on the four models revealed a total
More than 250 employees 62 variance explained by a single factor of 29.75% for AI, 28.72% for BC,
Experience at the company Frequency 27.48% for CC, and 27.21% for DA. All values were below the threshold
Less than 1 year 22
of 50% (Podsakoff et al., 2003), which suggests the information used for
Between 1 and 5 years 48 analysis is not affected by common method bias.
More than 5 years but less than 10 years 25 Table 4 exhibits the alpha values for the eight-factor solution of all
More than ten years 21 the models. The alpha reliabilities for most of the constructs were
Risk and crisis management experience Frequency satisfactory by the cut-off point of 0.7 (Kline, 2000), whereas the alpha
Less than 1 year 4 reliability of perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness in the CC
Between 1 and 5 years 31 model were accepted because a value of 0.6 or more was considered
More than 5 years but less than 10 years 31 adequate (Hair et al., 2010).
More than ten years 50 Additionally, composite reliability (CR), average variance extracted
*One participant decided not to disclose the information about (AVE) and correlation matrices were obtained to ensure the reliability of
demographics. the measures used. Tables 8–11 in the Appendix show the values

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Table 3
KMO’s and Bartlet’s tests of the four models.
Test Coefficient artificial intelligence Coefficient blockchain Coefficient cloud computing Coefficient big data

Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy .834 .832 .812 .786

Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity Approx. Chi-Square 1557.704 1734.590 1448.893 1260.926
df 300 325 276 253
Sig. .000 .000 .000 .000

one construct to another. Low p-values (<0.05) indicate that changes in

Table 4
the predictor value lead to changes in the predicted value, whereas
Alpha values of the four models.
p-values above 0.05 are considered insignificant, implying a lack of
Construct Cronbach’s Cronbach’s α Cronbach’s α Cronbach’s α relationship between the constructs.
α AI BC CC DA
Fig. 2 presents the results for the adoption of AI. Significant effects of
Perceived easiness 0.707 0.846 0.685 0.794 organisational factors include awareness of the requirements on the
of use
level of digital transformation, level of digital transformation on
Perceived 0.850 0.800 0.659 0.704
usefulness perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and organisational resil­
Behavioural 0.890 0.932 0.909 0.825 ience; and organisational resilience on intention to use AI. The most
intention to use significant effects of external factors include market pressure on
Awareness of 0.870 perceived usefulness and perceived easiness of use and regulation on the
requirements
perceived easiness of use. Examining the TAM section of the model, we
Digital technology 0.828
adoption found that perceived usefulness and ease of using AI have significant and
Organisational 0.833 positive effects on the behavioural intention of using AI.
resilience *: p < 0.05; **: p < 0.01; ***: p < 0.001
Regulations 0.820
Fig. 3 shows the adoption of blockchain technology. Significant ef­
Market pressure 0.750
fects of organisational factors include awareness of the requirements on
the level of digital transformation (positive) and perceived easiness of
obtained for each of the models, with values of AVE above 0.5 and CR use (negative); significant positive effects from the level of digital
above 0.6 in all cases, which are considered acceptable for analysis transformation on perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and
(Fornell and Larcker, 1981). The results from the correlation matrices organisational resilience; and organisational resilience on intention to
confirm the discriminant and convergent validity of the models. use AI. The most significant effects of external factors include regulation
on the perceived easiness of use and market pressure on perceived
5.2. Structural equation modelling usefulness. The TAM section of the model shows significant results, as
both perceived usefulness and ease of use significantly and positively
The goodness-of-fit (GoF) coefficients of the structural equation influence the behavioural intention of using BC.
models for the four technologies are presented in Table 5. Different *: p < 0.05; **: p < 0.01; ***: p < 0.001
measures of GoF were estimated to check the model fit to the data. We Fig. 4 shows the results for the adoption of CC technology. Signifi­
used the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), the cant and positive effects of organisational factors include awareness of
goodness-of-fit index (GFI), the Tucker Lewis index (TLI), the compar­ the requirements on the level of digital transformation, perceived use­
ative fit index (CFI), and the normed X2 to examine the model fit. Values fulness, perceived easiness of use, and level of digital transformation on
of CFI≥0.9 and TLI>0.9, (Schumacker and Lomax, 2004), RMSEA≤0.08 organisational resilience. Additionally, the most significant effect of
(Byrne, 1989; Hair et al., 2010), and normed X2≤2.0 (Papke-Shields external factors involves regulation on the perceived easiness of use. The
et al., 2002) show good fit, whereas the value of GFI≥0.8 represents TAM section of the model shows that perceived ease of use has a sig­
reasonable fit (Doll et al., 1994). nificant positive effect on the behavioural intention of using CC.
*: p < 0.05; **: p < 0.01; ***: p < 0.001
5.3. Parameter estimation and hypothesis testing results The model examining the adoption of big data is presented in Fig. 5.
Organisational factors have significant and positive effects: awareness of
The results of the SEM models for AI, blockchain, CC and big data are the requirements on the level of digital transformation and perceived
presented in Figs. 2- 5, respectively. The figures show the estimates of usefulness and level of digital transformation on organisational resil­
the standardised path regression coefficients and their significance for ience. Significant and positive effects involving external factors include
the links between the constructs used for each model. The continuous regulation on the perceived easiness of use and market pressure on
lines with coefficients represent significant relationships, whereas the perceived usefulness. Finally, the behavioural intention of using big data
dotted lines represent non-significant relationships. The significance of is significantly and positively influenced by perceived ease of use and
the relationships is evaluated based on the p-value obtained from the perceived usefulness.
analysis. SEM provides p-values indicating the statistical significance of *: p < 0.05; **: p < 0.01; ***: p < 0.001
the coefficients obtained (Byrne, 2001). The p-value tests the null hy­ The summary of results is presented in Table 6. Digital trans­
pothesis that the coefficient is equal to 0, which means no effect from formation arises as an important driver of organisational resilience and
is an influencing factor for perceived usefulness and easiness of use in
the cases of AI and BC. At the same time, as expected, it is consistently
Table 5
Goodness of fit of the four models. affected by the awareness of the organisational requirements for the
implementation of technology. The effect of regulations on the
GoF measure Model AI Model BC Model CC Model DA
perceived easiness of use is consistently positive, similar to the case of
CFI 0.942 0.952 0.954 0.943 market pressures on perceived usefulness, except in the case of CC.
TLI 0.934 0.945 0.947 0.933
Organisational resilience has a significant effect on the behavioural
GFI 0.823 0.825 0.837 0.838
X2/DF 1.308 1.265 1.247 1.293 intention to use the cases of AI and BC. Perceived easiness of use affects
RMSEA 0.052 0.048 0.046 0.050 behavioural intention in all cases, whilst perceived usefulness influences

