The so-called ‘digital revolution’ is changing the world in which we live and work. Trends such as home-working and globalisation are contributing to increased use of remote teams. Team members and teams are becoming increasingly geographically dispersed: team members might work just a few kilometres from their colleagues, or in different countries and time zones. Whilst remote teams bring benefits for both employers and individuals, they also bring some new challenges, especially for team leaders and managers. TeamMate 360 developed a new set of VET resources to help team leaders, managers and organisations to adapt to and improve the management of remote teams and team members. Project partners developed a new, multi-lingual, on-line 360° assessment tool called, ‘TeamMate 360’. The tool was based upon a set of 72 observable behaviours, organised into a set of 24 Specific Skills sub divided into a set of six Core Skills: -Developing Team Plans-Team Leadership-Team Communication-Working as a Team-Performance Management-Exploiting Technology. After being trained and recognised as certified ‘360-degree Feedback Coaches’, a team of 10 VET coaches planned and implemented seven national pilot assessment exercises. In total 125 team leaders and managers completed the TeamMate 360 assessment with around 100 taking part in a new VET course called ‘The Remote Manager’. The data from the TeamMate 360 assessments was analysed resulting in a set of seven national benchmark reports plus a comparative analysis of the skills and behaviours of managers from the UK, Romania, Spain, Italy, Greece, Ireland and Bulgaria. Based on the pilot testing phase of the TeamMate 360 assessment exercise and the delivery of the Remote Manager courses, a Best Practice Guide to 360-degree assessment was prepared. In addition to a wide range of dissemination activities, the project culminated with the delivery of a series of six national conferences including the UK conference hosted by the Chartered Management Institute. During the conferences, participants learned about the design and use of the TeamMate 360 assessment tool, the project results and impact. In addition to impacting on team leaders and managers and building new national and European capacity and capability in the use of 360-degree assessment and feedback, the Erasmus+ project also provided ‘proof of concept’. Consequently, partners have ambitious plans for the continued use of the tool including adding more languages training more ‘360-degree Feedback Coaches’ and developing other editions of the 360-assessment tools including a version for Directors and Coaches.

Not all entrepreneurs / business owners / managers have a background in business and management. However, all of them need to master some knowledge regarding, precisely, business and management. Is, being aware of this context and the difficulties that aspiring entrepreneurs experience in their quest to become business persons that the project was created.As such, the Your Business Success (YBS) project developed an approach to enable the primary target group (aspiring entrepreneurs and business owner/managers of micro and small enterprises) to prepare practical and performance-focused business plans. This was achieved through the development of a new digital business planning tool and methodology supported by a new VET course and learning resources. The YBS digital business planning and management tool help participants to prepare business plans where the enterprise’s objectives are linked to and supported by operational plans, VET training and employees' skills, competences and performance targets. Partners created a new VET curriculum and course called Your Business Success. The project increased the quality of VET provision in the field of entrepreneurship and enterprise support through the delivery of a C1 training the trainer course. Once trained as YBS Coaches, the VET teacher/trainers can deliver the YBS VET course to the target group, thereby developing their knowledge and understanding of business planning and the use of the YBS digital planning tool. The project contributed to the development of an increased sense of entrepreneurship within the primary target group. It also increased the digital competence of VET teacher/trainers by exposing them to the effective use of digital technologies in the delivery of enterprise VET courses. At the end of the YBS project, Partners have created a new training course that promotes the use of innovative methods and a new pedagogical approach to the delivery of business and enterprise planning and management; Partners have created a new open education resource relevant to a wide range of different audiences, including aspiring entrepreneurs, business owners and managers and enterprise support agencies and VET institutes engaging in enterprise training. Partners seek to widen the impact of the project beyond the immediate target groups by preparing a good practice guide in the form of a book (Output 3: Best Practice Handbook: Planning for Business Success). Through the dissemination activities and the multiplier events (E1 - E6), Partners tried to influence the strategies and initiatives supported and sponsored by a range of other VET actors and stakeholders (e.g. regional/national government agencies, VET centres and education institutes, business support agencies and awarding bodies with responsibility for and/or an interest in raising interest in entrepreneurship and the development of micro and small enterprises).

