Bringing Industry to the Classroom: Expert Conferences Connecting Students with Digital Twin Innovation
Best practices Bringing Industry to the Classroom: Expert Conferences Connecting Students with Digital Twin Innovation Users: SMEs, Training providers (public), Training providers (private), Industry | Theme: Indsustry Engagement | Action: Education programmes/courses | Beneficiaries: SMEs | Labour force (employed) DIGITWIN4CIUEDIGITWIN4CIUE Beatriz Martin Bautista Cerro DIGITWIN4CIUE, through the European Center of Excellence in Digitalization of Infrastructures and Cities, offers an Executive Master’s in Digital Twins for Infrastructures and Cities. This program features a flexible academic structure, attracting professionals from various disciplines in the built environment industry.Designed for professionals and engineers passionate about digital transformation in civil engineering, smart cities, and related fields, our program provides comprehensive training in key digital technologies for digital twins in infrastructures. It equips participants with the ability to conceive and develop digital twins to tackle specific challenges in infrastructure planning, design, construction, operation, and management, while also fostering the skills needed to identify business opportunities arising from digital twin technology.The Joint Institutional Executive Master diploma is issued by three of Europe’s top engineering universities: UPM (Spain), ENPC (France), BME (Hungary) and ITU (Turkey). The challenge? How can we ensure that students not only learn about Digital Twins in class but also engage with cutting-edge innovation, industry advancements, and real-world applications?Creating direct connections between students, researchers, and professionals is key to fostering career opportunities, expanding networks, and shaping a future-ready workforce. Our solution To bridge this gap, we established a structured series of expert-led conferences throughout the academic year. These sessions take place every two weeks in both online and in-person formats and are hosted across the five partner universities delivering the master’s program.Through this initiative, students benefit from continuous exposure to industry leaders, researchers, and professionals, allowing them to:• Engage directly with key players in the field• Gain insights into the latest advancements in Digital Twin technology• Participate in discussions that link academic learning with real industry needs Outcomes This initiative fosters a growth-focused learning environment, where students exchange knowledge beyond exams and assessments—driven by curiosity and professional development.Additionally, the in-person conferences enhance networking opportunities, giving students the chance to interact first-hand with guest speakers during dedicated networking sessions. These moments are crucial for establishing connections, exploring career paths, and sparking future collaborations in the rapidly evolving Digital Twin ecosystem. Key takeaways ‘Structured & Recurring Industry Engagement: Organizing expert-led conferences every two weeks ensures continuous exposure to industry leaders and real-world applications, keeping students engaged with cutting-edge advancements.Bridging Academia & Industry: Direct interaction with industry leaders, researchers, and policymakers aligns academic learning with market needs, enhancing career readiness and professional development.Networking & Career Development: Dedicated networking sessions provide students with valuable opportunities to connect with professionals, explore career paths, and foster collaborations in the Digital Twin ecosystem. Learn more here
DIS4SME: Fostering Skills in Location Data Interoperability for the Digital Transformation of SMEs
Best practices Fostering Skills in Location Data Interoperability for the Digital Transformation of SMEs Users: Training providers (public) | Training providers (private) | SMEs | Theme: Programme development | Action: Education programmes/courses | Beneficiaries: SMEs | Labour force (employed) DIS4SMEdis4sme.eu Mayte Toscano The Level “Digital transformation and data interoperability are fundamental pillars of the European Union’s strategy for global competitiveness. The European Data Strategy and the European Digital Strategy seek to create a single market for data, promoting digital sovereignty, accessibility to open data and cross-border cooperation in key sectors such as mobility, agriculture and urban planning.At a legislative level, the EU has adopted several key regulations to ensure secure and equitable access to data: Data Governance Act (DGA): mechanisms to improve the availability of data and regulates the reuse of sensitive public data. Data Act (Data Act): equitable access and use of data generated in the EU, promoting interoperability and innovation. INSPIRE Directive: legal framework for interoperability and accessibility of geospatial data. European Common Data Spaces: data exchange platforms in key sectors. In this framework, location data plays a fundamental role in urban planning, mobility, agriculture and other key sectors. However, SMEs still find it difficult to benefit from these initiatives due to a lack of training and adequate resources. The challenge? Despite the solid regulatory framework and the opportunities offered by the data economy, many European SMEs face significant barriers to the adoption of interoperable solutions: Lack of knowledge and technical skills Lack of awareness of European open data and location standards (INSPIRE, OGC, ISO) or how to apply them Disconnect between regulations and business adoption Lack of alignment between national and European regulations Fragmentation in data governance Complex administrative procedures Resource, money and time constraints According to reports from the OECD and the European Commission, the digital divide between large companies and SMEs is growing, with many small businesses lagging behind in terms of access to and use of digital technologies. Our solution DIS4SME has developed a comprehensive approach based on: Programmes of specific training in location data interoperability, with different modules for managers and technicians. These courses, aimed at managers, technicians and job seekers, cover topics such as: Mobile food market Digital agriculture Social monitoring of road conditions 3D, BIM, Digital Twins for urban planning Learning strategies adapted, with short courses, interactive seminars and digital platforms that allow flexible access to the content. Collaboration with digital innovation hubs to promote synergies between companies, institutions and regulatory bodies. Sector-specific business cases, addressing interoperability in strategic sectors such as