A MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORK FOR TRAINING PROVIDERS TO IMPROVE WORKPLACE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT

Purpose: Deputy President, Ms Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, says a skills revolution is necessary for South Africa’s (SA) skills crisis. The SA skills revolution began with the skills legislation of 1998-9 when the Departments of Labour (DOL) and Education (DOE) intended a seamless, integrated approach to rapid skills development. The National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS), the Sector Education and Training Providers (SETAs), the South African Qualifications Authorities (SAQA) and the National Qualifications Framework (NQF) were established to drive the human resource and skills development revolutionary strategy. The purpose of this paper is to present the findings of the 2001-3 research investigating an internal management framework for training providers, employers and managers to accelerate workplace skills development.


INTRODUCTION
The local and international world of work has become a dynamic, tumultuous and technologically advancing arena.Employers, employers, managers and training providers are continuously challenged by the rapidly changing workplace tools, techniques, products and processes.Human resources must be developed regularly to keep pace with the knowledge and competencies of evolving job descriptions.Education, training and skills development of employees and managers have become a priority.Training providers across the globe must deliver continuous, high quality, accelerated skills development to maintain a qualified, performance orientated, lifelong learning workforce.
The management role of workplace training providers in effectively improving skills development is under the spotlight in this research.The research highlights three management factors impacting on workplace training providers: the basic assumptions, operational elements and management framework for managing skills development (Bush, 1995).To training providers in SA, this means that they must effectively manage the following responsibilities: alignment of their policies with the legislative policy and procedural criteria that underpin the management of workplace skills development; the implementation processes and training delivery tasks that must be monitored, managed and controlled; and utilising an effective management framework to manage the overall system for executing the operational tasks successfully and in accordance with national legislation.This paper on training providers managing workplace skills development is presented under the following headings:

GOVENDER C A Management Framework for Training Providers BISSCHOFF T To Improve Workplace Skills Development
• A brief Literature Review to provide the context for the skills development research motivation, findings and conclusions.
• The Research Purpose, Problem and Methodology to outline the data collection, analysis and reporting processes of the training provision survey conducted.
• The Research Findings report the significant correlations identified in the factor analysis process: providing job relevant training, continuous assessment and accreditation.
• Implications for Training Providers highlights the demands, criteria and deliverables for managing and improving workplace skills development.
• A Skills Project Framework for Managing Skills Development in SA makes recommendations for an integrated project management system for training providers to manage workplace skills development and various skills interventions as projects.
• The Conclusion summarises the significant points raised in the paper.

LITERATURE REVIEW
An intensive literature review was conducted to gain clarity on the following aspects concerning workplace training providers and skills development: definitions of concepts; comparison and benchmarking of national and international legislation; and identification of previous and existing management systems effective in improving workplace skills development.
According to SAQA, the South African Qualifications Authority, a training provider is defined as: 'a body that delivers learning programmes that culminate in specified NQF standards or qualifications and manages the assessment thereof' (SA, SAQA, 2000:28).The concept of 'skills development', nationally and internationally, refers to: learning new knowledge, acquiring new concepts and theories, adapting to technological and industrial changes with enthusiasm and without fear, and taking ownership of skills received.For training providers to be effective, they are required to deliver nationally accredited learning programmes so that learners are motivated to gain new skills and competencies relevant to their jobs.
The review on South Africa (SA) is that a skills revolution is essential to the creation of a country-wide skills evolution and learning nation.The Joint Initiative for Priority Skills Acquisition (JIPSA) is part of the Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative for SA (ASGISA) launched by the SA Presidential Office to develop a second economy in the country: 'Nothing short of a skills revolution by a nation united will extricate SA from the skills crisis' (Achiever, 2006) (Asmal, 1999).
Similar to SA, the British (UK) skills levy-grant system during the 1960s and 1970s managed workplace training via state driven industrial training authorities who collected skills levies and dispensed skills grants for workplace education, training and skills development initiatives (Esland, 1991:196-206).The skills development legislation and interventions failed in the UK due to various reasons such as: some organisations were exempt from paying skills levies; managers themselves did not receive sufficient training; and complacent training providers failed to encourage and empower themselves or employers to plan for, deliver and sustain workplace skills development.It would seem that the skills levy system creates policies that shift power from training providers and employees onto employers and politicians

