Determination of companies' perceptions, competences and human resources management towards Industry 4.0: Automotive and food sector comparison

The concept of Industry 4.0, which corresponds to the fourth industrial revolution, was first expressed at the Hannover Fair in Germany in 2011 and paved the way for the start of a digitalisation process that attracted the attention of the whole world. Industry 4.0, which incorporates radical technological changes and innovations, aims to achieve competitive advantage in terms of efficiency, flexibility and market entry points. As a matter of fact, the importance of Industry 4.0 is increasing day by day throughout the world and countries are transitioning at different stages. In this context, the effective and efficient implementation of Industry 4.0, which determines the level of competition between countries, is of critical importance. Therefore, in order to be prepared for the new world order and to take the necessary measures, it is necessary to know what Industry 4.0 literally means, to what extent countries and companies are aware of the scope and importance of Industry 4.0 and at what stage they are in the transition to Industry 4.0. In this context, this study aims to determine the perceptions, competences and human resources management of companies operating in the automotive and food sectors towards Industry 4.0 by using semi-structured interview technique, which is one of the qualitative data collection techniques, in order to obtain in-depth information about Industry 4.0, which is a new concept in Turkey. According to the findings obtained as a result of the study and the observations made, it has been observed that all the companies subject to the analysis are still at the beginning of the transition to Industry 4.0, they have only partial transformations, but their awareness of Industry 4.0 is high and they are constantly taking initiatives. In terms of competence, it was concluded that companies have difficulties in terms of technological infrastructure and qualified labour force, and in this direction, a general policy involving all stakeholders is needed for Industry 4.0. On the other hand, in terms of human resources management, which is a discipline that is greatly affected by Industry 4.0, it has been determined that companies attach importance to the recruitment of qualified employees to the company and the development of existing employees, they create human resources management practices and policies such as talent management within this framework, and in this context, the role and importance of employees within the company has increased compared to previous periods. Finally, when the current perceptions, production approaches, technological competences and human resources management of the companies in the automotive and food sectors towards Industry 4.0 are evaluated separately, it is concluded that the food sector is more suitable and more ready for Industry 4.0 compared to the automotive sector and the reasons are listed in the conclusion section. Keywords: Industry 4.0, Human Resources Management, Automotive Sector, Food Sector.