8. DISCUSSION AND PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS The findings support the relevance of the Human + Digital Safety Leadership Model by showing that digital safety transformation is not only a technology deployment issue, but also a leadership integration challenge. Respondents strongly valued digital tools for safety decision-making; however, the lower agreement on critical validation of digital information indicates that judgment and critical thinking remain key development areas. Communication and trust also emerged as central mechanisms for translating digital information into operational action. The high agreement on the role of communication in preventive culture suggests that safety data only becomes useful when leaders can convert it into shared understanding and field-level decisions. The results also highlight the importance of change management. Resistance to change was the main barrier, while visible field leadership was the main enabler. This reinforces the need to develop leaders who can connect technology adoption with practical support, cultural trust, and long-term safety strategy. Given the exploratory and non-probabilistic nature of the study, findings should be interpreted as a Peru-based empirical baseline rather than as statistically generalizable evidence. However, they may offer practical lessons for comparable Latin American mining contexts. 9. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author expresses sincere appreciation to the mining professionals across Peru who voluntarily contributed their time and insights to this study. Their participation, openness, and commitment to advancing safety leadership in the mining sector have made this research possible. The author also acknowledges the collaboration of colleagues who facilitated survey distribution within their respective organizations, supporting the development of a broader, multi-company perspective on Human + Digital safety leadership. 10. REFERENCES Deloitte. (2024). Tracking the trends 2024: The top 10 issues shaping mining. Deloitte Insights. World Economic Forum. (2023). Mining and metals industry transformation map. World Economic Forum. Le Coze, J.-C. (2022). Safety science research and the digitalization of high-risk industries. Safety Science, 146, 105543. ICMM. (2022). Innovation for cleaner, safer and more productive mines. International Council on Mining and Metals. 37
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