Technology or innovation alone is not enough: A SEM-fsQCA based study on intelligent automation driven supply chain resilience

In an era marked by increasing disruption and digital transformation, this study explores how Intelligent Automation (IA) contributes to Supply Chain Resilience (SCR), with particular attention to the mediating roles of Integrability and Visibility. Despite growing interest in digital supply chain capabilities, limited empirical evidence exists on how advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotic process automation translate into resilience, especially in the context of emerging economies. Grounded in the Technology-Organization-Environment (TOE) framework, the study employs a mixed-method approach by integrating Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) and fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA). Data were collected from 312 manufacturing firms in Lithuania, representing a digitally transforming economy with unique structural and institutional conditions. The PLS-SEM results confirm that IA significantly enhances SCR, primarily through the mediating effect of Integrability. While IA also improves supply chain visibility, the mediating role of Visibility in the IA-SCR relationship is not supported, suggesting that transparency alone is insufficient to enable resilience. Complementing these findings, the fsQCA results reveal that multiple configurations can lead to high resilience. The combination of IA and Integrability consistently emerged as a sufficient pathway, regardless of the presence or absence of Visibility. Moreover, firms without advanced IA capabilities but with strong integration and visibility were also able to achieve resilient outcomes, offering viable alternatives for resource-constrained environments. These insights underscore that resilience is not driven by technology adoption alone, but by the strategic configuration and alignment of digital capabilities. This study contributes to the literature by integrating variance-based and configurational perspectives, offering a more nuanced and context-sensitive understanding of digital transformation outcomes. It challenges the assumption that visibility is inherently sufficient for resilience and highlights the importance of integrability as a foundational enabler. The findings hold theoretical and practical value for building resilient, adaptive supply chains in emerging economy settings.