Workforce Preparation Research Articles

Educational Innovation for Industry 4.0: An Exploration of Integrated Work-Based Learning's Contribution

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to explore the role of integrated work-based learning in preparing students to meet the challenges of the Industry 4.0 work environment. It aims to investigate how incorporating work-based learning elements into the educational curriculum can enhance students' readiness for the dynamic and technology-driven landscape of Industry 4.0. Theoretical framework: This study is grounded in the theoretical framework of constructivism and experiential learning. Constructivism emphasizes active learning and the development of meaningful understanding through real-world experiences. Experiential learning theories, particularly Kolb's model, inform the research, highlighting the importance of concrete experiences, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, and active experimentation in the learning process. Method/design/approach: A mixed-methods approach will be employed for this research. Quantitative data will be collected through surveys and assessments to measure the impact of integrated work-based learning on students' technical and soft skills. Qualitative data will be gathered through interviews and focus groups to explore students' perceptions and experiences. Results and conclusion: The results will provide insights into the effectiveness of integrated work-based learning in enhancing students' technical and soft skills. It will reveal the impact on their readiness for Industry 4.0 careers, as well as their ability to navigate the complexities of the modern workplace. Research implications: This research holds implications for educational institutions, policymakers, and industry stakeholders. It underscores the need to integrate work-based learning elements into curricula to better prepare students for Industry 4.0 careers. The findings will inform the development of strategies that enhance students' workforce readiness. Originality/value: This research contributes to the growing body of literature on work-based learning and its role in Industry 4.0 preparedness. It provides original insights into the effectiveness of integrated work-based learning programs, their impact on students, and their value in addressing the demands of the rapidly evolving work environment.

Work readiness of pharmacy graduates: An exploratory study.

IntroductionThe recent global pandemic of Covid-19 caused various disruptions. Among them were face-to-face teaching and learning activities being switched to virtual sessions in accordance with health authorities recommendations. The impact of these changes on work readiness of pharmacy graduates is unknown. AimThis study aims to determine the impact of pharmacy graduate's work readiness, particularly those that had their studies disrupted from the pandemic. MethodsPracticing pharmacists with supervisory experience were interviewed on their opinions on work readiness of early career and intern pharmacists. Specifically, they were asked to comment on work readiness of pharmacy graduates who had their later stage of pharmacy education impacted by the pandemic. Data was transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. This was also supplemented with quantitative data from graduating students in 2020 and 2021 using the Work Readiness Scale. ResultsQualitative feedback showed four themes related to workforce readiness: work competence, social intelligence, personal characteristics, and organizational acumen. Preceptors interviewed noted differences in communication abilities when interacting with patients. However, this improved with time. Quantitative data collected from graduates via the validated Work-Readiness Scale also showed a more positive agreement towards perceived work readiness. These graduates were comfortable with using technology as they had used these extensively in their learning during the pandemic and thus was comfortable in adopting digital health tools in their practice. ConclusionAlthough graduates reported to be work ready, there were gaps in communication skills and confidence levels when interacting with patients, as reported by supervising preceptors. Graduates also described this sense of ‘missing out’ from not having the opportunity to attend face-to-face activities like their originally planned hospital placements and how it impacted their choice of career. As pharmacists continue to play vital roles as members of the broader healthcare workforce, both in clinical and nonclinical settings, learnings from this study should be considered in designing educational activities to train and develop the workforce of the future.

Longitudinal growth in college student self-efficacy and intercultural competence attenuated by anxiety/depression

IntroductionA wide range of stakeholders, including prospective students, parents, accreditors, future employers, and the general public, require detailed data on college outcomes. However, there are many challenges to producing such complex research tracking change over time in the higher education setting.MethodsThis multi-method longitudinal study at three different colleges was grounded in Input-Environment-Output and Social Cognitive theoretical frameworks. It examined: potential change on five different key psychosocial outcomes (i.e., self-efficacy, anxiety, intercultural competence, ethnic identity, and cognitive empathy), associations between these variables, and the role of race/ethnicity.ResultsMultilevel growth modeling revealed within and between subject changes over time. The findings provide evidence that liberal arts colleges focused on global learning can produce significant growth for students of all races on self-efficacy and intercultural competence, both outcomes that are valued for workforce readiness. However, the results also show that anxiety and depression symptoms attenuate growth in intercultural competence, which is concerning given other recent data on students’ mental health and wellness concerns.DiscussionWe discuss implications for student development practitioners and faculty alongside potential future directions for research in other higher education settings.

