Profiting From Digital Transformation?: Combining Data Management and Artificial Intelligence

Many companies have recently started digital transformation initiatives, and they now increasingly focus on artificial intelligence (AI). By means of smart algorithms and advanced analytics, firms attempt to leverage some of the results of their ongoing digital transformation initiatives, for example with regard to data about their established business operations. A conceptual framework underscores the need for combining data management and AI initiatives in order to ensure a firm's digital readiness and to realize digital business opportunities subsequently. An overview of recent trends further illustrates how different companies respond to these managerial challenges. This paper contributes to the literature on digitalization, AI, and ‘integrated intelligence' by highlighting the role of AI for leveraging data from digital transformation initiatives. Specifically, the use of AI applications helps companies to turn data into valuable knowledge and intelligence. In addition, this paper provides new knowledge about achieving superior performance in the digital economy.