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

Fig. 2. Standardised path coefficient estimates of the model for AI adoption.

intention to use in most cases, except for the case of CC. The relevance of adoption can be enhanced when users are aware of the potential benefits
these results is discussed in the next section. of the implementation of technology and can use it without major dif­
ficulties. These relations are consistent with the results of this study,
6. Discussion which represent a major finding of the analysis. Previous studies have
shown the value of both constructs for individual technologies under­
Previous research has argued that digital manufacturing technolo­ pinned by the work of Davis (1989). However, this study provides an
gies can enhance the circular use of resources in supply chains (Lopes de analysis of four different technologies. It highlights the importance of
Sousa Jabbour, Jabbour, Godinho Filho and Roubaud, 2018). We are both constructs for the implementation of emergent technologies in risk
extending that idea by targeting the need to allow the integration of risk management; at the same time, the insignificant link between CC and
management in the digital transformation of manufacturing (Borangiu perceived usefulness shows the effect of the distinct perceived charac­
et al., 2019) to create more resilient organisations. Hence, using the teristics of each technology on adoption. This stresses that the type of
theoretical foundations of TAM (Davis, 1989), institutional theory, and technology and the context of the application (i.e. risk management) can
the RBV, this paper introduces and validates a model for the adoption of affect the TAM constructs.
emergent technologies for risk management. The model proposed was Perceived ease of use is essential in risk management because in­
applied to the implementation of four technologies to improve the stances in which people have a satisfactory experience with technology,
identification, analysis and response to potential risks: AI, blockchain, especially in highly pressured circumstances, can encourage continuity
CC and big data. of use (Meechang et al., 2020). Perceived easiness of use affected
behavioural intention in all the models, which highlights the importance
of having a clear understanding of the technology to facilitate user
6.1. User acceptance adoption. It is key for instances in which the users require close
connection and interaction with the process, such as risk management
In the digital manufacturing and I4.0 sphere, it is important to look at (Meechang et al., 2020). That result aligns with findings by Chatterjee
the adoption of emergent technologies (Shakina et al., 2021). The TAM et al. (2021) in the implementation of AI, and by Albayati et al. (2020)
model provides a good foundation from which to examine the adoption and Kamble et al. (2020) in the implementation of blockchain, but
of emergent technologies for risk management. These emergent tech­ contradicts findings by Kamble et al. (2018) in the use of blockchain for
nologies can enhance and even redefine the way processes are per­ supply chains in India. The reason can be linked to the context; the
formed. Although the advantages of introducing I4.0 technologies are perceptions of the easiness of use represent a major deciding factor in
well recognised (Dalenogare et al., 2018), the limited level of adoption the use of emergent technologies in risk management because the
combined with the absence of studies looking at the aspects affecting pressure, sense of urgency and uncertainty found in those settings
their implementation is an area that needs to be tackled (Bag et al., (Anand and Forshner, 1995) allow minimal room for error whilst using
2021). Perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use have been related the technologies.
to user acceptance in the past, where the findings have shown that

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

Fig. 3. Standardised path coefficient estimates of the model for BC adoption.

