Digital Ecosystem Architecture as a Leadership Competency: Redesigning Organizational Futures Through the VFC Competence Framework

As value creation increasingly shifts toward networked digital ecosystems, leadership must evolve from managing internal organizational transformation to designing collaborative, ethical, and adaptive digital environments. This paper conceptualizes Digital Ecosystem Architecture (DEA) as a meta-competence within the Visionary Management dimension of the VFC Competence Framework. DEA is defined as the capacity to conceive, govern, and expand digital ecosystems, grounded in three interrelated pillars: Strategic Ecosystem Thinking, Orchestrative Governance, and Value-Based Digital Architecture. Through thematic synthesis and an illustrative case study of the MENA-region platform Careem, the paper introduces the Ecosystem Leadership Competency Model (ELCM) and outlines developmental pathways across four progressive stages, guided by a KSAH (Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes, and Habits) framework. Findings demonstrate that DEA enables leaders to engage in systemic foresight, promote inclusive governance, and design ethically sound digital infrastructures. The study contributes to digital leadership theory by providing an evidence-informed model for cultivating digitally competent leaders, with particular relevance to emerging markets and platform-fragmented economies.