Digital technology is advancing faster than most water utilities can keep up with.
That was the central message from the ‘The Tipping Point Is Human, Not Digital’ session at the 4th SWAN Asia-Pacific Workshop, where senior leaders from Sydney Water, Urban Utilities, and Icon Water shared how culture, governance, and collaboration are shaping transformation outcomes.
Moderator Jenny Francis, Executive Manager Digital at Hunter Water, opened by noting that the industry has no shortage of sensors or data. What it lacks, she said, is the ability to translate investment into measurable outcomes.
Who really owns transformation in a utility?
Sydney Water’s Head of Digital and Chief Information Officer, Sridhar Pydipati, argued that transformation is not owned by the CIO but by the enterprise itself.
He explained that whoever owns the benefits must own the change, because transformation affects operating models, roles and culture.
The digital function is a vehicle for transformation rather than its owner. When responsibility lies solely with IT, programs lack the executive commitment necessary for lasting change.
Why technology isn’t the problem
Urban Utilities’ Chief Digital and Information Officer, Martine Watson, warned that while technology has accelerated exponentially, organisations have struggled to adapt at the same pace.
Speaking as an engineer and digital leader, she said the real constraint is human, not technical.
“Technology is evolving faster than our ability to absorb it,” Watson said. “Our business systems are not structured to help us adapt to that speed.”
She called on utilities to strengthen governance and organisational systems that enable adaptation and safe experimentation. Without those foundations, utilities risk shorter technology lifecycles, higher costs and more severe impacts when projects go wrong.
How leadership and culture shape outcomes
Icon Water’s Chief Information Officer, Tony Pollock, emphasised that successful transformation depends on broad engagement, not departmental control.
He described a case where Icon Water had to internalise multiple shared services within three years after a demerger. The urgency of the challenge united staff around a clear outcome.
“When people understand the stakes, they can achieve remarkable things,” Pollock said. “Trust and buy-in across every level of the business are what deliver success.”
What systems make or break transformation?
The panel identified three “human systems” that determine whether digital programs succeed or fail: governance, delivery and adoption.
Effective governance defines why and where to invest, as well as how to balance innovation with risk. Poor governance can undercook business cases, leading to optimism bias where benefits are overstated and costs underestimated.
In delivery, utilities often struggle when digital projects are managed through traditional infrastructure frameworks. The speakers agreed that delivery models must adapt, allowing for iteration, early testing and shared accountability across IT and operations.
And in adoption, the challenge is personal. Watson said people have deep emotional connections to their tools and systems, so forcing change without empathy leads to resistance.
“Never underestimate how personal technology adoption is,” she said. “Plan for the human journey as much as the technical one.”
How can utilities ensure the success of digital adoption?
Sydney Water’s Pydipati shared an example of successful adoption from its digital customer platform program.
By involving customers in the design and testing process, Sydney Water increased online engagement from 25 per cent to more than 60 per cent in two years. The project’s success, he said, came from user involvement, continuous improvement and a focus on intuitive design for all age groups.
Adoption, he added, is never finished. It requires ongoing engagement and iteration, especially when public trust and customer experience are involved.
What lessons can utilities take forward?
The panel concluded that transformation succeeds when people feel ownership, governance enables rather than constrains, and teams are trusted to experiment safely.
Digital programs fail when they prioritise tools over trust. The tipping point, as the session title suggested, remains firmly human.
As Francis summarised, “Transformation in water isn’t about technology. It’s about people, culture and the systems that help them adapt.”