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The purpose of this paper is to examine the changes that will impact learners and learning in the Fourth Industrial Revolution and provide recommendations for transforming education to meet the needs of the maritime industry.

The paper reviews the definition of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the changes that have occurred in industry as a result. It looks at key Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies and its impacts on the maritime industry. It then presents some strategies for how the maritime education sector can begin to address the paradigm shifts that will be needed to transform education so as to focus on the advantages that can be derived from the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Rapid technological advances are transforming the process of education around the world and will continue to disrupt not only the education sector but entire industries – education being only one of them. The maritime sector has some specific technologies that will drive digital transformation of business models. Maritime educational institutions around the world will need to be prepared to respond rapidly to this paradigm change and provide the skilled labour the industry will require to remain competitive.

While the technologies that are impacting the Fourth Industrial Revolution have clearly been identified, the education sector still needs practical applications and integration into curriculum and learning to truly embrace the opportunities for the development of workforce competencies in this new age.

The maritime education sector must now start implementing strategies to expose students to new Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics, blockchain and automation technology and how they are changing the future of work. A new shift in the conscious application of these game-changing technologies will be required, and examples of integration are discussed as a starting point for building a long-term plan.

The development of the human capital needed in the Fourth Industrial Revolution must begin now, and it presents challenges to those in the maritime education sector. It, therefore, requires that a digital transformation strategy is in place to deliver the specialized skills and new knowledge workers will need in the future.

This paper discusses the disruption that the Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies will bring to maritime education. One of the findings demonstrates that it clear that it is no longer competitive to ignore the disruption that is happening, and action is needed now.

The current era of the fourth industrial revolution has attracted significant research on the use of digital technologies in improving construction project delivery. However, less emphasis has been placed on how these digital tools will influence the management of the construction workforce. To this end, using a review of existing works, this chapter explores the fourth industrial revolution and its associated technologies that can positively impact the management of the construction workforce when implemented. Also, the possible challenges that might truncate the successful deployment of digital technologies for effective workforce management were explored. The chapter submitted that implementing workforce management-specific digital platforms and other digital technologies designed for project delivery can aid effective workforce management within construction organisations. Technologies such as cloud computing, the Internet of Things, big data analytics, robotics and automation, and artificial intelligence, among others, offer significant benefits to the effective workforce management of construction organisations. However, several challenges, such as resistance to change due to fear of job loss, cost of investment in digital tools, organisational structure and culture, must be carefully considered as they might affect the successful use of digital tools and by extension, impact the success of workforce management in the organisations.

This paper aims to address the relevance and impact of the fourth industrial revolution through a theoretical and practical perspective. The authors present both the results of a literature review, highlighting the new competences required in innovative workplaces and a pivotal case, which explores challenges and skill models diffused in industry 4.0, describing the role of proper organizational learning processes in shaping new work cultures.

The paper aims to enhance the discussion around the 4.0 industrial revolution addressing both a theoretical framework, valorizing the existing scientific contributes and the situated knowledge, embedded in a concrete organizational context in which the fourth industrial revolution is experienced and practiced.

The findings acquired through the case study endorse what the scientific literature highlights about the impact, the new competences and the organizational learning paths. The conclusions address the agile approach to work as the more suitable way to place humans at the center of technological progress.

The paper explores a specific organizational context, related to a high-tech multinational company, whose results illustrate the empirical evidence sustaining transformations in the working, professional and organizational cultures necessary to face the challenges of the fourth industrial revolution. The research was conducted with the managers of an international company and this a specific and limited target, even though relevant and interesting.

The paper connects the case with the general scenario, this study currently faces, to suggest hints and coordinates for crossing the unfolding situation and finding suitable matching between technological evolution and the development of new work and professional cultures and competences.

Due to the acceleration that the COVID-19 has impressed to the use of digital technologies and remote connexion, the paper highlights some ambivalences that the quick evolution of the new technologies entails in relation to work and social conditions.

The opportunity to match both a literature analysis and an in-depth situated case study enhances the possibility to achieve a more articulated and complex view of the viral changes generated in the current context by the digitalization process.

This chapter explores the relationship between higher education leadership and humanizing pedagogy. It is premised on the assumption that higher education leadership, as a social construct, is both a philosophical problem and policy imperative. Yet, the fourth industrial revolution and artificial intelligence (AI) imperatives have far-reaching implications for the “dominant” higher education leadership theory and practice. With this in mind, this chapter advocates for a broader and culturally inclusive understanding of higher education leadership perspectives. Among others, this thesis is that in a developing country context such as South Africa, for example, the dominant approach of higher education leadership should be guided by the Ubuntu principles and humanizing pedagogy. The author argue that the humanizing pedagogy and Ubuntu principles, in a culturally diverse setting of the fourth industrial revolution era and AI, have the prospects of changing the current unacceptable levels of performance and bring change in a larger scale in higher education institutions.