precision agriculture, smart mobility and urban planning. Outcomes Development of a curriculum based on 30 Horizontal Learning Outcomes: This structured set of training objectives has made it possible to adapt the content to the specific needs of both managers and technicians in SMEs, guaranteeing the coherence and scalability of the programme. The use of e-learning modules, video tutorials, webinars and practical workshops has provided flexible and accessible training, adapted to the different profiles and availability of SMEs. The initiative has fostered the creation of synergies between SMEs, digital innovation hubs and public bodies, promoting the exchange of knowledge and the adoption of best practices. The bottom-up methodology, based on gathering feedback from participants, has allowed the training content to be refined and optimised, ensuring that the educational offering adjusts to the real demands of the business environment. SMEs have been strengthened to face the challenges of digital transformation, facilitating their integration into the European market and the adoption of solutions based on open data. Key takeaways Adaptability of the training approach: The model of short, modular courses with flexible access allows managers, technicians and job seekers to acquire knowledge without interrupting their daily responsibilities. Public-private collaboration: The participation of digital innovation hubs, regulatory bodies and SMEs has been key to ensuring that the courses respond to the real needs of the sector. Use of open standards: Incorporating standards such as INSPIRE, OGC and ISO facilitates data interoperability and ensures that SMEs can integrate into the digital economy without relying on proprietary solutions. Focus on strategic sectors: Designing courses around real business cases (digital agriculture, mobility, urban planning) makes learning applicable and replicable in different industries. Scalability and replicability: The model can be expanded to other sectors and European countries, adapting to different levels of knowledge and the specific needs of SMEs. 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Enhancing Cybersecurity Training: Effective Learning Strategies, Clear Communication, and Demand-Driven Programs
Best practices Effective Learning Strategies, Clear Communication, and Demand-Driven Programs in Cybersecurity Users: Training providers (public) | Training providers (private) | SMEs | Theme: Reskilling and upskilling | Action: Professional training | Beneficiaries: Industry | SMEs | Labour force (employed) | Labour force (unemployed) CYRUSCYRUS Project Enrico Frumento, CEFRIELAlessia Golfetti, Deep Blue In the constantly evolving realm of cybersecurity, the human aspect is crucial yet frequently underestimated. Cybersecurity involves protecting IT systems from threats posed by cybercriminals. These criminals might aim to manipulate systems, steal or export data, or disrupt or alter services. However, what occurs when individuals, rather than IT systems, become the focus of these attacks? Moving from targeting systems to targeting people necessitates a different methodology and a shift in tactics. The CYRUS European project developed personalised cybersecurity training programmes specifically for the manufacturing and transport sectors. The project identified key findings regarding the distinct skill shortfalls and training necessities within these industries. These sectors’ peculiar challenges are not merely technical. There is a strong request of personalised training to enable employees at every level, from the factory floor to the executive suite, to recognise and counter cybersecurity threats effectively. The other need is the decoding of complexity of cybersecurity, which often is more focused on basic skills and personal cyber hygiene. The challenge? Today, we witness an increasing demand for advanced skills and a chronic lack of dedicated time from learners. Due to these challenges, cybersecurity experts and instructors have explored alternative teaching methodologies in cybersecurity training. Cybersecurity is one of the most challenging areas due to the rapidly changing Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) used in cybercrime. Defensive technologies are keeping up with the same speed of change. This challenge is where CYRUS comes in – experimenting with pedagogical methodologies to enhance and make cybersecurity training more efficient. On one hand EU is heavily investing in creating training opportunities, but with a quite often sub-optimal approach. The result is a crowded panorama of training offerings, sometimes overlapping and of hetereogeneous quality. One of the challenges of CYRUS was to create a training catalogue which is clear, multilingual, prepared with modern pedagogical approach and ground based on which are the real pains of the working forces and companies. Our solution Select the proper learning paradigm among pedagogy, andragogy and heutagogy, especially cybersecurity learning: Instructional methodologies are categorised into four macro areas: Non-Interactive Learning, Interactive Learning, Shared Learning, and Evaluation and Monitoring, each tailored to address the unique needs of adult learners. Non-interactive learning methodologies, rooted in traditional pedagogy, emphasise direct instruction and structured content delivery. Interactive Learning methodologies, informed by andragogical principles, prioritise active engagement and collaboration among learners. Shared Learning methodologies, inspired by heutagogical principles, underscore the importance of community, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing. Evaluation and Monitoring methodologies are crucial in assessing learning outcomes and guiding ongoing improvement efforts. Do massive use of instructional design: The instructional design approach for the CYRUS Project reflects a dynamic and adaptive framework rooted in the principles of pedagogy, Andragogy, and heutagogy. Clarity of language: use the ISO 24495-1:2023 on plain language Ad-hoc training: Root your training catalogue on ground truth, which means the actual pains and lack of companies and people. For example, in the CYRUS project, one of the most requested courses was on personal and corporate cyber hygiene, which reflects the fear of most people of wrongdoing and perils in the cyber realm. We started to affect behavioural shifts in cybersecurity from there. Outcomes CYRUS free Courses catalogue: The CYRUS project is ongoing, and the course catalogue will be delivered in April. Chunk courses, choose the best learning paradigm, and keep content simple (i.e., the KISS approach) but effective: The pilot programs, performed between October 2024 and February 2025, helped