Labour Market Intelligence

Transcription

1 1 Labour Market Intelligence Briefing Paper - no: 7 Collecting and using labour market intelligence Attention is increasing on graduate employability, and on the need for higher education institutions to match higher education provision to the requirements of the labour market. With this concern, the overall objective of the DfEE Innovations Fund for the Labour Market Intelligence (LMI) theme was: To facilitate the use of labour market intelligence in a strategic way enabling higher education to respond better to the changing needs and expectations of individuals and employers. Six projects were funded by the DfEE under this theme. Topics include the integration of local, regional and national labour market intelligence; the collection of information on the employment impact of part-time study; and the development of tools and guides to help institutions and other relevant parties to collect more accurate and better information. Although the objectives and activities of individual projects were wide-ranging, they addressed two main issues: 1. The accurate collection and better use of information on graduate employment by higher education institutions, in particular in curriculum development and strategic planning; 2. Applying this information to meet local, regional and national employment needs. The most significant findings arising from the studies are: There is an urgent need for better labour market information for both institutions and other key stakeholders; Once collected, such information should be analysed and used for institutional planning and development purposes; The present system (First Destinations Survey FDS) of gathering information on full-time students should be extended to the regular collection of such information for part-time students; Careers services within higher education institutions should continue their role as a source of labour market intelligence, and institutions should make better use of this information in academic planning. Stop Press News!!! Visit our web site for complete project reports Contact us directly at The Open University Ask for our projects index and digests Ask for full project reports Ask for contact details for the host organisations Ask us to come and visit you and talk about the projects Ask us for details of relevant networks and events ss-innovationsteam@open.ac.uk tel:

2 2 Consideration should be given to changing the timing of the current FDS, since: many graduates take more than six months to get established into appropriate jobs; institutions need to collaborate on a regional basis to address both local and national issues on graduate employment; it is important but difficult to get engagement and active participation from SMEs. The holistic approach to the use of LMI in HE strategic planning: collaborative LMI research & development project in the NorthWest This project was directed by CONTACT (Consortium for Advanced Continuing Education and Training). It was managed by the Enterprise Centre for Learning and Curriculum Innovation at the University of Manchester and UMIST on behalf of seven higher education institutions and four Training and Enterprise (TEC) partners. Its aim was to develop a holistic approach to the collection and use of labour market intelligence (LMI) in HE strategic planning. It sought to address the current gaps in labour market research in relation to key stakeholder groups, and to develop nationally relevant models of good practice. Labour market intelligence here refers to information that can be used in curriculum innovation and strategic planning. The holistic approach means the collection of both qualitative and quantitative information from stakeholders on both sides of the graduate/higher level skills supply and demand chain. The project undertook surveys of: Prospective students - their learning and their career aspirations and expectations; Undergraduates - to generate supply-based LMI on the labour market expectations and career aspirations of first and second year students at the seven partner institutions; Alumni - gathering information on graduates experiences and perceptions of the labour market; Postgraduate students and employers of postgraduates - to establish perceptions of the gaps between their original needs and expectations and the reality of postgraduate employment; The skills needs of experienced learners; SMEs. The project report sets out a holistic framework for LMI based on three strands of activity: Generating LMI relevant to higher education; Disseminating LMI relevant to higher education; Enhancing the use of LMI in higher education curriculum and strategic planning. The project is of interest because of both its methodology and its results. Its web-site is at Understanding the graduate labour market (Higher Education Careers Service Unit (HECSU)) This project was undertaken by the HECSU and the Universities of Newcastle Upon Tyne, Sunderland and Strathclyde, together with the Scottish Enterprise and the Northumberland and Tyneside TEC's. It has a number of similarities to the above CONTACT project. The aims of the project were to: Integrate national, regional and local LMI to improve the quality of the information available to students, graduates, higher education planners, and regional agencies; Assist these groups in making effective use of up-to-date, accurate labour market information in their decision-making; Improve the access to, and dissemination of, labour market intelligence. To achieve these aims, the project: Undertook a questionnaire survey and focus group discussions with students, graduates, higher education planners and regional agencies on the current use of and future need for labour market intelligence;

