Human Resource Management for Digital Inclusion and Empowerment in Marginalized Communities

Abstract

This study investigated the role of human resource management (HRM) practices in advancing digital inclusion and workforce empowerment among marginalized communities in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. Marginalized populations — including low-income urban workers, women in informal employment, and youth with limited educational credentials — face compounded barriers to meaningful participation in Indonesia's rapidly digitalising labour market. Despite national commitments to digital transformation through programs such as Merdeka Belajar and Indonesia Digital 2045, structural HRM deficits continue to exclude vulnerable groups from the productivity gains of the digital economy. Employing a concurrent triangulation mixed-methods design, this study collected survey data from 215 respondents across six urban   sub-district in Medan and conducted in-depth interviews with 22 community workers, HRM practitioners, and NGO facilitators. The digital inclusion index, adapted from the EU Digital Inclusion Framework, served as the primary outcome measure. Quantitative findings revealed that structured HRM interventions — encompassing digital competency training, performance coaching, and inclusive recruitment practices — significantly predicted digital inclusion scores (β = 0.61, p < .001, R² = 0.54). Qualitative analysis identified three transformative mechanisms through which HRM enabled digital inclusion: competency scaffolding, identity affirmation, and institutional bridge-building. The mediating role of workforce empowerment was confirmed through structural equation modelling (SEM), with empowerment accounting for 43% of the total HRM effect on digital inclusion. These findings advanced the theoretical understanding of inclusive HRM and offered actionable implications for community development programs, higher education community service initiatives, and national digital inclusion policy in Indonesia.