Research Abstract
Despite the explosive growth of Bangladesh's ready-made garment (RMG) industry—comprising over 4,600 factories and yielding approximately US$47 billion in FY2023 exports—the sector is constrained by an acute shortage of managerial talent.
Concurrently, the national higher education system graduates over 700,000 students yearly, resulting in significant credential inflation and a pronounced skills mismatch. Consequently, RMG firms increasingly depend on expensive foreign professionals to fill critical technical and managerial roles.
This research outlines an explanatory sequential mixed-methods methodology to investigate this paradox. Utilizing secondary time-series data, HR manager surveys, and qualitative interviews with key stakeholders, this study seeks to quantify the graduate-to-demand gap, pinpoint specific soft and technical skill deficiencies, and calculate the economic impact of expatriate reliance.
The anticipated findings will inform evidence-based policy recommendations, emphasizing urgent curriculum reform and structured industry-academia partnerships.
Explanatory Sequential Methodology
The paper implements a dual-phase research model to dissect the managerial talent gap:
- Phase 01 — Quantitative Mapping: Broad-scale surveys of human resource executives across major garment production hubs, coupled with statistical analysis of graduate numbers and university majors to calculate the baseline discrepancy indices.
- Phase 02 — Qualitative Interviews: Detailed, semi-structured coordination discussions with university deans, trade union representatives, and factory managing directors to explore institutional hurdles.
The Three Structural Friction Points
01 / Credential Inflation
Unregulated growth in humanities and general science certifications leads to massive numbers of degree holders who lack the specific engineering, operations, supply chain, and language coordinates demanded by international retail platforms.
02 / The Expatriate Premium
Due to local mid-management shortages, factories pay significant premiums to import operational talent from neighboring sourcing regions. This leads to substantial currency outflows and creates organizational silos.
03 / Industry-Academia Disconnect
University syllabi are highly academic and slow to update. Crucial industry coordinates like modern compliance reporting, digital design pipelines, and agile operations management are rarely integrated into coursework.
Strategic System Solutions
To bridge this talent gap, the paper proposes three policy actions:
- Modular Compliance & Supply Chain Minors: Universities in garment production regions must partner with BGMEA to design micro-credential programs focused on operational management.
- Expatriate Substitution Targets: Providing tax incentives for factories that actively develop internal mid-management talent pipelines and transfer expertise through local mentorship programs.
- Structured Internships: Mandating structured internships during university terms so graduates exit with practical operational knowledge.
Research Integrity & Disclosures
Declaration of Interest: The author declares that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this paper. The research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Ethics Approval: This research involves human participants through surveys and semi-structured interviews. Informed consent will be obtained from all participants prior to their involvement, including explicit consent for audio-recording interviews. All data will be anonymized and handled in accordance with standard academic ethical guidelines.
Funder Statement: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
JEL Classification: J23, J24, I23, L67, O15
Suggested Citation
Islam Afraim, Rizwanul, Skill Mismatch and Managerial Shortages in Bangladesh's RMG Industry Research (February 19, 2026). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=6270999 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.6270999