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Digital Innovationt

The Impact of Digital Transformation of Enterprise Innovation  Ecosystems on Innovation Performance 

—The Serial Mediating Role of Dynamic Capabilities 

Guo Aifang, Cao Bingbing, Wei Xiaoxiao, Weng Zhiqin

(School of Economics and Management, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou 310018, China)

Abstract: The deep integration of digital technologies and innovation is driving manufactur⁃ ing enterprises to evolve from closed R&D to an open, collaborative digital innovation ecosystem. However, the frequent occurrence of the "high input—low output" digital paradox indicates that  the conversion from digital transformation in the innovation ecosystem to improved innovation  performance is not an automatic, linear process, and that the underlying transformation mecha⁃ nism requires further theoretical exploration. Based on innovation ecosystem and dynamic capa⁃ bilities theories, this study decomposes enterprises' innovation ecosystem digital transformation  into two dimensions: innovation platform digitalization and innovation business digitalization. In⁃ novation performance is further divided into innovation speed and innovation quality. An integrated  analytical framework of "innovation platform/business digitalization—dynamic capabilities— innovation speed/quality" is constructed. Using data from 129 manufacturing enterprises occupy⁃ ing central positions in innovation ecosystems in China, the study employs the PLS-SEM struc⁃ tural equation model to empirically test the internal transmission mechanisms. The results show that digital transformation of enterprises' innovation ecosystem positively  affects innovation performance through the multiple chain-mediating effects of dynamic capabili⁃ ties, exhibiting significant characteristics of "functional differentiation" and "path differentia⁃ tion". Specifically, innovation platform digitalization primarily enhances knowledge acquisition  capability and indirectly promotes innovation speed and innovation quality through the chainmediating path of "knowledge acquisition—knowledge reconfiguration". In contrast, innovation  business digitalization mainly strengthens environmental sensing and knowledge reconfiguration  capabilities, and comprehensively improves enterprises' innovation performance through the  full-chain pathway of "sensing—acquisition—reconfiguration".

The theoretical contributions of this study are mainly reflected in three aspects: ①It ex⁃ tends the analytical perspective of enterprise digital transformation from the "unit/process level"  to the level of the innovation ecosystem, thereby filling the contextual gap in crossorganizational collaborative innovation theory in the digital era. ②It opens the "black box" of the  process through which innovation ecosystem digital transformation drives innovation, and empiri⁃ cally tests the chain-mediating effects of dynamic capabilities, providing a new theoretical expla⁃ nation for the "digital paradox". ③By decomposing innovation performance into two dimensions —innovation speed and innovation quality—it clarifies the heterogeneous transmission paths of  innovation platform digitalization and innovation business digitalization, offering micro-level  mechanism evidence for manufacturing enterprises to achieve high-quality development through  digital ecosystem collaboration. Based on these findings, three practical implications are proposed for focal enterprises in in⁃ novation ecosystems. First, enterprises should implement a dual-driven strategy of "platform  foundation building and business empowerment", avoiding the deviation from the path of "em⁃ phasizing digital infrastructure while neglecting innovation-business integration". Second, enter⁃ prises should recognize the "converter" role of dynamic capabilities in transforming digitaliza⁃ tion into innovation performance and focus on connecting the capability transformation chain of  "sensing—acquisition—reconfiguration". Third, enterprises should adopt differentiated innovation -ecosystem digital-transformation paths based on heterogeneous innovation-performance goals, ownership structures, and industry technology intensity. 

Key words: digital transformation of the enterprise innovation ecosystem; dynamic capabili⁃ ties; innovation platform digitalization; innovation business digitalization; innovation speed; inno⁃ vation quality; innovation performance; manufacturing enterprises