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 PPI
LEARNING SERVICES
PPI Learning has quickly found a "new" owner. The assets
of PPI Learning Ltd have been transferred to PPI Learning Services
a business created by a New York based investment company Burnham
Hill Partners who will continue to operate PPI Learning Services
as a going concern. Marie-Paule Donsimoni (formerly CEO of IKM -
a sister company of PPI Learning - and Managing Director of Vidyah
International) has been appointed as Chairman and CEO of the new
business. The company will be issuing another statement early in
the New Year, hopefully explaining how they intend to repay the
old creditors. Dec 2006
PPI
LEARNING IN ADMINISTRATION
To a background of increasingly angry voices, we learn that PPI
Learning (formerly known as Spring IT Training) has been placed
into administration. Many companies within the IT training industry
(ours included) are owed significant amounts of money by PPI Learning.
While payment of invoices has been slow in recent months, the announcement
has come as a major surprise since, as is almost always the case,
the directors were at pains to reassure their partners that they
would be paid.
One of the biggest creditors is Happy Computers, which we understand
is owed nearly £200,000 by PPI. Chief Executive Henry Stewart
confirmed to IT Skills Research, however, that despite this sizeable
dent to its income, his company is financially secure, is under
no threat and will still be strongly profitable in both 2005/06
and 2006/07.
Stephen Katz and David Birne of Fisher Partners, London have been
appointed as joint administrators of the company and they in turn
have appointed Amco Agency to negotiate a sale of the business and
assets. With both of these firms taking fees and commission from
the administration, we do not expect to see much in the way of a
settlement of outstanding liabilities. Parties interested in acquiring
the assets of the company should contact Michael Charles +44 (0)8452
300 700.
An anonymous spokesman for PPI said "The UK Training Market
has been difficult for some time and the board reluctantly took
the decision to dispose of the operation. We had been negotiating
a sale of the business to a competitor which we had hoped to conclude
before Xmas, but we have now accepted that this will not happen."
PPI had ranked as high as ninth in our Top
50 UK IT Training Companies, but had slipped to 13th in this
year's listing. It has three large training centres, a unique mobile
training division and revenues in excess of £10m. We hope
there will be some competition to acquire the business. Dec
2006
LEITCH
REPORT PUBLISHED
Lord Leitch has published his final report on the UK's long-term
skills needs. It says the UK should aim to be a world leader in
skills by 2020. If its recommendations are implemented, employees
could soon have a statutory right to workplace training. One of
the report's proposals is to launch a new 'pledge' for employers
to voluntarily train more employees at work: it says that if insufficient
progress has been made by 2010, the Government should introduce
a statutory right for employees to access workplace training. It
also recommends the creation of a new Commission for Employment
& Skills, and reforming Sector Skills Councils. For more details,
see Government pages. Dec 2006
EMPLOYERS
STILL WANT EXPERIENCE, NOT QUALIFICATIONS
Despite government moves to overhaul technology qualifications for
the modern workplace, these are of little value to jobseekers looking
for employment in IT, according to a survey carried out for IT services
company FDM. Previous relevant work experience is still the most
important thing HR managers want to see on a CV. Nearly three quarters
of HR managers prefer proven IT work experience rather than a technology
degree or similar A-level. The survey also highlights a lack of
business skills in IT candidates: 83% of HR managers say candidates
needed additional training in communications skills, management
ability and general business awareness. See Other Research pages
for more details. Dec 2006
GARTNER
WARNS OF IMPENDING ITIL TRAINING CRISIS
Reports suggest a compromise is unlikely to be reached over the
new regime for qualifications and training in Service Management.
Earlier this year the APM Group was appointed as the new accreditation
body for ITIL exams and training with effect from January 2007.
Meanwhile BCS-ISEB and EXIN, who currently hold the responsibility,
have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to pursue "the continual
improvement of professionalism in IT Service Management". The
two sides have been in protracted negotiations, but analyst firm
Gartner says there is "little chance of any resolution at all",
and that BCS-ISEB and EXIN "will effectively create a parallel
qualification scheme in competition with the official ITIL-branded
APM Group scheme". (Reported by IT Week/vnunet.com)
Dec 2006
LEARNING
TECHNOLOGIES CONFERENCE PROGRAMME ANNOUNCED
 Learning
Technologies, Europe's largest organisational learning and performance
improvement technology event, has announced its 2007 conference
programme and opened its on-line booking office for the upcoming
conference on 31 January and 1 February. Over two hundred learning
and development professionals from many of Europe's largest organisations
are expected to attend. The conference runs alongside the Learning
Technologies exhibition. The complete conference programme, full
speaker and session details, and booking information can be found
here.
