Skill Ecosystems/Industry Partnerships
Related Resources
Skill ecosystems are communities of interrelated and interacting organisations working as a coherent entity to increase opportunities for sustainability, innovation and growth.
A skill ecosystem can also be thought of as a complex partnership.
A complex partnership is a cooperative relationship of good faith, mutual respect and understanding and shared decision making between people or groups who agree to share responsibility for achieving specific goals. In a partnership resources are pooled and profit and risks are shared.
Economic global challenges are compelling governments internationally and locally to pursue new approaches to economic development involving local industry clusters. Industry clusters are essentially skill ecosystems. VET involvement in these industry clusters or skill ecosystems will continue to grow.
Skill ecosystems provide VET an opportunity to extend its involvement in innovation, industry partnership and regional development.
Exemplars
ICVET has developed a series of exemplars that describe the involvement of training organisations in skill ecosystems and industry clusters. They will be added to this list as they are published.
TAFE NSW
Skill ecosystems in TAFE NSW REVIEW | eZine August 2006
- Innovation Management
- Sutherland Shire Hub for Economic Development (SSHED) Precinct
- Riverina Food and Wine Technology Centre
- TAFE NSW Western Institute - Shearer Training
- Sheep Cooperative Sheep Cooperative Research Centre
International
- The United Kingdom Automotive Academy and the Northwest Automotive Alliance
- New York - Garment Industry Development Corporation
Websites
National Skill Ecosystem Project, managed by NSW Department of Education
This is the website for the nationally funded Skill Ecosystem Project. The website and a e-newsletter support the skill ecosystem project. The project commissioned a suite of national demonstration projects, information relating to these projects can be found on the site.
Our Partnerships.org
Oupartnership.org.uk was a Cabinet Office project developed in partnership with National Council for Voluntary Organisations. The project was established in response to the rapid growth of partnership working to help voluntary and public sector organisations to work well together. The site has some easy to read information on partnerships and partnership lifecycles. The e-learning section of the site contains e-learning courses teaching voluntary and public sector partnership working skills.
Partners in Training
Managed by the Australian Government Department of Education, Science and Training
The Competitiveness Institute
TCI is a not-for-profit alliance of cluster practitioners. TCI's mission is to improve living standards and the local competitiveness of regions throughout the world, by fostering cluster-based development initiatives.
TAFE NSW ICVET Skill Ecosystems Project
Publications
New systems of working VET business realities SKILL ECOSYSTEM THINK PIECE | eZine November 2006
What makes a successful skill ecosystem? FEATURE | eZine February 2006
A Perspective on Skill Ecosystems REVIEW | eZine August 2005
Skill Ecosystems Capability Development Strategy (728KB)
Building on the skill ecosystem exemplars, research and thought pieces published on the site over the last months, this Capability Development Strategy proposes a strength based approach to developing the skills and knowledge VET practitioners need to participate effectively in a skills ecosystems, industry partnership and community or regional development environment.
SMITH, Belinda 2005, Skill Ecosystems and Regional Innovation: An Overview of Local and International Features (107 Kb)
Paper presented at the ICVET Learning Powerhouse Conference, October 2005
BUCHANAN, J, Schofield, K, Briggs, C, Hager, P, Hawke, G, Kitay, J, Meagher, G, Macintyre, J, Mounier, A, Ryan S 2000, Beyond Flexibility: Skills and Work in the Future, NSW Board of Vocational Education and Training
In the early 2000s, the NSW Board of Vocational Education and Training commissioned research on the future of work and the changing link between work and skills. This research identified that ongoing economic reform, had radically altered both the nature and the content of work and recommended investigation of skill ecosystems as a framework.
ECOTEC RESEARCH & CONSULTING, 2004 A Practical Guide to Cluster Development,
Department of Trade and Industry, UK
ASHWORTH, P & Callan V, 2004, Working together: Industry and VET provider training partnerships, NCVER
The number and variety of industry-provider training partnerships in the vocational education and training (VET) sector is growing considerably. This report investigates the nature of the larger VET industry training partnerships and provides practical guidelines for training providers when setting up and managing these specific partnerships. These guidelines include: recognising the competitive realities industries face and developing customised and flexible training to meet businesses' needs; accepting 'break even' outcomes may be the best initial result a training provider can expect from a partnership; finding and developing staff who are responsible for the start-up phase of the partnership; evaluating and seeking feedback on the partnership; and, building training staff capabilities.
See also
- Skill ecosystems – a new approach to skill formation in an era of shortages PROJECT UPDATE | eZine May 2006