A Comparative Analysis of Digital Skills Gaps in Secretarial Management Across Industries

Thesis Abstract

The rapid evolution of digital technology has transformed secretarial management roles across various industries, highlighting persistent skills gaps in digital literacy and capabilities essential for effective administrative functions. Despite the growing recognition of digital competencies as core to secretarial efficiency, little comparative evidence exists on how these skills gaps manifest across different industrial sectors, and the implications for organizational productivity and secretarial professional development. This study aims to analyze and compare the digital skills gaps among secretaries in the healthcare, financial services, and manufacturing industries to identify sector-specific deficiencies and commonalities, thereby informing targeted training interventions. The specific objectives include (1) assessing the current digital skills levels of secretaries within each industry; (2) identifying the key areas of digital skills deficits; (3) comparing the magnitude and nature of these gaps across industries; and (4) exploring the factors influencing digital skills acquisition and sharing among secretaries. The research adopts a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews for comprehensive data triangulation. The quantitative phase involves administering a structured questionnaire to a purposive sample of 300 secretaries, with 100 participants selected from each industry sector, utilizing stratified random sampling to enhance representativeness. The questionnaire, developed based on validated digital literacy frameworks, measures competency levels across digital communication, information management, cybersecurity, and advanced office software skills. The qualitative phase conducts semi-structured interviews with 15 key informants—including secretarial managers and industry experts—to contextualize quantitative findings and explore organizational factors affecting skills development. Data analysis employs descriptive statistics to profile participants’ digital competencies, ANOVA tests to compare skill gaps across industries, and multiple regression analysis to examine determinants of digital skills acquisition. Thematic analysis is used to analyze interview transcripts, providing nuanced insights into systemic barriers and enablers. The study anticipates identifying significant differences in digital skills proficiency across industries, with healthcare and financial sectors showing higher competency levels due to greater digital adoption, while manufacturing sectors exhibit more substantial gaps owing to limited access to advanced digital training. Key areas of deficiency are expected to include cybersecurity awareness and proficiency in emerging digital platforms, which impair secretaries’ ability to perform advanced administrative tasks securely and efficiently. The findings are expected to contribute substantively to the body of knowledge by offering a comparative framework for understanding sector-specific digital skills gaps in secretarial management, and by highlighting organizational and individual factors influencing skills development. This potentially paves the way for tailored professional development programs and policy initiatives aimed at closing these gaps to enhance organizational productivity and secretarial career progression. The study concludes that addressing digital skills deficits requires integrated capacity-building strategies that are sector-sensitive and incorporate continuous learning models. Recommendations from the study will emphasize the development of industry-specific digital literacy curricula, the adoption of ongoing training programs facilitated by technology-driven platforms, and organizational policies promoting a culture of digital excellence. Further research suggestions include longitudinal studies to evaluate the effectiveness of targeted training interventions and explorations into the impact of emerging digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and automation on secretarial roles across sectors. Overall, this research aims to inform stakeholders—educators, policymakers, and industry leaders—on aligning digital skills development initiatives with sectoral needs, thereby fostering a resilient and adaptable secretarial workforce in an increasingly digitalized environment.