Although perceived usefulness is commonly a major factor affecting to data storage and computation on the eyes of users (Koh et al., 2019;
intention to use technology (Davis, 1989) because knowledge about the Xu et al., 2018). This means that even when cloud services are being
benefits of the technology tends to incentivise users, it was found to be increasingly adopted, from the perspective of risk management the
significant for only three out of the four technologies, which aligns with benefits of that technology are seen as passive compared to the advan­
findings by Kamble et al. (2018) and Kamble et al. (2020) for BC, and tages advertised for the other technologies.
Chatterjee et al. (2021) for AI. The usefulness of BC, AI and DA is linked Overall, the findings of the study highlight the importance of
to improved ability to merge data from different sources, enhanced engaging potential users in the implementation of I4.0 technologies.
capability to filter and sort data, increased capacity to draw information Despite the widely known benefits of these technologies (Dalenogare
from big data, enhanced communication between stakeholders, et al., 2018), briefing potential users about the way each technology can
data-driven decision-making, and increased transparency and account­ help make their activity more efficient is essential to promote successful
ability (Queiroz and Fosso-Wamba, 2019; Rodríguez-Espíndola et al., adoption. Additionally, users have to be given abundant information
2020; Xu et al., 2018). Meechang et al. (2020) identify that perceptions and training for each technology to facilitate its use and achieve the
of a technology can be domain-specific, as each technology plays a expected aims. Otherwise, failure to convince them about the potential
different role, and perceived usefulness becomes relevant for those benefits and to facilitate the use of the technology can significantly
technologies that improve the perceived performance. Users seem to hinder the successful adoption of technology.
perceive cloud services more as an enabler than as a key alternative
enhancing the processes or outputs from their activities, which is re­
flected in perceived usefulness not having a significant relationship with 6.2. Organisational resilience
adoption intentions in the case of CC. This result aligns with arguments
in the literature about the marginal benefits of the isolated imple­ Emergent technologies are useful tools to enable supply chain resil­
mentation of cloud services (Tortorella Guilherme, Giglio, and van Dun ience (Min, 2019). Nevertheless, evidence is lacking for the effects of
Desirée, 2019) and because the perceived value of CC seems to be linked organisational resilience on the successful implementation of emergent
technologies. Moreover, despite concerns about the importance of the

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

Fig. 4. Standardised path coefficient estimates of the model for CC adoption.

lack of preparation and digital culture for the implementation of digital introduction of these technologies riskier and less likely to succeed. In
manufacturing (Bag et al., 2021), fewer studies have looked into the the case of CC and DA, it seems once technologies are more widely used
effects of capabilities such as resilience and their importance for the and information is more readily available, the ability to adapt to unex­
introduction of digital solutions. This is particularly important in risk pected conditions can become less important. That has been shown in
management, as developing technical infrastructures can enable inte­ this research, which concludes that managers do not perceive these
grated approaches for supply chain risk management (Belhadi et al., characteristics as vital when the aim is to adopt CC and big data, which
2021). The findings of this study suggest that organisational resilience is have already been used by several companies as part of the IoT and
only relevant for the adoption of BC and AI. The reason can be that these which rely on well-known and readily available best practices and ac­
technologies are more widely advertised and commonly associated with counts of experiences by other companies (Ancarani et al., 2019). The
the term ‘disruptive technologies’ (Cichosz, 2018; Fosso-Wamba and established availability of information and resources around these
Queiroz, 2020; Rodríguez-Espíndola et al., 2020). From the perspective technologies allows them to mitigate unexpected circumstances and
of RBV, the need for novel approaches and new competences is associ­ causes less uncertainty about their implementation, which makes their
ated with the paradigm-changing perception of disruptive technologies implementation less risky and more attractive for all companies.
(Nair and Boulton William, 2008). The flexibility and capability to adapt Overall, the results suggest that organisational resilience can facili­
found in resilient organisations (Ambulkar et al., 2015) would be war­ tate the implementation of disruptive technologies because of the ability
ranted to implement and fully leverage these technologies, in contrast to react quickly and adapt to evolving conditions. This finding suggests
with CC and data analytics. Hence, organisational resilience can become that more innovative companies interested in these disruptive technol­
a key enabler to facilitate the implementation of technologies perceived ogies can benefit from the capabilities generated in the organisation by
to be more complex, such as AI and BC. As the organisation is more fostering resilience.
responsive to changes in its processes and capable of adapting to new
conditions and requirements caused by those changes, it is less averse to 6.3. Internal factors
adopting disruptive technologies such as BC and AI. In contrast, orga­
nisations with lower levels of organisational resilience can find the Several organisational challenges exist for digital manufacturing as

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

Fig. 5. Standardised path coefficient estimates of the model for DA adoption.

