Digital platforms, ecosystems and strategic leadership

Digital platforms and their surrounding ecosystems are key phenomena of the digital economy, with unique strategic-economic and governance characteristics. However, scholars have so far offered little systematic analysis as to what the idiosyncrasies of platforms and ecosystems might imply for strategic leaders’ expected functions and activities. The authors take a first step towards addressing this void by using Mintzberg’s concept of managerial roles as a guiding framework to narratively reflect on the implications of two defining characteristics of digital platform ecosystems - value co-creation and ecosystem governance - for strategic leaders’ interpersonal, informational, and decisional roles. Overall, they argue that all roles of strategic leaders in digital platform firms differ substantially from those in traditional hierarchical organizations, given the more coopetitive nature of digital platforms, the blurring of organizational boundaries, and the technological embeddedness of governance. We outline a comprehensive program for research at the nexus of strategic leadership and digital platforms research.