Translating Sustainability Strategy into a Digital Transformation Project in Public Sector

Abstract

Public sector organisations undertake projects, programmes and portfolios with the sustainability principles in their strategies as the main focus due to their big impact on the economy and society. To speed up with the results, large number of public sector organisations realize projects, programmes and portfolios for digitalization of their processes and activities. However, there is a lack of tools and methods for translating sustainability strategy into digital transformation type of projects, programmes and portfolios in public sector. The purpose of the research is to study the public sector organisation’s practice in breaking down the sustainability strategy into the digital transformation projects, identifying the success practice and the challenges and to suggest the recommendations for further development of the specific tools and methods to be applied. The three cases of public sector organisations have been analyzed and the results presented in the paper. The study demonstrates the lack of tools and methods applied for translating the organizational sustainability strategy into digital transformation project portfolio in public sector. The proposed model for defining the step by step process of translating the strategy into a digitalization project has been suggested by the author. The contribution to the development of the sustainability theory and project management application in specific types of projects has been made. The author’s proposals for public sector could be of interest for the large audience including the project management professionals as well as linear managers of the organisations in transferring the sustainability strategy into digital transformation in practice.