Technology-Management Capabilities and Digital Transformation of Township SMMEs in South Africa

Judah P. Makonye; Dwi Sulisworo

doi:10.56741/jnest.v5i03.2604

Technology-Management Capabilities and Digital Transformation of Township SMMEs in South Africa

Authors

Judah P. Makonye University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7437-8856
Dwi Sulisworo Universitas Ahmad Dahlan https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7625-8505

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.56741/jnest.v5i03.2604

Keywords:

Digital Transformation, Dynamic Capabilities, SMMEs, South Africa, Technology Management, Township Economy

Abstract

Digital technologies can improve the productivity, market reach, resilience, and innovation of small, medium, and micro-enterprises (SMMEs), yet township firms in South Africa frequently struggle to translate adoption into sustained business value. This integrative literature review examines technology-management capability as the missing link between access to digital tools and successful digital transformation. A structured narrative search combined peer-reviewed research and institutional reports on technology adoption, digital transformation, township enterprise, dynamic capabilities, and technology management. The synthesis identifies six interdependent capabilities: technology sensing, strategic selection, acquisition and financing, assimilation and integration, governance and risk management, and evaluation and renewal. Existing evidence indicates that adoption is constrained not only by connectivity and affordability but also by weak managerial routines, limited digital and financial skills, fragmented support, cybersecurity concerns, and poor alignment between technologies and business tasks. The review develops a context-sensitive framework in which external conditions and firm resources shape technology-management capability, which in turn enables changes in processes, offerings, and business models and produces agility, resilience, productivity, and growth. Feedback from these outcomes informs subsequent technology decisions. The article argues that policy and enterprise-support programmes should move beyond generic digital-literacy training toward staged, task-based technology management linked to finance, mentoring, cybersecurity, and market access. Future research should employ longitudinal and comparative designs and assess productive use, integration quality, realised value, and unintended consequences rather than measuring adoption alone.

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Author Biographies

Judah P. Makonye, University of the Witwatersrand Johannesburg

is a senior academic at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. He is an expert in mathematics education with a research focus on mathematical modeling, pedagogical content knowledge, and the professional development of mathematics teachers in under-resourced contexts. He has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and has contributed to advancing mathematics teaching strategies in the Global South. (email: judah.Makonye@wits.ac.za).

Dwi Sulisworo, Universitas Ahmad Dahlan

is a Professor and senior lecturer at the Faculty of Education, Universitas Ahmad Dahlan (UAD), Yogyakarta, Indonesia. His research focuses on technology-enhanced learning, self-directed learning, and educational innovation in science and teacher education. (email: dwi.sulisworo@uad.ac.id)

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