Career Development in Industry 5.0: Lifelong Learning and Reskilling for Guidance Professionals

Abstract

This essay envisions lifelong learning as a reskilling strategy for the career development of guidance professionals within the context of Industry 5.0. It is based on the premise that technological transformations modify not only occupations and competencies but also the way in which professional trajectories are constructed and sustained. In this scenario, it is vital to question how the field of Guidance can support processes of change if it does not, in turn, embrace its own updating and redefinition as a lifelong exercise.

The central thesis, rooted in the career development paradigm, posits that lifelong learning is not merely a structural requirement of the labor market, but an inherent ethical responsibility of guidance practice. This paradigm conceives reskilling as part of a dynamic process of identity and professional construction, rather than a personal failure.

The text integrates contributions from contemporary theories—such as career adaptability, protean and boundaryless careers, and green guidance—to substantiate the need for active and reflective management of professional trajectories for guidance practitioners and their clients. Key contributions include the integration of the career development approach into initial and ongoing training, the critical analysis of technology and AI use within guidance practice in Industry 5.0 contexts, and professional updating as a condition for relevance and social justice. It concludes that Guidance must model, through its own practice and ethical commitment, the principles of lifelong learning and adaptability it promotes.