The future of IAG

iCeGS
Tristram Hooley

iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector

www.derby.ac.uk/icegs
Dystopia or utopia?

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iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector
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Overview

Policy
Economy

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Technology
Is the glass half empty or half full?

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 Policy
iCeGS produces a policy update each month.
This month included:
CEIAG Briefings (2010) Ofsted, Self-
evaluation and
CEIAG Careers Education and IAG Support
Programme Briefing.
Clark, M. (2010) Policy Tracker: Information,
Advice and Guidance (IAG). Policy Review
Magazine, 23rd January 2010.
DCSF (2010) Support for All: the Families and
Relationships Green Paper.
Department for Children, Schools and
Families (DCSF) and Learning and Skils
Council (2010) 16-19 Statement of Priorities
and Investment Strategy 2010-11.
Cedefop (2010) The Skill Matching Challenge. Analysing
Skill Mismatch and Policy Implications.
International Centre for Career Development and Public
Policy (ICCDPP) (2010) Fifth Internaional Symposium
on Career Development and Public Policy held in
Wellington, New Zealand, from November 14 to 17,
2009.
UKCES (2010) Towards Ambition 2020: Skills, Jobs,
Growth for Scotland.
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (2010)
7000 Graduates to Get Job Market Head Start.
Economic and Social Research Council (2010) Making
the Case for the Social Sciences: Well-being.
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HEFCE (2010) HEFCE Announces
Funding for Universities and Colleges in
2010-11.
Mandelson, P. (2010) The Future of
Higher Education: The Dearing Lecture -
Speech by Lord Mandelson.
Turner, D. and Goodfellow, C. (2010) Cuts
Threaten Lifeline from Foreign Students
Wilkinson, D. (2010) Approaches to
Research Priorities for Policy: A
Comparative Study.
HEFCE (2010) The Higher Education
Workforce Framework 2010. Main Report.
Wright, I. (2010) Unison Seminar on IAG
and the Youth Workforce. (speech)
How IAG fits into policy discussions

Adult Education
Skills

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Economy

Benefits IAG Communities

Work Youth

Social justice
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How IAG is seen

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vs

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Labour

All age strategy

Continuing division between adult

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and youth careers services
Launching new adult service
Recently launched new strategies
for adults and young people
Task forces all over the place

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Conservative

“A revolution in careers advice”

All-age service

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Careers advisor in every
school
Some techno-fix ideas as well

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Liberal Democrats

Replace Job Centre Plus with

the First Steps Agency

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Some talk about impartial
advice for young people.
A bit more carrot and a bit less
stick than the other parties.

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All in all

Career IAG is firmly on the political agenda.

There is a lot of policy based activity going on and

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some major changes are likely.
However it remains to be seen how much better
services will emerge and how much it will just be
rearranging the deck chairs.

iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector

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Economy

However policy
discussions take place in

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a challenging economic
environment.

• More of a need for

career IAG
• But public spending is
likely to become tighter

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What will bring economic recovery?

Policy says
Education

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Skills
Flexibility The language of
Productivity career IAG
Enterprise
Utilising
strenghts
Etc.

iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector

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Technology

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Is this the new Connexions workforce?

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New technologies

Are largely, not about replacing people with

machines

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They are about allowing people to talk to each other
more effectively
But the age of the knowledge specialist (e.g. the
careers adviser) is over
Careers workers have got to offer something more
than Google.

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What is social media?

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Key social media principles

• User generated content

• Harness the power of networks

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• Publish then filter, not filter then publish
• The perfect is the enemy of the good
• The long tail (we all contribute something)
• Folksonomy rather than taxonomy

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Why should you use social media

• Using social media is a career management skill

• Interaction with clients

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• Professional development
– Supporting reflective practice
– Building a community of practice

iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector

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Social media is a career
management skill

If people are going to navigate through their career

they will need to use technology.

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The ability to evaluate the usefulness of new
technologies and engage with them can therefore be
seen as a career management skill.
Social media are particularly important as they enable
people to develop social capital (networks).
If we are going to advise our clients to develop these
skills we need to have them ourselves.

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Interaction with clients

Supporting clients to become information literate

Posting information and advice on blogs –

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encouraging interaction. e.g.
http://manchesterpgcareers.wordpress.com/
Providing information on twitter e.g. vacancy
information http://twitter.com/UWECareers
Building (or engaging with) peer communities.
Crowd sourcing – “what do you want from us?”, “what
is the best career tip you’ve been given?”

iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector

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What is careers work?

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iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector
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Professional development via a blog
http://adventuresincareerdevelopment.posterous.com

Do something

Respond and

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re-articulate Think about it

Think some
more Write about it
Feedback from
others

iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector

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Building a community of practice

There are careers practitioners all over the world.

They work in a huge variety of situations and are learning all

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the time.
A small minority of these are in dialogue through the web
providing each other with:
Learning
Support and advice
Sociability
Why aren’t you there?

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Getting started with social media

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What is twitter?
http://twitter.com/ParisHilton

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Conversation
not broadcast

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http://twitter.com/home
Twitter conventions

@ RT

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#
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Where to start on twitter

Finding some key people to follow is essential. Try:

• http://twitter.com/pigironjoe

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• http://twitter.com/bhopson
• http://twitter.com/helenpownall
• http://twitter.com/billaw
• http://twitter.com/davidawinter

Even more important. Look at who they follow.

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 Half empty or half full?

Lots of Politicians are

challenges

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listening to us
Lots of Society needs
change what we do
Economic New
and political technologies
uncertainty offer huge
opportunities

iCeGS: Creative Solutions for the Careers Sector

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