Bridging the Gap in Digital Maturity Models

Digital maturity is the degree to which an organization strategically, operationally, and culturally leverages technology to create value at scale. A digital maturity model is a structured way to benchmark capabilities, assess readiness, and guide transformation roadmaps. In simple terms, it answers the question: what is a digital maturity model and how does it help? Variants include the digital transformation maturity model, the digital capability maturity model, and other frameworks that describe digital maturity levels or stages. Yet, a persistent gap exists: while most models emphasize strategy and business alignment, they provide limited support for implementation and migration—where change actually happens.

Maturity frameworks have evolved from foundational models such as CMM and COBIT to diversified, domain-specific digital maturity frameworks. A systematic literature review (ISPIM Innovation Conference, June 2020) found that strategy and business layers dominate model design, while explicit Implementation & Migration guidance appears in only 1 of 23 models—highlighting a structural bias toward vision over execution. Most models describe sequential digital maturity levels or a digital maturity scale, but rarely offer guidance on how to progress from one stage to the next.

Organizations adopt digital maturity models for benchmarking, planning, and self-assessment: to identify gaps, prioritize investments, align leadership, and structure roadmaps. Companies often rely on a digital maturity assessment tool or self-assessment to evaluate their current state and compare against a digital maturity benchmark. However, without a robust execution layer, the path from assessment to outcomes remains ambiguous.

Implementation is the most difficult stage of transformation because it requires orchestrating people, process, technology, data, and governance across multiple horizons. It demands sequencing initiatives, managing interdependencies, and adapting to organizational constraints—capabilities often underrepresented in most digital maturity assessment frameworks.

As with business strategy that lacks operational alignment, digital strategies fail without instrumentation for delivery. Technology adoption alone is not transformation; value emerges when strategy is linked to processes, roles, funding, and performance measures. Organizations that underweight execution see slow time-to-value, duplicated efforts, and governance gaps that stall scale-up.

To close the vision–execution gap, enhance digital transformation maturity models with an explicit Implementation & Migration layer and execution indicators that translate strategy into delivery.

Executives can mitigate model gaps by pairing assessment with action. The key is not only to assess digital maturity but also to plan, implement, and track the migration journey.

Digital transformation success depends on mastering both vision and execution. We encourage academia and industry to evolve digital maturity assessment frameworks that balance strategy with practical migration pathways. Companies that build strong execution capability—tying initiatives to measurable outcomes—will lead the next phase of digital transformation. For organizations seeking digital maturity model consulting or a structured digital maturity model implementation, the priority should be selecting a framework that delivers not only assessment but also clear execution guidance.