ISSN :2582-9793

The Role of Digital Learning Innovations in Strengthening Human Capital: A Mixed Educational and Corporate Perspective

Original Research (Published On: 25-Feb-2026 )
DOI : https://doi.org/10.54364/AAIML.2026.61282

Nikola Staffenova, Milan Kubina and Dominika Dupakova

Adv. Artif. Intell. Mach. Learn., 6 (1):5078-5091

1. Nikola Staffenova: Nikola Staffenova (0000-0003-4239-6560, nikola.staffenova@fri.uniza.sk) is an assistant professor at the Department of Management Theories at the Faculty of Management and Informatics of the University of Zilina in Zilina. She teaches courses such as Introduction to Studies, Enterprise Information Systems, and Information Management. In her scientific and research activities, she primarily focuses on human resource management/human capital, motivation and creativity, Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0, information and cyber security and ethical aspects of ICT use. The results of her research activities have been published in journals such as Economic Research, Humanities & Social Sciences Communications, and PLoS One. The journals in which she publishes are indexed in the Web of Science (H-index: 2) and Scopus (H-index: 2) databases. She participated in the projects Cybersecurity Competence Center UNIZA (KC KYB UNIZA) as a member of the research team; Use of Cloud technology for the digitalization of the system for supporting the management and financing of sports at the regional and local levels as a member of the research team. She holds certificates in Introduction to IoT, Introduction to Cybersecurity, and Cybersecurity Essentials (CISCO Networking Academy).

2. Milan Kubina: Milan Kubina (0000-0002-0214-3836, milan.kubina@uniza.sk) has been working at the Department of Management Theories on FRI UNIZA since 2006, currently in the position of Head of Department. In 2020, he received the title of Professor on FRI UNIZA in the field of Management. As part of his scientific and research activities, he deals with the issues of building a sustainable Smart City, corporate and managerial IS, and cybersecurity. As part of his pedagogical activities, he provides teaching of subjects focused on the use and building of IS for management support, the creation of IS architecture, and the like, in which he uses and shares the knowledge and skills acquired in accordance with the above-mentioned research issues. He is the guarantor of the engineering study program in information management and co-guarantor of the bachelor's and doctoral study programs in management. He is and has been the responsible investigator or co-investigator of several VEGA, KEGA, APVV, Interreg, Horizon2020 and European projects. He is the author or co-author of many publications (monographs, textbooks, scientific and professional articles), many of which are indexed in the Web of Science (H-index: 7), Scopus (H-index: 9), IEEE, etc. As part of his personal development, he has completed several additional training courses (Cisco, ITIL, cybersecurity manager, etc.). He also holds many certificates and credentials focusing on information technology and security, such as IT Service Management (ITIL), Enterprise IT Architecture Management (ADO IT), or Internal Information Security Auditor according to ISO/IEC 27001:2022, etc. In 2012, 2015, and 2016, he received the CISCO: Instructor Excellence Advanced award, and in 2013 and 2016, the Instructor Years of Service award. He is a certified ICDL examiner at the accredited ICDL testing center at FRI UNIZA, an instructor in the CISCO Netacad program, and an instructor of the ADO IT Solution of the BOC Group.

3. Dominika Dupakova: Dominika Dupakova (findrikova@stud.uniza.sk) is a doctoral student at the Department of Managerial Theories, Faculty of Management Science and Informatics. Her research focuses on information security management systems (ISMS), information and cybersecurity, and the application of international standards and security frameworks within Slovak organizations.

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DOI: 10.54364/AAIML.2026.61282

Article History: Received on: 27-Nov-25, Accepted on: 18-Feb-26, Published on: 25-Feb-26

Corresponding Author: Nikola Staffenova

Email: nikola.staffenova@fri.uniza.sk

Citation: Nikola Staffenova, et al. The Role of Digital Learning Innovations in Strengthening Human Capital: A Mixed Educational and Corporate Perspective. Advances in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. 2026;6(1):282. https://dx.doi.org/10.54364/AAIML.2026.61282


Abstract

    

Digital transformation and the emergence of Industry 4.0 and 5.0 are fundamentally changing the approaches of organizations to human capital development and employee education. This study analyzes how companies strategically use information technologies, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, to increase learning efficiency, support adaptability and build sustainable ecosystems of competencies. The theoretical part connects the concepts of human capital, human potential and innovation in education, emphasizing the importance of digitalization, adaptive learning and new pedagogical models. The empirical part is based on a quantitative survey among 78 students at a Slovak university providing full-fledged online studies. The results showed high satisfaction with digital forms of learning, especially with video lectures and problem-solving tasks, while technical limits and mandatory intensity of interaction were barriers. A case study analysis from Hewlett Packard Enterprise illustrates how personalized learning, cloud technologies, data tools, and AI/ML-powered systems are streamlining talent development. The findings confirm that the strategic integration of technology, artificial intelligence, and innovation in education increases organizational agility and workforce readiness to meet the challenges of the digital economy.

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