GOVENDER C A Management Framework for Training Providers BISSCHOFF T
To Improve Workplace Skills Development (Trowler, 1995:73).Currently, the UK employs a moderately successful National Vocational Qualifications or NVQ framework to manage national workplace skills development.
In West Germany, training providers and managers undergo formal training on the management techniques of training in the 21 st century workplace.Most German graduates receive regulated 3-year management skills (Esland, 1991:314-5).Training providers and managers must be competent to deal with action learning, mentoring, self-development, counselling, coaching and facilitation skills.The challenge is to improve employee development, create job satisfaction and treat every human resource as part of the assets of the organisation (Dale, 1998:67-9).A recurring challenge is that employees must be encouraged to become competent at learning to learn and be committed to lifelong learning.
It is essential that training providers manage workplace skills development effectively, according to national legislation, and with an effective internal management strategy and system.Training providers should have practical, manageable skills policies and procedures for improving lower level skills, developing human capital and the increasing the competitiveness of the employee, organisation and country.If countries are to improve their education and training systems, reduce unemployment figures, meet workplace skills shortages, curb ineffective training provision and enhance social mobility, organisational skills development must be well managed using a sound operational framework.Delivering well-planned and high quality skills development demands that finances, time and resources are effectively managed.Furthermore, it is imperative that internal skills development remains well funded, resourced and managed.International trends favour employers, managers and trainers who remain empowered and create a culture of learning within their organisations (Pont, 1995:19).
The literature review also revealed interesting management frameworks currently employed in the workplace, such as: the South African skills legislative framework; Cost Benefit Analysis to determine a Return on Investment (also known as CBA and ROI); Total Quality Management or TQM; and the project management framework.The skills legislative criteria and the project management framework proved to be significant to this research.

PURPOSE, RESEARCH PROBLEM AND METHODOLOGY
Due to the unleashing of a skills revolution via skills legislation, training providers in SA are largely uncertain of their place, unable to clearly determine their role and lack the skills essential to the effective management and improvement of employee skills in the current dynamic and tumultuous workplace.The research model selected for this study was an integrated, multi-method approach to gather and analyse empirical data to identify solutions to key skills development issues in SA.The design of the research instruments was guided by the literature review on skills legislation and effective skills management models, as well a robust, action field strategy for conducting research (Brewer & Hunter, 1989).

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Types of Workplace Training Providers
According Table 1 displays the number of employees trained during one year.50% of the respondents revealed that between 1 and 49 employees were trained by either internal or external providers during the year.23.3% attested that between 50 and 250 employees were trained.Only 6.7% said that over 1000 employees in their organisation were trained during the year.
29.5% responded that between 1 and 49 employees of other organisations were trained by their staff during the year.33.3% responded that they trained between 251 and 500 employees of other organisations during that year.On interpretation of the above statistics, it seems that approximately 30% of organisations whose core business is trade and commerce also engage in the business of training and skills development.They would then form part of the constituency of external training providers.Since they are specialised in specific industrial and/or technical skills, they are able to transfer their knowledge and skills to other workplace employees, yet may not be delivering and managing the skills training systematically as per national and international standards.