us identify some interesting challenges and refine the training content. One of the most significant findings is the necessity to present the material in small, interactive chunks (e.g., chunking was preferred over nudging). This approach aligns with current trends in online training in other educational sectors, but less on cybersecurity, where long and complex courses are still the norm. Basic skills are the most requested: There is a greater demand for basic skills that are immediately applicable to everyday work. For instance, the most requested course was on personal and corporate cyber hygiene to protect themselves, their families and loved ones, and the corporation. Key takeaways Explore and Apply New Learning Paradigms: Effective cybersecurity training requires selecting the right approach or combination of approaches—pedagogy, andragogy, or heutagogy—based on the audience. Given that many learners are professionals balancing work and training, programs must be flexible, engaging, and tailored. Additionally, training programs for trainers are essential to ensure effective knowledge transfer. Cybersecurity Training must go beyond technical skills, behavioural shifts are key: Cybersecurity training is a risk reduction method that enhances an organization’s overall security posture. Training should foster a cultural shift where security is seen as a way to improve both personal and professional well-being. Instead of reinforcing a “”toxic culture of error,”” training should make online security natural and stress-free. The Role of Instructional Design: A strong instructional design framework, like the one used in CYRUS, helps create structured, impactful, and adaptive cybersecurity training programs. Clarity in Communication: Using ISO 24495-1:2023 plain language principles ensures that complex cybersecurity concepts are easily understandable, making training more accessible. Demand-Driven Training for Relevance: Cybersecurity training should be rooted in real-world concerns. In the CYRUS project, cyber hygiene training was in high demand, highlighting the importance of addressing learners’ fears and practical needs. This approach increases adoption and drives meaningful behavioral change. Learn more here
Codesign for Cutting-Edge Digital Skills – The ACHIEVE Model
Best practices Codesign for Cutting-Edge Digital Skills – The ACHIEVE Model Users: Training Providers (Public), Training Providers (Private) | Theme: Industry Engagement | Action: Education Programmes/Courses | Beneficiaries: Training Providers (Public), Training Providers (Private), Industry, SMEs, Learners (STEM background), Labour force (employed) Achieve Achieve Andrea Biancini, Salvatore Moccia A large share of European companies and particularly SMEs report significant difficulty in finding and hiring quality candidates with a sufficient level of advanced digital skills. This problem reflects not only the general lack of ICT graduates and professionals in Europe, but also a mismatch of skills demand and supply, even among professionals with ICT-related backgrounds. Oftentimes, the available academic curricula do not effectively prepare learners for the workforce or equip them with the advanced digital skills required by the industry.The ACHIEVE project serves as a best practice example of how collaborative codesign between academia and industry can revolutionize digital education. By integrating real-world market needs into the curriculum development process, ACHIEVE ensures that learners gain job-ready skills while companies benefit from a highly skilled workforce. The challenge? The rapid evolution of cloud computing, networking infrastructure, and HPC has outpaced the ability of higher education institutions to update curricula, creating a skills gap between graduates and industry needs.Universities tend to emphasise theoretical learning while industry needs practical, hands-on skills. Oftentimes, there is also limited interaction between universities and industry, which leads to curricula missing out on what skills are truly in demand, leaving graduates less prepared for the workplace. Our solution ACHIEVE pioneers a transformative approach to developing next-generation cloud and networking infrastructure education by shifting from a traditional design model to a co-design methodology. By engaging leading academic institutions, industrial partners, and research centers from the outset, the project ensures that its educational programs align with the real-world demands of industry and research. A central pillar of ACHIEVE is its deep integration of academic excellence with industrial expertise. The program establishes strong ties with HPC providers, cloud infrastructure companies, telecom firms, and research institutions, ensuring that students gain both theoretical knowledge and hands-on experience. The curriculum incorporates real-world case studies, industry-led challenges, and applied research projects, enabling students to develop competencies that are immediately applicable in high-demand job markets. Outcomes: Industry-Aligned Education: The curriculum was designed in collaboration with leading cloud providers, telecom companies, and HPC research centers, ensuring graduates acquire in-demand technical skills in AI-driven networking, cloud security, and HPC architectures. Faster Curriculum Adaptation: By engaging industry experts early, the program streamlined the approval process across different national accreditation frameworks, reducing delays and aligning with market needs more effectively. Stronger Industry Participation: Over 30 SMEs and enterprises actively contributed through guest lectures, mentorship, and internship placements, enhancing hands-on training and employability. Increased Student Engagement: The program attracted 250+ students across multiple EU countries, with 85% securing industry placements or research roles within six months of completion. Scalable Certification Model: Introduced stackable micro-credentials in cloud security, AI-driven networking, and HPC optimization, allowing professionals to upskill flexibly while maintaining workforce engagement. Key takeaways Co-design education programs with industry to ensure graduates have the right skills for the job market. Collaborate with companies and SMEs to incorporate and offer internships and real-world projects as part of the curriculum, improving students’ employability. Consider providing modular learning paths and micro-credentials: their flexibility allows for alignment with industry needs and makes upskilling more accessible. Leverage your consortium’s industry connections across countries: cross-border collaboration strengthens knowledge exchange and scalability. Learn more here Case Summary– Context: Fit4internet is a