Curricular Relevance and Workforce Preparedness: Student Perspectives on Practical Experiences in Urban Planning and Construction Courses

Abstract This study conducted at Ovidius University of Constanta, Romania, examines the integration of practical experiences into urban planning and construction curricula, involving 318 students from Construction, Law, and Administrative Sciences faculties. The study stresses the significance of these experiences in preparing students for the workforce, while assessing their perspectives on the relevance of their courses to future careers, with a particular emphasis on the influence of internships and real project involvement. The findings suggest that students who engage in practical activities view their courses as more relevant to their career advancement. This pattern is consistent across an array of courses, with various statistical analyses revealing degrees of significance. The study underscores the need of aligning educational programmes with labour market standards and professional requirements, particularly within fields that emphasise practical competencies. It also highlights the essential roles of construction engineers and public administration professionals, emphasizing the importance of understanding practical and legal aspects in their education.

Technically prepared: Librarians' perceptions on LIS curricula and technical services workforce preparedness

Academic libraries frequently require that professional librarians obtain a master's degree from a Library and Information Science (LIS) program accredited by the American Library Association (ALA) as a condition of employment. Within these programs, “academic libraries” are a common area of concentrated study available to LIS students interested in targeting a particular path for their future careers. As ALA identifies the master's degree as the terminal degree for all types of librarians, this coursework represents the majority of education and training librarians receive prior to entering the workforce. Though duties and responsibilities vary widely between individual institutions, librarians working in technical services roles are generally responsible for a broad range of activities related to the acquisition, discovery, and preservation of library materials. This study examines the results of a survey measuring the perceptions of current technical services librarians working in academic libraries on their LIS curricula in order to identify the coursework and skills most valuable to them in their work. The survey also identifies areas in which technical services librarians report having greater reliance on continuing education and professional development opportunities to supplement their knowledge in order to remain current in their areas of expertise.

416 Urgency to Address Infrastructure in Animal sciences–A Preliminary Report

Abstract The purpose of the ASAS Public Policy Committee (PPC) is to help ASAS shape public policy and public opinion on current issues affecting farms and companion animals. PPC sets goals to make federal agencies aware of the scientific expertise and resources available within ASAS that could be used to develop science-based federal policies affecting poultry and livestock production. Recent reports point to a poor state of agricultural facilities at public colleges of agriculture which puts research priorities related to adaptation to and mitigation of climate change, food safety, zoonotic disease preparedness, animal populations and their care, diet-health, nutrition, biosecurity, new biobased packaging, energy innovations, and advanced market analysis at risk (APLU, 2021). To ascertain input specific to the Animal Sciences (AS), an IRB approved ‘Survey About Infrastructure in Animal Sciences’ (#22-495) was offered by the PPC to department heads and faculty of Animal Science programs across the country. The survey instrument was constructed to allow open-ended responses as well as 5-point Likert scale questions regarding participants views about infrastructure (IF) and thereby learn what members closest to the animal sciences community perceive to be the strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement in our research infrastructure. Analysis of coded responses in the open-ended questions among varied disciplinary arenas within AS revealed ‘facilities’ as the largest Grand Challenge. About 98% of respondents affirmed sustainable food and animal production is a critical national asset in terms of economic growth and development and 98% indicated an overlooked maintenance of IF in AS undermines national food security. Additionally, 68% indicated the state of core labs, at least for AS programs are only average or below. All respondents (100%) agreed that without comprehensive investment in infrastructure within AS, the USA will continue to fall behind in competing with other countries in areas of research. Study results provided insight into potential consequences of deferred maintenance which should elevate awareness of urgency to address the deficiencies. Since IF needs included future workforce development and working environments, an eroded IF and consequences of deferred maintenance threatens the capacity of AS to pursue Grand Challenges in research and ability to create future workforce readiness of graduates from AS programs.