GOVENDER C A Management Framework for Training Providers BISSCHOFF T
To Improve Workplace Skills Development

Types of Training Interventions
The data in The qualitative survey respondents also provided valuable indicators for training providers to improve skills development when they commented on the specific areas where providers are ineffective and limited.The following are the limitations of effective training providers: • Not providing 'job relevant training' and practical, 'experiential training'.
• Complacency and lack of action of training providers when faced with the lack of 'commitment from organisations' and when managers cancel training for reasons such as: 'no time to train' or 'no money for training'.
• 'Unmotivated providers and learners' are rife in the workplace.
• Inability to break down and overcome the 'barriers to change for SETAs, providers and organisations'.
• Not enough 'training towards competencies' is being provided.
• Inability to deliver 'focused training in industry' so that 'focused skills injected will move organisations forward'.
• A lack of 'SMME development as linked to self employment opportunities'.
• Providers place 'little focus on learner/worker's needs' when delivering training interventions.
• Inability to promote 'multi-skilling' and engage in 'solution thinking with the people'.
• 'Pegging training at levels ideal for workers is challenging' to training providers.The implications for training providers are that they must become improved, effective, and well-managed if all skills stakeholders are to benefit from the skills revolution.Providers must become more assertive when stating their aims, outcomes and management strategies to improve workplace skills development.
Managers and employees must be called upon to assist training providers in the key skills development roles as they are the direct beneficiaries of improved skills management strategies.
More employees must become motivated to learn so that they can cope with the rapid workplace changes, innovative technology and their own career advancements.Hence, the paradigm of employees, employers, managers and training providers must be shifted to embrace skills development by learning, becoming empowered, and upgrading their skills and qualifications.
A significant implication for training providers is that they must employ an effective internal management framework to monitor and evaluate organisational skills development as well as manage each skills intervention.Perhaps if all training providers, managers and skills authorities practiced the principles of project management, skills development could effectively improve nationally across all sectors.

Project Management for Workplace Training Providers
According to the principles of project management, training providers must undertake the following management tasks throughout the life cycle of the project: scope the project; schedule, cost and allocate human resources; establish effective communication channels; ensure proper administration and procurement; control the risks; and promote quality within the project (Duncan, 1996).
Training providers should define the scope of the organisation as per its WSP and ATR as well the scope of each skills project or intervention.The scope will identify the inputs, range, criteria, teams and outcomes of the organisational skills needs and the various skills interventions.The skills project should then be scheduled according to relevant times, dates and teams.Time management is essential for effective, successful and sustained skills development projects.Workplace skills plans, project skills plans, WSPs and ATRs, sector skills plans, and other key skills development processes are subject to annual deadlines.Training providers that effectively assist managers and employees to submit skills plans and reports as per SETA deadlines will assist employers to recover skills levies and secure SETA grants for further employee training and skills development.
Costing each individual skills intervention and the organisational skills development initiative as a whole allows a project to be managed as per their allocated budgets.The cost of time, effort, resources and other factors for improving skills development must be calculated, budgeted, balanced and variances must be accounted for.SETAs require employers to submit total costs for skills levies paid, amount budgeted for skills development, and amount spent on actual interventions.Furthermore, each intervention must be costed separately for the total number of beneficiaries per occupational category.
Human resources must be allocated and managed throughout the skills project.Effective training providers are those that value human resources as assets; people who need guidance, maintenance and

GOVENDER C A Management Framework for Training Providers BISSCHOFF T
To Improve Workplace Skills Development support in order to effectively deliver on a skills intervention.Effective communication strategies must be planned and managed so that essential skills information and decisions are disseminated to all project role players and stakeholders.
Risk management is necessary for identifying, controlling and managing visible and unforeseen incidents, especially with regard to the expectations, behaviour and results of the skills project teams.Skills development risks must be highlighted, minimised and eliminated if the skills project is to be successful.Therefore, procurement of quality staff, resources and contacts for the project must be carefully managed during the planning phase of the skills project.Lastly, the skills project will be most successful if the administration of significant documents, records and reports is handled according to well-planned, wellmanaged and approved guidelines.
Project management ensures that training providers, employers and employees achieve quality standards of performance in all skills development projects.Effective training providers who promote and manage excellence and quality in all skills projects are successful in skills development delivery and SETA accreditation.Injecting quality into project planning, execution and evaluation forces training providers to provide job relevant training, conduct continuous assessments, and provide national credits and qualifications to employees.
Finally, training providers must manage the integration of skills development projects within organisations by working with the relevant SETA, Skills Development Facilitator (SDF), Assessors and Moderators, other training providers, managers and employees.Skills projects should also be integrated with other internal organisational projects and external skills projects.
Currently, the principles and elements of project management are widely used in the workplace to manage jobs within the engineering, agriculture, technology and other fields.The implication for training providers is that, if they manage the scope, schedules, costs, HR, communication, administration, procurement, risks and quality elements of the various skills interventions, they can begin to embrace skills development instead of being challenged and marginalised.The organisational impact of effectively managing skills projects is that training providers will deliver quality skills development to meet workplace requirements, employees will improve their job performance, and employers will benefit from a skilled, qualified, high output labour force.

