When we talk about “digital transformation”, it can sound like a huge and rather abstract challenge – especially in the world of standards. But in practice, it often starts with a much simpler question: why are we still doing it this way?
This was the key theme in our recent Workflow of the Future webinar with Peter Portela, Director of Standards and Product Development at the American Welding Society (AWS).
Peter shared AWS’s journey from legacy processes — including ballots arriving by post and even fax — towards a more modern, structured, and future-ready standards workflow. Peter’s message was clear: successful transformation in an organization like AWS is not one giant leap, it is a series of practical improvements that build over time.
One of these steps was to move to online balloting. Another was rethinking the rules behind standards development itself, stripping away years of accumulated complexity so committees could focus more on technical content and less on process overhead.
A big part of that work has been building a structured content foundation using XML and NISO STS. But Peter stressed that this was not about chasing technology for its own sake. It was about creating standards once, in a way that can support many outputs: print, PDF, XML and formats still to come.
That matters because AWS serves a multitude of different users. Some want a printed code book on the shop floor; others want standards content integrated directly into their systems with fully digital workflows. Digital transformation in practice is not about replacing one model with another, rather, it is about supporting multiple use cases that work best for the customer.
Their incremental approach to transformation was essential for building trust in the process across all stakeholders. AWS runs around 300 committees with up to 4,000 active volunteers; change could not simply be imposed from above. AWS has had to bring people along, listen carefully, and make the case for change over time.
The conversation also touched on licensing and AI. On licensing, Peter was candid that old models do not always fit today’s reality, and that AWS is actively exploring how to meet changing user needs. On AI, his view was pragmatic: it is inevitable. In the short term, he sees real value in AI as a research assistant — helping identify overlaps, conflicting language, and patterns across documents — rather than as a replacement for technical expertise.
Peter acknowledged that doing nothing is always a choice, especially in uncertain times, but it is not a future-proof choice. AWS could have carried on using older tools and processes for years. Instead, they chose to start building now: improving workflows, modernizing systems, and preparing for a world in which standards need to work not only for people, but for machines as well.
This shift is taking time but as Peter’s story showed, digital transformation can be realized through incremental change with a clear eye on the future.
Watch the webinar here.