Conference on Guidance for Workforce Development

The Conference will bring together representatives of the Social Partners, Public Employment Services, Guidance providers and researchers. Participants will compare and contrast their experience and approaches and consider what the challenges and implications are for the different stakeholders in broadening access to guidance for employed adults.

The main focus of the Conference is to develop an understanding of the range of provision of career guidance for people in employment and identify options the various stakeholders could pursue to broaden access to guidance provision for people in employment. The Conference will bring together policymakers at both European and national level, representatives of the social partners and public employment services, guidance practitioners and researchers.

The achievement of the Lisbon agenda will very much depend on how citizens are equipped to manage labour market changes more effectively, in the opportunities people are given to develop their skills, as well as in the information, advice and guidance they obtain to manage their careers. This is particularly important if the shift to a knowledge economy is to be accompanied by greater social cohesion. However, the international reviews undertaken by the OCDE, Cedefop, ETF and the World Bank suggest that a very small proportion of the workforce in Europe has access to some form of guidance service.

In 2006, Cedefop commissioned a study on guidance provision in the workplace. The study has delivered an overview of guidance provision, and identified examples of good practices developed by the social partners, public employment services, national and European projects. The outcomes of the study will provide the background for this Conference, where we intend to examine the state of play in guidance provision for employed people, and reflect on concrete strategies to broaden access to guidance services. The examples of good practices identified in the study, together with other interesting case studies proposed by participants and keynote speakers, will provide the ground for discussion at the workshops.

The Conference will consider the following issues:

• the role of public policies and Public Employment Services in the development of guidance provision for employed people;
• the opportunities and challenges offered by web-based guidance services and self-help delivery modes;
• the provision of guidance by the social partners;
• and guidance delivery to older workers and workers in restructuring industries and enterprises.

Please note that as of 31 May registration is closed.