Making sense of equivocality in digital transformation: The case of a Dutch public client

Due to the proliferation of digital technologies, massive volumes of data regarding an infrastructure asset, its current conditions and its construction process are being produced. Public clients must undergo digital transformation to exploit these data to gain more value from civil infrastructures throughout the life cycle. In this paper, we present the results of a two-year longitudinal study on a digital transformation initiative as it was implemented and revised in a Dutch public client organisation. We uncovered three major challenges, which surfaced as equivocalities, that the organisation needed to overcome to progress in its digital transformation. Equivocality in scope of digital innovation, in users and their needs, and in which changes should be prioritised were found to hinder the development and implementation of new digital tools and standards. By exploring how these equivocalities persistently disrupted the organisation’s digital transformation, we take an initial step towards advancing understanding on how digital transformation emerges in construction practice.