Skills Development Scotland (SDS) has launched its new online
web service My World of Work.
My World of Work aims to help people plan, build and direct
their career throughout their working lives. Providing information
on skills, learning and employment, it supports the Scottish
Government's ambitions for the improved delivery of an 'all age,
universal careers service'.
Customers can see jobs in action; build their CVs; search for
vacancies and explore training opportunities in a way that's
personal to them. There are a wide range of video clips of people
talking about their job roles and a significant magazine element
with exciting, current content that is relevant to the world of
work.
My World of Work will complement SDS' current face-to-face and
telephone services, as well as those provided by partners, so that
customers have access to a range of channels depending on the level
of support they need.
SDS will continue to engage with customers and partners to
further develop and enhance My World of Work.
Strategy and Policy
Earlier this year, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation
and Development (OECD) published Learning for Jobs, which
highlighted a number of key international policy challenges
including the development of career guidance that is well informed
by labour market information.
The Scottish Government's recent CIAG Strategy published in 2011
highlighted that Careers Information Advice and Guidance in
Scotland needed to be:
- Independent
- High-quality
- Impartial
- Informed
- Confidential
- Holistic
- Supportive of Equal Opportunities
This strategy identified SDS as the strategic lead in the
redesign and improvement of CIAG in Scotland. Delivering the
vision would require effective leadership by SDS with strong
partnership across the guidance community, integrated &
improved services and increased use of new technologies.
The CIAG Strategy also stresses the importance of labour market
information (LMI), recognising Sector Skills Councils as the
primary source of LMI and paving the way for the publication of the
Scottish Government's LMI Framework later on in 2011.
The Scottish Government's approach is consistent with much
recent research from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills
(UKCES) in this area. The broad thrust of the UKCES research
suggests:
- The increasing use of technology by young people - a key user
of careers services - places new expectations and demands on the
delivery of careers services.
- The consistency in policy documents highlighting the importance
of high-quality careers guidance, with labour market information at
its core, incorporating increased use of information and
communication technologies (ICT).
- That careers guidance practitioners require different types of
LMI for different purposes. As well as information for use
with clients, careers guidance practitioners need LMI for their own
professional development.
- That the expertise of career guidance practitioners around
understanding the needs of employers and assessing local labour
market conditions needs to be strengthened.
- Core LMI relates to the structure of the labour market and
general employment trends. This is primarily for use by
careers guidance practitioners. Careers intelligence covers
information on how to find a job, current vacancies, the nature of
specific jobs, progression routes, suitable courses and the
transferability of skills. This is primarily for use by
individuals.
Putting it all together
The strategy and policy direction suggested is sensible, but
remains challenging. SDS has identified three core
elements:
- The Scottish Government's LMI Framework, which will set the
national overview, improve access to local labour market data and
provide a forward-looking assessment of the labour market,
- A LMI system for SDS staff, delivered by SDS' Research Team and
driven by the needs of staff (the publicly available elements of
this are available on the Knowledge part of the SDS website), and
- My World of Work, making best use of new technology to deliver
a personalised service for individuals which complements the
professional careers advice services offered through face-to-face
discussions and through the contact centre.