Dec 2006
MICROSOFT
LAUNCHES MODL
Microsoft has launched its Microsoft Official Distance Learning
(MODL) initiative, a blended learning program that uses Microsoft
Office Live Meeting to conduct MCT-led classes, which students then
reinforce with self-paced homework assignments and scenario exercises.
Each MODL class is spread over a five-week period, with time between
classes to review and practise the concepts covered. A typical MODL
session is divided into four parts: a two-hour virtual classroom
session via Live Meeting, one hour of homework, one hour of scenario
exercises (to provide the student with access to a live server to
perform "day-in-the-life" tasks) and a 10-minute feedback
assignment. MODL is available exclusively through Microsoft Certified
Partners for Learning Solutions (CPLSs). (Reported by Microsoft
Certified Professional Magazine Online) Dec
2006
KNOWLEDGEPOOL:
THE VITAL ROLE OF LINE MANAGERS IN TRANSFER OF LEARNING
 A
quarter of all training is wasted because delegates do not get the
chance to apply their learning and they are not adequately supported
by their line manager, according to a new Kirkpatrick Level 3 benchmark
study from KnowledgePool. The results of the survey, which involved
over 1,000 delegates from major UK public and private sector organisations,
enabled KnowledgePool to create 'national average' scores for post-training
feedback. According to the study, 70% of training delegates claim
they have the opportunity to apply their learning, regardless of
the subject matter. Of the 30% who did not get the opportunity to
apply what they learned, five out of six - that is, 25% of the total
delegates – say they are not supported by their line manager.
KnowledgePool is utilising these and other benchmark scores in a
new service offering for its managed service clients. The company
has introduced a generic evaluation tool which automatically conducts
behavioural change and business benefit evaluations - i.e. Kirkpatrick
levels 3 and 4 - for any learning intervention. It then benchmarks
the results against the national average scores. Dec
2006
IITT
CHANGES GOLD STANDARD ACCREDITATION CRITERIA
The Institute of IT Training (IITT) is changing the Gold Standard
Accreditation criteria for training organisations. The changes have
been brought in with immediate effect. For a company to qualify
for the Gold Standard, all its full-time trainers must now be professional
members of the IITT (Associate Member or above). And if 20% or more
of training is delivered by part-time trainers, all part-time trainers
must be professional members of IITT. Some existing holders of the
Gold Standard will now face additional costs of over £10,000
per year – or allowing their accreditation to lapse. Dec
2006
NEW
CERTIFICATION: CEA-COMPTIA DHTI+
 CompTIA
and the Consumer Electronic Association (CEA) are collaborating
on a new professional certification for individuals working in the
growing field of home technology integration. The CEA-CompTIA Digital
Home Technology Integrator+ certification (DHTI+) will cover all
aspects of the connected home, focusing on the PC as the controlling
hub. It will validate a technician's knowledge and skills to configure,
integrate, maintain, troubleshoot and comprehend the basic design
concepts of electronic and digital home systems. CompTIA recommends
that candidates have 18-24 months experience in some area of home
integration technology.
CompTIA has also announced the worldwide availability of a beta
version of the exam for the new certification. It consists of 115
multiple choice questions and is free, but is available for a limited
time only. Test takers who pass the beta exam will be certified
as CEA-CompTIA DHTI+ technicians. Dec 2006
UNIVERSITIES
TO FOCUS ON PRIVATE TRAINING
Universities are to launch a big push to seize market share from
private companies specialising in professional education and the
training of workers, according to a strategy document published
by the Higher Education Funding Council for England. The plan outlines
the ambitions of the higher education sector to play a much bigger
role in the provision of advanced level skills needed by employers
and to fall in line with the government's desire for universities
to help increase national productivity. A series of pilot projects
to be run by HEFCE will examine how universities can "increase
their share of the continued professional development currently
delivered by private training providers, such as by accrediting
employers' existing in-house training, supplying various services
such as accreditation of prior learning, curriculum design and assessment".
