<< Background >>This project has emerged from work being undertaken by the project partners and in response to discussions between the partners on how new skill needs can best be addressed.The advancement of digital technologies, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, automation and new forms of work and work organisation, has wide-ranging economic and societal implications now and in the future. At the same time the shift towards more sustainable and green economies are reshaping labour market demand and supply.The twin digital and green transitions and the disruptions induced by COVID-19 are bringing about significant structural changes in labour markets and will fundamentally change the skills requirements of many jobs. This increases the importance of building skills and new career pathways throughout life to bridge skills gaps, support labour market transitions and foster social inclusion (EC Pact for Skills, 2021, Consultation on Individual Learning Accounts).At the same time, a high and increasing share of workers are in atypical forms of work, including part-time work, temporary work, fixed-term work, casual and seasonal work, platform work and self-employment. Coupled with an increasing number of labour market transitions throughout one’s working life, this means that an increasing share of individuals are at risk of not receiving sufficient support for training from an employer (European Parliament resolution of 19 January 2017 on a European Pillar of Social Rights).Such a situation requires access to labour market intelligence for both those unemployed and those whose jobs are at risk due to AI and automation and the changing labour market including intelligence on new skills and job needs and access to training. Many existing workers will require training for these new skills and there is the need for new skills pathways for those seeking skilled work. Education and training providers also need timely information on future demand. Robust and actionable labour market and skills intelligence offers a compass for developing effective skills and productivity policies.Using skills intelligence tools in isolation is no longer sufficient to capture the nature, breadth and direction of changes in skill needs (Cedefop, 2021, Getting the future right: Towards smarter and people-centred skills intelligence). A key challenge is how best to make the most of evolving skills intelligence in a rapidly changing world and how such intelligence can be accessed. Historical trends alone no longer provide sufficient evidence for strategic public investment decisions. The Career Pathways project will develop and test new tools, providing access to labour market and skills intelligence to job seekers, those looking for training, education and training providers, employers and for regional policymakers.The project plans to address the need for career pathways for those seeking to develop skills for future employment and the need for VET organisations to provide new learning opportunities for individuals to acquire these skills. It also addresses the need identified by Cedefop for new tools for careers and employment professionals to support adults (especially those with low skills) in identifying new skills and employment possibilities.<< Objectives >>Organisations including Cedefop, OECD and Nesta have recognised the challenge that Covid 19 and changing technology brings for work in the future and the need for new skills. According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, 54% of employees will require significant re-/upskilling by 2022. Significant skills shortages are emerging in European countries and at the same time lower skilled workers are facing increasing difficulty in finding jobs. There is a clear need for new skills, but traditional skills anticipation systems are too slow for the present speed of change and vocational education and training is not able to provide the opportunities needed to support skills required by employees.Cedefop have developed the Skills OVATE platform providing access to near real time labour market intelligence and Nesta have developed an algorithm to query ESCO data finding occupations for adults based on the extension of existing skills.However further work is needed to convert this promising work in VET to something which can benefit individuals and organisations including those seeking new ‘good’ jobs and VET organisations providing training opportunities. A present problem in many countries is the lack of transparent progression and access routes in VET towards acquiring the skills needed for new jobs. This is at the heart of what we want to achieve in the project.Working together with local VET providers and building on the work on Cedefop and Nesta we want to provide labour market intelligence that can offer support and ideas for those seeking to improve their skills through identity and career pathways.We also want to provide labour market intelligence that can assist VETproviders in offering training in skills presently and in the future in demand in their region. Finally we want to provide tools that can assist careers and employment advisers in offering advice and assistance to adults seeking new jobs and skills.Thus, the objectives of our project are to:a) Analyse present and future skills demands in different occupations;b) Provide careers pathways to training and employment for unemployed people and those at risk of unemployment;c) Provide data for employers, policymakers, planners and vocational education and training providers on skills and training demand related to national and regional markets;d) Train career advisors in institutions and Public Employment Services in using the Career Pathway tools.<< Implementation >>The activities will be undertaken by the project partners together with networks of associate partners in each country as part of a co-design and development process.The first stage in that process will be the identification of career pathways offering progression through VET for unemployed and low skilled workers to gain the skills for work in new ‘good’ jobs. These jobs will build on their existing skills.The careers pathways will be tested by at least 500 users in each of the partner countries. This work will include collaboration with Cedefop and Nesta, among other European organisations.The second will be the development of the Career Pathway Labour Market and Skills Data hub that will provide data for employers, policymakers, planners and vocational education and training providers on skills and training demand related to national and regional markets based on the Cedefop Skills OVATE data offering near real time data on skills demands.Once more, this work will be undertaken together with the members of the Associate Partner network and tested and evaluated in use by these networks.The partners will undertake an extended training needs analysis for Open Educational resources and face-to-face and online workshops delivered through the Career Pathways Professional Experience space for careers and employment advisers and for VET managers and staff in how to use Labour Market Intelligence, career pathways and the career pathways tools as part of their professional practice.The activities will be monitored on an ongoing basis, with regular feedback for associate partners allowing the review and interative design of activities and results.<< Results >>The project is expected to produce important results both on an individual and a community level. For the main target group for the project (adults, either seeking work or seeking a new job or training) are expected to have access to valuable labour market intelligence, they can assess their present skills and experience and match that to occupations which build on those skills and knowledge. For partners the project offers an opportunity to develop career pathways linked to national and regional skills demands and economic development and potentially to recruit new learners (especially adult learners).There will be three major groups of products designed to achieve these results :1. The first is the identification of career pathways offering progression through VET for unemployed and low skilled workers to gain the skills for work in new ‘good’ jobs. These jobs will build on their existing skills.2. The second group of results will be the my Career Pathway Labour Market and Skills Data hub that will provide data for employers, policymakers, planners and vocational education and training providers on skills and training demand related to national and regional markets based on the Cedefop Skills OVATE data offering near real time data on skills demands.3. The third group of results will be the Career Pathways Professional Experience space which will be designed for professionals working in careers development and guidance, Public Employment Services and VET to learn about the Career Pathways tools, how they can be used in professional practice and how to interpret and make sense from the data.All products will be available under open licenses. They are expected to have a major impact after the project in both the main target group but also in VET providers, career advisors, education planners and policymakers. The outcomes of the project will be sustainable, involving participation from local VET providers and economic actors, and provide a foundation for the skill-based economy.In addition to the three explicit outcomes, we expect the following results:- Effective dissemination throughout the project from 4 newsletters (distribution 2,000 contacts across the EU), project public Facebook page (300 likes), Project / Partner website (5,000 visits) with the result of increased awareness of the project across all European projects.- Multiplier events: The events will be held at month 31 of the project in each of the participating countries and will promote the results of the project.- Evaluation and quality assurance strategy, which gives an overview of the evaluation activities within the project.