Tumpa, R J and Naeni, L (2025) Improving decision-making and stakeholder engagement at project governance using digital technology for sustainable infrastructure projects. Smart and Sustainable Built Environment, 14(4), pp. 1292-1329. ISSN 2046-6099
Abstract
Purpose: Achieving sustainable development goals requires efficient decision-making and stakeholder engagement in infrastructure projects. This research aims to investigate how decision-making and stakeholder engagement at the project governance level can be advanced using digital technology to improve sustainability performance in infrastructure projects. Design/methodology/approach: Grounded in technology acceptance model, this qualitative study explored the perceptions of professionals in facilitating sustainability within infrastructure projects. Seventeen semi-structured interviews were conducted with purposively selected infrastructure professionals and data were analyzed using inductive thematic analysis. Findings: Digital technology enables evidence-based decision-making aligned with sustainability goals by providing real-time data, optimizing data analysis and enhancing data authenticity while reducing resource and time pressure. It promotes efficient stakeholder engagement by offering integrated, collaborative and centralized platforms which foster transparency, collaboration, mitigate the risk of greenwashing and modern slavery by streamlining communication and reducing siloed engagement. However, human oversight remains essential to prevent technological misinterpretation. Practical implications: This study provides valuable insights for project management professionals seeking to integrate digital technology into sustainable infrastructure projects. It demonstrates how digital technology can enhance environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainability in infrastructure projects, helping them to remain competitive in a dynamic project environment. Social implications: Digital technology presents reliable, up to date environmental, social and economic data required for informed decision-making, enabling socially sustainable choices. This reduces risks of erroneous decision and benefit broader communities by addressing sustainability challenges, fostering a resilience and enhancing social well-being. Originality/value: Despite the slow adoption of digital technology in Australian infrastructure projects, enhancing sustainability performance remains crucial. This research addresses this gap by offering a comprehensive understanding of how digital technology can improve decision-making and stakeholder engagement at project governance level.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | decision-making; digital technology; project governance; stakeholder engagement; sustainability |
| Index terms: | data analysis, interview, sustainability challenge, digital technology, evidence, thematic analysis, collaboration, well-being, decision-making, methodology, sustainability performance, qualitative study, streamlining, governance, platform, real-time data, project management, technology acceptance model, transparency, infrastructure project, dimension, sustainable development goal, stakeholder engagement |
| Subjects: | environmental issues, evaluation and assessment methods, sustainable design, acoustic properties, digital design, sustainability assessment, research methods, community and social dimensions, computing systems, data collection methods, business, research design and methodology, mental health and wellbeing, data analysis and analytics, health monitoring assessment and metrics, methods and analysis, professional development, project management theory and practice, management, infrastructure and transport systems, data management, decision analysis |
| Topics: | Sustainability, Risk Management, Engineering Principles, Project Management, Health and Safety, Organizational Design, Digital Applications, Governance, Stakeholder Management, Information Management, Research Practice, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here