Vocational Further Education
Its employees are the most important assets of any company. Efficient and effective investments into the support and further skill-development of employees are therefore a key competitive factor. Due to the rapid technological and demographic change, the strategic importance of investing in adult education will increase further in the future.
Studies on occupational training in Switzerland (eg "SMEs and the role of training," Gonon / Hotz / Weil / Schläfli, Zurich 2005) show that many companies are not convinced to offer further education: More than a third of Swiss KMUs (medium and small sized companies) have not invested in any way in adult trainings for more than 3 years. Only about 11 percent of Swiss KMUs have an adult training strategy. Another problem is posed by the fact that companies rather support their already especially well-qualified employees. Figures provided by the Federal Statistical Office (BFS) show that only one in ten employees without a post-compulsory education is being supported by offers of in-company trainings from the employer.
While in large companies professional staff development structures generally exist, these are usually missing in KMUs. Current approaches to support in-company trainings therefore focus mainly on KMUs. Therefore, SVEB for instance aims to reach its KMU-clients by a target oriented website offering adequate information on the topic of in-company trainings in KMUs to facilitate access into the subject of adult education (see www.weiterbildung-in-kmu.ch).
At the political level concerns regarding the support of vocational trainings have a rather difficult stand as the employer-side insist on the right of company self-governance and categorically rejects an active intervention by the State. Employers, however, are in support of a statutory leave of absence of their employees for further trainings – which, on the side of the industry, does not generate positive responses.
This happened so far:
- The study "KMUs and the role of further education" (Gonon, P., Hotz, HP / Weil, M. Schläfli, A.: KMUs and the role of further education strategies and partnerships in Switzerland, Bern, 2005.) shows the need for action supporting further education in KMUs
- "The professional development in public institutions and private companies in Switzerland: cost, benefits and financing" largely confirm the findings in context with NFP 43, (Hanhart, S. Schulz, HR, Perez, Soledad; Diagne, D., Zurich, 2005).
- The study "best practice for in-company trainings in KMUs" shows that there is no generally valid “best practice” for in-company trainings. The optimal use of in-company trainings depends on many individual factors.
- SVEB developed the website www.weiterbildung-in-kmu.ch. The site deals with issues related to the topic of further trainings in KMUs ".
