Digital platforms and artificial intelligence can enhance the agility, flexibility and resilience of business-to-business (B2B) service companies in volatile markets, a new study from the University of Eastern Finland shows. However, technology alone is not enough, as companies also need capabilities for managing strategic change. Published in Industrial Marketing Management, the qualitative study examined the evolution of capabilities in four service companies that had adopted a digital platform.

Recent market turbulence and crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, have highlighted the importance of organisational agility, flexibility and resilience in adapting to and overcoming exceptional situations.

“Although previous studies have highlighted the association of agility, flexibility and resilience, comprehensive understanding of the role of technology in enhancing these competitive factors remains lacking,” Doctoral Researcher and the first author of the study Minna Heikinheimo of the University of Eastern Finland says.

For the study, the researchers conducted 34 interviews with CEOs, directors and managers of B2B service companies. The study shows how companies leverage AI features available on digital platforms and the data they generate to provide more accurate service responses to customer needs, as well as more agility, including expedited service delivery. The network of various service providers and other shared resources available on the digital platform enabled companies to leverage the right kind of expertise according to demand and across national borders. In addition, the new platform-based way of providing expert services and a continuous development approach helped companies build competitiveness in the long run.

The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Eastern Finland and LUT University, who developed a model combining strategic management capabilities and platform ecosystems, fostering understanding of the factors contributing to companies’ agility, flexibility and resilience. Furthermore, the study offers concrete advice for business leaders on how to enhance competitiveness by leveraging technology and organisational capabilities.

“It is vital to understand factors affecting companies’ competitiveness and the mechanisms driving their emergence, as market turbulence seems to persist due to, e.g., geopolitical and economic insecurities,” Heikinheimo notes.

Research article:

Minna Heikinheimo, Pia Hautamäki, Saara Julkunen, Jonna Koponen. (2025). Dynamic capabilities and multisided platforms: Fostering organizational agility, flexibility, and resilience in B2B service ecosystems, Industrial Marketing Management, Volume 125, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2025.01.006