BEST Institute for vocational training and personal training GmbH

Training planner to SMEs

Background and target group

SMEs, that means companies with less than 250 staff members, are the engines of the European economy. However, most of them face small opportunities to sustain or increase the knowledge and skills of their staff. Research points out that employees of SMEs often miss structured VET and learning, especially the staff groups consisting of general and immigrant workers (often the same group).

The project aims to train Training Planners, external advisors, that create tailor made VET plans for the SMEs. Ongoing Training Planner projects in Iceland, which already last for 4 years and have been applied to 40 companies and 4000 employees, have led to more focussed VET programmes and learning plans. As a result, competencies and job satisfaction among the employees have been improved and the customer satisfaction, as well as the competitive advantage for the SMEs, has been enhanced.

Activities

The project aims to export the concept, which was developed in Iceland and is based on lending out an external Human Resource consultant, called Training Planner, to companies, especially SMEs in Austria and Spain. The Training Planner compiles a training and learning needs assessment, looks into the competencies needed in each job and designs a tailor-made training programme and learning activities for the company, based on interviews with directors and focus groups from all job categories.

There are similar business structures in all three countries/regions involved in the project (numerous SMEs or family businesses, that generally display a low awareness to continuous education) and the Spanish and the Austrian partner can benefit from implementing the project idea in their respective regions (Basque Country and Vienna/Lower Austria), while the Icelandic partners are able to refine and revise their successful product because of the partner’s impact and best-practices.

Outcomes

The aim of the project is to structure and produce a training material to train suitable Training Planners and to advocate for this type of structured training assistance to SMEs and their staff.

The main outcomes of the project are:

  • a handbook
  • course material and a course for training planners in 4 languages (German, English, Spanish, Icelandic)
  • pilot training plans for selected SMEs in Austria and Spain
EU-Program: LLP, Leonardo da Vinci TOI
Coordination: Starfsafl - Starfsmennt Samtaka atvinnulifsins og Floabandalagsins, Vocational Training Fund (ISL)
Contact: Karin Kronika
Duration: October 2011 – September 2013
Website: www.t-planner.eu
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.