Analysis of the Industry’s Perspective on Digital Competence Vocational Human Resources

Mia Rahma Romadona; Andi Budiansyah; Suryadi Suryadi; Maulana Akbar; Fachrizal Fachrizal; Syahrizal Maulana; Ratna Sri Harjanti; Arif Hidayat

doi:10.14203/STIPM.2026.440

Analysis of the Industry’s Perspective on Digital Competence Vocational Human Resources

Mia Rahma Romadona, Andi Budiansyah, Suryadi Suryadi, Maulana Akbar, Fachrizal Fachrizal, Syahrizal Maulana, Ratna Sri Harjanti, Arif Hidayat

Abstract

Industry in the technological era, as an economic driver is highly dependent on resource management especially human resources. Vocational higher education graduates (Diploma 3 and 4/applied bachelor levels) are designed to be ready with specific competency aligned to labor market demands. However, industries continue to report challenges in recruiting vocational graduates who fully their need. This study evaluates the digital competencies of vocational graduates in Indonesia in relation to industry using the European Commission’s Digital Competence Framework (DigComp). A mixed-method design was employed, combining in-depth interview and an online survey in eight digitally oriented companies in Indonesia which was then processed using descriptive statistics and paired sample t-tests. The results show not statistically significant difference (p > 0.05) between industry expectations and graduates’ competencies across the five DigComp dimensions: information digital literacy, communication and collaboration, content creation, security, and problem solving. Further results, graduates can meet technical standards but face recruitment barriers due to deficiencies in soft skills like communication, teamwork, and negotiation. These results confirm the applicability of DigComp in the context of vocational education in Indonesia, but also highlight the need to integrate generic competencies and strengthen structured industry collaboration to support long-term digital workforce development in Indonesia.

Full Text:

PDF

References

Astuti, M., Arifin, Z., Nurtanto, M., Mutohhari, F., & Warju, W. (2022). The maturity levels of the digital technology competence in vocational education. International Journal of Evaluation and Research in Education, 11(2), 596–603. https://doi.org/10.11591/ijere.v11i2.22258

Audretsch, D. B., & Link, A. N. (Eds.). (2017). Universities and the entrepreneurial ecosystem. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Barboutidis, G., & Stiakakis, E. (2023). Identifying the factors to enhance digital competence of students at vocational training institutes. Technology, Knowledge and Learning, 28(2), 613–650. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-023-09641-1

Cattaneo, A., Antonietti, C., & Rauseo, M. (2022). How digitalised are vocational teachers? Assessing digital competence in vocational education and looking at its underlying factors. Computers & Education, 176, Article 104358. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2021.104358

Cedefop. (2024). Vocational education and training policy briefs 2023 – Iceland: Cedefop monitoring and analysis of vocational education and training policies. Publications Office of the European Union. https://doi.org/10.2801/352621

Cedefop; ReferNet Iceland. (2022). Vocational education and training in Europe – Iceland: System description [Database entry]. Cedefop. https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/publications-and-resources/data-visualisations/vet-in-europe-database

Elstad, E. (2016). Educational technology: Expectations and experiences—An introductory overview. In E. Elstad (Ed.), Digital expectations and experiences in education (pp. 3–28). Springer.

Eshet, Y. (2002). Digital literacy: A new terminology framework and its application to the design of meaningful technology-based learning environments. In P. Barker & S. Rebelsky (Eds.), Proceedings of EDMEDIA 2002: World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia & Telecommunications (pp. 493–498). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education.

Eshet-Alkalai, Y. (2004). Digital literacy: A conceptual framework for survival skills in the digital era. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 13(1), 93–106.