(Reported by IITT) Dec 2006
THE
CHANGING SKILLS LADDER FOR IT PROFESSIONALS
A report by industry analysts Ovum suggests that the shape of the
IT profession in the UK is changing from a pyramid into a diamond.
At the base of the pyramid model there is a broad layer of entry
level roles. Above this are roles such as project managers, business
analysts and network architects, drawing from and building on the
entry level talent. At the pinnacle there are the IT Directors,
CIOs and CEOs. The entry level roles have traditionally provided
new entrants to the IT profession with the technical and business
experience they need to progress to higher levels. Increasingly,
however, many of the roles that make up the broad base are being
outsourced to offshore markets such as India – resulting in
the new diamond-shaped model. Ovum says business, government and
education need to work together to ensure new recruits into the
IT profession have access to new development routes that will enable
them to become the managers, analysts and architects of the future.
Part of the current Professionalism in IT (ProfIT) initiative will
help address the challenge of the disappearing skills ladder by
establishing a fast-track 'critical skills' programme for new recruits
into the sector. (Reported by e-skills UK) Dec
2006
ACCREDITED
COURSE FOR TUTORS AND TRAINERS (ACTT)
 The
British Computer Society (BCS) is introducing a new qualification
called ACTT (Accredited Course for Tutor and Trainers) aimed at
established tutors and trainers. It has been designed "to reflect
best practice among training professionals in the delivery of training
and focuses on providing trainers with an opportunity to demonstrate
their competence and to have this competence validated independently".
A pilot scheme is running currently, with a view to a formal launch
from September 2007. ACTT replaces the BCS's ECDL CTP programme.
Dec 2006
GLOBAL
KNOWLEDGE FIRST TO MARKET WITH LCS TRAINING
Global Knowledge is to run Microsoft's new 4-day Live Communications
Server (LCS) course 'Implementing Microsoft Office Live Communications
Server 2005' at its training centres across EMEA. LCS is "an
enterprise communications server that delivers instant messaging
as part of a scalable solution that offers enhanced security and
a seamless integration with other Microsoft products". Dec
2006
NEW
WINDOWS VISTA COURSES FROM QA-IQ
 QA-IQ
has launched a one-day introductory workshop on Windows Vista that
includes hands-on labs. The course is suitable for technical decision-makers
as well as IT Professionals. There is also a two-day implementation
workshop that goes into greater depth for those who will be deploying
Vista. Dec 2006
BRANDON
HALL AWARDS
The winners of the 2006 Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Awards
have been announced at a ceremony at the Training Solutions Conference
and Expo in Denver, USA. Gold winners in the Learning Technology
Category included Assima for its Wizard Training Suite, and Kaplan
IT Learning for its STT Trainer product. The awards are made by
an international panel of independent judges. Dec
2006
VIEWS
WANTED ON SKILLS FOR PROFESSIONALISM
As part of e-skills UK's work on professionalism in IT, it aims
to establish a common language for skills that will underpin ongoing
professional development and make it easier for companies to recognise
the capabilities people have. In the first phase of this work, e-skills
UK is talking to a wide range of employers about the non-technical
skills and knowledge they would like to see in their IT professionals.
Contribute
to the debate. Dec 2006
ATLANTIC
LINK WINS LIVE SOFTWARE SIMULATION CHALLENGE
 At
the recent World of Learning exhibition, Atlantic Link's rapid e-learning
software triumphed against five of its leading competitors in the
'Live Software Simulation Challenge' set and monitored by the BCS.
The event was live in front of an audience of 200 buyers and users
of e-learning, who voted for the software they thought had performed
best. Dec 2006
GLOBAL
KNOWLEDGE ACCREDITED BY IITT
Global Knowledge, the provider of enterprise learning services for
IT and management professionals, has been accredited in the UK by
the Institute of IT Training. As part of the process, the IITT carried
out an in-depth assessment of Global Knowledge's quality procedures,
trainers and courseware, facilities and support services to ensure
that Global Knowledge conforms to the IITT's Code of Practice. Frank
Hojgaard, Managing Director of Global Knowledge UK, said: "This
accreditation helps to reaffirm to our customers Global Knowledge's
commitment to quality and customer service".
