Process Digitalization and Sustainability. Evidence from Utilities Industry in Europe and USA

In recent years, the business models of companies have undergone significant changes. These transformations are fueled by the increasingly domineering advent of technological innovation. New technologies affect most sectors of the economy with significant impacts on industrial processes. The development of devices capable of transmitting and processing huge amounts of data in a timely manner promotes the efficiency of production processes and greater precision. In line with these considerations, the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies could be considered the tool capable of promoting the sustainability of business processes. The protection of the ecosystem, the satisfaction of the present and future needs of the community, as well as the continuous evolution of the production and industrial process have led to a radical transformation of the competitive business environment. The issue of pollution and climate change is radically transforming the relationship between businesses and the environment, pushing them towards the implementation of strategies that affect the social, economic and social environmental problems in which they operate. Furthermore, in support of the adoption of sustainable behaviours, there are also new European regulations that increasingly encourage the integration of environmentally friendly policies. Since environmental sustainability is one of the main drivers of competitiveness and innovation to date, this work aims to study the relationship between technological innovation and sustainability. In order to achieve our goal, a regression model for the panel data will be estimated considering a time horizon of 5 years. The analysis will be conducted with reference to a sample of listed companies operating in the public services sector in Europe and the United States. In our document we will use a multiple regression analysis to test the relationship between sustainability and digitalization of processes. Since there is a productive synergy between Industry 4.0 and environmentally sustainable production, we expect to find greater sustainability in companies that use the digitalization of their industrial processes. Today many studies focus on sustainability, while there is still little research explaining the relationship between digital innovation and sustainability. This study aims to fill this gap by offering an empirical analysis of the national and international context. The contribution has practical implications, as it provides market operators with information on how environmental sustainability issues will be affected by the adoption of new digital technologies.