A capability hierarchy for building resilience in multi-actor agri-food supply chains: a digitalisation perspective

Abstract

Purpose This study investigates how digital technologies support the development of resilience capabilities across the agri-food supply chain (AFSC). While prior research has identified multiple resilience capabilities, limited attention has been given to how these capabilities function as a structured system or how digitalisation enables capability development across different AFSC actors. The study addresses this gap by examining how foundational, operational and transformational capabilities emerge and interact in digitally enabled AFSCs. Design/methodology/approach The research applies a qualitative, planned pragmatic multiple-case study design across six AFSC sub-sectors, including raw material producers, processors, manufacturers and retailers. Combining deductive grounding in resilience and the dynamic capabilities theory with inductive cross-case pattern identification, the study draws on 22 semi-structured interviews and supplementary field materials. The analysis followed an iterative abductive logic, integrating theoretical propositions with emergent insights on capability development and the role of digital technologies. Findings The study confirms that AFSC actors rely on a shared set of ten core resilience capabilities organised into a hierarchical structure. Foundational capabilities support readiness and rapid response, operational capabilities enable recovery and stabilisation, while transformational capabilities facilitate long-term adaptation and strategic renewal. Digital technologies act as cross-cutting enablers: cloud systems and IoT strengthen foundational visibility, automation and predictive maintenance reinforce operational recovery and advanced analytics and AI support transformational adaptation. The findings validate all three propositions and demonstrate that the relevance of each capability shifts systematically across the resilience cycle. Originality/value The study advances the resilience theory by conceptualising resilience as a multi-level capability architecture rather than a flat set of practices. It introduces the Digital Resilience Capability Architecture, which explains how digitalisation enables progression across capability layers. Methodologically, the research demonstrates the value of a planned pragmatic case design for studying complex socio-technical phenomena such as digital resilience in AFSCs.