Green Competency Education Mismatch Hypothesis: Evidence from a Pilot Study of Professional Accountants in Sri Lanka

The transition toward sustainability has reshaped labour markets, where green jobs are now a critical element in the quest to meet sustainability targets. However, a widening green competency gap, where workforce skills fail to meet employer expectations or green operationalisation of organisations, raises questions about how effective our sustainability education is. Therefore, we argue that the extent of the green competency mismatch in Sri Lanka remains underexplored. Drawing on Human Capital Theory, a pilot study was conducted among 29 professional accountants in Sri Lanka to examine the extent to which higher education interventions equip individuals with the necessary green competencies for the challenges posed by green operations in organisations. A structured online survey, employing the snowball sampling method, was used to collect data, and the analysis was conducted using SPSS Version 23, which facilitated hypothesis testing, leading to broader confirmatory investigations. The findings seek to provide useful directions for how education outcomes align with the labour market expectations, with practical suggestions for curriculum designers and education policy makers, accordingly, to more effectively build green competencies and bridge the gap of competency mismatch.