Implementing Sustainable Digital Transformation Based on the Working with People Model: Lessons from Experience in Large Companies

Mariló Martínez García () and Ignacio de los Ríos-Carmenado ()
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Mariló Martínez García: GESPLAN Research Group, Higher Technical School of Agricultural, Food and Biosystems Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Ignacio de los Ríos-Carmenado: GESPLAN Research Group, Higher Technical School of Agricultural, Food and Biosystems Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-22

Abstract: Technology is causing unprecedented disruption that requires organisations to implement digital transformation processes. These processes are aimed at integrating technologies, redesigning their business models and, at the same time, adapting the skills of their employees and incorporating sustainability into their processes. This research aims to conceptualise a methodology for implementing Sustainable Digital Transformation (SDT) processes based on the “Working with People” (WWP) model. The model integrates three key dimensions and aligns with project management and organisational change approaches. For the purpose of this article, empirical experiences of technology adoption implemented in five large Spanish companies with an international presence are analysed. The companies were selected because they were undergoing a strategic digital transformation process aimed at implementing a digital and sustainable culture. The results show that the WWP model, aligned with IPMA project management and ADKAR organisational change approaches, is a useful tool for articulating the implementation of a Sustainable Digital Transformation, highlighting the importance of people. The model is replicable for other companies, facilitating sustainable success in digital transformation from a practical perspective of holistic and sustainable digital transformation based on the WWP model. This study addresses a key research gap in the field of digital transformation: the lack of integrative methodologies that combine technological innovation, human development, and sustainability. The proposed Working with People-based Sustainable Digital Transformation (WWP–SDT) model provides companies with a practical framework to align digital adoption with cultural change and long-term sustainable impact.

Keywords: sustainable digital transformation (SDT); sustainability; competencies; technology; project management; organisational change (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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