Promotie T.A.E. Aben MSc

The digital transformation of organisations, triggered by various digital technologies such as smart sensors, smart meters and IoT devices, produces large amounts of data that make it possible to make smarter decisions. For infrastructure organisations this provides opportunities to smarten the management and maintenance of their assets. But why are these technologies not used on a large scale yet? Two important hurdles for infrastructure managers are 1) accessing relevant data and expertise needed to transform data into information and 2) the need to collaborate closely with partners in their respective supply networks. By investigating these hurdles, this doctoral thesis adds to the emerging literature regarding the impact of digital transformation on collaborating organisations. Moreover, this doctoral thesis provides infrastructure managers with practical ways to overcome these hurdles.

The three empirical studies in this doctoral thesis each investigate a specific aspect of the impact of digital transformations on collaborating supply network partners. Specifically, chapter two focuses on how the two main data processing activities (i.e. gathering data and transforming data) can be managed in dyadic relationships through contractual and relational governance mechanisms. Chapter three focuses on how post-formation adjustments to contractual and relational governance mechanisms in dyadic relationships are made to cope with uncertainty caused by the digitalisation of collaborative processes. Finally, chapter four focuses on the governance of supply networks (i.e. networks with three or more partners) and how the network partners can be motivated to share and use data from digital technologies.

Tom Aben (Sittard, The Netherlands, 1990) received his bachelor’s degree in International Business at Tilburg University in September 2011. He obtained his master’s degree in Supply Chain Management at Tilburg University in September 2013 and his second master’s degree in Academic Teacher Training Management & Organisation at Tilburg University in September 2014. After that, he worked for three years as a SAP consultant specialised in procurement systems at various organisations. In January 2018 he started as a PhD candidate at the Department of Management at TiSEM, Tilburg University.