Digital Transformation: Inevitable Change or Sizable Opportunity? The Strategic Role of HR Management in Industry 4.0

Abstract

Background: The impact of technologies on workers has been a recurring theme in occupational health psychology. In particular, the sudden digital transformation of the last two decades, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, has stressed the urgency to investigate new ways of working that are characterized by flexibility and a constant increase of autonomy. In this perspective, this study aims to investigate the state of the art of the innovation process in Italian factories, explore whether and how digitalization can be seen as an opportunity, and imagine a new way of working characterized by adaptability, resilience, and openness to change. Methods: Thirty in-depth interviews of Italian experts in HR management were collected and analyzed using a mix-method approach. Results: The findings underline the Italian HR experts’ perceptions of the risks associated with rapid changes required by technological progress in terms of workers’ wellbeing and satisfaction and suggest how important it is that organizations rapidly set up learning and training programs to guide workers to the acquisition of new skills required by Industry 4.0. Conclusions: Future workplaces will be characterized by extreme versatility, which requires workers to increasingly have both technical and soft skills as well as the ability to collaborate and build functional relationships.

Job Satisfaction and Perceived Structural Support in Remote Working Conditions—The Role of a Sense of Community at Work

“…As a result, the need emerged to develop new competences and new professional figures. Secondly, the need to review performance measurement systems and incentive and reward procedures and establish new habits to foster a safe and caring work environment, even at a distance [ 60 ].…”

Critical Steps and Conditions to Be Included in a Business Model in Logistics, Seeking Competitive Advantage from the Perspective of the Modern Digital Age and Industry 4.0

“…Smart processes and smart goods are two categories of innovations produced by these criteria [61,62]. One of the main problems of Industry 4.0 today is the need for changes in the workforce, which will need to be trained and qualified to be able to develop high problem-solving and decision-making skills in an environment of extreme complexity [63].…”

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Strategic Human Resource Planning in the Era of Digital Transformation

“…In the context of digital transformation, key stakeholders can contribute by providing information about the direction of business development, future workforce needs, and company strategies that will be adopted. Top level management, as the main key stakeholder, can ensure that HR policies are integrated with the overall organizational strategy (Galanti, 2023) (Ghobakhloo, 2021).…”