related to human and material resources. Investment costs and staff

Table 6
training can be significant barriers (Mak et al., 2020). Hence, findings
Summary of the standardised path coefficients and significance of the four
about digital transformation and its effect on TAM constructs provide
models.
insights into the role of these resources and capabilities to support
Hypothesis Relationship AI BC CC DA
disruptive technologies. This is related to the degree of organisational
H1 Regulations - 0.309** 0.402*** 0.618*** 0.371** and technical infrastructure available in the company to foster the use of
Easiness the system, which is aligned with the facilitating conditions described by
H2 Regulations - n.s. n.s. n.s. n.s.
Venkatesh et al. (2003). This research acknowledges the importance of
Usefulness
H3 Market - Easiness 0.372** n.s. n.s. n.s. developing these conditions based on the level of technical expertise
H4 Market - 0.603*** 0.484*** n.s. 0.288* gained through the degree of digital transformation and the prepared­
Usefulness ness for implementation based on awareness of the requirements for
H5 Requirements – 0.434*** 0.433*** 0.434*** 0.436***
technology implementation. The degree of digital transformation has a
Digital
transformation significant effect on perceived usefulness and ease of use of AI and BC
H6 Requirements - n.s. − 0.286* 0.243* n.s. only, which is consistent with results obtained by Grover et al. (2020),
Easiness Kuberkar and Singhal (2020) and Pillai and Sivathanu (2020) for AI, and
H7 Requirements - n.s. n.s. 0.504*** 0.533*** Queiroz and Fosso-Wamba (2019), Queiroz et al. (2020) and Wong et al.
Usefulness
(2020) for BC. This can be due to the expected level of technical sav­
H8 Digital 0.297* 0.540*** n.s. n.s.
transformation - viness required to introduce these disruptive technologies in risk man­
Easiness agement. Companies engaged with digital transformation have more
H9 Digital 0.294** 0.303* n.s. n.s. experience leveraging technological advances, which gives them more
transformation -
confidence and affects their ease in adopting new technologies, as they
Usefulness
H10 Digital 0.507*** 0.492*** 0.492*** 0.494***
have more certainty about the benefits that can be obtained from it. In
transformation - the case of using CC and big data, numerous reports and applications
Resilience (Xu et al., 2018) make organisations less engaged with digital trans­
H11 Resilience – 0.269** 0.240** n.s. n.s. formation more comfortable with the adoption of technology. More
Intention
information and guidance facilitate understanding of the needs for
H12 Usefulness – 0.395*** 0.327*** n.s. 0.328**
Intention adoption and provide more confidence about the advantages of imple­
H13 Easiness – 0.449*** 0.402*** 0.629*** 0.442*** menting technology.
Intention Interestingly, awareness of the requirements is significant for
*
p < 0.05. perceived usefulness in the cases of DA and CC, unlike the level of digital
**
p < 0.01. transformation. It seems that more widely known and established
***
p < 0.001. technologies rely more on gathering readily available information about
the requirements than on having a high level of digital savviness. An
unexpected finding about the awareness of requirements, however, is

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Table 7 Table 7 (continued )

Survey items. Survey construct Questions Reference
Survey construct Questions Reference
intelligence, and data ana­
Digital technology • My company is engaging in Dubey et al. (2020), lytics continuously to satisfy
adoption digital transformation Fosso-Wamba et al. stakeholders
• My company has relevant (2020) Awareness of • Requires strategic leadership Ślusarczyk (2018)
sensors/technology to collect requirements of from within the organisation
and sense information from technology • Requires a vision and long-
multiple sources in real time adoption term plan which are effec­
• My company employs tively communicated across
technology solutions to the organisation
transform data into a usable • It can enhance business
format, to help understand reputation in the sector and
the collected information amongst the consumers
• My company employs • Requires creating the right
technology solutions to use balance between people and
the data for making forecasts technology, through clear
that will help prepare for the allocation of resources, tasks,
future and identifying roles and
• My company employs responsibilities
technology solutions to • Requires engaging the
automate the processes employees and establishing
relevant to data-driven deci­ trust amongst the workforce
sion making • Requires developing relations
• My company has strategies in with business partners and
place for workforce skills stakeholders to effectively
development, to effectively engage them
manage and use the • Requires awareness of
technology solutions technology needs and
Organisational • We are able to cope with Ambulkar et al. (2015) developing skills through
resilience changes brought by training
disruptions/ emergency • Requires alignment with
situations. organisation, structure
• We are able to adapt to the values, culture, and strategy
disruption easily. • Requires understanding the
• We are able to provide a quick organisational change – i.e.
response to disruptions what will be the change and
• We are able to maintain high its impact on people, process,
situational awareness at all and profits
times • Developing and promoting a
Regulations • Emergent technologies’ Wong et al. (2020) culture of innovation within
development and the organisation
implementation receives • Requires adaptive capacity, i.
financial support from e. acknowledging uncertainty
government or relevant and demonstrate agility to
authorities change
• Relevant policies are Perceived easiness of • I think AI is easy and Davis (1989), Kamble
introduced by the use AI understandable et al. (2018)
government to boost • It would be easy for me to
emergent technology become skilful at using AI for
implementation risk management
• There is legal support for the • I think integrating AI will be
integration of emergent easy compared to
technologies conventional practices used
• The laws and regulations that for risk management
exist nowadays are sufficient • I would find it easy to get AI
to protect the integration and to do what I need to do for
use of emergent technologies. risk management
Market pressure • Stakeholder’s (e.g. suppliers Wong et al. (2020) Perceived easiness of • I think BC is easy and
and customers) expectations use BC understandable
about the integration of • It would be easy for me to
emergent technologies on risk become skilful at using BC for
management are increasing risk management
• Other companies are • I think integrating BC will be
planning or starting to easy compared to
integrate emergent conventional practices used
technologies for risk for risk management
management • I would find it easy to get BC
• The requirements for to do what I need to do for
accuracy, transparency, risk management
enhanced decision-making, Perceived easiness of • I think CC is easy and
and traceability for risk man­ use CC understandable
agement are rising. • It would be easy for me to
• Companies need to introduce become skilful at using CC for
cutting-edge technology for risk management
risk management such as BC, • I think integrating CC will be
cloud computing, artificial easy compared to
(continued on next page)

