The Leading Digital Technology Companies and their Approach to Sustainable Development

Jones, Peter ORCID: 0000-0002-9566-9393 and Wynn, Martin G ORCID: 0000-0001-7619-6079 (2021) The Leading Digital Technology Companies and their Approach to Sustainable Development. Sustainability, 13 (12). Art.6612. doi:10.3390/su13126612

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Abstract

The increasingly stellar attraction of the digital technologies and the growing, though not universal, consensus of the need to build a sustainable future, are two powerful trends within society. The aim of this article is to offer an exploratory review of how the leading companies within the digital transformation market have addressed sustainable development. As such, the article’s originality and value lie in offering a review of current corporate thinking within that market. The study adopts an inductive, qualitative approach based on an examination of published company reports, and identifies six major sustainability themes being actively promoted and supported. The article concludes that the current sustainability objectives of the technology companies are driven as much by commercial reality as any altruistic motives, and that support and promotion of the circular economy may offer the best opportunity for digital technologies to meaningfully impact on sustainable development.

Item Type:	Article
Article Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	digital technologies; sustainable development; digital transformation; circular economy; sustainability
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HF Commerce > HF5001 Business T Technology > T Technology (General)
Divisions:	Schools and Research Institutes > School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences
Research Priority Areas:	Applied Business & Technology
Depositing User:	Martin Wynn
Date Deposited:	14 Jun 2021 09:18
Last Modified:	01 Sep 2023 12:37
URI:	https://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/9806

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