Evidence-oriented managerial decision-making for digital transformation of business processes in agricultural enterprises
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26661/2522-1566/2026-3/37-15Keywords:
digital transformation, managerial decision-making, business process management, evidence, agricultural enterprise, digital investment, data governance, causal attributionAbstract
Purpose. This paper addresses a practical problem that often appears after a digital project is introduced: managers can see that a technology is in use, but they may still lack enough evidence to explain what changed in the business process and whether the observed result can be attributed to that change. The aim is to develop an evidence-oriented decision mechanism for digital transformation in agricultural enterprises. Design/methodology/approach. The approach follows the chain from a documented digital intervention to a change in the managerial mechanism and then to a process-related outcome. It also considers regulatory and sustainability constraints, persistence of the result, and the strength of the available evidence. The logic is examined using documented cases of Ukrainian agricultural enterprises and open operational, financial, and contextual information. Findings. The analysis identifies six recurring situations: cautious scaling with stronger measurement, collecting missing evidence before an investment claim, changing an unsuitable KPI, using a strong enterprise as a benchmark without digital attribution, separating digital and non-digital changes, and using non-digital interventions as comparison cases. Five evidence levels distinguish descriptive evidence from stronger causal claims. Research limitations/implications. The open data are heterogeneous and do not support a common counterfactual design. Practical implications. The mechanism helps managers decide what can be acted on now and what must be measured first. Originality/value. The study links process evidence directly to the strength of the managerial decision rather than to an aggregate digital score.
JEL Classification: M10, M11, O33, Q12.
References
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СПИСОК ВИКОРИСТАНИХ ДЖЕРЕЛ
1. Biernikowicz R., Gabryelczyk R., Ashraf R. U. Investigating the nexus between business process management maturity and digital maturity: an empirical study of organizations in Poland. Business Process Management Journal. 2025. Vol. 31, No. 5. P. 1663–1683. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/BPMJ-07-2024-0666
2. Callaway B., Sant’Anna P. H. C. Difference-in-differences with multiple time periods. Journal of Econometrics. 2021. Vol. 225, No. 2. P. 200–230. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconom.2020.12.001
3. Dallavalle S., Eustachio J. H. P. P., Leal Filho W., Salomão David M. L., Cajuela A. R., Carreira L. L. D. Sustainability in business process management: research landscape and theoretical implications. Sustainable Development. 2026. P. 1–15. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.71131
4. Henningsen A., Low G., Wuepper D., Dalhaus T., Storm H., Belay D., Hirsch S. Estimating causal effects with observational data: guidelines for agricultural and applied economists. Journal of Agricultural Economics. 2026. Vol. 77, No. 2. P. 356–382. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1477-9552.70019
5. Kerpedzhiev G. D., König U. M., Röglinger M., Rosemann M. An exploration into future business process management capabilities in view of digitalization: results from a Delphi study. Business & Information Systems Engineering. 2021. Vol. 63. P. 83–96. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12599-020-00637-0
6. Klessascheck F., Weber I., Pufahl L. SOPA: a framework for sustainability-oriented process analysis and re-design in business process management. Information Systems and e-Business Management. 2025. Vol. 23. P. 489–537. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10257-024-00695-x
7. León-Bravo V., Corbo C., De Maria S. C., Parigi F., Renga F. Framework to assess the sustainability impact of digital technological solutions in agriculture. Operations Management Research. 2026. Vol. 19. Article 29. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12063-026-00593-0
8. Losacco C., Pugliese G., Forte L., Tufarelli V., Maggiolino A., De Palo P. Digital transition as a driver for sustainable tailor-made farm management: an up-to-date overview on precision livestock farming. Agriculture. 2025. Vol. 15, No. 13. Article 1383. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture15131383
9. Лисенко С. М., Маковоз О. С. Проєктний підхід до оцінки цифрової трансформації бізнес-процесів. Бізнес-навігатор. 2024. № 3(76). С. 209–213. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32782/business-navigator.76-35
10. Mithas S., Chen Y., Lin Y., De Oliveira Silveira A. On the causality and plausibility of treatment effects in operations management research. Production and Operations Management. 2022. Vol. 31, No. 12. P. 4558–4571. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/poms.13863
11. Moreira S. A. S., Dallavalle S. Unlocking the potential of digital innovations on BPM: a bibliometric and systematic literature review. Business Process Management Journal. 2025. Vol. 31, No. 4. P. 1246–1273. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/BPMJ-12-2023-0974
12. Parra-López C., Carmona-Torres C., Finger R., Bronson K., Ruder S.-L., Klerkx L. From smart farming to wise agricultural systems: a conceptual framework for systems-oriented sustainable digital transformation in agriculture. Agricultural Systems. 2026. Vol. 234. Article 104669. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2026.104669
13. Pham Quang Huy, Vu Kien Phuc. Unveiling how business process management capabilities foster dynamic decision-making for effectiveness of sustainable digital transformation. Business Process Management Journal. 2025. Vol. 31, No. 8. P. 67–103. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/BPMJ-06-2024-0467
14. Putra H., Mahendrawathi E. R. The role of business process management in digital innovation and digital transformation: a systematic literature review. Procedia Computer Science. 2024. Vol. 234. P. 829–836. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.procs.2024.03.069
15. Segala S. X., Seabra S. N., Guimarães A. R. S. Business process management maturity and digital transformation: evidence from a financial institution in an emerging economy. Knowledge and Process Management. 2026. P. 1–19. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/kpm.70079
16. Shakina E., Molodchik M., Daviy A. Decision-making in information technology investments using synthetic control group analysis. Management Decision. 2026. Vol. 64, No. 4. P. 1506–1526. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/MD-02-2024-0379
17. Smajli E., Feldman G., Cox S. Exploring the limitations of business process maturity models: a systematic literature review. Information Systems Management. 2024. Vol. 42, No. 1. P. 2–21. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10580530.2024.2332210
18. Soma K., Brunori G., Giagnocavo C., Meulman F., Ryan M., Heredia Hortigüela R. M., Iliopoulos C., Paulus M., Ferrari A., Kilis E., Grando S., Bellon-Maurel V., Knierim A., Gobrecht A., Selnes T., Ortolani L., Bacco M., Mannari C. Sustainable digitalisation – a system thinking approach for determining costs and benefits in the agri-sector. Agricultural Systems. 2026. Vol. 231. Article 104529. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2025.104529
19. Stygar A., Niemi J. K., Norton T., Kayhan H., Correa Harcus A. M., Allain C., Lebreton A., Anestis V., Bartzanas T., Vouraki S., Arsenos G., Pastell M. “Please, mind the gap”: a narrative review on digitalization gaps and barriers in the livestock sector. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture. 2026. Vol. 251. Article 112013. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compag.2026.112013
20. Van Looy A., Shafagatova A. Business process performance measurement: a structured literature review of indicators, measures and metrics. SpringerPlus. 2016. Vol. 5. Article 1797. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40064-016-3498-1
21. Vnukova N., Lysenko S., Makovoz O. Information and communication technologies for assessing the maturity of digital transformation. Proceedings of the Workshop on Scientific and Practical Issues of Cybersecurity and Information Technology at the V International Scientific and Practical Conference Information Security and Information Technology (ISecIT 2025), Lutsk, Ukraine, June 9–11, 2025. CEUR Workshop Proceedings. 2025. Vol. 4150. P. 60–71. URL: https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-4150/paper6.pdf.
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