Contemporary and Future Manufacturing – Unveiling the Skills Palette for Thriving in Industry 5.0

When industry and society face major challenges, a strong and competent workforce is increasingly crucial. Throughout past crises and industrial revolutions, people have been at the core of supporting “business as usual”, while simultaneously driving change. European industry is repositioning contemporary work towards value-based sustainability, resilience, and human-centricity, radically changing the workforce’s task and skill needs. Unfortunately, there is a lack of understanding of which skills employees need to acquire to contribute to achieving a shift to Industry 5.0. This paper addresses this knowledge gap by putting forth the concept of an “Industry 5.0 Skills Palette”, offering an overall understanding of the skills needed by the future workforce. The Industry 5.0 Skills Palette was developed through a literature review and expert interviews. It is divided into four main dimensions, i.e. Resilient Manufacturing, Green Industrial Transformation, Digital Human Work, and Technological Systems, and eighteen skills areas. The paper is a unique effort to identify essential skills required for the transition and successful integration of Industry 5.0. The holistic Industry 5.0 Skills Palette goes beyond previous studies, characterized by a limited focus on technological skills i.e. one pillar of Industry 5.0.