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Table 7 (continued ) Table 7 (continued )

Survey construct Questions Reference Survey construct Questions Reference

conventional practices used • DA enable data-driven deci­

for risk management sion-making during risk
• I would find it easy to get CC management
to do what I need to do for Behavioural • I predict my organisation will Kamble et al. (2018),
risk management intention to use AI adopt AI for risk management Wong et al. (2020),
Perceived easiness of • I think DA is easy and in the future Venkatesh and Davis
use DA understandable • I plan to integrate AI for risk (2000)
• It would be easy for me to management in the near
become skilful at using DA for future
risk management • I expect that my organisation
• I think integrating DA will be will integrate AI to enhance
easy compared to risk management in the
conventional practices used future
for risk management • My organisation plans to
• I would find it easy to get DA digitally transform risk
to do what I need to do for management operations
risk management through integrating AI
Perceived usefulness • AI enhances predictive risk Davis (1989), Behavioural • I predict my organisation will
AI identification assessment Venkatesh and Davis intention to use BC adopt BC for risk
• AI facilitates drawing insights (2000) management in the future
from big data for risk • I plan to integrate BC for risk
management management in the near
• AI encourages having future
qualitative understanding of • I expect that my organisation
the risks and will integrate BC to enhance
recommendations to enhance risk management in the
trust and reliability for risk future
management • My organisation plans to
• AI supports the efficient digitally transform risk
allocation of resources for management operations
risk management through integrating BC
• AI enhances decision-making Behavioural • I predict my organisation will
during crises intention to use CC adopt CC for risk
Perceived usefulness • BC facilitates tracing and management in the future
BC tracking information related • I plan to integrate CC for risk
to processes for risk management in the near
management future
• BC allows us to perform • I expect that my organisation
secure transactions for risk will integrate CC to enhance
management risk management in the
• BC allows us to effectively future
communicate with customers • My organisation plans to
and suppliers to manage risks digitally transform risk
• BC enhances information management operations
quality and reliability for risk through integrating CC
management Behavioural • I predict my organisation will
• BC facilitates swifter data- intention to use DA adopt DA for risk
driven decision-making for management in the future
risk management • I plan to integrate DA for risk
Perceived usefulness • CC facilitates collaboration management in the near
CC with internal and external future
stakeholders for risk • I expect that my organisation
management will integrate DA to enhance
• CC reduces in-house opera­ risk management in the
bility risks future
• CC enhances data • My organisation plans to
management within the digitally transform risk
organisation for risk management operations
management through integrating DA
• CC facilitates data driven
decision making for risk
management the contrasting impact on perceived ease of use between blockchain and
Perceived usefulness • DA allows to combine data CC. Although both are clustered as digital technologies (Lorenz et al.,
DA from different sources to
increase the reliability of
2020), the results suggest that increased awareness of these re­
forecasts about risks and quirements negatively affects the perceived easiness of use of block­
potential crises chain, as opposed to the effect on the perceived easiness of use of CC.
• DA permits the company to That can be because of the difference in the perceptions of the
react swiftly to manage risks
complexity of those requirements. Blockchain is at a very early stage and
and crises
• DA provides an overview of the requirements to harness the technology have yet to be mastered by
the data and help to managers (Fosso-Wamba and Queiroz, 2020), which can make the
understand its value for risk technology appear less user-friendly for employees and suggests a sub­
management sequent need for training. This result agrees with findings from the
literature stressing the importance of accumulating competencies and
skills in companies to improve the adoption of emergent technologies in

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Table 8
CR, AVE and correlations matrix of the AI model.
CR AVE MSV MaxR(H) EAI MAR REQ ADO RES REG IAI UAI

EAI 0.713 0.556 0.480 0.733 0.746

MAR 0.750 0.501 0.473 0.759 0.443 0.708
REQ 0.871 0.629 0.181 0.872 − 0.002 0.312 0.793
ADO 0.834 0.626 0.242 0.839 0.280 0.178 0.426 0.791
RES 0.834 0.627 0.242 0.847 0.150 − 0.020 0.285 0.492 0.792
REG 0.820 0.603 0.345 0.822 0.491 0.587 0.072 0.239 0.134 0.777
IAI 0.893 0.735 0.480 0.899 0.693 0.447 0.274 0.443 0.385 0.442 0.858
UAI 0.851 0.589 0.473 0.855 0.549 0.688 0.336 0.395 0.197 0.465 0.667 0.768

Table 9
CR, AVE and correlations matrix of the BC model.
CR AVE MSV MaxR(H) EBC MAR REQ ADO RES REG IBC UBC

