A Delphi–topsis Assessment of Digital Transformation Barriers in, Azerbaijan

Abstract: Digital transformation has become an important condition for improving enterprise productivity, competitiveness, and resilience; however, its diffusion remains uneven in emerging economies, where firms face multiple and interrelated constraints. This paper presents a Delphi–TOPSIS assessment of the principal barriers to digital transformation in Azerbaijan. The study combines evidence from a 2024 enterprise survey covering 450 firms with a two-round Delphi exercise involving 15 experts from academia, government, business associations, and the ICT sector. The identified barriers are evaluated and prioritized according to three criteria: expected impact, feasibility, and cost/risk. The TOPSIS method is used to derive the final ranking, while robustness checks and subgroup comparisons are applied to test the stability of the results across alternative assumptions and firm categories. The findings show that the shortage of qualified digital personnel is the most critical barrier, followed by limited internal financial resources for digital investments, regional disparities in digital infrastructure, cybersecurity readiness gaps, and organizational resistance to change. The results indicate that digital transformation in Azerbaijan is constrained not only by infrastructure conditions, but also by complementary capabilities related to human capital, financing, and organizational preparedness. By integrating expert consensus with multi-criteria decision analysis, the paper provides a structured and context-sensitive assessment framework for identifying digital transformation priorities and supporting evidence-based policy and managerial decision-making in emerging economy settings.