ISSN: 2222-6990
Open access
Digital technology has demonstrated significant potential in driving economic development. However, international economic competition is becoming increasingly intense, the global situation is tense, and the economic environment is becoming more severe. As a result, the overall security and stability of the upstream and downstream supply chains have suffered significant damage. In this environment, firms are also actively looking for and exploring ways to alleviate the crisis, and digital technology shows outstanding ability in alleviating the supply chain crisis. We obtained the data from the annual reports of Chinese A-share listed manufacturing companies from 2019 to 2024 by using "Python" software, conducted multiple regression analysis using Stata software, and used literature analysis and empirical analysis to explore the impact of digital technology application on the concentration of supply chain of firms, as well as the mediating role of business model innovation in the process. and the mediating role of business model innovation. It is found that the application of digital technology can significantly reduce the supply chain concentration, and the application of digital technology gives rise to business model innovation based on digital technology, which makes the information asymmetry between firms and the upstream and downstream of the supply chain decrease and the communication and transaction efficiency increase, to reduce their supply chain concentration. The significance of the study is that it enriches the research on the path of the application of digital technology affecting the supply chain concentration of firms.
Blichfeldt, H., & Faullant, R. (2021). Performance effects of digital technology adoption and product & service innovation – a process-industry perspective. Technovation, 105, 102275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.technovation.2021.102275
Forman, C., & McElheran, K. (2025). Production chain organization in the digital age: Information technology use and vertical integration in U.S. manufacturing. Management Science, 71(2), 1027–1049. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2019.01586
Grosse, R., Gamso, J., & Nelson, R. C. (2021). China’s rise, world order, and the implications for international business. Management International Review, 61(1), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11575-020-00433-8
Kwak, K., & Kim, N. (2020). Concentrate or disperse? The relationship between major customer concentration and supplier profitability and the moderating role of insider ownership. Journal of Business Research, 109, 648–658. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.09.033
Liu, H., Kerr, W., & Hobbs, J. (2012). A review of Chinese food safety strategies implemented after several food safety incidents involving export of Chinese aquatic products. British Food Journal, 114, 372–386. https://doi.org/10.1108/00070701211213474
Pan, W., Xie, T., Wang, Z., & Ma, L. (2022). Digital economy: An innovation driver for total factor productivity. Journal of Business Research, 139, 303–311. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.09.061
Peng, C., Jing, X., Tie, J., Tian, Y., Kong, J., Xue, K., & Zhou, Y. (2022). Research on value co-creation new business model of import cross-border e-commerce platform ecosystem. Security and Communication Networks, 2022, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/8726075
Ritter, T., & Pedersen, C. L. (2020). Digitization capability and the digitalization of business models in business-to-business firms: Past, present, and future. Industrial Marketing Management, 86, 180–190. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indmarman.2019.11.019
Su, Y., & Wu, J. (2024). Digital transformation and enterprise sustainable development. Finance Research Letters, 60, 104902. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2023.104902
Vaska, S., Massaro, M., Bagarotto, E. M., & Dal Mas, F. (2021). The digital transformation of business model innovation: A structured literature review. Frontiers in Psychology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.539363
Volberda, H. W., Khanagha, S., Baden-Fuller, C., Mihalache, O. R., & Birkinshaw, J. (2021). Strategizing in a digital world: Overcoming cognitive barriers, reconfiguring routines and introducing new organizational forms. Long Range Planning, 54(5), 102110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lrp.2021.102110
Xu, G., Ali, D. A., Bhaumik, A., Yang, M., & Wang, N. (2023). The influence of digital transformation in enterprises on the dynamics of supply chain concentration: An empirical analysis of Chinese a-share listed companies. Journal of Organizations, Technology and Entrepreneurship, 1(2), 88–97. https://doi.org/10.56578/jote010202
Zheng, L. J., Zhang, J. Z., Yee Sum Lee, L., Jasimuddin, S. M., & Mustafa Kamal, M. (2024). Digital technology integration in business model innovation for carbon neutrality: An evolutionary process model for SMEs. Journal of Environmental Management, 359, 120978. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2024.120978
Zhou, H., Wang, R., Zhang, X., & Chang, M. (2024). The impact of digital technology adoption on corporate supply chain concentration: Evidence from patent analysis. Finance Research Letters, 64, 105413. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2024.105413
Leng, J., Jamal, N. M., & Hu, J. (2025). Business Model Innovation Mediates Effect of the Relationship between Digital Technology Application and Supply Chain Concentration in China. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 15(12), 1917-1929.
Copyright: © 2025 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode