Competencies and skills for future Industrial Engineers defined in Spanish degrees
Abstract: Purpose: This paper
has a double purpose. First, to analyze the competencies and skills proposed as
ideals for an Industrial Engineering degree and identify them in the current
study plans implemented in Spanish universities. Second, to check the fit between
competencies and skills described in Spanish Industrial Engineering degrees and
a real business environment.
Design/methodology/approach: We searched information from universities
through the web www.universia.es and obtained the list of all Spanish Universities,
which have been filtered one by one according to their studies about Industrial
Engineering degree. In addition, to compare competencies with real business
world we have used results provided from the web analysis and from a previous
paper in which a qualitative methodology called grounded theory was used.
Findings: On one hand, we have analyzed and identified the competencies
and skills proposed as ideals for an Industrial Engineering degree in the
current study plans implemented in Spanish universities: competencies as
multidisciplinariety and R&D are considered in all the universities, but
commercial or environment are not so popular. On the other hand we have checked
the fit between competencies and skills described in Spanish Industrial Engineering
degrees and a real business environment. As a result, competencies as rotation,
experience, company vision and corporative strategy are in all the analyzed
study plans, but competencies as shared vision, free access to information and
involvement of managers do not appear in new degrees, but they are required in
real business.
Research limitations/implications: About the origin of information, we
use official web sites belonging to Spanish public and some private
universities, and corresponding schools. Some universities have not updated the
information about degrees in Industrial Engineering, and they still have old
plans information. Moreover, the comparison we can make between the
competencies of degrees and the needs to develop the Industrial Engineering
profession is theoretical because the introduction of new degrees has just
started and there are no graduates.
Practical implications: The principal practical implication is to
identify a professional profile of the engineer common to most Spanish
universities and therefore facilitate the selection of one curricula or another
for students. These can lead to check with the first graduates whether or not
the competencies acquired in University fit in the business world. On the other
hand, from a professional point of view, we open a future line of research by
testing competencies acquired by graduates and competencies required in the
professional field, as well as the study of these competencies in the
professional field. In addition, current employees may decide to recycle their
competencies or acquire new ones knowing the design of new degrees.
Originality/value: There are no comparative studies about competencies a
Spanish Industrial Engineer has to acquire in University to develop his or her
professional work. In consequence, there are not comparative studies about
competencies acquired in university and profiles demanded by companies in real
business world. This paper deals with both topics.
Author: Cristina
Santandreu-Mascarell, Lourdes Canós-Darós, Carlos Pons-Morera
Journal Code: jptindustrigg110024