Adapt Projects

 

 

IT Learning in the Workplace

Aim

This project will support enterprises and especially smaller companies in:
- Scoping their IT/ICT training needs against business needs/business improvement plans
- Providing learning/workplace development to meet these needs.
It is led by the Lancashire Colleges Consortium, with local delivery by member colleges and Learndirect. We will provide training both in generic IT/ICT skills, including via CLAIT and ECDL, and will also support delivery of application/package specific training to staff of SMEs. 531 beneficiaries will be supported. Over 80% of the beneficiaries will gain accredited awards or units towards.

Volumes
This project will support the target group of 'employees in SMEs'.
We will work with employers to set up inclusive workforce development programmes meeting the needs of those otherwise least likely to take part in learning. Evidence brought together in the PIU Adult Skills report, and the Treasury (2002) Developing Workforce Skills paper shows unskilled workers, those in SMEs, and older workers fall into this group. We will thus focus on:
- People with low incomes, especially unskilled workers
- People less likely to benefit from in-work training including unskilled and semi-skilled workers
- People less likely to think about or undertake further learning, for example older people, single parents, people with dependent children.

We will support 520 people from these groups.

Objectives

This project will enable enterprises to gain business/competitive advantage through identifying the IT user skills they need to meet business improvement goals, and through supporting the delivery of flexible programmes to meet these needs.

We will deliver this aim via the following SMART objectives.

1. To organise reviews, via workshops/use of analysis and one-to-one reviews, to identify the ICT skills enterprises needed to meet business improvement goals. These will be organised on a rolling basis and will be carried out by colleges.
2. To set up and deliver training programmes to meet these needs. The LCC will co-ordinate this with colleges and learndirect (plus with specialist providers if required).
Programmes will be delivered and 80 SMEs and 531 beneficiaries will take part. Over 80% of the beneficiaries will gain accredited awards in IT/ICT.
3. To complement the work with enterprises by creating materials to support workshops/reviews and through extending the range of specialist user training available to enterprises. The LCC will lead on this and:
•  (Based on the work described above) we will produce workshop material that can be used in mainstreaming.
•  b) Will develop, a web-based directory of ICT specialist user training available in the area.

4. To share the results of the work, including an evaluation study, with partners and other key players, identifying lessons for mainstreaming at a seminar.
Activities
This project supports action within the 3.2 scope of supporting businesses, especially SMEs, by equipping the workforce with the right skills.
1. We will provide enterprises with support in identifying and then meeting/brokering user training to meet needs identified. The particular features of this project are:
The close link between this project and business improvement processes in SMEs
That we meet the range of specialist user skills enterprises need to make use of ICT/e-business, taking full account of sectoral needs/specific enterprise needs (e.g. CAD packages, specialist packages for creative industries, journalism), as well as cross-sectoral user skills (e.g. SAGE, KM software, CRM software, writing for the web, web design, using ICT in marketing including for e-zine production)
2. The first stage will be workshops or one to one sessions identifying with enterprises the particular mix of skills they need. This may follow work with/contact with a UK Online for Business Adviser (Business Links); however, in some cases the enterprise will come via another route (eg where they have already identified needs, or where this has been done by specialist advisers/services, e.g. those provided by unions in the creative industries). For very small enterprises this will be done on a one-to-one basis with the owner-manager rather than via a workshop.

Having established need and identified best practice in achieving the task/objectives set, we will then review the resource that required delivering training and the extent to which it was already 'held' by partner colleges, or by Learndirect. This process allows us to be confident we can meet any need for specialist programmes. The training will then be set up and delivered using a combination of workplace and learning centre delivery, using online support backed up with live reviews with tutors/mentors where required. We will then work with the enterprise/individual to enable them to apply the skills developed in the workplace. Were it is appropriate we will support their continued learning via web-based provision offering:

Peer-group networks/discussion forums
A bulletin board/information services
A range of management support tools that can sit on the manager's desktop and through a continued use of Learndirect

We will continue liaison with Business Links (UK Online for Business), making sure that enterprises receive continuing e-business advice.