Eshet-Alkalai, Y. (2012). Thinking in the digital era: A revised model for digital literacy. Issues in Informing Science and Information Technology, 9, 267–276. https://doi.org/10.28945/1621

Eshet-Alkalai, Y., & Amichai-Hamburger, Y. (2004). Experiments in digital literacy. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 7(4), 421–429. https://doi.org/10.1089/cpb.2004.7.421

Eshet-Alkalai, Y., & Chajut, E. (2009). Changes over time in digital literacy. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 12(6), 713–715. https://doi.org/10.1089/cpb.2008.0264

European Commission. (2006). Recommendation 2006/962/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 on key competences for lifelong learning (Official Journal L 394, pp. 10–18). https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32006H0962

European Commission. (2013). Survey of schools: ICT in education—Benchmarking access, use and attitudes to technology in Europe's schools. Publications Office of the European Union. https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/5a42b7e4-60dd-4aeb-ba0f-208d037568d9

Fachrizal, Romadona, M. R., Suryadi, S., Budiansyah, A., Maulana, S., Akbar, M., Harjanti, R. S., & Hidayat, A. (2025). Modelling Labor Market Access Among Vocational Education Graduates in Indonesia: A Heckman Selection Approach. Statistics, Optimization & Information Computing, 14(2), 541-555. https://doi.org/10.19139/soic-2310-5070-2510

Falloon, G. (2020). From digital literacy to digital competence: The teacher digital competency (TDC) framework. Education and Information Technologies, 25(5), 2449–2472. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-09767-4

Ferrari, A. (2013). DIGCOMP: A framework for developing and understanding digital competence in Europe. Publications Office of the European Union. https://doi.org/10.2791/43535

Gayatri, G., Jaya, I. G. N. M., & Rumata, V. M. (2023). The Indonesian digital workforce gaps in 2021–2025. Sustainability, 15(1), Article 754. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15010754

González, L., & Torres, A. (2019). The role of English in global business communication. International Journal of Business Communication, 56(4), 489–507. https://doi.org/10.1177/2329488418824894

Hapsari, R. N., Agustina, S. M., Wijaya, R., & Romadona, M. R. (2024). Kurangnya keterampilan komunikasi generasi Z memasuki pasar kerja [Lack of communication skills of Generation Z entering the workforce]. Jurnal Pekommas, 9(1), 55–66. https://doi.org/10.56873/jpkm.v9i1.5241

Harjanti, R. S., Puspasari, D., Hidayat, A., Haribowo, R. K., Andari, Y., Bagaskara, M. R. R., & Suryadi, S. T. (2023). Gap in the mastery of ICT soft skills for vocational graduate workers in industry: Case study of LPP Polytechnic. Journal of Science, Technology, Innovation Policy and Management, 8(2), 145–161. https://doi.org/10.14203/STIPM.2023.376

Herlinawati, H., Marwa, M., Ismail, N., Juniadi, Liza, L. O., & Situmorang, D. D. B. (2024). The integration of 21st century skills in the curriculum of education. Heliyon, 10(15), Article e35148. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e35148

Janssen, J., Stoyanov, S., Ferrari, A., Punie, Y., Pannekeet, K., & Sloep, P. (2013). Experts' views on digital competence: Commonalities and differences. Computers & Education, 68, 473–481. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2013.05.017

Kholifah, N., Nurtanto, M., Sutrisno, V. L. P., Majid, N. W. A., Subakti, H., Daryono, R. W., & Achmadi, A. (2025). Unlocking workforce readiness through digital employability skills in vocational education graduates: A PLS-SEM analysis based on human capital theory. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 11, Article 101625. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101625

Lam, P. T., & Dau, T. K. T. (2024). Digital competence of students in higher education: An assessment framework in Vietnam. Asian Education and Development Studies, 13(5), 473–487. https://doi.org/10.1108/AEDS-04-2024-0080

Loso Judijanto, Hasdiana, Naini, U., & Al-Amin. (2024). A snapshot of Indonesian vocational education and the 21st century skills challenge. Indonesian Journal of Education, 4(3), 804–815. https://doi.org/10.56740/injoe.v4i3.61

Matter, J., Santos, C. C., & Cuque, L. M. (2022). Analysis and comparison of international digital competence framework for education. Education Sciences, 12(12), Article 932. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12120932

Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology. (2021). Vocational education profile in 2021 based on Dapodik, Susenas and Sakernas. Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology & Central Bureau of Statistics.