EBC 0.847 0.649 0.338 0.847 0.806

MAR 0.749 0.500 0.345 0.760 0.226 0.707
REQ 0.872 0.629 0.181 0.872 0.003 0.322 0.793
ADO 0.834 0.627 0.243 0.839 0.478 0.187 0.425 0.792
RES 0.834 0.628 0.243 0.844 0.189 − 0.005 0.285 0.493 0.792
REG 0.821 0.604 0.345 0.821 0.484 0.587 0.070 0.235 0.131 0.777
IBC 0.933 0.777 0.338 0.941 0.581 0.389 0.054 0.410 0.364 0.464 0.882
UBC 0.802 0.575 0.334 0.805 0.513 0.578 0.321 0.382 0.144 0.399 0.541 0.758

Table 10
CR, AVE and correlations matrix of the CC model.
CR AVE MSV MaxR(H) ECC MAR REQ ADO RES REG ICC UCC

ECC 0.686 0.522 0.448 0.687 0.723

MAR 0.751 0.502 0.349 0.755 0.393 0.709
REQ 0.871 0.629 0.324 0.872 0.302 0.324 0.793
ADO 0.834 0.627 0.240 0.843 0.354 0.173 0.428 0.792
RES 0.834 0.627 0.240 0.845 0.254 − 0.011 0.287 0.490 0.792
REG 0.819 0.602 0.448 0.820 0.669 0.591 0.074 0.224 0.130 0.776
ICC 0.912 0.723 0.442 0.938 0.665 0.419 0.317 0.235 0.020 0.446 0.851
UCC 0.668 0.504 0.350 0.690 0.592 0.387 0.569 0.387 0.089 0.296 0.406 0.710

Table 11
CR, AVE and correlations matrix of the DA model.
CR AVE MSV MaxR(H) ECC MAR REQ ADO RES REG ICC UCC

ECC 0.797 0.568 0.319 0.818 0.754

MAR 0.752 0.502 0.339 0.753 0.418 0.709
REQ 0.871 0.629 0.368 0.872 0.326 0.333 0.793
ADO 0.834 0.627 0.241 0.842 0.313 0.170 0.429 0.792
RES 0.834 0.627 0.241 0.844 0.149 − 0.010 0.287 0.491 0.792
REG 0.820 0.603 0.339 0.821 0.483 0.582 0.073 0.230 0.131 0.777
ICC 0.832 0.713 0.319 0.857 0.565 0.562 0.474 0.343 0.169 0.334 0.844
UCC 0.708 0.549 0.368 0.720 0.354 0.417 0.607 0.388 0.135 0.214 0.431 0.741

digital manufacturing (Shakina et al., 2021) and the need to increase the suggested as a potential approach to prepare, manage and adapt to the
level of digital culture amongst employees through alternatives such as conditions caused by disruptions (Papagiannidis et al., 2020). Managing
training (Ślusarczyk, 2018). On the other hand, CC belongs to a set of risks and crises has been commonly linked to the concept of resilience.
technologies developed before 2011, which were adopted by companies Organisational resilience creates the potential to react and adapt to
before the advent of the I4.0 concept (Tortorella Guilherme, Giglio and changing and unforeseen circumstances (Cotta and Salvador, 2020). The
van Dun Desirée, 2019), thus benefiting from several practitioner cases findings of this study provide empirical evidence of the value of digital
(Ancarani et al., 2019) that can be combined with current infrastructure transformation to provide support to enhance organisational resilience
to enhance technology adoption. Considering the prominence of the across all the technologies studied. This means that organisations
technical and organisational conditions of the company to promote introducing the capabilities and infrastructure to harness technological
technology adoption (Venkatesh et al., 2003), the results confirm the advances along with the required training for adoption are reinforcing
importance of the type of technology and its perceived characteristics in their ability to withstand disruptions, adapt to unforeseen circumstances
the effect of emergent technologies, as the influence of the level of and leverage them to move forward. Hence, organisations committed to
digital transformation and the awareness of the requirements showed digital transformation can leverage that expertise to build resilience
variations across technologies. inside their organisations, which in turn can allow them to manage risk
Digital transformation is understood as a never-ending process of and crises more effectively. That transformation, however, needs to be
leveraging capabilities brought by new technologies for organisations to underpinned by an awareness of the organisational requirements for the
transform and thrive (Li, 2020). Digital transformation has been successful adoption of technology.