3 3 Interviewed senior academic and administrative staff in higher education institutions to establish levels of knowledge and perceived need for labour market information; Organised local, regional and national forums for labour market intelligence suppliers (for example government offices, CBI, TEC's, etc); Produced multimedia products listing the destinations of approximately 9,000 graduates Make presentations to higher education institutions on sources of labour market intelligence and their relevance for institutional planning and curriculum development; Ran seminars for local and regional agencies on the use of labour market intelligence for economic planning and regional development. Recommendations arising from the project include: The Careers Service Unit should continue to develop national and regional labour market intelligence data to support the work of careers services and to inform students, graduates, academic planners, and employers; Careers Services within higher education institutions should continue to be a source of labour market intelligence, which includes analysis of graduate destinations. They should additionally indicate the relevance of such data to aspects of academic planning; Workshops on using LMI for academic planners and staff should be incorporated into existing staff development provision; Careers services must work within the institutional framework rather than seek to attract busy academics to attend events which they see as additional to their essential duties; Careers services, within in a region, should collaborate in the preparation of up-dated materials which all could use in seminars, instead of each careers service struggling to find time and source materials. In addition to the project report, a tutors pack containing information and materials from the seminars, which were undertaken as part of the project, has also been produced. The web-site address is The CSU web site address is The graduate labour market in London: Graduates and employers The main aim of this study was to help identify what more might be done by universities in London to enhance the employment prospects and workplace performance of their graduates and part-time students. This aim was met by: Identifying patterns in the use of graduate skills in the central London labour market and those sectors and clusters which are reliant on graduate skills and knowledge; Investigating the current use of labour market intelligence by higher education institutions in strategic planning, and identifying and encouraging best practice; Auditing current higher education institution and employer links, identifying methods and processes to improve employer involvement, developing indicative models, and encouraging and adopting best practice. The project consisted of three main components. 1. A study which: Examined the labour market experience of graduates from four London universities (London Guildhall, South Bank, North London and Westminster) and how well higher education equipped the graduates for starting work; Considered how well higher education supports the current jobs and careers goals of part-time students; and Explored employer views on the higher education undertaken by their employees. 2. An evaluation of the use of labour market intelligence in strategic planning. 3. An investigation of employer/higher education linkages and models for best practice. The key findings from the project include: Two-thirds of graduates considered that they had chosen the appropriate course

4 4 Part-time students considered subject knowledge (82%) as being the most valuable element in their course, followed by development of generic skills (79%) and development of occupational skills (73%); Around 20 per cent of employers in Central London employed a higher proportion of graduates in 1999 than three years earlier; Graduate employment seems to be increasing most rapidly in the creative, financial services and hospitality and entertainment sectors, and in businesses employing between 10 and 50 staff; There does not appear to be a strong link between graduate recruitment by London employers and the graduate output of London universities, although employers in the business services sector recruit half their graduates from London universities. The project highlighted a number of ways that benefits to students and employers could be enhanced. These include: Closer ties with professional bodies; Enhancement of careers guidance to students; Placement work experience tailored to complement skills acquisition; Development of generic skills particularly required in the London labour market, such as entrepreneurial and managerial skills. With regard to the use of labour market information by institutions, it appears that hard labour market information is supplemented with soft intelligence gained by university staff through ongoing liaison with industry contacts. The latter sort of information is critical in emergent fields of graduate employment (for example, the creative industries). An important finding of the project was the distinct preconceived views held by employers of their needs according to the type of graduate labour market involved. LMI SIC/SOC matrix model (HE Information Service Trust (HEIST)) This project, led by HEIST and the Leeds-based Policy Research Institute, involved the development and evaluation of a new method of mapping and modelling labour market intelligence to support higher education planning and marketing. The project aims were to help higher education institutions to: Benchmark their provision against labour market trends; Forecast demand for certain types of courses and learning programmes through analysis of relevant labour market information; Target recruitment for existing courses; Locate growth in relevant parts of the labour market; Prepare collaborative bids to secure external funding. The main outcome of the project was the development of a tool, for use by higher education institutions, to gather accurate labour market information for assessing and marketing their courses. The tool called The Matrix Databank presents data in 286 cells or segments based on 13-industry sector codes, each having 22 occupational groups. It includes past trends, current baseline, and forecast data from various sources. This information is presented on an easy-to-investigate CD-ROM. The CD-ROM provides users with contextual information and guidance on how to apply the data to their particular circumstances. The tool was piloted in the Yorkshire and Humberside region. For further details contact HEIST enquiries@heist.co.uk Labour market information for Higher Education Institutions: A Guide (The Institute of Employment Studies) This guide is designed to help higher education institutions use labour market information in planning activity. Annex B of the project, Useful Contacts, is particularly recommended. The Project provides information on: What LMI is, with examples of the sorts of information higher education planners need; The main reasons why higher education institutions use labour market information, with examples and recommendations on good practice; Regional and local labour market information;

