Abstract
The railway industry is currently facing performance challenges due to a skills gap and shortage in crucial areas such as management and engineering. The objective of this study was to identify the required technical skills to improve performance and strategies to address the skills gap in the railway industry. The technical skills and strategies required to address the skills gap in the railway industry were identified after conducting a literature review on the subject. The research methodology included conducting a literature review, and the primary data was collected through a qualitative research approach using focus group discussions to gather additional data on the required technical skills and strategies to address the skills gap in the railway industry. Purposeful sampling was used based on the research objectives, and the target population for this study was experts from the railway industry with experience in the testing and maintenance of the railway infrastructure as well as the execution of rail projects.
The focus group discussions with the experts were held virtually through Microsoft Teams. The interrelationships between different technical skills and different strategies to address the skills gap were determined with the experts using an interpretive structural modelling (ISM) approach. The driving power and dependence power between the different technical skills and different strategies to address the skills gap were determined using MICMAC analysis. Microsoft Excel was used to analyse the data. Through ISM analysis, the results show that there is a relationship between all the different technical skills and different strategies to address the skills gap in the railway industry identified in the literature review and focus group discussions with the experts from the railway industry. Also, through the MICMAC analysis, the results show that all the technical skills and strategies to address the skills gaps in the railway industry are related to the railway industry. Lastly, the study suggests that key technical skills and strategies to address the skills gap must be prioritised by the railway companies to improve operations and performance.