How do I sound? Vowel production of multilingual students at Ma Chung University

This study aims to evaluate the Indonesian, English, and Mandarin vowel production of Ma Chung University students, a prominent Indonesian institution with a strong emphasis on workforce readiness. Given the university's language offerings encompassing Indonesian, English, and Mandarin, we employed a descriptive qualitative approach in acoustic-phonetic theory. Our respondent pool comprised of 15 PPBM (Chinese language major) students selected based on intermediate proficiency levels in all three languages, as indicated by TOEIC and HSK scores. First and second formant data for monophthongs were recorded in PRAAT tools and the data is compiled on Microsoft Excel, forming the foundation for Vowel Space Area (VSA). The data reveals a notable phenomenon: students' native language (Indonesian) influences their pronunciation of both the second (English) and third (Mandarin) languages. Particularly, English displays a distinct pattern of compressed vowel spread compared to the standard VSA table due to the lingering impact of L1 VSA. This effect accounts for observed vowel anomalies in student pronunciation. Importantly, this L1 and L2 influence is evident in their attempts to articulate L3 (Mandarin) sounds, exemplified by the significant deviation of /ə/ from the VSA. Moreover, students navigate a linguistic shift by modifying phonemes to align with their L1, inadvertently resulting in substantial deviations during English and Mandarin speech production.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Community Pharmacy Workforce.

This study sought to describe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on community pharmacy practice and its workforce. Interviews were conducted with 18 key informants from pharmacy associations and community pharmacists representing chain and independent pharmacy organizations across the United States from January to May 2022. Interview notes were analyzed using a rapid content analysis approach. Four themes resulted: (a) patient care at community pharmacies focused on fulfilling COVID-19 response needs; (b) pharmacists' history as immunizers and scope of practice expansions facilitated COVID-19 response efforts; (c) workforce supply shortages impeded COVID-19 response efforts and contributed to burnout; and (d) maintaining community pharmacy workforce's readiness will be critical to future emergency preparedness and response efforts. Formalizing scope of practice expansion policies and reimbursement pathways deployed during the COVID-19 pandemic could facilitate the community pharmacy workforce's ability to address ongoing public health needs and respond to future public health emergencies.

Workforce preparation for delivery of nurturing care in low- and middle-income countries: Expert consensus on critical multisectoral training needs.

Services to support nurturing care through early childhood development (ECD) in low- and middle-income countries are hampered by significant workforce challenges. The global early childhood workforce is both diverse and complex, and it supports the delivery of a wide range of services in extremely diverse geographical and social settings. In the context of contemporary global goals for the universal provision of quality early childhood provision, there is an urgent need to build appropriate platforms for strengthening and supporting this workforce. However, the evidence base to support this work is severely limited. To contribute to evidence on how to strengthen the ECD workforce in low- and middle-income countries, this study used a Delphi methodology involving three rounds of data collection with 14 global experts, to reach consensus on the most critical training needs of three key early childhood workforce groups: (i) health; (ii) community-based paraprofessionals, and (iii) educational professionals working across ECD programmes. The study identified a comprehensive set of shared, as well as distinct, training needs across the three groups. Shared training needs include the following: (i) nurturing dispositions that facilitate work with children and families in complex settings; (ii) knowledge and skills to support responsive, adaptable delivery of ECD programmes; and (iii) systems for ECD training and professional pathways that prioritise ongoing mentoring and support. The study's detailed findings help to address a critical gap in the evidence on training needs for ECD workers in low-resource contexts. They provide insights into how to strengthen content, systems, and methods of training to support intersectoral ECD work in resource-constrained contexts.

Artificial Intelligence in Project Management & Its Future

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a disruptive force, transforming industries and revolutionizing business processes. Among the domains significantly impacted, project management holds immense potential for transformation. AI’s integration promises intelligent automation, data-driven decision-making, and predictive capabilities, addressing challenges in traditional project management methodologies. Successful AI implementations have revolutionized project management, improving forecasting, resource allocation, and risk assessment. Despite the benefits, challenges hinder AI adoption, including data quality, investment uncertainties, workforce readiness, and change management. However, AI’s potential to address gaps in project management is substantial, enabling data-driven decisions, real-time monitoring, resource optimization, and enhanced agility. This research examines AI’s evolution, successful implementations, challenges, and potential implications, providing insights for effective AI integration in project management. Key Takeaways: • Project management is one domain that stands out as highly impacted by artificial intelligence, offering immense potential for transformation through AI integration. • AI-driven solutions in project management promise intelligent automation, data-driven decision-making, and enhanced predictive capabilities, addressing traditional methodological limitations. • Despite challenges, AI holds substantial potential to address existing gaps in project management practices.