GTSLEARNING
GETS COMPTIA APPROVAL
 gtslearning
has achieved full CompTIA Authorised Quality Curriculum (CAQC) approval
for its new A+ Certification courseware. This approval, the first
awarded to a non-US content provider, reinforces gtslearning's reputation
as a market leader in the CompTIA field. CompTIA has realigned A+
Certification, allowing employers and students to choose from career
paths for remote IT support, service desk, help desk or call centre,
or depot and bench technician. The gtslearning courseware includes
the complete content for all four A+ Certification exams. Dec
2006
SUMTOTAL
ACQUIRES MINDSOLVE
SumTotal Systems, a provider of talent and learning solutions, has
acquired US-based MindSolve Technologies, Inc., a privately owned
provider of performance management software. It says it is buying
MindSolve because its strategy is "to transform SumTotal by
offering best-of-breed solutions for each segment of talent management".
According to The Yankee Group, the market for talent management
software – which deals with employee learning, performance,
compensation and recruitment – will expand at a compound annual
growth rate of 17% to be worth approximately $2 billion by 2008.
Dec 2006
IDEAL
ACQUIRES DEVERILL'S NHS IT TRAINING
Ideal Training has acquired the NHS training division of Deverill,
which holds a major contract in the London region. Deverill was
awarded a 5-year contract in January to provide experienced care
records systems trainers to support the delivery of end user application
training for the capital's 31 primary care trusts, 32 acute trusts
and 10 mental health trusts. Ideal says staff from Deverill will
join the Ideal team and continue with work that started before the
merger. Dec 2006
COMPUTER
INDUSTRY 'FACES CRISIS'
The president of the British Computer Society, Professor Nigel Shadbolt,
says the computer industry faces a skills crisis and that "if
we're not careful, the UK is going to lose its pre-eminent position
as a knowledge-based economy". Prof. Shadbolt says there is
increasing demand but decreasing supply of graduates in computer
science – in the past four years demand for IT and computer
graduates has doubled while the number of students studying the
subject has declined by a third. Dec 2006
INSTITUTE
REACCREDITS TRAINING SYNERGY
Training solutions provider Training Synergy has had its Institute
of IT Training (IITT) accreditation as an external service provider
renewed for a further 12-month period. It has held this accreditation
since 2004. Training Synergy recently moved to new offices in Southwark
from its previous headquarters in the City of London in order to
accommodate its growth. Dec 2006
ILX
GROUP INSTALLS COURSEBOOKER
Training company ILX Group has purchased CS Group's CourseBooker
software to provide customers with a range of new and improved services
following the group's rapid growth and expansion into new markets.
Together, the two companies have implemented CourseBooker across
five ILX locations in just six weeks. ILX plans to develop its use
of CourseBooker to give customers more information and self-service
capabilities by providing them with on-line access to the system.
Dec 2006
ACADEMY
INTERNET ACHIEVES COMMUNITYMARK STANDARD FOR CSR
Academy Internet has become the first e-learning and internet marketing
company to be awarded the Business in the Community “Communitymark”
kitemark standard for its achievements in Corporate Social Responsibility
(CSR). The company says its CSR activities have also had a positive
impact on the business: Academy Internet has grown its revenues
by more than 60% per annum and says it is on track to become one
of the top 25 digital media businesses in the UK within 3 years.
