Abstract:

Industry 4.0 is a new industrial paradigm that emerged in Germany and aims to accelerate the digital transformation of business ecosystems, making them more competitive on a national and international scale. This industrial revolution is based on the widespread adoption of digital technologies in the production process, leading to profound transformations in firms' internal and external processes, towards more autonomous and interconnected production systems. The technologies associated with i4.0 have important effects on the reduction of production costs, increasing productivity while allowing for real-time monitoring. These changes will also offer benefits for the efficiency of the supply chain while enabling new models for value creation for products and services.

Despite the widely recognized benefits, the effective advance in the implementation of i4.0 is taking some time and, notably for small and medium-sized companies, that face several barriers in the process. Among the barriers mentioned by firm leaders, some stand out such including the costs of acquiring hardware and software, financing difficulties, resistance to change and misinformation regarding this topic. Some of the most important barriers are also connected with human resources and the lack of competencies and skills for seizing all the opportunities and keeping pace with this industrial transformation.

This research aims to identify and prioritize both the personal and technical competencies that are needed, according to Portuguese firms to fully seize the advantages and opportunities of Industry 4.0. This work is based on data collected from a survey about the relevance of competencies for Industry 4.0 found in the literature. and discussed with companies in a joint project with academia. This article will also mention some of the technologies that companies prefer for accelerating this digital transformation.

Keywords:

Industry 4.0, competencies, digital skills, technologies.