Impact of B2B team alignment and team trust on team performance in digital transformation projects

Abstract

To differentiate their products and services, organisations are embracing Industry 4.0, with exponential advancements in technology further enabling organisations in this transition. During the past decade, as organisations embarked on their Industry 4.0 journey, digital transformation has been an increasing focus. As the nature of change associated with these digital transformation projects is revolutionary, project execution is becoming challenging, with projects having a very high failure rate. During the past two years, an increasing demand for digital products and services has arisen due to the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in further acceleration of digital transformation projects. With this acceleration, the project failure rate has also increased. A typical characteristic of digital transformation projects is the involvement of third-party service providers with their specialised skill sets. This study argues that team alignment between the customer and service provider impacts team performance and further influences project success. Studies have been conducted on team alignment during the project pre-planning and project execution phase. These studies consider the team as a homogenous unit, leading to a lack of insights on the customer and service provider alignment in the team. The focus of this study is on business-to-business (B2B) team alignment between the customer and service providers, its influences on B2B trust and its further impact on team performance. Social exchange theory and goal setting theory were applied as theoretical lenses. This study used quantitative methodology to investigate the phenomenon of B2B team alignment. Data were gathered from 180 respondents comprising employees working on digital projects in both customer and service provider teams. The survey instrument captured respondents’ input about the organisational-, project- and team-level factors, their influence on team alignment, and their further impact on team trust, commitment, the customer–service provider relationship and team performance. The data were then analysed using partial least squares-based structural equation modelling. All hypothesised relationships in the study’s conceptual framework were supported by the data analysis, except hypotheses positing the influence of communication and customer involvement on team alignment and moderation hypotheses on the impact of the digitalisation focus on team alignment and trust. The study’s overall findings enhanced our understanding of the core theories and their application in the digital transformation context in terms of customer–service provider relationships. The study, as presented in this thesis, concludes with key theoretical contributions – the antecedent variables for team alignment; the moderating influences of length of the customer–service provider relationship and of digitalisation; and validation of the relationship between trust and team performance. The study also makes key managerial contributions – the role of project structure; parameters and metrics of team alignment; implications for the software industry; and strategic alliance management. The limitations of the study and avenues for future research are also highlighted.

Date of Award	2023
Original language	English
Supervisor	Johra FATIMA (Supervisor) & Ali QUAZI (Supervisor)