non-profit initiative aimed at enhancing digital literacy across Austria. By using the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT), which identifies key components of digital competencies and aligns with European standards, Fit4internet helps individuals showcase their digital skills. The Fit4internet platform offers a way to track and prove digital competencies, helping with employability and ensuring that the Austrian workforce has the necessary ICT skills to meet market demands. Through the digital skills profile platform, the initiative supports both individual growth and the development of a digitally capable society. Challenge: The challenge faced is managing proof of competencies acquired through various learning methods, including formal education, non-formal training, and informal certifications, which can lead to inconsistent records. Securing sustainable funding to support the continuous development of new digital competencies, ensuring that programs remain up-to-date with evolving market needs. The second main challenge was fostering broad participation and engagement, especially among groups who may lack access to digital tools or education. Identified Approach / Solution: The Fit4internet platform provides a centralised, user-friendly system to manage and showcase digital competencies, aligning with the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Through this platform, individuals can track and showcase their digital skills, making it easier for employers, educators, and organisations to assess their talent. The platform allows users to create an e-portfolio that showcases their digital skills, with the option to share it through a link or as a PDF. This portfolio highlights the digital competencies that a user has acquired, linked to their certificates. These certificates can be formal, non-formal, or informal. The platform also supports the generation of a digital skills profile that showcases the user’s acquired skills. Users earn digital badges as a visual representation of their skills. This allows them to continue with their learning journey, while showing off their competencies to others. Outcomes: Key takeaways: Fit4internet engage multiple stakeholders from academia, industry, and policy to develop holistic and relevant digital competency frameworks. They also use widely applied frameworks to measure skills gaps, enabling better planning for individuals and institutions. By doing this they improve reinsertion rates into the labor force by addressing individuals digital skill gaps and aligning them with market needs. This benefits companies by providing clear insights into the skillsets that are being developed and that are available in the workforce.
Targeted digital skills training for job seekers in Cyprus
Best practices Targeted Digital Skills Training for Job Seekers in Cyprus Users: Training providers (public) | Training providers (private) | Theme: Reskilling and upskilling | Action: Education programmes/courses | Beneficiaries: Industry | SMEs | Learners (STEM background) | Learners (non-STEM background) | Labour force (employed) | Labour force (unemployed) LEVELUPlevelup-skills.eu Dr Celia Hadjichristodoulou Christiana Stylianou Stephani Theophanous The Level Up project supports the upskilling and reskilling of 15,000 business leaders or managers, SME professionals and job seekers in advanced digital skills. It provides industry-relevant, short training courses across Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Italy, Finland, Hungary, and Poland. The business model of such courses is built around practicality, relevance, and wide accessibility, but also requires high engagement rates and meaningful career impact, to ensure they are sustainable in the long run. The challenge? GX set out to train 1,510 people in digital skills from the project’s target audience. However, reaching the final target required a differentiated approach, as the project operated in a competing digital skills training landscape. The main challenge was ensuring high engagement and meaningful participation, despite numerous competing free and paid online training programs. Simply offering digital skills courses was not enough—they needed to be distinctive, highly practical, and directly relevant to participant needs. As revealed through a detailed needs assessment conducted by GX and the Careers Office of one of Cyprus’ largest universities, some of the major barriers to effective digital upskilling included: Existing digital skills training was too broad and lacked practical, industry-specific applications. Many available courses were not offered in Greek, making them less accessible to local professionals and SMEs. Job seekers and SME employees/owners strongly demanded specialised training in AI applications, digital marketing strategies, and no-code development tools. Our solution To address these challenges, Level Up conducted an initial assessment of digital skills gaps within SMEs, identifying thematic areas with the most urgent need for specialised training, i.e. data analytics, social media marketing, advanced Excel, cybersecurity, and Artificial Intelligence (AI), among others. Those thematic areas informed the design of targeted training courses, ensuring alignment with real-world industry demands. The project also incorporated a hybrid learning model, combining online and in-person instruction to maximise accessibility. GX proceeded with launching three targeted digital skills courses, delivered online via Zoom, focusing on: AI fundamentals TikTok marketing for SMEs Website development using no-code tools Outcomes 400 Registrations per session 150 Active participants per session 60 Asynchronous learners watched the course recordings By mid-2024, GX had already trained approximately 800 participants in various digital skills topics, laying the groundwork for the final Phase 2 of the training initiative. By early 2025, with the above high-demand courses and in combination with some additional courses on topics related to PowerBI and Advanced Excel, GX had successfully trained over 1,500 participants, surpassing the project’s initial goal. Feedback from the course evaluation survey indicated that many participants from the three high-demand courses found the training highly relevant and aligned with their needs. This reinforced the importance of specialised and practical digital training, ensuring that courses addressed real-world applications and industry demands. Building on this success, additional seminar-based courses were introduced for various age groups, to ensure continuous learning opportunities and keep up with emerging digital trends. As a VET provider, GX utilised its expertise to expand its course offerings, maintaining relevance and