Mulyanti, R., Wati, L., Tusminurdin, U., & Soma, A. (2024). Determinants of teacher digital competence: Empirical evidence of vocational schools in Indonesia. International Journal of Data and Network Science, 8(3), 1517–1530. https://doi.org/10.5267/j.ijdns.2024.3.010

Nguyen, T. Q., Ngoc, P. T. A., Phuong, H. A., Nguyen, T. T. H., Nguyen, T. T., Le, T. T. H., & Vu, G. H. (2024). Digital competence of Vietnamese citizens: An application of DigComp framework and the role of individual factors. Education and Information Technologies, 29, 19267–19298. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-024-12585-3

Pratiwi, D., Isamara, K. I., Sudira, P., & Maryadi, T. H. T. (2025). Implementation of digital portfolio for vocational teachers' digital skills: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 9(3), 4143–4159. https://doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2025.903SEDU0292

Rahmawati, S., Prestridge, S., Abdullah, A. G., & Widiaty, I. (2025). Unpacking the digital competence challenge in vocational education: A case from Indonesia. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 12, Article 101803. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101803

Santioso, L. (2024). Industry perspective on digital competences among MBKM interns in Indonesia. Return: Study of Management Economic and Business, 3(1), 41–60. https://doi.org/10.57096/return.v3i1.201

Schwab, K. (2016). The fourth industrial revolution. Crown Business.

Suryadi, S., Romadona, M. R., Setiawan, S., Fachrizal, Budiansyah, A., Maulana, S., Helmi, R. L., Tsurayya, S., Haribowo, R. K., Andari, Y., Bagaskara, & Harjanti, R. S. (2024). Unemployment rates in vocational education in Indonesia using economic and statistical analysis. Statistics, Optimization & Information Computing, 12(2), 498–509. https://doi.org/10.19139/soic-2310-5070-1887

Van Deursen, A. J. A. M., & van Dijk, J. A. G. M. (2009). Improving digital skills for the use of online public information and services. Government Information Quarterly, 26(2), 333–340. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2008.11.002

Vukčević, N., Abramović, N., & Perović, N. (2021). Research of the level of digital competencies of students of the University "Adriatic" Bar. SHS Web of Conferences, 129, Article 02006. https://doi.org/10.1051/shsconf/202112902006

Wu, J., Husnin, H., Mohamad, M., Jia, X., & Zhang, Y. (2025). Teachers' digital competency in vocational education: A systematic review. Multidisciplinary Reviews, 8(10), Article 2025313. https://doi.org/10.31893/multirev.2025313

Wu, Y. J., Goh, M., & Mai, Y. (2023). Social innovation and higher education: Evolution and future promise. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 10(1), Article 283. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-023-01759-y

Xu, S., Wang, L., Zhu, S., Zhang, X., & Li, Y. (2025). Exploring factors influencing digital literacy among higher vocational students based on quantitative evidence. Scientific Reports, 15, Article 18894. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-04078-1

Zervas, I., & Stiakakis, E. (2025). Emerging digital skills in vocational education: The impact of AI on laboratory-based learning. In EDULEARN25 Proceedings: 17th International Conference on Education and New Learning Technologies (pp. 1–8). IATED. https://doi.org/10.21125/edulearn.2025.0776

Zhao, Y., Pinto Llorente, A. M., & Sánchez Gómez, M. C. (2021). Digital competence in higher education research: A systematic literature review. Computers & Education, 168, Article 104212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2021.104212

Zhong, Z., & Juwaheer, S. (2024). Digital competence development in TVET with a competency-based whole-institution approach. Vocation, Technology & Education, 1(2), Article 0591. https://doi.org/10.54844/vte.2024.0591

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.14203/STIPM.2026.440