Workplace competencies in demand: Perception gaps between service industries and manufacturing industries

This paper identified the perception differences of Taiwanese supervision staff on the importance degree of workplace competencies. The researchers surveyed 204 supervisors participating in the Quality Manpower Cultivation Project 2009-2010 executed by Taiwan Ministry of Education - An one-year practical training served as a way out of immediate employment for new graduates of bachelor degree. The findings of the study showed that practitioners´ perceptions of importance of workplace competencies differed in industrial type. Distinct perception gaps were found between supervisors from service industries and those from manufacturing industries: Significant differences were found particularly between the participant group from education-related firms and that from manufacturing- and construction-related firms.