Managing Competences: Research, Practice, and Contemporary Issues draws together theoretical and practical research in competence management. It provides a wealth of knowledge concerning emerging and contemporary issues, such as the multilevel approach to competence, the development of collective competence, the strategies of competence management, and the tools for managing competences as well as the organizational dynamics of competences. Moreover, the book provides a critical approach to research and practitioners’ continued engagement in competence management research and practice. Research in competence management has more recently entered an era more open to doubt and questioning: Is there a solid theoretical foundation that supports the concept of competence? What is the contribution of research on employees’ competences to human resources management in particular, and more generally to management? Is there not a risk of diluting the concept of competence by considering it at the individual, collective, organizational, and strategic levels? Today, is it still possible to manage competences in a world where the boundaries of the organizations are more and more porous? These questions, and many others, probably explain why a field that seemed well-identified and well-structured yesterday, has given way today to new, highly diverse analyses of competences by researchers and practitioners. This contributed volume seeks to answer these pressing issues and is a collective means for responding to them. The book brings together multiple streams of research in the field about emerging and contemporary issues, including multidimensional HRM systems, the rise of forms of collaborative management, the intensification of the use of digital and robotic technologies, the rise of the regime of remote and networked operations, the increasing heterogeneity of the status of workers, and changes in regulations concerning work and its recognition.

Managing skills is at the core of Human Resources Management. Based on previous literature and realized with researchers from Magellan, the Research Center in Management of iaeLyon, Skills Management examines how skills can be analyzed at the individual and collective levels, and investigates the focus on different types of skills – including technical, soft, learning, leadership and emotional skills. The book examines how skills management is applied in various contexts and for various populations, cultures and profiles, with examples ranging from middle managers having to develop organizational skills in a changing environment, to engineers having to develop soft skills beyond their technical skills; from police officers developing emotional skills, to the new skills that are needed when a hospital introduces a new approach to shared leadership. In the concluding chapter, this book also investigates how it is sometimes difficult to focus on skills development when organization needs are focused on flexibility.

This book presents a comprehensive overview of extant literature on competence-based vocational and professional education since the introduction of the competence concept in the 1950s. To structure the fi eld, the book distinguishes between three approaches to defi ning competence, based on 1.functional behaviourism, 2. integrated occupationalism, and 3. situated professionalism. It also distinguishes between two ways of operationalizing competence: 1. behaviour-oriented generic, and 2. task-oriented specifi c competence. Lastly, it identifi es three kinds of competencies, related to: 1. specific activities, 2. known jobs, and 3. the unknown future. Competence for the unknown future must receive more attention, as our world is rapidly evolving and there are many ‘glocal’ challenges which call for innovation and a profound transformation of policies and practices. Th e book presents a range of diff erent approaches to competence-based education, and demonstrates that competencebased education is a worldwide innovation, which is institutionalized in various ways. It presents the major theories and policies, specifi c components of educational systems, such as recognition, accreditation, modelling and assessment, and developments in discipline-oriented and transversal competence domains. Th e book concludes by synthesizing the diff erent perspectives with the intention to contribute to further improving vocational and professional education policy and practice. Joao Santos, Deputy Head of Unit C5, Vocational Training and Adult Education, Directorate General for Employment, Social Aff airs and Inclusion, European Commission: “This comprehensive work on competence-based education led by Martin Mulder, provides an excellent and timely contribution to the current debate on a New Skills Agenda for Europe, and the challenge of bridging the employment and education and training worlds closer together. Th is book will infl uence our work aimed at improving the relevance of vocational education to support initial and continuing vocational education and training policy and practice aimed at strengthening the key competencies for the 21st century.” Prof. Dr. Reinhold Weiss, Deputy President and Head of the Research, Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB), Bonn, Germany: “This book illustrates that the idea and concept of competence is not only a buzzword in educational debates but key to innovative pedagogical thinking as well as educational practice.” Prof. Dr. Johanna Lasonen, College of Education, University of South Florida, Tampa, USA: "Competence-based Vocational and Professional Education is one of the most important multi-disciplinary book in education and training. Th is path-breaking book off ers a timely, rich and global perspective on the fi eld. Th e book is a good resource for practitioners, policymakers and researchers."