Organisational Impact of Effective Workplace Training Providers
SA's Public Service and Administration Minister, Ms Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi, is on an international recruitment drive to improve South African skills in the areas of mentoring, training, short-term skills exchange, management capacity building, financial management, engineering, health, IT and other programmes (Achiever, 2005).The national impact of effective workplace training providers is that, in a few years, employers will stop looking at overseas countries to fill skilled vacancies; instead SA will have developed its own skilled workforce.
SA's economist, Mr Raymond Parsons, of the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC), quantified the organisational impact of effective training provision as a 6% growth in the SA economy if the skills deficit in the country could be curbed.It is projected that 3.5 million additional skilled employment opportunities will arise due to the 2010 World Soccer event, yet further and higher education institutions and workplace training providers are projected to produce only 110 000 competent graduates per year.For SA to produce a more skilled, competent and qualified workforce, training providers and skills stakeholders must improve workplace skills development as follows: further and higher education providers must produce more graduates; employers must create more opportunities for new graduates to acquire workplace skills and experience; the effectiveness of SETAs must improve; the incentives and support for learnerships must increase; and all South Africans must adopt a flexible approach to the importation of critical skills (Achiever, 2005).
It would take many if not all training providers to be efficiently and effectively managed to meet the demands of the economy, skills shortages, and face the skills revolution in the SA workplace.Training providers are called upon to manage workplace skills development and each skills intervention as projects.This means that they must provide a variety of job relevant training, continuous assessment, and SAQA/NQF accredited learning programmes.Each skills project must be treated as a unique intervention with a definite life cycle.A project must be managed by planning, monitoring and controlling the aspects of the skills interventions: scope, time, cost, HR, communication, administration, procurement, risks, quality, and project integration.The recommendation of this research study is a skills project framework for training providers to manage and improve skills development in SA.

A SKILLS PROJECT FRAMEWORK FOR MANAGING SKILLS DEVELOPMENT IN SA
Training providers engaged in workplace skills development in SA are responsible for the following tasks: • Actively participating in the skills revolution by empowering, capacitating and developing themselves, employers, managers and employees according to current skills legislation.
• Meaningfully assimilating the skills legislative criteria and process for accrediting themselves, their learning programmes, their facilitators, assessors and learners.
• Realignment of their training policies, procedures and practices to deliver and assess all skills projects as per SAQA/NQF requirements and NSDS objectives.
• Changing the attitude and paradigm of employers and managers to view employees as human assets that should be valued and developed continuously.
• Effectively managing practical and logistical issues of skills projects such as: time, money, resources, communication, administration, and risks.
• Producing multilingual, multicultural and multi-skilled employees for the SA and international workplaces as per current policies, procedures and practices.
• The continuous supply of skilled employees for all job categories in all sectors of the marketplace.
• Ensuring that employers are able to efficiently recover skills levies by fulfilling the SETA grant application requirements.
• Effectively managing quality skills projects that accelerate employee development and continuously increase sector skills pools.
The voices of employers, managers, employees, training providers and skills authorities were heard loudly and clearly in this research.They contributed significantly to the proposed skills project framework for managing workplace skills development.The recommendation is that training providers begin understanding and complying with SAQA, NQF and SETA specifications while simultaneously identifying essential training interventions and managing them as skills projects throughout the life cycle of the project and legislative requirements.
The management framework has two parallel processes: one for approaching skills development as a project; and one for managing each skills intervention as a project.The 'skills development as a project' approach assists in the management of the legislative requirements of workplace skills development.This 10 step approach calls on employers, managers and training providers to collaboratively manage the criteria in Table 3 below: Communicating to influence all skills stakeholders towards lifelong learning.
Step 9 Regularly reviewing the quality of skills projects.
Step 10 Recovering skills costs via SETA grants.
Together with the 10-step approach in the table above, training providers must also employ a systematic management strategy for effectively managing and improving each skills intervention.The project management elements for effectively managing each 'skills intervention as a project' entail the 10 tasks in Table 4 below: Identifying, controlling and managing the risks of the project.

