Innovation laboratories for vocational training

The challenge

Currently, the public debate is often focused on technology and automation replacing jobs. Instead, however, we should focus our attention on the fact that to the same extent completely new work profiles will emerge - with consequences for which we still have to find a way of dealing. At the centre of our research is the question of how the necessary skills for work in the 21st century can be imparted on a large scale. How do we create a transition of employees* into new fields of work?

The solution

Based on the preliminary studies (see below), we want to develop new prototypical solutions with our partners (Ashoka, Randstad Foundation, Sage Foundation, Zalando, McKinsey and the Stifterverband). Our research in the betterplace lab makes it clear that continuing vocational training in digital transformation cannot be designed on the drawing board. If it is to succeed, situational measures are needed that take into account the respective operational challenges as well as the employees* involved. On the basis of lighthouse examples from the social entrepreneurial sector, we were able to demonstrate that a new way of thinking is just as important in companies as it is in training providers and in public administration as a major promoter of operational measures.

Project: Innovation laboratories

In three half-day innovation laboratories, we bring business enterprises together with social innovators* and public educational institutions. Based on real challenges ("Skilling Challenges") from the companies, we develop new solutions in Design Sprints: for the company, the individual employees* and our society.

In doing so, we explore the facets of the social challenge of continuing education, always with a view to the employees* who will undergo the training. We want to develop solutions in interdisciplinary teams that meet their needs and abilities and thus lead to sustainable solutions in the company.

To this end, we borrow methods from the design thinking process in order to generate concrete and discussable solutions within the shortest possible time. The workshop format aims to use the composition of the groups and their collective creative potential. We will conduct a total of three such (non-consecutive) innovation laboratories in different constellations.

Each laboratory will bring together three companies, several socially innovative thought leaders* in continuing vocational education and training, as well as representatives* of the public sector. While the companies each contribute a specific company training topic to the workshops, the social innovators take on the role of consultants. Representatives* of the employment agencies, for example, provide the reality check and at the same time gain insight into new challenges and solutions in continuing education.

The laboratories will take place in autumn 2019 in Berlin and two other major German cities.

If you are a company or educational innovator, please contact us for further information!

Editorial support and final report

We will publish the results of the work in the laboratories (anonymously if desired) in the form of blogs and a final report and disseminate them via the communication channels of the betterplace lab and the project partners. In the publications, successfully tested innovative approaches of the participating companies and social innovators can also find their place as best practice examples. A closing event will bring the results into direct exchange with the interested public.

Preparatory research

The Skilling Challenge, a study published by Ashoka and McKinsey, laid the foundation stone for the project in April 2018. It makes it clear that continuing vocational training in the digital transformation should focus far more than pure digital skills. Human and metacompetences, from the ability to learn to communicate to the willingness to change, are equally important.

In the study "Social Innovations in Continuing Vocational Education and Training", which builds on this study, the betterplace lab identifies the potential in the approaches of social entrepreneurs* who have specialised in the development of human, meta and digital competencies. These differ from conventional training providers in three essential respects:

They create a holistic view of people with consideration for their individual professional and educational biographies.
They aim at a positive change in society as a whole in digitalisation.
And they have succeeded in entering into cross-sector cooperations with commercial enterprises, which ensures that their continuing education programmes are highly relevant to the labour market and thus enables close integration and financing by public institutions such as employment agencies and job centres.