adaptability in digital skills training. In addition, the high engagement rates encouraged new collaborations with instructors from the Level Up project, strengthening the impact and outreach of digital upskilling efforts and allowing for the further development of new training initiatives through organisations like the Human Resource Development Authority of Cyprus (HRDA). Key takeaways Embrace continuous adaptation of digital skills training to reflect emerging trends and participant feedback. Develop and update courses iteratively, based on real-time engagement metrics and evaluations, enhances the long-term impact and sustainability of training initiatives. Collaborate with universities, industry experts, and experienced trainers to improve course quality and expand outreach, ensuring higher participation across diverse demographics. Design modular courses with focus on scalability and adaptability to diverse audiences. Customisation and localisation are essential for advancing engagement, inclusivity, and sustainable digital skills development. Learn more here
Success and challenges in designing industry-oriented master’s programmes
Best practices Success and challenges in designing industry-oriented master’s programmes Users: Industry, SMEs | Theme: Programme Development | Action: Education Programmes/Courses | Beneficiaries: SMEs, Industry, Labour Force (Employed) Digital4Business digital4business.eu Michael Bradford, Assistant Professor in Computing, National College of Ireland Digital4Business (D4B) is an enterprise-led master’s programme, co-created by companies and universities. It aims to minimise the skills gap in SMEs by upskilling business leaders, professionals, and graduates with advanced digital knowledge. The companies involved in the development of this master’s identify where their biggest skill gaps are, and design it with advancement in these areas as the ultimate goal. Due to the industry involvement and focus, felxibility and agility are essential in all aspects of programme development. This includes content creation, accreditation/certification, and logistics (recruitment and enrolment management, course delivery, mobility coordination). The challenge? Securing joint accreditation across multiple countries created a significant challenge, as it required coordination and diverted resources from programme design. Additionally, the development of a centralised digital platform for enrolment, fee management, and course delivery introduced technical complexities, necessitating interoperability, data security, and GDPR compliance. Lastly, ensuring smooth student mobility proved complex due to differences in credit transfers, ECTS allocation, and varying academic calendars, all of which required coordination among institutions. Our solution Formalised Collaborative Agreements: D4B establised a Cooperation Agreement between project partners, along with standardised joint academic quality assurance (QA) processes and procedures to ensure consistency across institutions. Centralised Digital Platform: D4B created an integrated online system for programme delivery and administration, including applications, enrolment, registration, and fee management. Facilitated Student Mobility and Credit Recognition: D4B managed ECTS allocation, credit transfers, and academic schedules to accommodate both part-time and full-time students. Key takeaways Ensure Team Cohesion: Open communication and structured collaboration are maintained through regular meetings and workshops at both consortium and work-package levels, this alignment promotes transparency. Create Targeted Workgroups: Dedicated workgroups address specific challenges by bringing together experts from different areas, ensuring focused problem-solving. Build Transnational Networks: Strong professional connections are fostered by engaging alumni, faculty, and industry organisations, facilitating knowledge exchange, enhancing employability, and supporting long-term collaboration. Learn more here Case Summary– Context: Fit4internet is a non-profit initiative aimed at enhancing digital literacy across Austria. By using the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT), which identifies key components of digital competencies and aligns with European standards, Fit4internet helps individuals showcase their digital skills. The Fit4internet platform offers a way to track and prove digital competencies, helping with employability and ensuring that the Austrian workforce has the necessary ICT skills to meet market demands. Through the digital skills profile platform, the initiative supports both individual growth and the development of a digitally capable society. Challenge: The challenge faced is managing proof of competencies acquired through various learning methods, including formal education, non-formal training, and informal certifications, which can lead to inconsistent records. Securing sustainable funding to support the continuous development of new digital competencies, ensuring that programs remain up-to-date with evolving market needs. The second main challenge was fostering broad participation and engagement, especially among groups who may lack access to digital tools or education. Identified Approach / Solution: The Fit4internet platform provides a centralised, user-friendly system to manage and showcase digital competencies, aligning with the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Through this platform, individuals can track and showcase their digital skills, making it easier for employers, educators, and organisations to assess their talent. The platform allows users to create an e-portfolio that showcases their digital skills, with the option to share it through a link or as a PDF. This portfolio highlights the digital competencies that a user has acquired, linked to their certificates. These certificates can be formal, non-formal, or informal. The platform also supports the generation of a digital skills profile that showcases the user’s acquired skills. Users earn digital badges as a visual representation of their skills. This allows them to continue with their learning journey, while showing off their competencies to others. Outcomes: Key takeaways: Fit4internet engage multiple stakeholders from academia, industry, and policy to develop holistic and relevant digital competency frameworks. They also use widely applied frameworks to measure skills gaps, enabling better planning for individuals and institutions. By doing this they improve reinsertion rates into the labor force by addressing individuals digital skill gaps and aligning them with market needs. This benefits companies by providing clear insights into the skillsets that are being developed and that are available in the workforce.
