Innovative research on developing transferable skills of business students in the context of industry-education integration

Zhaoqing University, Zhaoqing City, Guangdong Province, China

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Abstract

A substantial body of international scholarship asserts that transferable competencies enable individuals to adapt to and thrive within diverse professional contexts. Driven by their own imperatives for sustainable development, enterprises have imposed new expectations on business graduates-particularly in the domains of digital fluency, integrative thinking, and ethical judgment. This raises a critical question: To what extent does contemporary business education in higher education institutions meet the evolving competency demands of the digital economy, and where do significant gaps remain? Drawing on the Delphi method, this study conducted three iterative rounds of consultation with 50 experts from industry, universities, and consulting organizations. The aim was to systematically identify misalignments between the transferable competencies required by employers and those cultivated within undergraduate business programs. The results reveal that enterprises place the highest value on competencies such as data-driven decision-making, proactiveness and accountability, business acumen, and entrepreneurial and innovative orientation. Nevertheless, notable deficiencies persist in university curricula, including limitations in theoretical and practical instruction, insufficient integration of workplace-relevant content into courses, and the lack of dynamic and authentic assessment mechanisms to evaluate these competencies. To address these gaps, this study proposes an innovative competency-development framework that emphasizes scenario-based experiential learning, university-industry co-development of capabilities, digital empowerment, psychological resilience training, and continuous monitoring and feedback. Corresponding strategies include establishing business simulation centers, embedding enterprise projects within academic courses, implementing dual-mentor systems, and developing digital training platforms. Overall, this research contributes to the literature on transferable competencies and industry-education integration by offering a theoretically informed and practice-oriented framework for strengthening business education in the digital era. It also provides actionable pathways for higher education institutions seeking to enhance the alignment between educational provision and labor-market needs, thereby improving business graduates’ employability and competitiveness.