Learning is a process of continuous change, which is managed to create a sustainable knowledge base and the capacity to respond more flexibly to the skills needs of the future. For a professional organisation, learning is of great importance, as the organisation needs certain abilities, competences and skills in order to succeed, develop and evolve. Strategic competences are particularly important from a business perspective, and learning is needed to maintain, develop and acquire them. It also helps to respond to change, anticipate the future, motivate and engage.
Tampere Adult Education Centre TAKK and the competence development pathway model
Tampere Adult Education Centre has developed a competence development pathway model in the international Erasmus+ Learning Path project. The project has been awarded the Erasmus+ Good Practice award and has been selected as a good practice in 2021, for example for promoting digitalisation in the world of education (School Education Gateway). According to Development Coordinator Tuuli Oksanen, the development work has been based on the Digital Education Action Plan and The European Framework for the Digital Competence of Educators (DigCompEdu) as a common framework. In particular, DigCompEdu has provided concrete tools to support both digital competence and self-assessment of competences.
Organisational path and strategic competences
The path pattern runs on several levels. The starting point is to first plan the organisational path, where it is essential to first map the current situation, define organisational objectives, plan the common competence development and its forms, and as the process progresses, reflect on the journey and make the necessary changes and updates. The development cycle is then restarted, i.e. development is agile and continuous.
The organisation’s roadmap is a concrete tool for defining the current situation, anticipation and objectives. In this framework, the objective of competence management is to promote the competences of the organisation, teams and individuals in order to achieve and maintain strategic competences. For this reason, it is essential that strategic competences are clearly identified and communicated. In this context, it is also essential to define and communicate the required competence levels for the different job functions.
The path to individual competence development
The organisation’s objectives are the starting point for the individual’s competence development path. Self-assessment of competences is an important start on the journey, and this is related to the needs of the organisation. The guidance of the front-line person plays an important role here and the assessment can also be done jointly, for example at team level – often there is a desire to develop not only one’s own competences but also those of the team as a whole. The self-assessment is the starting point for defining personal objectives, which form the individual’s own development path. It is essential to compare one’s own competences with the required competences and the competence level targets related to one’s own work. It is important that the objectives are concrete and achievable. Development can take small steps forward, i.e. learning and acquisition of competences can be achieved, for example, through micro-learning. The support of the frontline worker is essential at this stage to ensure that the individual gets the support and time needed for development. The visualised pathway serves as a tool for collaboration, both at the level of the pre-person and the individual and then at the level of the team.
Individual competence development activities can take many forms and it is important that they are tailored to your specific situation. According to Tuuli Oksanen, TAKK has found different types of coaching, training, peer mentoring and joint experiments to be particularly effective. The Learning Path project at TAKK was preceded, for example, by joint digital workshops, or more commonly known as staff digital clubs, which were held in several development projects to try out different digital tools together in a relaxed atmosphere and consider where they could be useful in teaching and guidance in different situations. As a continuation of this, different places and moments for learning and sharing knowledge have been developed and tested. What is particularly important is shared enthusiasm and a low threshold for experimentation! Reflection and updating the plan is also a key step in the individual’s competence development pathway.
At its best, an individual’s competence development pathway supports development not only in their current job but also in their career path. The path to the target state can also enable new types of jobs within the organisation through new competences. This approach also motivates and engages in joint development.
System solutions support development
System solutions can support organisational and individual learning pathways. Various integrations can help to streamline the flow of information and thus knowledge management. Integrations also support the user experience by ensuring seamless use between different systems and that the function, purpose and intent of each system supports the overall process. TAKK uses Priima as a learning environment for staff competence development. The integration between Priima and the M-Files HR system enables both the use of HR system user data in Priima and the timeliness of performance and competency data in the HR system.
What is required to implement and use the pathway model?
According to Tuuli Oksanen, the basis for all development is management commitment and engagement. Development must be driven throughout the organisation, with a strategic focus and attention to processes. In the path model, the analysis of the current situation and the drawing up of an organisational roadmap and the definition of a target state set the development framework for the whole process. This needs to be supported by continuous change management to ensure that change is embedded in practice as it is being developed. Clear lines of accountability are also needed, i.e. agreement on who is responsible for which step, part and piece of information. The methods and activities needed must always be selected on an organisational basis, and it is also important to design and implement the necessary support on a needs basis.
TAKK and Saarni Learning will present the development model at the ITK2022 conference on Thursday 6 October 2022 at 12-12.30 (Presentation room 35). We will also be happy to discuss the topic further at Saarni Learning’s ITK stand. We also participated in the autumn 2022 ITK webinars and you can also learn more about the topic from the recording.
Further information:
Henna-Riikka Ahvenjärvi
Customer Success Manager, Saarni Learning Oy
henna-riikka.ahvenjarvi@saarnilearning.fi
Tuuli Oksanen
Development Coordinator, Tampere Adult Education Centre
tuuli.oksanen@takk.fi
