Navigating AI Adoption: A Methodology for German SMEs

Elias Werner () and Kian Schmalenbach ()
Additional contact information
Elias Werner: FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg, Institute of Information Systems
Kian Schmalenbach: FAU Erlangen-Nürnberg, Institute of Information Systems

A chapter in Artificial Intelligence, Data, and Decision-Making, 2026, pp 85-93 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract Despite its growing potential for value creation, German small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) face significant challenges in identifying strategies for adopting artificial intelligence (AI) in their operations. To address this important issue in a comprehensive practical guide, we follow a design science approach to develop a novel, tailored methodology for improving AI integration. Consisting of two phases—success factor analysis and roadmap identification—our methodology aims to equip SMEs with knowledge for AI integration based on the TOE (Technology, Organization, Environment) framework. While we demonstrate the application of our methodology within a single case study and present a brief evaluation to assess its effectiveness, our research in progress leaves the systematic identification of areas to refine our methodology to future research. Nevertheless, our findings contribute to research and practice by providing an applicable, theory-based methodology specifically designed to guide German SMEs in identifying actionable steps toward AI adoption.

Keywords: German SMEs; AI Adoption; TOE; Design Science Research (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:spr:lnichp:978-3-032-08480-4_6

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.springer.com/9783032084804

DOI: 10.1007/978-3-032-08480-4_6

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Lecture Notes in Information Systems and Organization from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().