Given the speed at which technologies are reshaping economies and societies, libraries are called to embrace these changes while maintaining their role in the achievement sustainable development goals. This chapter aims to highlight how libraries can embrace the sustaining and disruptive technologies brought by the fourth industrial revolution on the library role in advancing sustainable development. The chapter highlights the role of libraries in sustainable development, and the unveils how the fourth industrial revolution technologies, that is, maker spaces, block chain technology, augmented reality, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence are used to enhance the library role in advancing sustainable development. Major challenges affecting libraries in embracing Library 4.0, that is, chronic financial constraints, inadequate infrastructure, resistance to change, and technical skills deficiency and possible recommendations to overcome these challenges are highlighted. This chapter is based on desktop review of relevant literature and the authors' views.

The adoption of knowledge management (KM) to steer new skills and capabilities among people provides evidence that KM not only offers competitive advantages but also provides a means for organisational survival, by improvising core capabilities or generate new ones that can drive people in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) era. This paperaim to identify critical new skills and capabilities among people within an organisation to stay competitive, innovative and relevant.

The paper presents the findings on new skills assessment for Fourth Industrial Revolution. The study was carried out through an interview with a focus group discussion technique to gather data on the role of KM in creating new set of skills or capabilities in Fourth Industrial Revolution’s landscape. The study also reports a bibliographic study of critical skills based on more than a decade of related academic and industry publications to portray research trends and future directions.

There is a demand in “must-have” skills related to Industry 4.0 such as capability for complex decision-making, complex problem-solving, collaborative innovation, project management, creativity and critical thinking, social skill and social responsibility. While these skills are critical enablers to aiding individuals in the scenarios of plausible 4IR futures, several important new research trends that emerge have also not been adequately explored including KM and Industry 4.0 skill gap, skill evolution, machine knowledge, intuitive decision-making, rational decision-making, technostress, digital fluency, collaborative innovation, industrial policies, human–machine interaction and societal systems.

This research provides a roadmap for the next research trends and topics in the area of Fourth Industrial Revolution and new skills requirements. The study discusses some of the essential issues and challenges with upskilling required for Industry 4.0. It also focuses on how upskilling learning initiatives influence new knowledge creation. This primarily contributes to the educational field in deciding how and when to adopt appropriate strategies and identify which initiatives to best meet the needs of its community.

KM enables individuals to utilise their existing core capabilities or generate new ones for immediate investment in upskilling to meet current and future skills needs required by an organisation. Simply put, KM will improve the organisation’s talent-driven learning strategy and increase individuals’ ability to learn faster and attain sustainable competitive advantage in a fast-paced ever changing environment.

This paper is useful to academics, practitioners and policymakers in the fields of KM. The research provides initial insight into new skills mapping in the context of Fourth Industrial Revolution and the needs for researchers to understand the recent research trends in KM.

This paper aims to examine the floating dry dock and 3D printing technologies in relation to the ways in which they have the potential to complement each other. This relates to how the tourism and maritime industries in Jamaica could become more robust and competitive.

This study used a qualitative approach through the application of personal interviews and data from secondary sources.

Although Jamaica is positioning itself to become one of the leading maritime and logistics centres in the world, the government has not fully taken advantage of the fourth industrial revolution and its enabling factors. The integration of the floating dry dock with 3D printing technology has the ability to advance Jamaica from its current position to become a more economically viable country.

Time was a limitation for the researchers in conducting this study. As a result, a more robust field study is needed to fully understand the impact of the fourth industrial revolution technologies on the maritime and tourism industries.

An investment in a floating dry dock and 3D printing technology will spur job creation. The researchers expect improved economic activity in Jamaica resulting from many businesses being created and/or improved.

The quality of life is expected to increase because of the greater economic yields the country will receive from such investments.

This paper explored the combination of the floating dry dock and 3D printing technologies and their impact on the tourism and maritime industries in relation to increasing service value and economic yields.