5 5 Essential labour market information sources, including a review of the kinds of material currently available at national, regional and local level. Throughout the chapters, there are recommendations for higher education planners on how labour market information is used in higher education institutions, and how higher education institutions can obtain better and more relevant regional and local labour market information. Amongst the recommendations for using labour market information within institutions are: Map the main labour market information resources of the institution (for example, reports, data, information gathered by careers offices, etc); Monitor the labour market capabilities and outputs of bid-dependent units; Evaluate how labour market information has or has not been used in the past. The recommendations to higher education institutions on obtaining better and more relevant local and regional labour market information include: Use an in-house expert to critique labour market reports for their quality, relevance and implications for the institution; Ensure that institutions get detailed information from providers of regional and local LMI; Ensure that those who produce local and regional labour market assessments understand the role of higher education; Forge closer links with labour market information producers in local agencies; Identify the type of economic and business trend information needed; Use sector profiles to guide planning discussions within departments; Encourage national questions to be addressed locally. Educational needs analysis of cultural industries in the East London / Lee Valley region Over 600 Middlesex University graduates in the Arts departments responded to a postal questionnaire recording their pattern of work since leaving university, and evaluating the contribution of their course of study to their success in establishing a career. Thirty of these respondents were then selected for indepth interviews to investigate further key issues for careers in the cultural industries today. This study illustrates career paths in the cultural sector, and the complex sector networks that are critical for employment success. The main findings with reference to current practice include: Over half the respondents are in full-time employment; There is an overall trend to self-employment over time; Careers in cultural industries typically involve flexible work patterns, where self-employment & salaried employment are often combined; Being in active work is key to maintaining & developing skills in this field, unpaid & voluntary work are significant in career development; Because there is a need for these cultural skills across many sectors, individuals can benefit significantly from networks of contacts across different sectors; Part-time teaching in the creative sector is diversifying. There are also expanding opportunities in the community and business sectors. There is a wide range of work undertaken in order to support an individuals developing career, including low skilled flexible work which fulfils financial needs, thus supporting them through the development of their chosen career; Many transferable skills are gained through effective further study. These include; oral communication, team work, self confidence, self-motivation, presentation, networking, taking initiative, creativity, negotiation & research skills, planning skills, time-management and a range of IT skills; Work experience, professional practice & opportunities to gain awareness of contemporary industry conditions during undergraduate study all contribute significantly to future success. However, there were only limited numbers involved in such programmes, and limited co-ordination with careers services; For career development and career diversification, continued education and further training are essential to continued success.

