Science Research Management ›› 2025, Vol. 46 ›› Issue (10): 143-154.DOI: 10.19571/j.cnki.1000-2995.2025.10.015

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Research on the co-evolution mechanism between the digital capability and innovation capability of enterprises under the orientation of "short-term resilience and sustainable value"

Chen Litian1,2,3, Wang Shuyao1   

  1. 1. School of Business Administration, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou 310018, Zhejiang, China;
     2. Research Centre for Digital Innovation and Global Value Chain Upgrading, 
    Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou 310018, Zhejiang, China; 
    3. Modern Business Research Center, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou 310018, Zhejiang, China
  • Received:2024-01-11 Revised:2025-01-24 Accepted:2025-01-26 Online:2025-10-20 Published:2025-10-14
  • Contact: Li-Tian, CHEN

Abstract:    In the context of digital transformation under the impact of unexpected events, the essence of structural change of enterprise innovation capability is the cumulative strategic change pivot triggered by value conflicts, leading to the generation, removal, maintenance, and enhancement of digital capability and innovation capability. This leads to a shift in capability structure from quantitative to qualitative changes. Our research, based on the exploratory dual case analysis method, selected two case samples, Ali Health and Ping′an Good Doctor to analyze the co-evolutionary trajectory of digital capability and innovation capability within enterprises that are strategically oriented towards achieving a delicate equilibrium between "short-term resilience" and "sustainable value". This investigation unfolded from the vantage point of understanding the formation of strategic change pivots. The research findings are as follows: firstly, a mixed value cognition transformation happened under the impact of unexpected event, shifting both from "economic" value to "economic-social" value and from "marketing" value to "marketing-service" value. This promotes enterprises to shift from short-term resilience orientation focused on survival construction, impact response, and crisis repair to sustainable value orientation focused on sustainable development, long-term orientation, and continuous adjustment. It drives co-evolution of digital capability and innovation capability. Secondly, under the orientation of "short-term resilience and sustainable value", reconfiguration of enterprise digital capability and innovation capability happen along with the addition, removal, maintenance, and enhancement of strategic change pivots triggered by mixed value cognition transformation. The short-term resilience-oriented capabilities are generated and removed, while the survival value-oriented capabilities are added, maintained, and enhanced. Thirdly, under the short-term resilience orientation, there exists a "Balance→Alternation→Coupling" capability co-evolution mechanism between digital capability and innovation capability, while under the survival value orientation, there exists a "Substitution→Parallelism→Spiral" capability co-evolution mechanism between digital capability and innovation capability. The significance of this research lies in its contribution to a more profound comprehension of the co-evolutionary dynamics between enterprise digital capability and innovation capability. This paper will contribute to existing research by identifying the composition of digital and innovation capability and two different types of co-evolution mechanism under "short-term resilience-sustainable value" orientation, which has depended existing understanding of capability co-evolution and strategic change pivot under the impact of unexpected events.

Key words: short-term resilience, sustainable value, co-evolution between digital capability and innovation capability, mechanism, dual case study