Identifying and prioritizing factors affecting the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies in university educational services

Introduction and Objectives: The new technologies of the fourth generation industrial revolution, of which artificial intelligence is one of the most prominent, have caused significant changes and developments in all fields of application, including economics, health, education, and research. Higher education is no exception to these developments and cannot ignore fourth generation technologies at various macro and operational levels. Policymakers, managers, and strategists in all fields, including higher education, need to pay attention to these technologies in decision-making so that policies are not abstract but can be implemented at the operational level. Accordingly, the main goal of the present study is to identify and prioritize the main factors effective in implementing new technologies in educational services of universities and higher education centers.
Method: In this study, after investigating the literature and background of the field of fourth generation technologies, artificial intelligence, and long-term presence in the higher education sector, 29 factors were identified; These factors were screened using the fuzzy Delphi technique by 19 experts, including experts who provide educational services, professors and faculty members specializing in education and new technologies, and students who receive educational services. Out of 29 factors, 18 factors were accepted and 11 factors were rejected. The screened factors were categorized into three dimensions and then weighted and prioritized using the best-worst multi-criteria decision-making technique. Purposive sampling and an expert-based questionnaire were prepared and distributed separately to the experts in the fuzzy Delphi and best-worst fuzzy stages.
Findings: The findings of this study show that the dimensions of educational processes and services, technology and innovation, and culture, communications, and policies are the most important dimensions, respectively. Also, in the technology and innovation dimension, the factors of "information technology infrastructure", "development of fourth-generation technologies" and "digitalization"; In the dimension of educational processes and services, the factors “level of integration in the educational service system”, “education experts’ accountability system” and “level of agility of organizational structure and processes” are the most important factors, and in the dimension of culture, communication and policies, the factors “alignment of organizational culture with innovation”, “support of senior managers” and “macro policies of the university” are the most important factors, respectively. In a broader analysis and comparing all factors with each other, the factors “level of integration in the educational service system”, “education experts’ accountability system”, “level of agility of organizational structure and processes”, “information technology infrastructure” and “system design without disruption” are the most important factors affecting the implementation of Industry 4.0 in higher education, which are mostly in the dimension of educational processes and services. Integration of educational services reduces parallel work and functional disruptions and increases the efficiency of these services. Also, the ability and skill of education experts in utilizing Industry 4.0 technologies and tools has a significant impact on increasing the satisfaction of service recipients. Streamlining processes and eliminating unnecessary bureaucracy is another factor that can make the beneficiaries' experience of receiving educational services successful. Infrastructures supporting the use of Industry 4.0 technologies, including servers, data storage and processing environments, cloud computing, and up-to-date educational equipment, and designing systems that have minimal disruption, including software and educational systems, are two other factors that the results of this study emphasize.
Conclusion: The results obtained from this study show that the implementation of Industry 4.0 technologies in the field of higher education requires the integration of the educational service system at different levels and units; identifying and prioritizing the factors under these dimensions will greatly help managers and decision-makers in the field of higher education in allocating resources and developing appropriate strategies that support the fourth generation of industry technologies.