Digitalization accelerators for sustainable transformation in a developing European economy

Abstract Purpose The aim of the paper is to assess and empirically compare selected digitalization accelerators that contribute to sustainable transformation in a developing European economy, using Slovakia as an empirical setting benchmarked against the EU-27 average, and to explore their association with selected digitalization outputs (e-commerce and social media use) in relation to Sustainable Development Goals 8, 9 and 12. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a secondary analysis of Eurostat’s harmonized data (ICT usage and e-commerce in enterprises) expressed as a percentage of enterprises with 10 or more employees. The methods of comparative analysis (benchmark Slovakia vs. EU-27 in the last available year), trend analysis of time series, and cross-sectional association analysis at the country level are applied. Findings Slovakia lags the EU-27 average mainly in technology and process-IS accelerators: use of cloud services (− 16.30 p.p.), use of social media (− 13.67 p.p.), and use of CRM (− 13.56 p.p.). A more significant gap is also evident in big data analysis (− 8.62 p.p.) and artificial intelligence use (− 5.18 p.p.). On the contrary, Slovakia slightly exceeds the EU-27 in internally implemented data analytics (+ 2.28 p.p.) but lags in outsourced analytics (− 4.48 p.p.). The cross-sectional analysis shows a positive association between cloud adoption and e-commerce (R 2 ≈ 0.39) and between cloud and social media usage (R 2 ≈ 0.41). Research implications/limitations The study provides an empirical framework for measuring digitalization accelerators through publicly available indicators and links them to sustainable transformation and selected SDG-related policy priorities. The approach allows for a comparable interpretation of developments over time. The main limitations are the aggregated nature of the data (all sectors combined), uneven availability of time series across indicators, and the observational design; results are therefore interpreted as associations rather than causal effects. Originality/value/contribution The paper provides an empirical mapping of the key barriers and levers of Slovakia’s digitalization relative to the EU-27 and connects technological, data, human, and process-IS dimensions with digitalization outputs. It contributes by operationalizing the concept of digitalization accelerators through harmonized Eurostat indicators and by integrating these dimensions into a reproducible empirical framework. Its novelty lies in combining a Slovakia–EU-27 benchmark, an interpretation of post-2021 trends and an exploratory analysis of associations between digitalization accelerators and digital outputs. The findings are relevant for academic discourse on information systems in management and for practical benchmarking of digital readiness. In this way, the study goes beyond routine digital-readiness reporting by linking identified digitalization gaps with the wider agenda of sustainable and resilient enterprise transformation.