Commitment to initial vocational training by German companies in India

The dual system of initial vocational training is held in high esteem around the world, including in India; the country faces the challenge of investing qualitatively and quantitatively in skilled-worker initial vocational training. As an effective vocational training infrastructure is established, the commitment of German companies in India also draws attention: how are these companies providing training, and which local structures can they draw upon for support? These questions were pursued in an exploratory study on the vocational training commitment of German companies in India which was commissioned by the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and carried out by the National Agency for Continuing Vocational Education and Training in the Skilled Crafts (ZWH). The article presents selected findings.

The epistemic interest of the study was to gain an insight into the current and planned commitment in training by German companies in India. To this end the questioning sought to analyse the general conditions that are required for high-quality company-based initial and continuing vocational education and training. Moreover, the study was intended to address possible improvements that would bring about more effective and application-oriented initial vocational training in India. Good practice scenarios could be identified on the basis of the results and were helpful in generating pilot models of company-based initial vocational training practice. The research design of the study, which was predominantly carried out in the second half of 2011, was composed of the following elements:

• The first step was to evaluate academic research papers on the socio-political situation in India by way of groundwork for the company surveys.
• The second step was carried out in cooperation with the Indo-German Chamber of Commerce. All 1,200 German companies listed there were invited to reply to an online questionnaire. This questionnaire covered a broad range of questions on current and planned initial vocational training activities and on the demand for or shortage of skilled workers in companies. 170 companies from different regions of India took part in this online survey, of which 63 completed the entire form.
  
• n a follow-up qualitative survey, selected aspects brought to light by the online survey were strategically explored in depth with 26 companies that had already taken part in the online survey.
• In the fourth step, the Centre for Modern Indian Studies at the University of Cologne carried out interviews with 15 companies in the Tamil Nadu region. These interviews considered companies' training culture and fundamental strategies.
• In a workshop organised by BIBB and ZWH in cooperation with the Indo-German Chamber of Commerce in New Delhi, the findings were discussed with German and Indian (vocational) education stakeholders from the political and economic spheres. Examples of good practice were identified in the course of this workshop, which could be examined in more depth by means of further telephone interviews with selected "beacon companies" and a training centre.

The findings obtained in the course of the exploratory study supply preliminary information on the companies' current and expected situation with regard to vocational training and skilled workers. This could be of interest, for example, for the future development of training provision in German companies in India.

The findings of research into the socio-political situation showed that in terms of education policy measures, India has concentrated predominantly on expanding general educational and academic programmes and on establishing school-based forms of vocational education and training. The vocational education and training system is comparatively underdeveloped (cf. EDUCON 2006, p. 5; iMOVE 2011, p. 18). Furthermore, there is a capacity problem: the current number of training places available in state and privately run extra-company vocational schools amounts to three to four million, compared with an annual demand for more than 13 million places (cf. ESRC Centre on Skills, Knowledge and Organisational Performance 2012, p. 4). Only five per cent of 19 to 24-year-olds have completed a formal initial vocational training programme (cf. Planning Commission 2012, p. 31). Moreover, the state training centres are inadequately equipped, the curricula outdated and not geared to the needs of the economy. 40 per cent of places for apprentices at vocational schools are unfilled, and the existing teachers have insufficient prior work experience, or none at all, in the occupations they teach. The privately operated industrial training centres are not much better positioned (cf. iMOVE 2011, p. 18 f.). Accordingly, the job prospects for those who complete their training here can be challenging. At the same time there is rising demand from both Indian and German companies for skilled workers, the supply of which has never yet reached an adequate level.

Consequently, India faces the challenge of addressing the severe imbalance between poorly-qualified workers and the simultaneous growth in demand for well-qualified workers. What is required, therefore, is the rapid establishment of an effective infrastructure for vocational education and training, e.g. by developing or modernising training centres, upgrading the skills of education and training staff, installing modern technical equipment, developing and implementing standards, adopting modern methods in vocational pedagogy, involving industry in vocational training, and vocational education research. Nevertheless, there is a great deal of interest in action-oriented, company-based and work-based forms of vocational education which are characteristic of the German vocational education and training system.

The German companies surveyed reported numerous challenges in the training of skilled workers. The image problem of "blue collar" occupations, arising from the poor general conditions, was confirmed by all companies in the interviews: young people prefer university qualifications as they have ambitions towards management positions later on. It is no wonder that one-third of the companies surveyed already have a shortage of skilled staff even today (33%) and state that this shortfall will grow in future (35%). Even now the surveyed companies can no longer fill 23 % of jobs for skilled workers, and take, on average, two months to recruit suitable applicants. The reason given by the companies, apart from the image problem of the occupations already mentioned, is the previous theory-heavy education of trainees, which does not adequately prepare them for the practical demands of the workplace: "There is a huge gap between classroom inputs and the need of the market" (Company A). Furthermore, they find fault with the applicants' English skills and with shortcomings in their communication, concentration and problem-solving skills. Apart from these transition problems, the companies mention a high rate of staff fluctuation: after completing their initial vocational training, many employees - particularly for monetary reasons - move to competing companies: "If somebody is trained he/she will not stay back here. After one year he will go. Demand is high. [.] They will be getting trained from me and will go for a bigger industry compared to my company and the remuneration is higher" (Company N).

