Driving Digital Competency Model towards IR 4.0 in Malaysia

Abstract

Today, fourth industrial revolution is causing tremendous uncertainty. These developments transform the way we live, and the way we work. The work environment change the job profiles and therefore requires employees with a wide range of competencies. Digital inclusion today depends largely more on competences than access to technologies. While there are challenges in getting high skilled jobs for the local workforce, the graduate unemployment rate in Malaysia was more than three times higher than national unemployment. The graduate unemployment has raised several queries on relevancy of education systems matching the industry skill needs. Industry has puzzled on skills measures to close the gap of digital skills required. Scholars and policymakers called for more research to discover the root causes of graduate unemployed. The first objective of the study is to investigate the digital skills that industry required and those unemployed graduates currently possess. Second objective is to develop the digital competency model that drives towards industry revolution 4.0. The outcome is to recommend the set of digital skills that graduates required to meet the industry expectations. This study also contributes to policy and practices as the provided competency model that can be applicable to industry 4.0 in the context of Malaysia.