Exploring the hierarchical interdependencies among barriers to sustainable workforce skill transformation using ISM MICMAC technique

In today’s fast-paced world, progressive organization are prioritizing workforce development, recognizing that long-term sustainability is rooted not just on technological advancement or profitability instead on employee growth and development. This study aims to identify the barriers associated with sustainable upskilling and reskilling to understand the key factors that hinders workforce adaptability and reduces the overall productivity. A mixed-method approach was employed, by combining Bibliometric analysis, Interpretive Structural Modeling, and the MICMAC analysis. Based on the comprehensive review of 132 publications (2014 to 2025) and expert validation, fifteen critical barriers were identified including employee resistance to change, age-related issues, lack of management support, lack of personalized learning and rapid technological changes etc. The ISM-MICMAC results highlighted foundational barriers such as limited financial resources, unequal digital access, and rigid organizational culture as key areas requiring attention. The analysis reveals that Employee Resistance to Change possesses the highest driving power, acting as a root cause influencing other barriers. In contrast, Rapid Technological Changes exhibit the highest dependence power, indicating they are largely consequences of other factors and become more challenging when underlying barriers remain unresolved. The practical implications include developing inclusive training programs, government and private funding programs and AI-integrated updated training content and generating career pathways for the workforce. Overall, the study offers a framework considering social and economic dimensions of sustainability for taking proactive steps for building an adaptable, inclusive, expansion, innovation, and building a resilient future-ready workforce.