The Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) and the Directorate General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (DG GROW) of the European Commission have launched a new initiative (2018-2019) on “Promoting Online Training Opportunities for the Workforce in Europe”. It aims to explore the role of online training in tackling the skills-related challenges in Europe, with a particular focus on high-tech small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It implies performing an extensive state-of-play analysis, developing a common vision towards 2030 and formulating recommendations for action and supporting measures and a tentative roadmap. This work is facilitated by a service contract which is coordinated by PwC EU Services in collaboration with the European Distance and E-Learning Network (EDEN) and Espace Mendès France.
In the context of this initiative, an interim report has recently been published. The report presents the key findings from the activities performed during the first phase of the initiative (2017-2018). It contains a state-of-play analysis in the European Union with regard to the adoption of online training solutions by SMEs for the acquisition of high-tech skills by the European workforce. It presents a description and in-depth analysis of the market, policies and initiatives on online training for the workforce in specific Member States, as well as inputs for a common vision – towards 2030 – based on stakeholder contributions. Finally, it addresses key challenges, mitigation measures and proposed solutions.
The report is available on EU Publications at: https://publications.europa.eu/s/jpHS
Your feedback and additional inputs for this initiative would be highly appreciated. We are specifically collecting good practice examples of national and pan-European policy initiatives aiming to promote the use of online training among European companies. Please send your inputs to Dr. Kristina Dervojeda (project manager of the Online Training initative).