External knowledge search, resource orchestration capabilities and enterprise digital innovation

In the era of digitalisation, the digital economy is advancing rapidly, transforming modern society. While many enterprises have achieved growth through digital innovation, others continue to face challenges in advancing digital innovation and must overcome various constraints, including limited technological capabilities and access to critical resources, to accelerate their digital process. In light of these challenges, based on knowledge management theory and resource orchestration theory, this study examines how external knowledge search and resource orchestration capabilities influence digital innovation in enterprises, based on a survey of 300 enterprises. The study found that, first, local search and international search independently and positively drive enterprise digital innovation. Second, resource orchestration capability serves as a holistic partial mediator in the respective relationships of both search strategies with digital innovation. Third, institutional legitimacy significantly enhances these positive relationships. The findings of this paper not only enrich the digital innovation literature but also address existing theoretical deficiencies by uncovering the differentiated functional logics of external knowledge search, providing valuable decision-making insights for enterprises navigating digitalisation.