The Great Divide: Empirical Evidence of a Decoupling of Digital Transformation and Sustainability

Abstract

AbstractDigital transformation is increasingly prioritized within the public sector to assure sustained relevance. At the same time, sustainable development goals (SDGs) are increasingly addressed in the strategies and missions of public sector actors. Previous research highlights that sustainability requires integration into internal procedures and governance structures (e.g., accounting) to avoid running the risk of merely being ceremonial and green washing. With digital transformation deemed critical for the public sector, we would hence expect to see an integration of SDGs in digital initiatives. This study answers the research question of how SDGs are integrated into digital transformation initiatives. We answer the question through purposive sampling of digital initiatives within a large, Swedish municipality, where each initiative is categorized on the notion of which SDGs they are related to. The findings show that there is a decoupling of sustainability in digital transformation initiatives, that risks leading to directly detrimental effects for both the digital transformation of the public sector as well as for sustainability. This is discussed through integration with previous literature with the intent of identifying future avenues for research and recommendations for practice.KeywordsDigital transformationSustainable development goalsSDGResponsible information systemsDigital government