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Digital transformation continues to rapidly progress in higher education globally, spanning all aspects of higher education operations, values and culture. Despite expanding literature, guidance remains focussed on emergency application during pandemic lockdowns and/or on single organisational case studies. Digital transformation frameworks that move beyond these foci are heavily criticised for being commercially contextualised (outside of higher education) and are often too narrowly conceptualised. The purpose of this paper is to review the most common framework currently used in the UK, which takes a strategic and organisational perspective on digital transformation.

This is a technical review article that summarises key guidance for organisational digital capability and then reflects on its application in the UK (a developed economy and higher education system) and in Vietnam (one of the fastest-growing economies with a developing higher education committed to digital transformation) as an initial attempt to explore its applicability beyond the UK context. Vietnam has been chosen as a reference context, given its significant current digital transformation policy reform at the national level and as a collaboration partner with the UK in its digital transformation.

The guidance highlights six core areas to consider for digital capability: information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure, content and information, research and innovation, communication, learning, teaching and assessment and organisational digital culture. Although the framework is normative, findings suggest it is sufficiently open-ended to enable its users to determine practical steps to drive digital transformation. However, complementary tools are suggested to deal with the rapidly developing digital transformation policy context of Vietnam.

This is the first time a review has been conducted from the perspective of different countries, with a view to supporting leaders, managers and policymakers in the UK, Vietnam and other Association of South Eastern Nations (ASEAN) networks in their own digital transformation transitions.

Participation of women in engineering education is considerably low in India, although it is increasing in recent years. Also, engineering is primarily treated as a male-dominated profession, and the authors do not find many women in this sector. What factors contribute to this significant gender differences in engineering education and labour market in India? In this context, this study aims to examine the factors that explain the gender variations in academic performance and labour market outcomes (placement and earnings) of engineering graduates in India.

The paper is based on primary survey data from fourth-year engineering students in Delhi, collected in 2018–2019, with a total sample size of 3186. The study uses Ordinary least square method (OLS) and Heckman selection model to analyse gender differences in academic performance and labour market outcomes of engineering graduates, respectively.

The study finds that academic performance of male students is around 10.4% more than female students. However, this difference is heavily influenced by various socioeconomic and institutional factors. Interestingly, 3% of female engineering graduates have received more job offers than males, which contradicts the common belief that women engineers face job discrimination in the labour market in India. However, the authors find that male engineers earn around 7% more than female engineers shows the evidence of pro-male gender wage inequality in earnings. The findings support that there is a considerable variation in academic performance and earnings between male and female engineering graduates.

While the authors find some literature in the area of gender difference in the academic performance and labour market among university graduates in India, studies in the field of engineering education are sparse. In a context where fewer women are found in the field of engineering education along with low participation in the labour market, the findings of this study significantly contribute to the policy making.

This exploratory study aims to discover the different forms of challenges encountered by school stakeholders, including students, teachers, parents and management due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Qualitative methodology was deployed for the study. A purposive sampling technique was used to select the respondents for a semi-structured interview. Data were examined using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA).

It was found that each stakeholder faced four different challenges: mental distress, physical immobility, financial crunches and technological concerns. Findings suggest that teachers are experiencing higher financial, technological and physical challenges as compared to other stakeholders followed by parents.

This paper discusses the major challenges faced by each stakeholder along with the opportunities. These findings will be useful for educationists, regulatory authorities, policymakers and management of educational institutions in developing countries to revisit their policy frameworks to develop new strategies and processes for the smooth implementation of remote learning during a period of uncertainty.

We aimed to identify factors that influence student engagement in distance learning.

The research involved a group of 671 students from economic and technical higher education institutions in Poland. We collected the data with the CAWI technique and an original survey. Next, we processed the data using principal component analysis and then used the extracted components as predictors in the induced smoothing LASSO regression model.

The components of the students’ attitude toward remote classes learning conditions are: satisfaction with teachers’ approach, attitude to distance learning, the system of students’ values and motivation, IT infrastructure of the university, building a network of contacts and communication skills. The final model consisted of seven statistically significant variables, encompassing the student’s sex, level of studies and the first five extracted PCs. Student’s system of values and motivation as well as attitude toward distance learning, were those variables that had the biggest influence on student engagement.

The research result suggests that in addition to students’ system of values and motivation and their attitude toward distance learning, the satisfaction level of teachers’ attitude is one of the three most important factors that influence student engagement during the distance learning process.

The main value of this article is the statistical model of student engagement during distance learning. The article fills the research gap in identifying and evaluating the impact of various factors determining student engagement in the distance learning process.

The purpose of this study is to investigate manufacturing industry leaders’ perspectives on the prevailing skills gap in the current Illinois workforce. The insights gained hold significant importance for the emerging generation of workers, helping them discern the essential proficiencies and plan their educational and career paths in response.

Guided by Becker’s (1962) human capital theory (HCT) framework, a qualitative study was conducted to identify the skills gap and explore the perspectives of manufacturing industry leaders. Fourteen industry leaders participated in this study, representing various occupational industries.

The findings underscore the prominence of the skills gap as perceived by manufacturing industry leaders, with notable aspects including limited durable skills and difficulty transitioning from content-based knowledge to practical skills.

The findings of this study can offer insights to researchers, scholars and practitioners in the field of human resource development, as well as to leaders in the manufacturing industry who aim to address the skills gap. Furthermore, this research can inform policy decisions and assist higher education institutions in preparing students for careers in the industry.

After the electoral victory in 2018, the newly formed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government presented its National Education Policy Framework, chalking out its priorities of bringing more than 22 million out-of-school children to schools, improving educational quality, and introducing a uniform education system in the country. However, the government’s grand ambitions, transpired quickly, only to produce a draft of a new unified curriculum in 2020. This chapter investigates the newly formulated Single National Curriculum (SNC) in Pakistan by using the lens of Critical Cultural Political Economy of Education (CCPEE). To understand the endogenous and exogenous factors shaping the SNC, the chapter argues that securitization and neoliberalization are the significant factors informing the development and the production of the new curriculum.

Introduction: Skills are vital for the survival of an organisation to meet its objectives through producing goods and services. Due to their importance, they are among the sought-after aspects of employment. However, organisations need more skilled employees to bridge the gaps due to disruptions, shifts in consumer demands and needs, and transformations in the global world.

Purpose of the Study: This study aims to identify various skill gap in talent, competencies, and experience emerging in the hospitality sector. It will also present some challenges to the hospitality sector that faces due to the skill gap identified.

Industrial and Academic Justification of the Study: The study examines the needs and challenges from academic and industry perspectives. Hence, it provides significance for academics and industry to apply the findings to address skill gap.

Research Gap: Previous research has focused on different aspects of skills in other countries. This study will look at the issue globally and the recent trends emerging from disruptions and shifts in consumer behaviour.

Results and Findings: Though the study is ongoing, the findings show that specific skill gap exist, particularly in emerging technologies, digitisation, data, robotics, and various job openings from different countries’ perspectives, hospitality, and the tourism industry.

Practical Implications: The findings have implications for the tourism and hospitality industry as a whole, as well as individual organisations. The tourism and hospitality industry should apply these suggestions, such as operational skills, digital skills, and interpersonal skills in various sections of tourism and hospitality organisations