Leveraging collective resources for digital transformation: The role of tourism trade associations under the resource-based view

In the digital age, while hospitality and tourism (H&T) firms accelerate digital transformation to stay competitive, the role of tourism trade associations as external resource providers in these firms’ digital transformation process remains underexplored. Drawing on resource-based theory (RBT), this study examines how tourism trade associations influence H&T firms’ digital transformation and explores the moderating effects of marketization and business climate. Using 2,049 firm-year observations of 144 publicly listed H&T firms (2009–2022), this study finds evidence suggesting that tourism trade associations facilitate digital transformation. Crucially, we find that marketization and business climate negatively moderate this relationship, indicating a substitution effect where tourism trade associations play a more vital compensatory role in regions with lower marketization and less favorable business climates. These findings highlight the critical role of firms in leveraging collective industry resources for technological advancement. Accordingly, our research provides theoretical contributions to RBT by extending its traditional firm-centric focus and enriching the digital transformation literature, as well as practical insights for policymakers and industry stakeholders.