Annotation Competency Management is increasingly being adopted as an approach to HRM in both the private and public sectors. This book will be of interest to both practitioners and academics as it seeks to inform the reader about the practice of competency management in European public services. It throws light on the origins and meanings of the concept and traces the competency movement from the 1980s in the UK and USA. It links competency management to performance management and HRM and demonstrates how a competency approach can add value to all parts of an organisation. The nine country studies provide a rich insight into the practices found across the public sectors of Europe. At one end of the spectrum is Britain with its holistic approach to competency management in the Senior Civil Service and widespread use throughout the rest of the service. Belgium, the Netherlands and Finland provide further examples of recent developments and good practice. In France and Germany, however, competency management has only just appeared on the reform agenda and the reasons for this are identified. Micro studies in Italy and Sweden provide an insight into the problems that arise when the perceptions of reformers diverge from those of managers and managed, while the study of Poland shows the problems faced by countries in transition which lack an appropriate educational sub-structure for public management and HRM.

Apprenticeships can offer apprentices, their teacher-tutors and business apprenticeship supervisors experiences that are rich in knowledge. The Success of Apprenticeships presents the observations and opinions of 48 actors regarding apprenticeships. These testimonies recount how apprenticeships allowed them to improve their expertise, their professional practices and their organization skills. This book also examines how their interactions in the work/study process allowed them not only to develop the skills of apprentices, but also the skills of those who accompanied them – the teacher-tutors and the business apprenticeships supervisors. The creation of an authentic community of apprentices subscribes to the formation of an ecosystem of learning, in which each individual harvests fruits in terms of the development of their personal abilities.

Malgré la forte croissance économique que l’Afrique subsaharienne a connue ces vingt dernières années, les niveaux de transformation économique, de réduction de la pauvreté et de développement des compétences dans cette partie du monde sont bien inférieurs à ceux des autres régions. Des investissements judicieux dans le développement des compétences, en accord avec les objectifs politiques de croissance de la productivité, d’inclusion et d’adaptabilité, peuvent aider à accélérer la transformation économique de la région subsaharienne au XXIe siècle. L’augmentation de la population en âge de travailler en Afrique subsaharienne constitue une réelle chance d’accroître la prospérité collective. Les pays de la région ont investi massivement dans le développement des compétences†‰; les dépenses publiques consacrées à l’éducation ont été multipliées par sept au cours des 30 dernières années, et le nombre d’enfants scolarisés est aujourd’hui plus élevé que jamais. Pourtant, les systèmes d’éducation de cette population n’ont pas donné les résultats escomptés, et ces insuffisances entravent considérablement les perspectives économiques. Dans la moitié des pays, moins de deux enfants sur trois terminent l’école primaire, et encore moins atteignent des niveaux supérieurs d’enseignement et obtiennent un diplôme. Les acquis d’apprentissage demeurent faibles, ce qui entraîne des lacunes dans les compétences cognitives de base telles que la lecture, l’écriture et le calcul, aussi bien chez les enfants, les jeunes que les adultes. Le taux d’alphabétisation de la population adulte est inférieur à 50 % dans de nombreux pays†‰; la part des adultes sachant lire, écrire et compter de manière fonctionnelle est encore plus faible. Une réforme du système est nécessaire pour réaliser des progrès significatifs. De multiples agences aux niveaux national et local sont impliquées dans les stratégies de développement des compétences, faisant des compétences «†‰le problème de tous, mais la responsabilité de personne†‰». Les politiques et les réformes doivent permettre de renforcer les capacités des politiques qui ont fait leurs preuves et d’instaurer des mesures incitatives visant à faire converger le comportement de tous les acteurs dans la poursuite des objectifs de développement des compétences au niveau national. Le développement des compétences en Afrique subsaharienne, un exercice d’équilibre. Investir dans les compétences pour la productivité, l’inclusion et l’adaptabilité présente des données qui éclaireront les choix stratégiques des pays en matière d’investissements dans les compétences. Chaque chapitre aborde un ensemble de questions spécifiques, en s’appuyant sur une analyse originale et sur une synthèse des travaux existants pour explorer les domaines principaux : • comment les compétences appropriées à chaque étape du cycle de vie sont-elles acquises et quelles défaillances du marché et des institutions affectent le développement des compétences†‰; • quels systèmes sont nécessaires pour que les individus aient accès à ces compétences, notamment les investissements consentis par les familles, les institutions du secteur privé, les écoles et autres programmes publics†‰; • comment ces systèmes peuvent-ils être renforcés†‰; • comment les personnes les plus vulnérables, à savoir celles qui ne font pas partie des systèmes standards et qui n’ont pas réussi à acquérir des compétences essentielles, peuvent-elles être soutenues. Les pays de la région seront souvent confrontés à des arbitrages difficiles qui auront des effets distributifs et influeront sur leur trajectoire de développement. Des dirigeants engagés, des efforts conjoints de réforme et des politiques bien coordonnées sont essentiels pour aborder le délicat exercice d’équilibre que représente le développement des compétences en Afrique subsaharienne.