Developing the ITC Upskilling Initiative for the European Space Association
Best practices Developing the ITC Upskilling Initiative for the European Space Association Users: Industry | Theme: Reskilling and Upskilling | Action: Professional Training | Beneficiaries: Labour Force (Employed) PORINI porini.it Luca Malinverno, Data Scientist, PORINI Porini is a DGS Group company specialising in innovative digital solutions. It was contracted to develop a course for teaching employees of the European Space Association (ESA) the fundamentals of Microsoft Power BI Desktop, a self-reporting tool available for free. The challenge? Porini faced the challenge of training employees with varying levels of technological proficiency. The programme needed to cater to both beginners and advanced professionals, ensuring that all employees, regardless of their technical background, could effectively use Microsoft Power BI Desktop. This required the creation of tailored learning opportunities, providing foundational training for non-technical employees while also offering specialised content for experienced data analysts. The ultimate goal was to ensure that ESA employees across different roles could effectively contribute to data-driven projects using Power BI. Our solution Designed a 14-Month Power BI Training Programme: Designed and delivered a customised training course on Power BI to 500 ESA employees, ensuring a structured and progressive learning experience. Developed a shorter onboarding course based on the Kolb Cycle: Allowed new employees to self-evaluate their grasp of the topics and integrate smoothly into the main programme. Incorporated dynamic course adjustments: Allowed for exercises and content to be tailored based on class performance and individual learning progress. Key takeaways Adapting Course Content to Class Performance is Effective: Starting with fundamentals and adjusting exercises based on participant performance ensures that all learners are engaged and progressing at an appropriate pace. Peer Learning Enhances Understanding: Dividing participants into small groups and encouraging the most skilled individuals to mentor others creates an interactive learning environment, reinforcing knowledge and boosting collaboration Learn more here Case Summary– Context: Fit4internet is a non-profit initiative aimed at enhancing digital literacy across Austria. By using the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT), which identifies key components of digital competencies and aligns with European standards, Fit4internet helps individuals showcase their digital skills. The Fit4internet platform offers a way to track and prove digital competencies, helping with employability and ensuring that the Austrian workforce has the necessary ICT skills to meet market demands. Through the digital skills profile platform, the initiative supports both individual growth and the development of a digitally capable society. Challenge: The challenge faced is managing proof of competencies acquired through various learning methods, including formal education, non-formal training, and informal certifications, which can lead to inconsistent records. Securing sustainable funding to support the continuous development of new digital competencies, ensuring that programs remain up-to-date with evolving market needs. The second main challenge was fostering broad participation and engagement, especially among groups who may lack access to digital tools or education. Identified Approach / Solution: The Fit4internet platform provides a centralised, user-friendly system to manage and showcase digital competencies, aligning with the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Through this platform, individuals can track and showcase their digital skills, making it easier for employers, educators, and organisations to assess their talent. The platform allows users to create an e-portfolio that showcases their digital skills, with the option to share it through a link or as a PDF. This portfolio highlights the digital competencies that a user has acquired, linked to their certificates. These certificates can be formal, non-formal, or informal. The platform also supports the generation of a digital skills profile that showcases the user’s acquired skills. Users earn digital badges as a visual representation of their skills. This allows them to continue with their learning journey, while showing off their competencies to others. Outcomes: Key takeaways: Fit4internet engage multiple stakeholders from academia, industry, and policy to develop holistic and relevant digital competency frameworks. They also use widely applied frameworks to measure skills gaps, enabling better planning for individuals and institutions. By doing this they improve reinsertion rates into the labor force by addressing individuals digital skill gaps and aligning them with market needs. This benefits companies by providing clear insights into the skillsets that are being developed and that are available in the workforce.
Industry-oriented hackathon to drive SME involvement in master programme design
Best practices Industry-oriented hackathon to drive SME involvement in master programme design Users: Training providers (public), Industry, SMEs | Theme: Industry engagement | Action: Stakeholder collaboration | Beneficiaries: Learners (STEM background), Learners (non-STEM background, Labour force (employed), Labour force (unemployed) MERIT digitalmerit.eu Simona Ramanauskaite, Full professor and senior researcher, Vilnius GediminasTechnical University MERIT is developing master’s degrees and short-term courses in AI, cybersecurity and IoT, with the participation of NGOs, non-profits, research organisations, companies and SMEs. These are delivered by technical universities across Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Italy and Spain. Having consistent, hands-on engagement from industry is fundamental to the project’s operational model and objectives. The challenge? A key challenge in the MERIT project was accurately identifying potential industry collaboration opportunities. As many study programmes were still in development by the time the project had to initiate outreach, persuading companies to commit in the initiative proved challenging. SMEs often faced limited human and time resources, making it difficult for them to participate in surveys, provide input for curriculum design, or test different concepts. Additionally, study programme flexibility was constrained by national accreditation requirements, limiting the ability to tailor courses to SMEs’ needs. Our solution The project created the annual MERIThON event, where SMEs proposed challenges, mentored participants, and explored innovative solutions relevant to their business needs. This initiative provided SMEs with a low-commitment way to engage with the programme while benefiting from fresh ideas. Established SME-University Partnerships: They developed collaborations between SMEs and study programmes, leading to joint activities such as guest lectures, employee recruitment, internships, and research projects. Outcomes: The presence and active participation of industry representatives strengthened the relationship between the industry and academia. Students were able to gain real-world