Abstract:

Introduction:
The retail sector has undergone significant transformation due to the rise of online shopping and shifts in consumer behavior driven by digitalization. As customers increasingly adopt digital practices, retail companies must strengthen their digital presence. These changes have altered the sector’s skill requirements and created demand for new types of expertise. This paper forms part of the broader New Age Retail Experts project, which aims to identify emerging skill needs within the retail industry and to develop new micro-learning modules to address them.

Theory:
Previous assessments have identified critical skills for the retail sector, but these assessments often rely on traditional retail roles and overlook new expert positions and university-level competencies. At the same time, consumer expectations continue to evolve, and megatrends—such as the expansion of e-commerce and the need to decarbonize the economy—pose challenges to existing business models while also creating opportunities for innovation and growth. To leverage these opportunities, retailers should invest in sustainability, digitalization, and the development of skills and talent through 2030.
Micro-learning has become increasingly popular in both professional training and higher education, offering short and effective learning experiences for employees and retail entrepreneurs. This paper examines retail competence development in relation to key disruption themes.

Methodology:
To deepen our understanding of retail competence needs, we conducted eight qualitative one-to-one interviews. The interview themes and coding structure were guided by the theoretical framework. After gaining initial insights, we began an iterative process to design micro-learning units. The overall research process can be characterized as action research due to the close collaboration between researchers, developers, and retail companies.

Findings and Conclusions:
Retail businesses face numerous challenges in disrupted operating environments, including increasing digitalization, the productive use of artificial intelligence, and shifting consumer behavior. Our findings indicate a strong need for multi-skilled retail employees. The analysis also revealed significant differences in competence levels among retailers, as well as variation in the types of skills required.
The iterative development process resulted in twelve independent online micro-learning units designed to address these needs. Effective learning content should also motivate participants to engage in continuous skill development. Finally, successful competence development in retail requires adequate resource allocation and a strong commitment to the learning process.

Keywords:

Retail disruption, digitalization, micro-learning units, competence development.