ABOUT THE PROJECT

CONTEXT

The context for this project is determined by the changes in the Education sector where “traditional” universities are challenged by new players, namely digital universities but also digital education platforms. These new players are offering learning opportunities that are wider and more flexible than “traditional degrees”. The challenge is not only related to the creation of digital contents but also centered on how to recognise and certify the skills that learners are acquiring in terms of microcredentials/open badges referring to specific skills. Even more the challenge is related to the continuous updating of the state-of-the-art skills required by the job market.

TRAINING GAP

ProcToGo proposal focuses on the area of Procurement. In many universities, Procurement, being a practice-oriented discipline, has a limited relevance and it is included as a core subject in just a few courses/programmes, mainly related to Operations or Supply Chain Management. Even more in most programmes, Procurement is taught in a very “disciplinary” way: looking either at its managerial implications, or at its engineering requirements or, eventually in courses of administrative law, at the legal constraints in Public Procurement. However, there is a strong need for high quality training given that procurement activities: 1) cover a significant share of the budget of most organisations (both in the private and in the public sector); 2) are going to be strongly affected by the new digital technologies; and 3)can be a strong leverage for achieving sustainable goals. Such a training gap is even more relevant considering that new digital technologies are reshaping the procurement processes and that companies are asking for procurement professionals with new digital skills.

OBJECTIVES

The project is twofold:

1. design two short digital courses on digital sustainable procurement practices based on micro-credential outcomes, certifying through a digital badge the acquired skills  (Digital3);
2. develop a micro-credential framework based on which learners (including life-long learners) can build up progressively new digital skills as required by their professional career in the area of procurement.

In line with the “To Go” perspective, each digital course will provide a set of skills that can be immediately and effectively deployed in the job market.

EXPECTED RESULTS

By the end of the project, the following results will have been achieved:

• the design and development of digital course materials based on the new specific skills required by the market for a professional buyer, including around sixteen videos (total time around 2 hours) and four new business cases, with all the related training materials;
• the packaging and delivery of these digital contents in four digital learning modules;
• the testing of the use of microcredentials and digital badges towards both enrolled and non-enrolled students;
• the strengthening of the cooperation within the European Universities Initiative and the creation of the European Higher Education Area.

IMPACT

The project will provide new digital teaching contents allowing learners to acquire the new digital skills required by the labour market. The project will also contribute to development of a different teaching approach and recognition of qualification based on digital contents and microcredentials, supporting “traditional” universities to be more effective in the Digital Education arena with respect to the new skills demanded by the job market, also in a life-long learning perspective. Therefore, the project aims to contribute to the up-to-date discussion on digital micro-credentials as a new mean to deliver successful skills development programmes at higher education level.