3.
Procuring the facilitation, assessment and management services required.4.
Administration of the learning programmes. 5.
Scheduling the training, assessing and verification time.6.
Integrating the assessments with training delivery and the exit outcomes.7.
Managing the human resources involved in the skills projects.8.
Communicating effectively to change skills stakeholder paradigms.9.
Reviewing and improving the quality of each skills project.10.
Managing the cost and benefits of each skills project.
The recommendation of this research is that the proposed skills management framework outlined in Table 5 be used by training providers to effectively manage the legislative criteria and interventions of workplace skills development.Training providers will be able to quickly and easily manage workplace skills projects as per SAQA, NQF and SETA requirements while controlling the day-to-day, practical, and operational challenges of each of their skills projects.The implications for training providers is that they will be effective to all skills stakeholders and beneficiaries if they employ the project management approach to improving workplace skills development.The research study recommended a skills project framework for managing skills development in SA using the 10-step approach for managing workplace 'skills development as a project' while simultaneously executing the 10 tasks for managing each 'skills intervention as a project'.
In conclusion, according to the empirical evidence of this research, the answer lies with empowering training providers in general to effectively deliver high quality, job relevant skills based on national standards.With a solid, effective and efficient skills project management framework to operationalise skills delivery and accreditation, training providers should be able to effectively accelerate, manage and improve skills development in the SA workplace.
to the research findings, training providers are individuals, organisations or consultants who provide internal and/or external training to workplace employees.Internal training providers are the industrial, technical experts who transfer their skills, knowledge and values to other employees within their organisation via formal and informal training.External providers are the specialist trainers brought from the marketplace into organisations to build capacity and transfer skills to employees.In this research, 64% attested to internal training providers providing skills development in their organisations.49% responded that external training providers develop skills in their organisation.33.5% revealed that their organisation also provides training to other organisations.

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quantitative survey questionnaire was distributed to 600 employers, managers, employees and the skills authorities to investigate who workplace training providers are, what they do, how effective they are and how they can improve skills development.Furthermore, rich qualitative interviews with 60 skills managers provided the descriptive data for managing and promoting skills development in the country.Most of the respondents, 50.6 %, were employees who where either working and/or learning at the time of the survey.Managers comprised 27.6% and training providers comprised 21.7% of the research subjects.The findings of this research reveal significant correlations within factors of both the quantitative and qualitative data.The following factors were identified and analysed: job relevant training; continuous assessment; SAQA/NQF accreditation; effectiveness of training providers; and improvement of skills development.The findings are presented below under these topics: types of workplace training providers; types of training interventions; effectiveness of training providers; and training providers improving workplace skills development.

