Fourth Industrial Revolution: Skill development of South Africa’s rail employees in technical roles.
Date
2024-12
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Publisher
Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
Abstract
The Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) introduced major technological disruptions across various industrial sectors including the railway industry. These disruptions uncovered new skills due to the transitions between core technologies. Studies have categorised these skills into technical and non-technical skills for which highly competitive organisations and stakeholders affirm their commitments to closing the skill gaps. Research has identified several skill development initiatives and approaches that can assist organisations in gaining a competitive edge in the face of 4IR technologies. This research developed a 4IR skill development framework for South Africa’s rail employees in technical roles. This addresses the fourth research objective (RO4) presented in section 1.5.1. A dual literature review approach is used to delineate the 4IR skills which pertain to South Africa’s rail sector. This involves a triangulation between the traditional literature review and the Systematic Literature Review (SLR). This is followed by data collection from the key players in South Africa’s rail sector, which confirmed the existence of 4IR skill gaps. These gaps are the rationale for the design of a skill development framework in this study. The SLR, which forms part of this study, identifies four actionable steps to achieving 4IR skill development; the first is to identify 4IR skills, and the second is to identify the stakeholders and their responsibilities in skill development. The third step is to learn from existing approaches to skill development proactively, and the last step is to consider existing barriers to 4IR skill development. The designed framework involves a four-phased approach which includes the skill gap identification phase, the skill development phase which identifies the different approaches to skill development, third phase which outlines the relationship between the stakeholders and their respective responsibilities, and the fourth phase which is the implementation process that emphasises the integration of change management into skill development initiatives.
Description
Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2024.