"Research shows that the implementation and uptake of High-performance Work Practices (HWP) practices within an organisation positively correlates with the rate of organisational growth, increased organisational profitability, higher job satisfaction, lower staff turnover and greater innovation and creativity within the workplace. HWP is defined as: ""a general approach to managing organisations that aims to stimulate more effective employee involvement and commitment in order to achieve high levels of performance… designed to enhance the discretionary effort employees put into their work, and to fully utilise the skills that they possess.’ Coaching MAPs (C-MAP) aims to help team leaders, mangers and organisations to improve their performance using a new coaching methodology called C-MAPs.C-MAP will develop a new pedagogical approach to work-based coaching. The project will enable two target groups of participants to access continuing VET opportunities training, thereby contributing to the priority relating to enhancing training for all. Firstly, C-MAP will train VET teachers/trainers in the use and delivery of the C-MAP methodology and VET course (IO1) and C-MAP Toolkit (IO2). The final Output will be a practical ‘how to-style’ guide called, Handbook for Work-Based Coaches.The project will impact on skills and performance of team leaders and managers as they will learn and implement new performance, solution-focused coaching techniques and skills in their workplace. As a result of C-MAP, both target groups will be better placed to further develop and support the skills and competences of others in the workplace using the C-MAP methodology.C-MAP will result in a new and innovative VET Curriculum and course designed to help 'the forgotten middle manager' to become a high-performance work-based coach using the new C-MAP methodology and course (IO1), the C-MAP Toolkit (IO2) and the newly created Handbook for Work-based Coaches (IO3). The project involves partners from Ireland, the UK, Portugal, the Netherlands, Italy and Bulgaria."

Human activities create waste. The way this waste is handled and disposed of, exposes the environment and public health to risks. Waste collection helps maintain cities clean and protects from diseases and hence is considered one of the most dangerous occupations while municipal waste represents the greatest and most diverse set of hazards of all waste management aspects. Waste collecting and municipal urban cleaning exposes workers to a variety of risk factors such as dust, bioaerosols, volatile organic matter and mechanical stress, which make them susceptible to certain occupational diseases. Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the cleaning industry is considered front line in terms of exposure. Collecting waste is a physically demanding job, associated with a high prevalence various disorders while the cleaning industry suffers from a negative public perception because of associations with dirt and waste aggravated also by discrimination, for example by gender or ethnicity. Although the health and safety needs of Municipality Urban Cleaners (MUC) are well defined in the international research, training for these employees is limited and not repetitive. Usually MUC receive a short introduction to the job which is not followed by frequent training. This project aims to improve health and safety of MUCs.The specific objectives are to:1.Develop an interactive training curriculum reflecting the specific needs of MUC and their supervisors 2.Increase knowledge, skills and competencies in order to identify and control occupational hazards, motivate involvement and build ownership in safety culture3.Evaluate the efficiency of an innovative educational practice, in health and safety, tailor made for MUC.4.Establish communication channels for hazard reporting so workers know who to contact and how to prevent a potential accident5.Impact VET and educational systems in accommodating changes to academic curricula for health and safety professionalsThe principal target group of the MUC-training for health project includes MUC workers and their representatives as well as supervisors and employers. In addition we aim to reach related researchers, scientists and policy makers.The project will train over 18 staff members and 100 members of the target groups through the e-learning platform. Through the multiplier events over 160 participants will be approached, while through the project dissemination an audience more than 1,000 stakeholders will be reached.The main activities of the project include: (1)Country and EU reports on the state of health and training opportunities of MUC(2)Focus groups to give voice to MUC in terms of training needs and expectations (3)Development of training (4)Co creation activities and a joint staff training event(5)Development of an e-learning platform and relevant training of MUCs (6)Guidance for VET providers and academic institutionsThe consortium includes 6 partners from Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Bulgaria and Poland of which 3 are municipalities and 3 scientific research organizations with a particular interest in health and safety of MUC. The methodology includes review and research activities to describe the state of the art while participatory and co creation activities will ensure that the target group’s needs and expectations are taken into consideration. Training will be available from an e-learning platform. The “Guidance and recommendations for VET trainers” will provide guidelines for VET providers and stakeholders for further exploitation of the training. Multiplier transnational and national events will enhance exchange of knowledge between the target groups, VET and service providers, relevant authorities at local/regional level, professional associations, academic institutions, government services and policymakers at national/European level.This novel initiative will increase participants’ competence on health and safety issues of MUC being front line workers especially during public health emergencies such as the current COVID-19 pandemic. MUC workers will be able to (1) recognize and understand the importance of workplace hazards, (2) identify common workplace hazards, (3) understand how to reduce/control risks (4) know how to react in an emergency (5) know their safety-related rights and responsibilities at work and finally (6) know whom to talk to about health and safety issues at the workplace. The long term impact of the project is to improve the quality of life of MUC as well as their job satisfaction and performance. It will provide hands-on guidelines, evaluated practices and material that can be easily adopted by anyone interested. Furthermore, the e-learning platform, available in multiple languages, will be accessible after project completion. The project envisions to contribute to the specialized training received by MUC workers involved in urban waste cleaning and hence to the health and well-being of cities.