Concepts and Challenges in the Implementation of Talent Management in Improving Employee Performance at the Company

This study aims to determine and analyze the effect of implementing talent management which consists of workforce preparation, workforce development and workforce management on employee performance through employee engagement. Talent management is one of the important issues that has become a topic of conversation in the world of human resource management. This is a logical consequence of the limited availability of talent, while the need for them continues to increase. One of the signs of this era is increasingly fierce business competition, including the necessity for local companies to compete with companies from regional and even global environments. Every company wants to dominate business and market competition. In realizing this there are three assets that must be owned by a company, namely financial capital, products and labor, but among the three most important assets is the workforce they have. Companies must be able to get and retain the best employees.

Expanding the Core Competences of Librarianship through Designing a Credit-Bearing Information Literacy Course for Social Work

In contemporary knowledge society, the impact of library and information professions has expanded to practical workforce preparation in many adjacent fields, including social work, that heavily rely on information competencies to promote community well-being and public good.This poster adds a practitioner perspective to the ongoing conversation about the need to reimagine LIS education to better align curricular priorities with the demands of the increasingly interconnected information landscape. Through a tale of a subject librarian and Social Work faculty partnership to develop a tailored credit-bearing information literacy course for Social Work pre-majors, the author illuminates the evolving role of librarians who are called upon to educate members of other information-intensive professions in the use of general and subject-specific resources essential for their field. The poster highlights the shared values that inform the practice of both librarianship and social work in response to the issues faced by communities in times of uncertainty and change. Built around the ALA’s Core Competences of Librarianship and the Social Work Competencies established by the Council on Social Work Education, the project reflects on the challenges and opportunities associated with integrating information literacy education into a domain where advanced information literacy skills are an indispensable component of the current professional practice. Finally, the project discusses several implications for LIS programs keen on creating a better connection between the LIS foundational values and other professional competency frameworks today’s librarians lean on, particularly in such vital areas as user services, lifelong learning and continuing education, and social justice.

Fostering Holistic Development: A Comprehensive Empirical Analysis of Soft Skill Acquisition and Enhancement in the Bhopal Region

This study investigates the level of preparedness of individuals within the Madhya Pradesh Region concerning the acquisition and comprehension of soft skills within the workplace context. Employing a sample of 119 respondents through the Snowball sampling technique, data analysis was conducted utilizing an Abductive approach. The assessment focuses on evaluating the proficiency of respondents in various soft skills, including critical thinking, problem-solving, and leadership abilities. This exploration addresses the critical need to bridge the gap in soft skills within the Indian professional landscape. The distinctiveness of this research lies in its contribution to the understanding of the current status of soft skill development among individuals in the Madhya Pradesh Region. In the face of a significant soft skills deficit in India's workforce, this study highlights the specific soft skills that individuals are adept at and actively cultivating within their workplace environments. The findings of this research have profound implications for the optimization of human resource development and training programs. They offer crucial insights into the areas warranting focused enhancement in soft skill cultivation to enhance overall workforce readiness.

Assessing the pharmacy workforce's preparedness for a workplace violence event.

The purpose of this article is to describe the planning, implementation, and findings of a "person with a weapon" exercise for an inpatient pharmacy department. There has been an increased focus on workplace violence in healthcare within the last few years. The health-system pharmacy workforce should take an active role in planning for workplace violence events by completing a risk assessment analysis and performing tabletop and functional exercises. This study provides an example of how health-system pharmacists collaborated with an emergency management team, security, and communications to carry out a person with a weapon exercise in an inpatient hospital pharmacy. Areas for improvement were identified for pharmacy, communications, and security during education sessions and the tabletop and functional exercises, demonstrating the importance of a multidisciplinary approach when planning for a person with a weapon event. As a result of this exercise, there was increased awareness of the "run, hide, fight" tactic, an increase in workplace violence education and staff awareness, and an enhancement of security measures, including technology improvements. This workplace violence exercise provides an example of how the pharmacy workforce can engage in emergency preparedness planning and risk mitigation for a workplace violence event. Other health systems can use the action plan, findings, and improvements to raise awareness and train about workplace violence events and support the safety of the pharmacy workforce.

