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The Automotive Skills Alliance continues its work in preparation for the launch of the first pilot projects on re-upskilling the workforce in the mobility sector. The two meetings held this month have been fruitful in providing ideas and gathering feedback from stakeholders to better shape the next steps of the Alliance.

On Wednesday 2 June, ASA Working Group 3 on Skills Intelligence met for an insight into the area of assessing the skills needs and offer in new technology areas, organised by Hydrogen Europe and the Ostrava University, leader of the group. Simon Heylens, Senior Trainer from Toyota Motor Europe, presented an overview of the company strategy to achieve climate targets using new technologies such as hydrogen and explained how the technical training needs to be modified to ensure that this implementation is delivered in parcel with a sufficient supply of trained and qualified workers.

The whole value chain needs to adapt to the new demands, and from the perspective of vehicle manufacturers and dealerships, the adaptation of the training material is key to ensure that the mission is accomplished and that the customer can ultimately benefit from these new technologies. During the session, it was presented how the obstacles posed by COVID-19 have been overcome, and that the training offer in the automotive sector has now been adapted to facilitate the success of the overall skills strategy.

The training offer consists of a variety of levels, from creating awareness around new technologies, vehicle maintenance, reparations, and diagnosis. This needs to be adapted to different levels and actors involved in the process, to ensure that knowledge is transferred along the chain. Working group 3 will keep evaluating the skills needs for the challenges ahead, in close cooperation with industry experts.

Also, during June, the  ASA Working Group 4 met on Friday 18 June, to debate the regional implementation, and ensure that  all stakeholders at the regional level, from companies to training providers are involved

Organised by ETRMA, leader of the WG4 on the Regional Implementation, the first part of the meeting was dedicated to analysing the demands and impressions given by the regional partners gathered from previous discussions. The goal was to identify the major difficulties associated with preparing an up/reskilling programme. These challenges included the definition of objectives, getting in touch with stakeholders, identifying drivers of change, and promoting sectoral training, among others.

During the second part of the meeting, ASA had the chance to listen to the best practices and proposals from one of the regions that are most advanced in the field of automotive workforce retraining, the Stuttgart Region in Germany.

Sabine Stützle-Leinmüller, head of the Skilled Workers Division of the Stuttgart Region, highlighted how crucial is the cooperation between both large companies and SMEs, where both should be equally involved in the process while supporting each other by sharing knowledge and best practices. Another essential aspect is the need to be creative in implementing projects once priorities have been set, using what is already available and bringing experience on board to carry out new projects.

An important element for success is to involve all the actors, to include people throughout all stages of the process and to mobilise them when moving from theory to practice. This will be essential in establishing the right approach and contribute towards the collective success in the implementing of changes which will result in efficiently organised training courses for the automotive workforce in the area. As in any major shift, a successful implementation needs to include everyone and to ensure that no one is left behind.

From the experiences gathered in both meetings, it emerged how important it is to be able to welcome, guide and even anticipate the transition with the right attitude. It is essential to proceed with a proactive approach as to efficiently put ideas and proposals into concrete actions while also maintaining the capability to anticipate the possible barriers that may arise throughout the implementations.

The Automotive Skills Alliance is welcoming partners to support the transition of the automotive sector and contribute towards a skilled workforce.

See the website for more information and join the Alliance!