The companies who took part in the online survey were mainly 100% subsidiaries of German companies (61%). The majority had up to 249 members of staff (73%) and were training principally in production, and more rarely in commercial fields (73% versus 7%). For want of suitable infrastructure, the majority of companies surveyed are not yet carrying out training based on the dual system of initial vocational training as practised in Germany. Two-thirds of the companies surveyed stated that they had a training programme; initial vocational training predominantly takes place on the job (61%), rarely in training centres (18%), and hardly ever in school facilities (4%). The average duration of training is two months, culminating in roughly half of cases with the award of company-specific certificates following a final examination (74%). The emphasis of training is on company or job-specific induction; non-company-specific aspects are usually not taught. Standard curricula for initial vocational training, train-the-trainers concepts, and staff with formal teaching qualifications were found in very few companies. Nevertheless some exemplary initial vocational training activities were noted in a few "beacon companies". For instance, some companies had standardised training programmes of between six and 36 months' duration, which were closely based on German initial vocational training regulations and included cooperation between different learning venues and the teaching of non-company-specific learning content. Volkswagen in Pune runs a three-year initial vocational training programme based on the German "mechatronics fitter" qualification as a dual programme, making use of an in-house academy. Likewise, the training that takes place at the Bosch Vocational Centre is aligned to German training regulations, and its trainees are instructed in theory and practice in their own laboratories, classrooms and workshops. All trainees are hired after passing the final examination and subsequently receive individual support in planning their careers. Workshops and seminars for trainers are held at regular intervals to instruct them in subject-specific as well as pedagogical and didactic aspects. Beyond this, the secondment of German training staff to India promotes intensive exchange on current themes in teaching and learning.

As already mentioned, the skilled-worker shortage is expected to grow. Almost all companies that are already providing initial vocational training are planning to increase their involvement in training in the future (86%). They want to work harder on the image of their "blue collar" jobs and promote the advantages of the training programmes they offer. Ideas being weighed up to reduce the qualifications gap include reforming the didactic approach of training, integrating training centres into initial vocational training and, in the long term, implementing daily or weekly block instruction. For the long-term retention of employees, companies are planning to offer more continuing education courses and ensure better communication of opportunities for advancement. "Training is also a key factor to keep the people. Because the number one problem that most companies in India face is that the attrition rate is high [.]. So, for them it is part of an attractive package to join the company. They expect training" (Company L). In addition, other aspects like improving working conditions and guaranteeing medical care are also mentioned.

Despite statements that they intend to increase initial and continuing vocational training in the future, many of the companies surveyed are holding back from investing in training their own employees. Paradoxically, it is the fierce competition for well-trained skilled workers that is to blame. Companies in industries that are less popular or less well-known fear losing fully trained staff to better-known companies in "on trend" industries like the IT or services sector. These companies, in turn, on the strength of their reputations can concentrate on the recruitment of ready-trained skilled workers. A further cause might also be the management structures in companies: since the management in branches abroad changes comparatively frequently, short to medium-term financial targets are the management's main priority, in which case there is a stronger focus on cost reduction than on strategically designed - and expensive - initial vocational training. There are very few "beacon companies" investing comprehensively and strategically in initial vocational training with a view to producing work of high quality and keeping the fluctuation rate low.

Fluctuation, image problems in certain occupations, previous school-based training that lacks workplace relevance, and inadequate qualification of trainers - the challenges faced by German companies in India coincide with the typical problems experienced by other Indian companies. But what can actually be done? In order to enhance the image of "blue-collar" occupations and simultaneously reduce fluctuation, companies have a duty to make a persuasive case by improving general conditions and offering long-term prospects. Flanking industry-specific campaigns would also be conceivable, like the campaign in Germany to promote the image of the skilled crafts or that of vocational education and training.

In order to encourage the more practical alignment of vocational education and, at the same time, boost awareness of particular occupations, the key institutions for education and training - the industrial training institutes, industrial training centres and universities - could intensify the cooperation with companies and implement work-experience and vocational-orientation phases.

India is not alone in its need for appropriate and standardised train-the-trainers concepts - a large number of countries are showing great interest in qualifications for trainers, as operated in Germany pursuant to the Ordinance on Trainer Aptitude (AEVO). Against this backdrop, the National Agency for Continuing Vocational Education and Training in the Skilled Crafts (ZWH) in conjunction with DIHK-Bildungs-GmbH is developing a "Training the Trainers International" qualification based on the German AEVO. The training programme is currently being piloted as part of a BMBF-funded consortium project by the ZWH and the DIHK-Bildungs-GmbH along with automotive experts from China.

In order to recruit German companies as cooperation partners to run existing industrial training institutes or set up new ones, the Indian government needs to create clear incentives. So far most companies see no added value in participating. In the best case scenario, however, both parties would gain long-term benefits: the Indian side could learn from German examples of good practice in vocational training and in training the trainers; German companies, for their part, could better meet the demand for skilled workers in both qualitative and quantitative respects.

Even if vocational training according to the dual system still seemingly plays only a minor role in India, there is great interest in aspects of the successful German model and tentative efforts at dual approaches can be discerned. For example, the Indian Ministry of Labour & Employment (MOLE) now offers trainees from interested companies and clusters of companies the chance to attend industrial training institutes on one to two days per week to supplement the theory of what is being learned in practice in the companies. Furthermore, the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) and the International Marketing of Vocational Education (iMOVE) initiative support on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) the process of reforming the Indian system by various means, including a series of workshops on the development of occupational standards, and through public tenders for the training of Indian training staff in state vocational training establishments in cooperation with German training providers.

MAREN VERFÜRTH
Research associate in the "International Cooperation and Advisory Services/German Office for International Cooperation in VET" Division at BIBB

MARTIN DIART

Translation from the German original (published in BWP 5/2013): Martin Stuart Kelsey, Global Sprachteam Berlin