“Building the plane while flying it” Reflections on pandemic preparedness and response; an organisational case study

BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic provided a unique opportunity to learn about acute health organisations experiences implementing a pandemic response plan in real-time. This study was conducted to explore organisational leader’s perspectives and experience activating a COVID-19 pandemic response plan in their health service and the impact of this on service provision, clinicians, and consumers.MethodsThis study was conducted at a large metropolitan health service in Australia that provides acute, subacute, and residential aged care services. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 key participants from the COVID-19 leadership team between November-January 2021/2022. A semi-structured interview guide was developed to explore how the health service developed a clinical governance structure, policy and procedures and experience when operationalising each element within the Hierarchy of Controls Framework. Thematic analysis was used to code data and identify themes. A cross-sectional survey of frontline healthcare workers on the impacts and perceptions of infection control practices during the COVID-19 pandemic, was also completed in 2021 with 559 responses.ResultsTwelve organisational leaders completed the semi-structured interviews. Key themes that emerged were: (1) Building the plane while flying it, (2) A unified communications strategy, (3) Clinicians fear ‘my job is going to kill me’, (4) Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) supply and demand, and (5) Maintaining a workforce. When surveyed, front-line healthcare workers responded positively overall about the health services pandemic response, in terms of communication, access to PPE, education, training, and availability of resources to provide a safe environment.ConclusionHealth service organisations were required to respond rapidly to meet service needs, including implementing a pandemic plan, developing a command structure and strategies to communicate and address the workforce needs. This study provides important insights for consideration when health service leaders are responding to future pandemics. Future pandemic plans should include detailed guidance for acute and long-term care providers in relation to organisational responsibilities, supply chain logistics and workforce preparation.

U.S. Primary Care Provider Needs: An Analysis of Workforce Projections and Policy Implications.

The primary care (PC) physician workforce has consistently been projected as requiring additional numbers to meet the needs of the U.S. The Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA) has reported the PC nurse practitioner (NP) workforce to be 90,000 NPs more than required to meet the PC needs of the U.S. With both clinician types contributing to the PC workforce in the country, it is difficult to understand such an oversupply of NPs with continued deficit in PC physicians. The purpose of this study was to investigate results and methods used for HRSAs current PC workforce projections and compare those with the same used for Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC) projections. Methods included a review of technical documents, dashboards, and published reports. Interviews with subject matter experts were also completed. Projections were found to differ significantly, as did data and assumptions. Two of the three projections modeled physicians as the sole provider of PC. An integrated model gives the most comprehensive and accurate picture of PC workforce needs. The utilization of NPs as PC providers has been demonstrated to be safe and effective, with the potential to alleviate predicted shortages, improve patient care outcomes, reduce cost, and address PC inequities. Implications include improving workforce data, creating projections that mirror clinical integration in PC, adjusting workforce preparation funding, incentivizing interprofessional collaboration in research, addressing barriers to practice among non-physician providers, and leveraging growth in the NP workforce.

THE EFFECTS OF PERCEIVED WORK OVERLOAD ON ORGANIZATIONAL COMITMENT ON EMPLOYEE TURNOVER INTENTION IN AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY IN PAHANG

Employee turnover is a critical concern for organizations, as it can adversely affect service quality and incur substantial expenses. Drawing on the theoretical framework of social exchange theory, this study presents a model to examine the interconnections between turnover intentions, organizational commitment, and perceived task overload among employees in the automotive sector of Malaysia. Data was collected from 158 automotive industry professionals who voluntarily participated in the study. The proposed hypotheses were validated using structural equation modeling (SEM) via SmartPLS 4.0. The findings provide empirical support for the hypothesis that employees' perceptions of task overload directly influence their level of commitment to their respective organizations. Moreover, their perceived work overload, combined with organizational commitment and incentives, significantly impacts their turnover intentions, influencing their decision to leave their current positions. Surprisingly, organizational commitment was found to have no significant direct effect on turnover intention. This novel research offers a comprehensive model to manage turnover intention among automotive industry employees in Malaysia, utilizing organizational commitment as a mediating factor. The level of dedication demonstrated by employees towards their organizations plays a vital role in determining whether they will remain with the organization, even when they perceive their skills to be declining. These findings hold implications for both research and clinical practice, offering valuable insights for improving workforce readiness amidst the challenges posed by the industrial revolution 4.0.

