Crafting the Future: Employability, Digital Work, and the Soft Skills Revolution
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 23 August 2026 | Viewed by 51
Special Issue Editors
Interests: employability; career development; organizational psychology; soft skills; job crafting; digital workplaces; inclusion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: career resources; sustainable career; employability; career development and career progression
Interests: employability; sustainable career; career adaptability; workplace learning; learning culture; HRM practices
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The future of work requires sustainable strategies to promote employability, lifelong learning, and equitable access to decent employment. Given this need, this Special Issue focuses on employability as a dynamic and multidimensional construct, encompassing individual, organizational, and societal resources. Drawing from flexible theoretical models—such as the Job Demands–Resources (JD-R) framework, life design paradigms, and positive organizational psychology—we aim to explore how employability can be enhanced through soft skills development, job crafting, learning culture, and inclusive practices across different work contexts.
Soft skills are increasingly recognized as key enablers of employability, supporting individuals in navigating career transitions, adapting to complex environments, and sustaining motivation and well-being at work. Contributions that examine the development, assessment, and impact of soft skills on employability—both at individual and systemic levels—are especially welcome.
This call also responds to the evolving demands of the digital transition and the vision of Industry 5.0, which emphasizes human-centric, resilient, and sustainable approaches to work. In this context, employability is not merely a function of technical skills but a broader capability to adapt, innovate, and thrive in hybrid, technology-augmented workplaces.
The Special Issue welcomes both theoretical and empirical contributions (qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods) that address the mechanisms and outcomes of employability development, especially in the face of digitalization, demographic shifts, and sustainability challenges. Special attention will be paid to the role of higher education, HRM practices, training systems, and public policies in fostering employability and sustainable careers.
This collection will contribute to the existing literature by bridging organizational psychology, managerial sciences, and HR studies with a sustainability lens, offering interdisciplinary perspectives to inform future research and practice.
Dr. Fulvio Signore
Dr. Assunta De Rosa
Dr. Cataldo Giuliano Gemmano
Dr. Giulia Sciotto
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- employability
- soft skills
- sustainable careers
- job crafting
- work transition
- lifelong learning
- inclusion
- human resource practices
- life design
- organizational psychology
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