Dec 2006
IITT
ACCREDITATION FOR LEARNING FACILITIES
The Institute of IT Training has launched a Learning Facilities
Accreditation Programme (LFAP), the latest addition to its accreditation
services. The Institute says training organisations in search of
suitable high quality facilities to run their training programmes
can now be assured that venues and facilities holding the IITT LFAP
accreditation will provide an outstanding level of quality. Dec
2006
VTN
OPENS UK OFFICE
VTN Technologies Inc. (VTN), a Canada-based learning platform developer,
is to provide sales and support services to its European customers
by opening a UK office headed by learning technologies specialist
Bob Eades. The company says the move is in response to continued
growth and interest from international customers in its Ole Online
Learning Environment, which provides an enterprise-wide learning
platform. Dec 2006
COMPTIA
TACKLES SKILLS GAPS WITH INFOBASIS DEAL
CompTIA has launched a service for its members, in association with
InfoBasis, to help IT organisations better understand and address
skills gaps. Based on InfoBasis' Enterprise Skills Infrastructure
(ESI) platform, CompTIA's Organisational Skills Assessment will
provide its members with a process for identifying their in-house
skills gaps, benchmarking them against industry norms, prioritising
the training needed to fill the skills gaps and identifying the
return on investment (ROI) of improved skills. Dec
2006
E-SKILLS
PASSPORT FOR ITQ
The British Computer Society (BCS) and e-skills UK have announced
a partnership agreement that will enable all candidates registering
for an ITQ in one of the BCS's centres to use an e-skills Passport.
The e-skills Passport helps users to assess their existing skills
and set an ITQ target profile before they begin training. Dec
2006
KALLIDUS
ADDS SIMULATION
e2train has announced the latest addition to its Kallidus Learning
Suite: Kallidus Simulate. Simulate enables users to create e-learning
lessons and assessments via simulations captured from their own
internal software systems and work processes. A sophisticated remediation
system provides learners with detailed feedback, and simulations
can be deployed in several different modes. e2train says Simulate
training sessions "are quick to create with no need for programming
skills". Dec 2006
AWARD
FOR INFORMATION TRANSFER AND PRIORY GROUP
Information Transfer and Priory Group won the award for "Best
e-Learning Project Securing Widespread Adoption" at the recent
e-Learning Awards. Their programme, Foundations for Growth, is an
ongoing project supporting all learning and development activity
for Priory Group, the leading provider of independent mental health
care. The blended learning programme includes 25 bespoke e-learning
modules, as well as offline learning activities and classroom training.
The learning is delivered to over 5,000 staff at 47 sites, and is
managed via bespoke learning management technology developed by
Information Transfer. Dec 2006
INDIA
IT SKILLS CRISIS LOOMING
India could face a severe shortage of highly skilled IT workers
by 2010, according to the president of Indian IT trade organisation
Nasscom. Kiran Karnik repeated warnings aired last year that the
Indian IT industry could face a shortfall of around half a million
workers in four years time, severely limiting growth targets. According
to a McKinsey report last year, India will need an additional one
million people to join the IT and BPO workforce by 2010 (bringing
the total workforce to 2.3 million) in order to maintain its current
market share. (Reported by silicon.com) Dec
2006
GTSLEARNING
EXTENDS STUDY TOOLS
gtslearning has announced enhancements to its portfolio of LabSim
interactive self-paced products for nine certifications from CompTIA,
Cisco, Microsoft and Novell. Each LabSim product enables students
to fast-track their networking technology skills through video-based
instruction, simulations, and practice tests. Now each LabSim product
is provided with a student lab manual which serves as an additional
reference for practical simulation lessons on the PC, enabling LabSim
to be delivered as a true blended learning package. Dec
2006
BAE
SYSTEMS CHOOSES SFIA V3 AND INFOBASIS
BAE Systems has deployed Version 3 of SFIA, the Skills Framework
for the Information Age, which it says has provided it "with
a language and structure to describe what we have and what we need".
It will manage the framework for its 450 IT staff in the UK via
the ESM software from InfoBasis. Dec 2006
PERFORMANCE
CENTRED DESIGN AWARD FOR TATA
Tata Interactive Systems (TIS) is one of only eight organisations
in the world to be awarded one of this year's Performance Centred
Design (PCD) Awards conferred by EPSScentral LLC, the US-based provider
of electronic performance support systems (EPSS) and PCD. Tata won
a PCD Solution award for its TIS ePSS. The PCD Awards have been
presented since 1997 to promote recognition for designers, their
software, and their business sponsors, and are judged by an independent
panel of PCD experts. Dec 2006
LORD
LEITCH PUBLISHES REVIEW OF LONG TERM SKILLS NEEDS
Lord Leitch has published his final report, 'Prosperity for all in the Global
Economy: World Class Skills', which examines the UK's long-term skills needs.
It sets out ambitious goals for 2020 which it says would make the UK a world
leader in skills.
