TY - JOUR
T1 - Employability management needs analysis and the ICT sector in Europe
T2 - the case of small and medium-sized enterprises
AU - van der Heijden, Beatrice I.J.M.
AU - van der Schoot, Esther
AU - Scholarios, Dora
AU - Bozionelos, Nikos
AU - Epitropaki, Olga
AU - Jędrzejowicz, Piotr
AU - Knauth, Peter
AU - Mikkelsen, Aslaug
AU - van der Heijde, Claudia
PY - 2010
Y1 - 2010
N2 - The purpose of this paper is to deal with the outcomes of a so-called “employability management needs analysis” that is meant to provide more insight into current employability management activities and its possible benefits for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) professionals working in Small- and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) throughout Europe. A considerable series of interviews (N=107) were conducted with managers in SMEs in seven European countries, including Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and the UK. A semi-structured interview protocol was used during the interviews to cover three issues: employability (13 items), ageing (8 items), and future developments and requirements (13 items). Analysis of all final interview transcriptions was at a national level using an elaborate common coding scheme. Although an interest in employability emerged, actual policy and action lagged behind. The recession in the ICT sector at the time of the investigation and the developmental stage of the sector in each participating country appeared connected. Ageing was not seen as a major issue in the ICT sector because managers considered ICT to be a relatively young sector. There appeared to be a serious lack of investment in the development of expertise of ICT professionals. Generalization of the results to large organizations in the ICT sector should be made with caution. The interview protocol developed is of value for further research and complements survey research undertaken within the employability field of study. It can be concluded that proactive HRM (Human Resource Management) policies and strategies are essential, even in times of economic downturn. Employability management activities are especially important in the light of current career issues. The study advances knowledge regarding HRM practices adopted by SMEs in the ICT sector, especially as there is a gap in knowledge about career development issues in that particular sector.
AB - The purpose of this paper is to deal with the outcomes of a so-called “employability management needs analysis” that is meant to provide more insight into current employability management activities and its possible benefits for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) professionals working in Small- and Medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) throughout Europe. A considerable series of interviews (N=107) were conducted with managers in SMEs in seven European countries, including Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and the UK. A semi-structured interview protocol was used during the interviews to cover three issues: employability (13 items), ageing (8 items), and future developments and requirements (13 items). Analysis of all final interview transcriptions was at a national level using an elaborate common coding scheme. Although an interest in employability emerged, actual policy and action lagged behind. The recession in the ICT sector at the time of the investigation and the developmental stage of the sector in each participating country appeared connected. Ageing was not seen as a major issue in the ICT sector because managers considered ICT to be a relatively young sector. There appeared to be a serious lack of investment in the development of expertise of ICT professionals. Generalization of the results to large organizations in the ICT sector should be made with caution. The interview protocol developed is of value for further research and complements survey research undertaken within the employability field of study. It can be concluded that proactive HRM (Human Resource Management) policies and strategies are essential, even in times of economic downturn. Employability management activities are especially important in the light of current career issues. The study advances knowledge regarding HRM practices adopted by SMEs in the ICT sector, especially as there is a gap in knowledge about career development issues in that particular sector.
KW - employability management
KW - ageing
KW - SMEs
KW - ICT-sector
UR - http://centrumwebs.pucp.edu.pe/jcc/vol/3/issue/2/article/6
U2 - 10.7835/jcc-berj-2010-0046
DO - 10.7835/jcc-berj-2010-0046
M3 - Article
SN - 1851-6599
VL - 3
SP - 182
EP - 200
JO - Journal of CENTRUM Cathedra
JF - Journal of CENTRUM Cathedra
IS - 2
ER -