6 6 This study of the early careers of graduates in the cultural industries confirms the profound character of the changes taking place in this dynamic sector of the economy, and provides valuable insights into ways in which Higher Education providers should respond. The continuing analysis of labour market information relating to the fast-moving creative sector is vital, not only in identifying measures for improving access to careers, but in supporting regional and sector competitiveness. The active participation of Further & Higher Education Institutions in regional LMI partnerships in this area has led to co-ordinated initiatives to support the cultural and creative industries. While the study outlines the pertinence of the existing curriculum to the "portfolio careers" which now characterise the industry, it identifies several aspects of preparation for employment that could be strengthened. It also indicates that new types of post-graduate provision could play a key role in supporting individual continued professional development, and contribute significantly to the sustainability of creative careers and businesses. The study contains much useful data. In addition to general conclusions given above, action areas for HEIs, Government, Funding Councils and Industry Liaison Bodies are outlined. Part-time study and employment: Report of a study of the collection and use of information on the employment of part-time students This project studies on the feasibility of collecting employment data on part-time students and graduates. The study was undertaken by the Centre for Higher Education Research and Information of the Open University, in collaboration with the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (AGCAS) and six universities (Anglia Polytechnic, Nottingham Trent, Open, Sheffield Hallam, Westminster and Wolverhampton). The aims of the study were to: Examine the feasibility of extending the collection of information on the employment of graduates to include part-time students and graduates, taking into account changes in their employment during and after their course of study; and Examine how employment information of this kind can best be used to improve the relevance of higher education provision of part-time students and employers - through improved planning, course design and delivery - to provide better advice on local career and employment opportunities. Also to achieve a greater customer focus in higher education provision. To achieve these aims, the study undertook: An assessment of the needs of the participating universities and the sector for employment data on part-time students/graduates; An investigation of the feasibility of collecting employment data on part-time students / graduates through a pilot survey of 6,000 current and former part-time students from the partner universities; Work with the partner universities to help them use the data produced from the survey. The study found that there is very limited information collected on the employment experiences of parttime students. The only commonly and regularly collected source of data is through the First Destinations Survey (FDS) which is undertaken at a national level six months after graduation, but this is done for full-time students only. This data are used in five main areas within the institutions: course and curriculum design (but only to a limited extent), institutional planning, quality assurance, careers and guidance, and marketing. The questionnaire survey undertaken as part of the study achieved a 36 per cent response rate. The main findings from the survey were: There are substantial personal economic benefits to be gained from engaging in part-time study; The majority of respondents were able to command better jobs and salaries at the end of their courses; Employer support was important in achieving employment benefits from part-time study but this support varied according to ethnicity, gender and age. A separate report of the findings from the survey is also available. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

7 Project titles in this theme An Holistic Approach to the Use of LMI in HE Strategic Planning (CONTACT Consortium for Advanced Continuing Education & Training) Understanding the Graduate Labour Market (Higher Education Careers Service Unit (HECSU)) The Graduate Labour Market in London (FOCUS - Central London TEC) LMI SCI / SOC Matrix Model (Higher Education Information Service Trust (HEIST)) Improving LMI for HE's (The Institute for Employment Studies) Educational Needs Analysis of Cultural Industries in the East London/Lee Valley Region (University of Middlesex) Feasibility Study on Obtaining Employment Data on Part-time Students (The Open University) Complementary theme project titles - Graduate Business Start-ups TEC's Role in Supporting Graduate Enterprise (HOST Consultancy) The Graduate Business Start-up Project (Institute of Employment Studies) Graduate into Business (University of Central Lancashire) Gradient - Graduates into Enterprise (University of East London) Guidance for Graduates Graduate Forum for Careers & Employability (Anglia Polytechnic University) Graduates into SME's (University of Bournemouth) Career Development for Under-employed Graduates (Leeds Career Guidance) Net.GAIN (The National Enterprise & Training Graduate Arts & Information Network) (METIER - Arts & Entertainment Training Council) Regional Construction Industry Careers Advice & Guidance Service (TOPIC - Training Organisation for Professionals in Construction) Linking Graduates & Economic Development (University of Derby) The Graduate Career Centre (University of London Careers Advisory Service) Specialist Guidance for Disabled Graduates (University of Plymouth) Work Experience Joint Systems to Enhance Work Experience Levels of Service & Satisfaction (PROSPER) Quality & Value for Students at Work (Hotel & Catering International Management Association (HCIMA) Working for Skills (Leeds Metropolitan University) Learning through Work (University of Central Lancashire) Learning through Earning (University of East Anglia) Work Experience Bank (University of Manchester) Research to Establish an Accredited Northeast Work Experience Placement Process (University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne) Improving the Quality of Work Experience in Higher Education (University of Wolverhampton) A National Centre for Work Experience (Council for Industry & Higher Education) 7