Setting Priorities for Exploiting and Exploring Digital Capabilities in a Crisis

Organizations’ digital capabilities are often central to their survival of a crisis. In times of crisis, Digital Technology Managers (DTMs) must decide whether to exploit their current digital capabilities (“making the best of what you have”), explore new capability development (“do new things or better things”), or do both. Based on an in-depth study of COVID-19 crisis responses of 18 Australian organizations, we recommend how DTMs should prioritize exploitative or explorative capability development and best position their organizations for the next crisis.