Frontiers and laggards: Which firms benefit from adopting advanced digital technologies?

Abstract This study examines how adopting advanced digital technologies (ADTs) affects a firm's performance indicators, such as growth in sales, labor productivity, and export, by analyzing Korean firms' panel data. This study finds that the effect of adopting ADTs on firm performance depends on the productivity level, performance types, and technology combination. The effect of adopting ADTs on sales growth has a U‐shaped relationship with the firm's productivity level. Moreover, in the frontier group, multiple technology adopters obtain higher rates of sales and significant export growth compared to single technology adopters.