From Configurations to Transitions: Integrating SER‐M and the Mechanism‐Based View to Explain Digital–ESG Transformation in a Savings Bank
通过单案例研究，将SER-M六种状态视为动态转型系统，结合机制基础观解释储蓄银行如何实现数字与ESG双重转型，揭示领导指令、外部冲击和创造循环如何触发状态转换，以及ESG考量如何调节转型规则。
ABSTRACT This study explores how a traditional savings bank achieves a digitally enabled and ESG‐aligned transformation by conceptualizing the six SER‐M states as an integrated system of dynamic transitions. A qualitative single case study of NH Savings Bank's FIC BANK platform was conducted using semi‐structured interviews with eight key informants and documentary triangulation. Analysis followed an iterative, Gioia‐style procedure to derive first‐order concepts, second‐order themes, and aggregate dimensions. Ethical safeguards included informed consent and anonymization. (i) The six SER‐M permutations are best understood as states within a transition system. Shifts across states are triggered by leadership mandates, external shocks, and creation routines and unfold through creation → innovation → adaptation loops. (ii) Integrating the Mechanism‐Based View clarifies how generative mechanisms—under conditions of partial opacity and feedback—produce digital and ESG outcomes. (iii) ESG considerations moderate transition rules by shaping priorities (e.g., inclusion vs. credit risk) and the pace of change. The paper reinterprets SER‐M from a configuration lens to a transition model, links it to MBV's causal logic, and shows how leaders sequence mechanisms to deliver digital–ESG outcomes in a savings bank.