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O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

Table 12 influences of professionals from a developed economy perspective. The

List of abbreviations. literature review has shown limited research looking into the adoption
Abbreviation Meaning of I4.0 technologies in risk management, particularly looking at and
contrasting the factors for the adoption of different I4.0 technologies
AI Artificial intelligence
BC Blockchain technology and the role of organisational resilience and user acceptance. Hence, the
CC Cloud computing contribution of this research to knowledge is threefold: It develops and
CFI the comparative fit index empirically tests a model for user acceptance of emergent technologies
DA Big data in risk management combining RBV, TAM and institutional theory, it
GFI Goodness-of-fit index
GoF Goodness-of-fit (GoF)
investigates the relationship between organisational resilience and user
IT Information Technology acceptance of technology in risk management, and it provides insights
KMO Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin into the differences between the user acceptance of four different I4.0
RBV Resource-based view technologies in the risk management context. Therefore, the set of im­
RMSEA Root mean square error of approximation
plications stemming from our results for management and environ­
SEM Structural equation modelling
TAM Technology Acceptance Model mental science includes:
TLI Tucker Lewis index
TOE Technology-Organisations-Environment • Organisational resources are relevant factors affecting the adoption
UTAUT Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology of emergent technologies for risk management. The involvement of
companies in digital transformation can be beneficial by encour­
6.4. External factors aging the adoption of cutting-edge and disruptive technologies,
whereas information about the requirements and requisites of the
External factors stemming from the institutional view represent implementation need to be considered for more known technologies.
another important part of the model. Beyond the internal barriers for • External factors influence users’ perceptions of the adoption of
digital manufacturing found in companies, environmental factors emergent technologies. Guidance and regulations can affect per­
related to external stakeholders and collaboration can have a significant ceptions of the easiness of the use of emergent technologies, whereas
effect on implementation (Bag et al., 2021). Wong et al. (2020) found market pressure can affect the perceived usefulness of emergent
that regulatory support and market dynamics were not significant fac­ technologies.
tors affecting the behavioural intention to use blockchain. However, we • Organisational resilience fosters an environment that can support the
argue that regulatory support and market pressure can be factors adoption of disruptive technologies such as BC and AI. The flexi­
affecting managers’ perceptions. Our findings suggest a significant effect bility, adaptability, and capability to adapt that are embedded in
of governmental policies and support on the perceived easiness of using resilient organisations facilitate the implementation of complex and
emergent technologies for risk management across the different tech­ less widely adopted technologies.
nologies tested. This can be explained because regulatory guidance can
enhance the confidence and level of information about the adoption of
novel technologies, whereas financial motivations can allow organisa­ 7.2. Practical implications
tions to introduce training, human resources, and support for the tran­
sition. This finding aligns with current evidence from multiple This research has shown not only theoretical contributions but also
developed countries promoting governmental and industrial plans for contributions to operations managers wanting to adopt these
enhanced manufacturing performance through the use of new technol­ technologies:
ogies (Mariani and Borghi, 2019) and evidence that the regulatory
framework can affect technology adoption (AlSheibani et al., 2018; • Regulatory support can make a significant difference in the percep­
Jianwen and Wakil, 2019). On the other hand, evidence of market tions of managers and user acceptance of emergent technologies in
pressure affecting the adoption of emergent technologies (AlSheibani general. The boundaries of uncertainty and lack of understanding
et al., 2018; Chen et al., 2015; Pillai and Sivathanu, 2020; Wong et al., about technology adoption can be reduced through policies
2020) are consistent with the results indicating that market pressure has encouraging organisations to implement training and use resources
a significant effect on the perceived usefulness of these technologies to facilitate the transition to the introduction of emergent technol­
except in the case of CC. This means that in the cases of AI, BC, and DA ogies for risk management. This can encourage policymakers to
the benefits for the risk management function observed in benchmarked introduce further programmes to support companies to continue the
companies or partners in the supply chain are important for under­ digital transformation, aiming to support regional development and
standing and acknowledging the potential benefits for the company. create more robust organisations to cope with disruptions in the
Conversely, the case of CC can be linked to the perception of marginal digital manufacturing era.
benefits from its implementation (Tortorella Guilherme, Giglio, and van • Stakeholder pressure helps organisations realise the value of tech­
Dun Desirée, 2019). Even if the benefits of this technology are observed nologies. Practices from other supply chain stakeholders such as
in several other organisations, it seems that these are less attractive for customers, suppliers and competitors are relevant to value the ben­
risk management given that it can be seen as a more passive technology efits of implementing emergent technologies for risk management.
compared to other alternatives. This finding can encourage managers to advocate for visibility and
share best practices with other supply chain partners to achieve
7. Research implications benefits and to show the impact of I4.0 technologies in their
processes.
7.1. Theoretical implications • Investing in organisational resilience can enhance the willingness for
technology adoption for risk management. Organisations aware of
The study has used the lenses of RBV, institutional theory and TAM vulnerabilities and the potential impact of disruptions value the
to develop a novel behavioural adoption model for AI, BC, CC, and DA prospective benefits of disruptive technologies and can leverage ca­
for risk management. The model has been examined through the anal­ pabilities such as flexibility and adaptability to support the imple­
ysis of 117 responses using SEM to test the relationships between con­ mentation of technologies such as blockchain and AI. This result
structs to provide a deeper understanding of the adoption behaviour and shows managers the importance of the relationship between
enhanced capabilities and the benefits of technology adoption.

20
O. Rodríguez-Espíndola et al. Technological Forecasting & Social Change 178 (2022) 121562

• Digital transformation can help develop necessary capabilities for these technologies. Finally, the addition of other emergent technologies
organisational resilience. Harnessing technology can help companies could be valuable to gather further insights about the constructs
to cope and manage risks and crises more easily. This finding can included.
help managers to introduce digital transformation as part of their
business strategy to develop capabilities that can help them prevent Funding
and manage disruptions, along with the operational benefits adver­
tised for the use of technology. This research was supported by the Productivity Insights Network
grant number ES/R007810/1 from the Economic and Social Research
8. Conclusions Council and the Aston Seed Corn Grant.

