One of the modern methods of forecasting in the long run is the foresight, which is used as a systemic tool for shaping the future and allows you to take into account possible changes in all areas of activity. The relevance of the topic is due to the need to develop new and adapt existing methods, technologies of research and development, which represent the structure and composition of the economic development forecast, the content of work and the sequence of research stages, the involvement of organizations and executive authorities in the development of scenarios. The developed technology of foresight research consists of three stages. This article describes the first stage of the study, including an assessment of factors affecting the process of digitization of the economy. The results of the study will be used in the future to identify promising research topics, prepare proposals on the composition of the priority areas for the introduction of digital technologies, and conduct repeated research stages.