Abstract
As digital platform ecosystems transition toward decentralised Edge computing and Internet of Things (IoT) architectures, traditional evaluative models anchored in Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) face a critical valuation gap. KPIs, rooted in industrial-age Product-Dominant (P-D) logic, prioritise operational efficiency and technical throughput, often failing to capture the relational and systemic value created in multi-stakeholder environments. This paper introduces the Key Value Indicator (KVI) Framework, conceptualised within the Horizon Europe COP-PILOT project. The paper advances a socio-technical perspective that integrates technical metrics with value-based constructs, grounded in Service-Dominant (S-D) Logic and Socio-Technical Systems (STS) Theory. The framework employs a tri-layered ontology, moving from Layer 1 (Operational Efficiency) to Layer 2 (Ecosystem Relational Value) and Layer 3 (Strategic and Normative Impact), to align technical orchestration with strategic outcomes. At the current one-third stage of the project, this paper presents a roadmap for applying the framework across four pilot domains: energy, smart cities, agriculture, and manufacturing. The analysis moves beyond technological determinism to examine how technical performance enables social value, including constructs such as Data Liquidity and Socio-Economic Resilience. The paper further landscapes a promising research agenda focused on the decoupling of KPIs and KVIs, the algorithmic governance of value, and the development of objective proxies for qualitative constructs such as trust and ecosystem health. By formalising these indicators, the study provides a methodology for linking micro-level operations to Grand Challenges such as sustainability and digital sovereignty.