An integrative process framework for technological transformation in SMEs: linking technology assimilation and business model innovation

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly compelled to embrace technological innovation to improve performance and respond to diverse demands. However, realizing the benefits of new technologies typically requires a broader organizational transformation through which technologies are integrated and leveraged to generate value. This transformation involves the coordination of two interrelated processes: technology assimilation and business model innovation (BMI). Although these processes are interconnected in practice, they are often examined separately in the literature, resulting in fragmented insights and limited guidance on how technological transformation unfolds within SMEs under resource and organizational constraints. To address this gap, this study develops a general framework that conceptualizes technological transformation as a unified organizational process in which technology assimilation and BMI co-evolve over time. The framework was developed through an exploratory conceptual development approach that combines systematic and iterative literature analysis with qualitative empirical validation in the agri-food sector. The resulting framework specifies four transformation phases, along with their associated activities, inputs, outputs, and tools. Empirical insights from 20 EU agri-food SMEs that had already undergone technological transformation, complemented by insights from technology providers, were used to identify recurring transformation patterns, barriers, anticipated organizational changes, and innovation strategies relevant to the framework application. The framework was subsequently applied to three agri-food SMEs at early stages of transformation. The application confirmed the coherence and practical applicability of the phased structure by illustrating how activities, decisions, and constraints collectively shape transformation trajectories over time. Overall, the study contributes to SME and technological transformation research by advancing a more process-oriented understanding of how technology assimilation and BMI co-evolve in practice and by providing a structured framework to support the analysis and planning of technological transformation in SMEs.