Ivan Atmanagara

I earned my Master’s degree in New Media and Society (MA) from the University of Leicester in 2011, with a dissertation on the roles of new media in online protests. Professionally, I have been part of the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Digital since 2008, currently serving as a Policy Analyst.

Driven by my research interest in the intersection of technology, organisation, and society and how it can shape policy-making, I joined the Information School as a full-time doctoral researcher in 2022. My doctoral research investigates the digital transformation process of small and medium-sized enterprises. The research is funded by the Indonesian Endowment Fund for Education.

PhD project

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are vital to the global economy, but they face both great challenges and opportunities from digital technologies to remain competitive. As a response, digital transformation (DT) is increasingly viewed as a vital strategy. However, SMEs face unique circumstances in their DT journeys due to resource limitations and restricted access compared to larger firms. The concept of DT is also complex and elusive, and our understanding of how it unfolds within SMEs is limited. Much of the existing literature focuses on firms’ internal technology implementation or management change, neglecting that both processes are entangled in practice.

My research, therefore, investigates DT in SMEs as an ongoing process involving more holistic changes extending beyond organisational boundaries. Key questions include: Who are the key drivers of DT narratives in SMEs? How is DT enacted, and what are its consequences? As digital technologies blur organisational boundaries, SME actors frequently engage with multiple stakeholders simultaneously, requiring strategic adjustments through negotiation, compromise, and buy-in. Underpinned by an actor-network approach, this research seeks to uncover how relationships among actors shape and sustain the conditions for successful transformation. Using multiple case studies of manufacturing SMEs in Indonesia, it aims to provide an in-depth understanding of how these SMEs navigate DT in practice and the socio-material dynamics that influence their journey.

Supervisors

• Dr Angela Lin
• Dr Kushwanth Koya

Funding and awards

Doctoral Scholarship from Indonesian Endowment Fund for Education (2022)