Background

During the work process of the EMMT Leonardo project (Management training targeting middle managers within the European Training Sector) the partnership experienced a strong interest from a huge range of actors within the European training sector. A distinct interest and awareness were directed toward both the development process and the final results of the EMMT project. The need of developing managerial competencies in a European context has recently been documented in a European survey conducted by EFVET (Hans van Aalst). This survey documents a strong need to develop managerial competencies especially towards the middle managers within the European VET sector. The survey shows that it is important that the middle managers are able to act European and in accordance with the required demands of the future. The EMMT Leonardo project has developed a new flexible training scheme as a European model and has organised a mutual European pilot course, containing of four modules targeting European managers from European training organisations. At the same time the project has developed a new innovative method and tool to anticipate future training needs concerning changes in work performance. The four modules have taken place in four different European countries – organised in a new innovative way. The participants have attended "on the job training" under the supervision of a mentor. The participants have been working with learning tasks/ themes and have interacted cross borders in transnational learning team. This project (EMMT 2) is an extension of EMMT 1. The project focuses on further development of the innovative findings and results of the LEONARDO project EMMT 1. Based on the innovative experiences and gained results the partnership aims at creating a new extended transnational partnership of experts within management training. (From 4 members to ten members, including four members from the new countries). The partnership will specially develop their expertise in areas such as: Based on the recommendations of the evaluation report the project in hand will integrate 9 new partners and their competencies into the partnership. Based on new knowledge the widened partnership will adjust and multiply the existing results and training scheme as a “best practice model “ - targeting middle managers. The project will conduct a new training scheme – targeting a new audience and at the same time improve the knowledge and expertise of the partnership. An existing transnational partnership is going to organise a systematic dissemination of the innovative concept – targeting middle managers within the European training sector. The basis of the dissemination is a training concept already developed as a Leonardo pilot project. Together with the sectorial transnational network “The European Forum for Vocational and Technical Education and Training (EFVET)” the partnership will join forces to organise an effective development process. In concrete terms it is the goal to conduct an adjusted version of the developed training scheme, an improved version of the anticipation method (tool) and a new structure of language preparation – targeting 9 new European training institutions. In all it is foreseen that a number of middle managers will attend the training concept. The actual training will be carried out by the partnership – adjusted according to the recommendations of the evaluation report. According to the above-mentioned survey (Hans van Aalst, EFVET) the competence profile of the managers is too narrow and does not fulfil the future requirements in the sector. The European training sector has to adapt to new roles and tasks – especially as service providers of educational resources. This requires managerial competencies at a high professional level. Most of the managers do not have any formal management background. By tradition managers in the European training system are recruited amongst teachers without any professional managerial qualifications. It is considered to be very important, that the competence of the group of managers is developed in to integrate an innovative anticipation tool and develop a new structure of language preparation. The European training sector has to develop new competencies targeting the existing group of managers in order to be able to meet the future demands.