Table 2 : Workplace training received and provided Received/ Provided Training Description of Training Received and Provided In the
Table 2 displays the following four types of skills development interventions commonly provided by internal and external training providers in the current workplace: training programmes; workshops; assessment; and management skills.These interventions are provided via formal and informal courses, on-the-job training, quality assurance checks, management audits, and skills analysis reports.According to the overall research findings, training providers are both effective and ineffective in providing job relevant, assessed and accredited training interventions.Those that are effective seem to comply with the skills legislative criteria and meet employee and employer requirements with regards to costs, time, quality, and communication strategies.The effectiveness of training providers is described as 'pockets of success' and 'handpicked training providers are effective' according to the qualitative interviewees.-by-nightinstitutions';some provide 'synthetic' training; 'organisations do not take time to train employees'; and training providers 'do not force training'.According to the research findings, for providers to improve workplace skills, it is imperative that they provide 'job relevant training'.Respondents feel that 'selling incentives to organisations and training providers to train' should allow organisations to 'treble the number of trained employees' in a short period.The emphasis is that 'skills levies should not just be seen as another tax imposed' especially when SA is in the midst of a skills revolution.Managers feel that training providers must 'make it work' especially if we are to compete for skills internationally.Furthermore, training providers are seen as the 'drivers and captains (who) must drive the issues' and simultaneously 'get buy-in' from all stakeholders.The skills authorities (SETAs) feel that 'providers can contribute to improving skills development by implementing the principles of the NQF'.Furthermore, since workplace 'learnerships are subsidised by SETAs for approximately 2 years', more learnership agreements should be signed in the workplace.Employees and managers require providers to 'be more practical when training'.Skills will not improve when 'learners take in knowledge but cannot apply' the learned skills on the job.Therefore, 'learning must include practical training'.Employees request that 'AIDS awareness must be taught' by all training providers.A significant observation by employees is that 'workers receive salaries yet cannot read or write'.They emphasise that skills will automatically improve if basic literacy and numeracy can be taught 'during weekends'.Hence, 'schools for older people' seem to be a crucial requirement.
Since management is an integral task of the provision of training interventions, the question of who manages workplace training was included in the quantitative questionnaire.There were complex responses to this question.The findings reveal that, although training providers manage workplace training, managers, skills practitioners and SETAs also manage training at other levels.70% of the respondents attested that Line Managers manage training in their organisation.According to 31% of the respondents, training interventions are managed by skills development practitioners and by other authorities (25%), such as SETAs.Effectiveness of Training ProvidersWith regards to the effectiveness of workplace training provision, the following three effectiveness factors were identified in the research findings: job relevant training, continuous assessment, and SAQA/NQF accreditation.A comparison of the factors reveals that managers, training providers and employees rate the first and third factors, job relevant training and SAQA/ NQF accreditation, as important contributory factors to the effectiveness of training providers.Skills development authorities rated the effectiveness of training providers largely from the perspective of SAQA/ NQF accreditation.'Continuousassessment' as a concept was either unknown or unfamiliar to many of the respondents.Training providers are seen as ineffective due to: a lack of 'application of skills to change mindsets'; 'irrelevant courses'; 'no customised and quality courses'; training 'takes too much time'; some providers are 'fly According to the research findings, all training providers, whether internal or external or both, must comply with the national skills development legislative requirements by delivering quality, standardised training interventions.Although the SETAs are mandated to oversee training providers to ensure their successful participation in the skills revolution and to monitor that the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS) targets are being met; it is the responsibility of training providers to manage the administration, schedules, costs, communication, quality and risks in the delivery of the skills development interventions.
• Inability of training providers to inquire 'what is necessary for SA as a whole?'According to the research, organisations that provide regular job relevant training to employees, invest in management type training, and submit annual WSPs and ATRs, show significant correlation in improving

Management Framework for Training Providers BISSCHOFF T To Improve Workplace Skills Development 4
. Align all learning programmes to SAQA/NQF and OBE standards so that employees gain national credits and qualifications after their learning.CONCLUSIONThis paper discussed the management of workplace skills development and training.The introduction provided a brief overview of the research problem and conclusions.The research purpose and problem presented the multi-method research model and population statistics.The research findings revealed the types of workplace training providers, types of training interventions, effectiveness of training providers and strategies for improving workplace skills development.