Business Intelligence Adoption in Heritage Luxury Organizations: A TOE Framework Extension

Abstract

This thesis examines the adoption and appropriation of Business Intelligence (BI) tools within heritage luxury. While BI technologies are increasingly adopted across various industries, their deployment in luxury environments remains under-researched, particularly in situations where brand heritage, aesthetic coherence, and artisanal values are core strategic assets.

Drawing on the Technology–Organization–Environment (TOE) framework, the article conducts a qualitative case study in a large French luxury house. The empirical data was collected through six semi-structured interviews with employees involved in BI-related projects across different métiers, including retail operations, finance, and digital analytics. Thematic analysis reveals that although the TOE model captures important factors such as top management support, technical complexity, and external pressures, it overlooks crucial symbolic and cultural factors specific to luxury contexts.

The findings contribute by introducing sector-specific extensions to the TOE framework. In particular, the study identifies symbolic compatibility, aesthetic alignment, and post-adoption negotiation as significant mediating effects on BI appropriation. The research provides practical lessons for implementation teams and luxury organizations, including the inclusion of brand aesthetics in BI design, anticipate resistance linked to heritage protection, and build governance structures that balance standardization with creative autonomy.

While the scope lies within a single-case environment, the thesis offers analytical implications for future research and practice in digitalization in symbolically dense fields, with a need for more culturally aware frameworks in IS adoption research.