insights and network with professionals by taking on tasks from their real world situations. The first MERIThON set the stage for a consistent link between like-minded individuals, who would like to work together to continue the innovation development of Artificial Intelligence Key takeaways Introductory Meetings with Leading Enterprises: Regularly organise meetings between SMEs and large enterprises to highlight the benefits of collaboration and encourage SME participation. Engaging SMEs through Personal Contacts & EDIHs: Strengthen engagement by reaching out to SMEs via personal networks and European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs),developing trust and participation. Step-by-Step Programme Development: Implement an approach where the study programme is broken down into phases and targeted feedback is gathered at each stage to ensure SME needs are fulfilled. Learn more here Case Summary– Context: Fit4internet is a non-profit initiative aimed at enhancing digital literacy across Austria. By using the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT), which identifies key components of digital competencies and aligns with European standards, Fit4internet helps individuals showcase their digital skills. The Fit4internet platform offers a way to track and prove digital competencies, helping with employability and ensuring that the Austrian workforce has the necessary ICT skills to meet market demands. Through the digital skills profile platform, the initiative supports both individual growth and the development of a digitally capable society. Challenge: The challenge faced is managing proof of competencies acquired through various learning methods, including formal education, non-formal training, and informal certifications, which can lead to inconsistent records. Securing sustainable funding to support the continuous development of new digital competencies, ensuring that programs remain up-to-date with evolving market needs. The second main challenge was fostering broad participation and engagement, especially among groups who may lack access to digital tools or education. Identified Approach / Solution: The Fit4internet platform provides a centralised, user-friendly system to manage and showcase digital competencies, aligning with the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Through this platform, individuals can track and showcase their digital skills, making it easier for employers, educators, and organisations to assess their talent. The platform allows users to create an e-portfolio that showcases their digital skills, with the option to share it through a link or as a PDF. This portfolio highlights the digital competencies that a user has acquired, linked to their certificates. These certificates can be formal, non-formal, or informal. The platform also supports the generation of a digital skills profile that showcases the user’s acquired skills. Users earn digital badges as a visual representation of their skills. This allows them to continue with their learning journey, while showing off their competencies to others. Outcomes: Key takeaways: Fit4internet engage multiple stakeholders from academia, industry, and policy to develop holistic and relevant digital competency frameworks. They also use widely applied frameworks to measure skills gaps, enabling better planning for individuals and institutions. By doing this they improve reinsertion rates into the labor force by addressing individuals digital skill gaps and aligning them with market needs. This benefits companies by providing clear insights into the skillsets that are being developed and that are available in the workforce.
Assessing and recognising individually acquired digital competencies through the digital skills profile platform
Best practices Assessing and recognising individually acquired digital competencies through the digital skills profile platform Users: Industry, SMEs | Theme: Accreditation & Certification | Action: Framework /Methodology | Beneficiaries: Labour Force Employed, Labour Force Unemployed, Learners (Non-STEM Background). fit4internet fit4internet.at Valerie Michaelis, Deputy Seretary General, fit4internet, Pact for Skills and Digital Skills and Jobs Coallition fit4Internet is a non-profit initiative aimed at enhancing digital literacy across Austria. By using the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT), which identifies key components of digital competencies and aligns with European standards, fit4internet helps individuals showcase their digital skills. The fit4internet platform offers a way to track and prove digital competencies, helping with employability and ensuring that the Austrian workforce has the necessary ICT skills to meet market demands. Through the digital skills profile platform, the initiative supports both individual growth and the development of a digitally capable society. The challenge? A key challenge for fit4internet was ensuring consistent proof of digital competencies acquired through different learning methods, including formal education, non-formal training, and informal certifications. A lack of standardised system led to records being inconsistent, which made it difficult for individuals to effectively showcase their digital skills. Another major challenge was ensuring broad participation, particularly among individuals with limited access to digital tools or education, ensuring that no group was left behind. Our solution Fit4internet developed a user-friendly system that tracks, manages, and showcases digital competencies, aligning with the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT) and European Qualifications Framework (EQF). It introduced an e-portfolio feature that allowed users to showcase their digital competencies through a shareable link or PDF, which made it easier for employers, educators, and organisations to assess skills. Finally, it enabled users to create their own digital skills profile page and visualise their acquired competencies. A digital badge system was introduced to provide a recognisable and structured way for individuals to demonstrate their proficiency and track their learning journey. Outcomes +160,000 Individuals reached and counting with the various fit4internet Digcomp-based assesment tools Key takeaways Collaborate with different stakeholders, such as institutions, industry, and policymakers to validate holistic and relevant digital competency frameworks, ensuring a well-rounded approach to digital skills development. Use existing frameworks to effectively measure skills gaps, helping individuals and institutions plan better and align training with market demands. Support labour market reinsertion by addressing digital skill gaps, ensuring individuals are job-ready while providing companies with clear insights into available skill sets in the workforce. Learn more here Digital Skills Profile – home page The Digital Skills Profile platform Job-Sceener (for German users only) Digital Skills Profile – home page The Digital Skills Profile platform Job-Sceener (for German users only) Case Summary– Context: Fit4internet is a non-profit initiative aimed at enhancing digital literacy across Austria. By using the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT), which identifies key components of