I4.0 has become a critical enabler for the digitalisation of processes CRediT authorship contribution statement
and redefining activities in companies globally. Increasing environ­
mental challenges have shown the importance of integrating risk man­ Oscar Rodríguez-Espíndola: Conceptualization, Software, Valida­
agement in the digital transformation of manufacturing companies. tion, Formal analysis, Data curation, Writing – original draft, Writing –
However, it is one of the processes that are lagging in that evolution. review & editing. Soumyadeb Chowdhury: Conceptualization, Data
Moreover, the general implementation of I4.0 is still at a very nascent curation, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Writing – original draft,
stage (Büchi et al., 2020). Understanding the different factors influ­ Writing – review & editing. Prasanta Kumar Dey: Conceptualization,
encing user acceptance and facilitating that transformation can make a Methodology, Software, Validation, Funding acquisition, Project
major difference in facilitating the adoption of I4.0 technologies to administration. Pavel Albores: Conceptualization, Data curation,
redefine key processes such as risk management. This paper has Investigation, Supervision, Writing – review & editing. Ali Emrouzne­
empirically investigated the impact of organisational and external fac­ jad: Conceptualization, Validation, Supervision, Writing – review &
tors in the adoption of AI, blockchain, CC and big data for risk man­ editing.
agement based on the lenses of the RBV, institutional theory and TAM.
The purpose is to provide a further understanding of the impact of those Appendix
factors to enable the implementation of emergent technologies and
improve risk management processes. None.
A total of 117 responses from managers obtained from a survey in­
strument were analysed using SEM to validate the model and examine References
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Dr. Oscar Rodríguez-Espindola is a Senior Lecturer in Operations and Supply Chain
knowledge exchange based on blockchain. Telecommun. Syst. 73, 259–288.
Management at Aston University and a member of the Aston CRISIS centre. He has led a
Rodger, J., Chaudhary, P., Bhatt, G., 2019. Refining information systems competencies:
project about the development of a decision support system for climate-related events in
the role of big data analytics resilience in organisational learning. Int. J. Bus. Intell.
Mexico and he has been co-investigator in a range of projects about sustainability, circular
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economy, disaster management, and mental health during contingencies. His expertise
Rodríguez-Espíndola, O., Alem, D., Pelegrin Da Silva, L., 2020a. A shortage risk
includes de use of optimisation models, simulation and geographical information systems
mitigation model for multi-agency coordination in logistics planning. Comput. Ind.
for the analysis of the supply chain and humanitarian logistics and he has published his
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research in several leading journals.
Rodríguez-Espíndola, O., Chowdhury, S., Beltagui, A., Albores, P., 2020b. The potential
of emergent disruptive technologies for humanitarian supply chains: the integration

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Dr. Soumyadeb Chowdhury is an associate professor in the Information, Operations and Dr. Pavel Albores (MIET, FHEA) is a Professor of Operation and Supply Chain Manage­
Management Sciences department in Toulouse Business School. He researches circular ment and Director of the CRISIS Centre at Aston Business School. Pavel’s research interests
economy capacity and capability building, emerging innovation such as Cloud, AI, Ana­ revolve around the fields of simulation, supply chain management, and humanitarian
lytics, Blockchain for business value, and relationship between mental wellbeing and logistics. Pavel has worked with leading governmental organisations in the field of pre­
business productivity in SMEs. He has been involved in several funded projects to design paredness, in research projects in the areas of knowledge management in Extended En­
and develop digital knowledge hub (Vietnam), circular economy implementation (India), terprises, Low Carbon SMEs and Supply Chain Management. He has acted as consultant
blockchain innovation (Caribbean islands), expert systems for shelter management with organisations such as the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister-Fire Service directorate,
(Mexico), and workforce resilience COVID-19 (UK). Highland Spring, Daks Group.

Dr. Prasanta Kumar Dey is a professor of Operations Management at Aston Business Prof. Ali Emrouznejad is a Professor and Chair in Business Analytics at Surrey Business
School. He has been honoured as 50th Anniversary Chair of Aston University in 2017. Prior School, UK. His areas of research interest include performance measurement and man­
to joining Aston, he worked for five years in the University of the West Indies in Barbados agement, efficiency and productivity analysis as well as data mining and big data. He holds
and 14 years in Indian Oil Corporation Limited, India. He specializes in supply chain an MSc in applied mathematics and received his PhD in operational research and systems
management, project management, and circular economy. He has published more than from Warwick Business School, UK. Dr Emrouznejad is editor /associate /member of
150 research papers in leading journals. He has accomplished several interdisciplinary editorial boards of several scientific journals. He has published over 150 articles and
research projects funded by leading funding bodies. He is the editor in chief of Interna­ authored / edited several books.
tional Journal of Energy Sector Management.

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