The fourth industrial revolution (4IR) has changed the way people operate. All sectors of the economy have been affected by this technological advancement. However, little is known of how 4IR technologies are used in Africa. This paper aimed to investigate how 4IR technologies can be harnessed to support sustainable development in Africa. The objectives of the study were to: examine the infometric patterns of research production on 4IR technologies for sustainable development in Africa; explore the perception of 4IR technologies and their potential for sustainable development in Africa; investigate the extent to which 4IR technologies have been harnessed to support sustainable development in Africa; determine the factors influencing the use of 4IR technologies for sustainable development in Africa; and identify the strategies which can be used to harness 4IR technologies for sustainable development in Africa.

The study applied a mixed methods research approach. Quantitative data was collected through bibliometrics analysis while qualitative data was collected by use of systematic literature review. Data was collected from Google Scholar using Harzing's “Publish or Perish” software and analysed using Microsoft Excel, Notepad, VOSviewer and Atlas.ti and presented using tables, graphs and figures.

The study retrieved 914 research publications on 4IR and sustainable development in Africa. It emerged that production of research on the subject has increased gradually over the years. The findings reveal that Africa is aware of the potential of 4IR for sustainable development. In fact, it emerged that 4IR technologies are being used to support education, health services, tourism, e-commerce, records integrity and project management. Some of the factors that inhibit the use of 4IR for sustainable development Africa include lack of relevant policies, low skill levels in 4IR technologies, inadequate infrastructure and lack of stakeholder involvement. This study recommends the development of policies in 4IR, capacity building and upgrading of infrastructures. The findings can be used by governments in Africa to harness 4IR technologies for sustainable development.

The research is original in scope and coverage.

The aim of this mixed methods study sought to investigate the preferences and challenges towards fourth industrial revolution (FIR) technologies adoption at hotels in Malaysia.

The study adopted partially-mixed concurrent quantitative-dominant mixed methods. The quantitative part of the study examined the preferred FIR technologies for hotels; whiles the qualitative part explored the challenges towards their adoption.

The results revealed that Internet of things, big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and cyber physical systems were the preferred FIR technologies for hotels. The findings revealed significant relationships between respondents' socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, working experience, etc.) and preferred FIR technologies. Penultimately, challenges that affect the adoption of FIR technologies including investment cost, migration cost, trust, etc., were discussed.

In effect, findings from this study provide valuable information for policy makers (i.e. hotel owners, management, technology providers and future researchers). Most especially, the study unearths specific FIR technologies preferred by the hospitality and tourism industry. Also, the significant interplay of these preferences vis a vis respondents' socio-demographic characteristics, as well as challenges influencing their adoption also have major implications for policy makers. Another valuable contribution of this study lies in the research method utilised, since most studies on technology adoption either use quantitative or qualitative. These contributions for theory and practice have been thoroughly discussed.

This research aimed at developing the Quality 4.0 transition framework for Tanzanian manufacturing industries.

The survey method was used in this study to gather practitioners' perspectives. The approach included open-ended and closed-ended structured questionnaires to assess respondents' perceptions of Quality 4.0 awareness and manufacturers' readiness to transit to Quality 4.0. The study's objective was to adopt non-probability and purposive sampling strategies. The study focused on fifteen Tanzanian manufacturing industries. The data were analysed qualitatively and quantitatively using MAXQADA 2020 and Minitab 20 software packages, respectively.

The study demonstrated a high level of awareness of Quality 4.0 among Tanzanian manufacturing industries (i.e. 100% in Quality 4.0 traditional attributes and 53% in Quality 4.0 modern attributes). Individuals acquire knowledge in various ways, including through quality training, work experience, self-reading and Internet surfing. The result also revealed that most manufacturing industries in Tanzania use Quality 3.0 or a lower approach to manage quality. However, Tanzanian manufacturing industries are ready to embrace Quality 4.0 since practitioners are aware of the concepts and could see benefits such as customer satisfaction, product improvement, process and continuous improvement, waste reduction and decision support when using the Quality 4.0 approach. The challenges hindering Quality 4.0 adoption in Tanzania include reliable electricity, high-speed Internet and infrastructure inadequacy to support the adoption, skilled workforces familiar with Quality 4.0-enabled technologies and a financial set-up to support technology investment. Moreover, the study developed a transition framework for an organisation to transition from traditional quality approaches such as quality control, quality assurance and total quality management to Quality 4.0, a modern quality approach aligned with the fourth industrial revolution era.

The current study solely looked at manufacturing industries, leaving other medical, service, mining and construction sectors. Furthermore, no focus was laid on the study's Quality 4.0 implementation frameworks.

This is probably the first Quality 4.0 transition framework for Tanzanian manufacturing industries, perhaps with other developing countries.