Open Data as a Strategic Resource for Enterprises - Systematic literature review

Authors

Staša Blatnik
University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences
Andreja Pucihar
University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5750-1939 (unauthenticated)
Nejc Čelik
University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences
https://orcid.org/0009-0002-3799-5083 (unauthenticated)
Gregor Lenart
University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4371-2393 (unauthenticated)

Synopsis

To remain competitive in the market, companies must continuously evolve and adapt to increasingly specific customer needs. One of the resources that can stimulate business activity and innovation is open data. Through a systematic literature review on the use of open data in companies, we identified key scientific publications, which we classified into eight thematic areas: models, value creation, drivers and barriers, users, data quality, portals, research classifications, and the impact of open data. The findings show that research emphasizes the potential of open data for innovation, process optimization, transparency, and the development of new business models, while also highlighting challenges such as low data quality, lack of standardization, fragmented sources, and limited organizational capacities. Despite proven positive effects on the economy and democratic processes, the question remains of how to systematically encourage the actual use of open data. Further research will be crucial for developing practical and theoretical guidelines that enable companies to better leverage this business potential, for which this study provides a fundamental theoretical basis.

Author Biographies

Staša Blatnik, University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences

Staša Blatnik je asistentka na Fakulteti za organizacijske vede, kjer aktivno deluje v okviru Katedre za informacijske sisteme. Njeno raziskovalno delo je usmerjeno v proučevanje uporabe odprtih podatkov v podjetjih, zlasti v njihovo implementacijo za izboljšanje poslovne uspešnosti ob hkratnem doseganju trajnostnih ciljev razvoja.

Kranj, Slovenia. E-mail: stasa.blatnik1@um.si

Andreja Pucihar, University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences

Dr. Andreja Pucihar is a Full Professor of Information Systems at the Faculty of Organizational Sciences, University of Maribor. Her research primarily focuses on digital innovation, digital transformation, and digital business models. Dr. Pucihar co-authored a national tool for assessing the digital maturity of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), utilized by the Digital Innovation Hub Slovenia, as well as an assessment tool evaluating SME readiness for open data adoption and utilization. She brings over 25 years of experience in industrial and European projects, especially those supporting digitalization and digital transformation in SMEs.

Kranj, Slovenia. E-mail: andreja.pucihar@um.si

Nejc Čelik, University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences

Nejc Čelik is a Teaching Assistant in the field of Information Systems at the Faculty of Organizational Sciences, University of Maribor. His research interests focus on the application of artificial intelligence in organizations.

Kranj, Slovenija. E-mail: nejc.celik1@um.si

Gregor Lenart, University of Maribor, Faculty of Organizational Sciences

Dr. Gregor Lenart is an assistant professor at the Faculty of Organizational Sciences, University of Maribor. His primary research areas are business information systems, business process management, e-business, digital transformation, and business model innovation. As part of his research, he has collaborated in many European research projects, which were focused on e-business adoption, innovation and digitalization of small and medium-sized enterprises.

Kranj, Slovenia. E-mail: gregor.lenart@um.si

Downloads

Published

February 17, 2026

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Blatnik, S., Pucihar, A., Čelik, N., & Lenart, G. (2026). Open Data as a Strategic Resource for Enterprises - Systematic literature review. In M. Kljajić Borštnar & M. Pesek (Eds.), Odprti podatki kot pospeševalec družbenih, okoljskih in gospodarskih inovacij – priložnosti in izzivi (pp. 133-178). University of Maribor Press. https://doi.org/10.18690/um.fov.2.2026.3