Digital transformation and enterprise value creation: A study based on both human capital upgrading and pay gap optimization

Digital transformation is reshaping the model of enterprise value creation, steering it towards an ecosystem of stakeholder value cocreation. Core stakeholders—particularly executives and employees—play critical roles in this process, as value generation increasingly shifts from traditional shareholder-oriented profit metrics towards stakeholder cocreated value. This study positions digital transformation as a theoretical boundary condition and introduces value-added as a comprehensive indicator to measure stakeholder cocreated value, thereby reconstructing the analytical framework of value creation under digital transformation. Using panel data from Chinese A-share listed firms from 2011 to 2023, we empirically examine both the impact and the underlying mechanisms of digital transformation on enterprise value creation. The results reveal a significantly positive and robust relationship between digital transformation and enterprise value creation, which remains valid after endogeneity and robustness concerns are addressed. Further analysis indicates that the process follows a spiral-shaped trajectory—challenging yet opportunity-rich—rather than a linear or instantaneous path. Mechanism testing reveals that digital transformation enhances enterprise value creation by optimizing the human capital structure and narrowing the excessive pay gap between executives and employees. Heterogeneity indicates that this effect varies significantly across firms or industries, levels of digital intangible asset investment, and urban digital governance. These findings provide empirical evidence for deepening the integration of the digital and real economies, offering significant implications for refining and achieving high-quality digital policies.