The report says aspects of the UK's skills base remain weaker than those in other
developed economies. For example, out of 30 OECD countries, the UK lies 17th
on low skills, 20th on intermediate skills and 11th on high skills. The report
recommends that the UK commits to becoming a world leader in skills by 2020.
['World class skills' are defined as the UK being in the upper quartile of OECD
nations in any assessment of educational achievement.]
Lord Leitch says 'economically valuable skills' must be delivered through a demand-led
approach, facilitated by a new culture of learning, and an appetite for improved
skills amongst individuals and employers. To attain these goals, the system must
become more efficient, responding to market needs and Government, employers and
individuals must all engage and invest more in skills development. The report
identifies necessary institutional reforms and simplification. Recommendations
include:
• Increasing skill attainments at all levels
• Routing public funding of vocational skills through Train
to Gain and Learner Accounts
• Strengthening the employer voice on skills through creation
of a new Commission for Employment & Skills, increasing employer
engagement and investment in skills, and reforming Sector Skills
Councils
• Launching a new 'pledge' for employers to voluntarily
train more employees at work: if insufficient progress has been
made by 2010, introduce a statutory right for employees to access
workplace training
• Increasing employer investment in higher level qualifications,
and in significantly more training in the workplace.
The report estimates a potential net benefit to the UK economy
of at least £80 billion over 30 years. Dec
2006
FE
COLLEGES TO AWARD DEGREES
A new power for Further Education (FE) Institutions to award Foundation
Degrees has been introduced by the Government in the new Further
Education and Training Bill. The new arrangements will allow FE
institutions to apply for powers to award their own Foundation
Degrees. The DfES says this will mean that more students will benefit
from the opportunities created by Foundation Degrees, while FE
institutions will be able to respond more quickly to employers
needs. The LSC will be streamlined and restructured by removing
the 47 local LSCs and creating 9 regional councils, and by reducing
the size of the National Council. The Bill will also introduce
a new entitlement to free tuition for a first full Level 3 (A-level
equivalent) qualification for people aged 19 to 25 from summer
next year, "to help tackle crucial technician level skills
gaps". Dec 2006
CONSULTATION
ON ECVET
The objective of the planned European Credit system for Vocational
Education and Training (ECVET) is "to create a European device
which will facilitate the transfer, validation and recognition
of learning outcomes acquired by individuals moving from one learning
context to another or from one qualification system to another,
in particular during a mobility period, and who wish to obtain
a qualification". ECVET will be used on a voluntary basis.
The European Commission is consulting stakeholders in all the countries
participating in the Education and Training 2010 work programme,
and responses will be taken into account in establishing the final
content and technical specifications of ECVET. The consultation
will close at the end of March 2007, and a conference will be held
Munich in June 2007. Dec 2006
AMBITIOUS
LIFELONG LEARNING PROGRAMME FOR EUROPE
The European Commission has announced details of its new Lifelong
Learning Programme, which brings together the Leonardo da Vinci,
Socrates, Erasmus and eLearning programmes. The programme will
run from 2007 to 2013. The Commission will shortly be publishing
a Call for Proposals 2007 for applications for grants under the
programme. The Lifelong Learning Programme comprises four sectoral
programmes on school education (Comenius), higher education (Erasmus),
vocational training (Leonardo da Vinci, which aims to increase
placements in enterprises to 80,000 per year by the end of the
programme) and adult education (Grundtvig). There is also a 'transversal'
programme focusing on policy cooperation, languages, information
and communication technology and dissemination and exploitation
of results. The programme budget will be € 6,970 million for
the total period 2007-2013. Dec 2006
CONSULTATION
ON STAR RATING SYSTEM
Jobcentre Plus is developing a Star Rating system for the reporting
of learning provider performance for its contracted provision,
and is now seeking input from providers on the proposed approach.
The new system aims to standardise the collection of data and provide
objective measures. Measures that might be included in the Star
Rating model, along with their proposed weightings, are Activity
Levels (0%), Outcomes (40%), Unit Cost (20%), Quality (20%), Delivery
of Key Processes(10%) and Compliance and Contractor Issues(10%).
Jobcentre Plus says it is keen to consult with providers on the
design of the Star Rating system and any feedback given will help
to shape future developments. Dec 2006
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