Coastal and maritime tourism is the largest maritime activity in Europe and closely linked to many other parts of the economy. It employs almost 3.2 million people, generating a total of € 183 billion in gross value added and representing over one third of the maritime economy. Coastal areas are important for growth and jobs, however, many of the small- and medium-sized enterprises that make up the sector struggle with a variety of challenges and cannot adequately exploit this potential alone. An healthy environment and high-quality services — by specialised and well-trained entrepreneurs and workers— will make coastal areas more appealing for marine and nautical tourism activities, sports, and green tourism. OBJECTIVES The general objective of the proposed project is to boost entrepreneurs’ competences, enhance their services and support their competitiveness in marine sector at EU level. Specific objectives are: - SO1: Improve the institutional ecosystem identifying best practices and replicable models. - SO2: Train the trainers in order to support entrepreneurs and want to-be entrepreneurs in adapting their businesses to current market, where a large part of customers are interested in support environmental-sustainable businesses. - SO3: Encourage the creation of new businesses focused on blue economy (touristic businesses mainly) with a business model which integrate business competitiveness/growth and environmental protection. The project aims at filling the gap of the skills related to the entrepreneurs of the maritime sector. TARGET GROUP Direct Target: educators, trainers, teachers which support entrepreneurs and business creation, entrepreneurs active in marine tourism, want to-be-entrepreneurs in marine tourism Indirect target: policy makers, public authorities, tourists SIX PARTNERS from 5 countries will take part to this project: - Leader is The Maltese Italian Chamber of Commerce (MICC) is a non-profit organization whose aim is to develop and increase business opportunities; - Varna Economic Development Agency (VEDA) is a not-for-profit, non-governmental association; - Coopération Bancaire pour l’Europe is a Brussels-based European Economic Interest Grouping (EEIG) - Sociedade Portuguesa de Inovação (SPI) is a private consulting company, created in 1997, as an active centre of national and international networks connected to the SME and innovation sectors. - FVB (The Hive) is a “certified business incubator” delegated to promote the birth and development of innovative start-ups; - The University of Malta (UM) it is the highest teaching institution of the State. Two Associated partners will support the project activities along with Dissemination and Sustainability: - University Maritime Platform (Malta) - Department of Geosciences (Malta) Description of ACTIVITIES: - project management activities; - quality assurance and evaluation activities; - learning outcomes and quality indicators; - Online Interactive map of Best Practices & Repository of training courses, experts' interviews and datas; - BLUESPROUt training programme; - Interactive (E-learning)Training platform; - project web site (design and programming, content); - testing and piloting activities; - dissemination activities; METHODOLOGY: designed to incorporate necessary research, design, testing, production, implementation, exploitation and sustainability phases. Activities are scheduled to allow for essential reflection and inputs both by the consortium partners and target groups. PROJECT ACTIVITIES RESULTS will be clearly related to the specific objectives of the project. IMPACT: increased competences of blue entrepreneurs, want to-be entrepreneurs, workers, learners, trainers and techers; increased awareness of participants (at local, national, European level) about opportunities and innovative trends (as the application of the principles for a sustainable Blue Economy) in the coastal and marine touristic sector. PARTICIPANTS: number of participants from the target group and potential beneficiaries: 500