The need for competences due to the increasing use of information and communication technologies

Needs for competences linked to use of information and communication technologies (ICT) are at present being identified and discussed at European, national and regional levels. The use of ICT in the workplace is steadily being enhanced, and new and more powerful ICT tools have a strong impact on work organisation and working conditions for individual workers in many sectors. New sectors are emerging as a result of new opportunities through the use of ICT and multimedia tools. Two new projects in this field were initiated by Cedefop in 1999 and this report is the outcome of one of them, undertaken by the University of Manchester. The report strongly emphasises the importance of policy makers addressing a wider range of learning needs arising from the extended use of ICT and gives an overview of a wide range of issues of importance to the debate on competence needs.

The authors of the report are Professor N.C. Boreham and Dr Norma Lammont.