Climate Change and Health: Challenges to the Local Government Environmental Health Workforce in South Australia.

Climate change is the most urgent and significant public health risk facing the globe. In Australia, it has been identified that Environmental Health Officers/Practitioners (EHOs/EHPs, hereafter EHOs) are a currently underutilized source of knowledge and skills that can contribute to climate change adaptation planning at the local government level. The ability of local government EHOs to utilize their local knowledge and skills in human health risk assessment during a public health emergency was demonstrated through their role in the response to COVID-19. This study used a survey and follow up interviews to examine the roles and responsibilities of EHOs during the COVID-19 pandemic and used the results to examine the potential of the workforce to tackle climate change and health related issues. What worked well, what regulatory tools were helpful, how interagency collaboration worked and what barriers or hindering factors existed were also explored. A workforce review of EHOs in South Australia was also undertaken to identify current and future challenges facing EHOs and their capacity to assist in climate change preparedness. The findings demonstrated that the workforce was used in the response to COVID-19 for varying roles by councils, including in education and communication (both internally and externally) as well as monitoring and reporting compliance with directions. Notably, half the workforce believed they could have been better utilized, and the other half thought they were well utilized. The South Australian Local Government Functional Support Group (LGFSG) was praised by the workforce for a successful approach in coordinating multiagency responses and communicating directions in a timely fashion. These lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic should be incorporated into climate change adaptation planning. To ensure consistent messaging and a consolidated information repository, a centralized group should be used to coordinate local government climate change adaptation plans in relation to environmental health and be included in all future emergency management response plans. The surveyed EHOs identified environmental health issues associated with climate change as the most significant future challenge; however, concerningly, participants believe that a lack of adequate resourcing, leading to workforce shortages, increasing workloads and a lack of support, is negatively impacting the workforce's preparedness to deal with these emerging issues. It was suggested that the misperception of environmental health and a failure to recognize its value has resulted in a unique dilemma where EHOs and their councils find themselves caught between managing current workload demands and issues, and endeavouring to prepare, as a priority, for emerging environmental health issues associated with climate change and insufficient resources.

MPH Capstone experiences: promising practices and lessons learned.

To ensure workforce readiness, graduate-level public health training programs must prepare students to collaborate with communities on improving public health practice and tools. The Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) requires Master of Public Health (MPH) students to complete an Integrative Learning Experience (ILE) at the end of their program of study that yields a high-quality written product demonstrating synthesis of competencies. CEPH suggests written products ideally be "developed and delivered in a manner that is useful to external stakeholders, such as non-profit or governmental organizations." However, there are limited examples of the ILE pedagogies and practices most likely to yield mutual benefit for students and community partners. To address this gap, we describe a community-led, year-long, group-based ILE for MPH students, called Capstone. This service-learning course aims to (1) increase capacity of students and partner organizations to address public health issues and promote health equity; (2) create new or improved public health resources, programs, services, and policies that promote health equity; (3) enhance student preparedness and marketability for careers in public health; and (4) strengthen campus-community partnerships. Since 2009, 127 Capstone teams affiliated with the Department of Health Behavior at the Gillings School of Global Public Health at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have worked with seventy-nine partner organizations to provide over 103,000 h of in-kind service and produce 635 unique products or "deliverables." This paper describes key promising practices of Capstone, specifically its staffing model; approach to project recruitment, selection, and matching; course format; and assignments. Using course evaluation data, we summarize student and community partner outcomes. Next, we share lessons learned from 13 years of program implementation and future directions for continuing to maximize student and community partner benefits. Finally, we provide recommendations for other programs interested in replicating the Capstone model.

CyberReco:~Cybersecurity Workforce Readiness Recommender System

Using the United States National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education framework as a guide, we propose CyberReco - Cybersecurity Workforce Readiness Recommender System, an AI/ML model that attempts to address readiness gaps needed to prepare users lacking in some cybersecurity knowledge, skills, and activities to be workforce-ready. CyberReco is built using natural language processing. We present a hierarchical-based framework that is composed of four components including, text preparation and normalization, keywords extraction and processing, similarity scores and skills computation, and a recommender component.