digital competencies and aligns with European standards, Fit4internet helps individuals showcase their digital skills. The Fit4internet platform offers a way to track and prove digital competencies, helping with employability and ensuring that the Austrian workforce has the necessary ICT skills to meet market demands. Through the digital skills profile platform, the initiative supports both individual growth and the development of a digitally capable society. Challenge: The challenge faced is managing proof of competencies acquired through various learning methods, including formal education, non-formal training, and informal certifications, which can lead to inconsistent records. Securing sustainable funding to support the continuous development of new digital competencies, ensuring that programs remain up-to-date with evolving market needs. The second main challenge was fostering broad participation and engagement, especially among groups who may lack access to digital tools or education. Identified Approach / Solution: The Fit4internet platform provides a centralised, user-friendly system to manage and showcase digital competencies, aligning with the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Through this platform, individuals can track and showcase their digital skills, making it easier for employers, educators, and organisations to assess their talent. The platform allows users to create an e-portfolio that showcases their digital skills, with the option to share it through a link or as a PDF. This portfolio highlights the digital competencies that a user has acquired, linked to their certificates. These certificates can be formal, non-formal, or informal. The platform also supports the generation of a digital skills profile that showcases the user’s acquired skills. Users earn digital badges as a visual representation of their skills. This allows them to continue with their learning journey, while showing off their competencies to others. Outcomes: Key takeaways: Fit4internet engage multiple stakeholders from academia, industry, and policy to develop holistic and relevant digital competency frameworks. They also use widely applied frameworks to measure skills gaps, enabling better planning for individuals and institutions. By doing this they improve reinsertion rates into the labor force by addressing individuals digital skill gaps and aligning them with market needs. This benefits companies by providing clear insights into the skillsets that are being developed and that are available in the workforce.
Porini’s Post-Grad Intensive Academy for upskilling employees
Best practices Porini’s Post-Grad Intensive Academy for upskilling employees Users: Industry | Theme: Reskilling and Upskilling | Action: Professional Training | Beneficiaries: Labour force Employed PORINI porini.it Luca Malinverno, Data Scientist, PORINI Porini is a DGS Group company specialising in innovative digital solutions. It was asked to design a custom course for its client’s 12 new entry-level employees. The objective was to familiarise them with company-specific methodologies and software, and facilitate their transition from university to work. The challenge? Porini faced the challenge of designing an effective onboarding programme for a group of 12 new employees with varying levels of academic qualifications (bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD) and different professional backgrounds in ICT. The training needed to ensure that all employees, regardless of their prior experience, could adapt to the company’s specific methodologies and software while seamlessly transitioning from academia to industry. Our solution Created a structured onboarding programme based on the Kolb Cycle: Allowed all employees to self-evaluate their grasp of key topics and progress at their own pace. Designed course content that catered to varying levels of expertise: Ensured that employees with different academic and professional backgrounds could engage meaningfully with company-specific methodologies and tools. Key takeaways Hands-On Labs Enhance Learning: Incorporating real-life scenarios and practical use cases throughout the course provided employees with a better understanding of how to apply company methodologies in real-world projects. Structured Learning is Essential: Clearly defining a step-by-step learning path from the outset helped prevent fragmented learning experiences, ensuring that technologies and data analysis stages were presented as interconnected processes rather than independent components. Learn more here Case Summary– Context: Fit4internet is a non-profit initiative aimed at enhancing digital literacy across Austria. By using the Digital Competence Framework (DigComp AT), which identifies key components of digital competencies and aligns with European standards, Fit4internet helps individuals showcase their digital skills. The Fit4internet platform offers a way to track and prove digital competencies, helping with employability and ensuring that the Austrian workforce has the necessary ICT skills to meet market demands. Through the digital skills profile platform, the initiative supports both individual growth and the development of a digitally capable society. Challenge: The challenge faced is managing proof of competencies acquired through various learning methods, including formal education, non-formal training, and informal certifications, which can lead to inconsistent records. Securing sustainable funding to support the continuous development of new digital competencies, ensuring that programs remain up-to-date with evolving market needs. The second main challenge was fostering broad participation and engagement, especially among groups who may lack access to digital tools or education. Identified Approach / Solution: The Fit4internet platform provides a centralised, user-friendly system to manage and showcase digital competencies, aligning with the European Qualifications Framework (EQF). Through this platform, individuals can track and showcase their digital skills, making it easier for employers, educators, and organisations to assess their talent. The platform allows users to create an e-portfolio that showcases their digital skills, with the option to share it through a link or as a PDF. This portfolio highlights the digital competencies that a user has acquired, linked to their certificates. These certificates can be formal, non-formal, or informal. The platform also supports the generation of a digital skills profile that showcases the user’s acquired skills. Users earn digital badges as a visual representation of their skills. This allows them to continue with their learning journey, while showing off their competencies to others. Outcomes: Key takeaways: Fit4internet engage multiple stakeholders from academia, industry, and policy to develop holistic and relevant digital competency frameworks. They also use widely applied frameworks to measure skills gaps, enabling better planning for individuals and institutions. By doing this they improve reinsertion rates into the labor force by addressing individuals digital skill gaps and aligning them with market needs. This benefits companies by providing clear insights into the skillsets that are being developed and that are available in the workforce.