Mika Rekola, Jaakko Nippala, Päivi Tynjälä, Anne Virtanen. (2018). Modelling competences and anticipating the future competence needs in the forest sector. Silva Fennica vol. 52 no. 3 article id 9983. https://doi.org/10.14214/sf.9983

Keywords: forest sector; competence modelling; human resources; work life; future needs

Highlights: The most frequently used practices of modelling competences in Finnish forest sector organisations were superior-subordinate review discussions and quantitative surveys; Competence modelling was used for several human resources functions but surprisingly not for hiring and compensation; The experts interviewed underlined the need for generic competences in the future, especially they highlighted the importance of information processing and personal self-management skills.

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This explorative study examined practices of competence modelling in the forest sector organisations and how organisations anticipate changes in competence needs in the future. Semi-structured in-depth interviews (n=10) were conducted amongst forest sector experts in Finland and data was analysed by thematic analysis. The findings showed that the practices of modelling competences were diverse, most frequently used ones being superior-subordinate review discussions and quantitative competence surveys. In addition to these formal systems, informal modelling, especially on the team level and in smaller companies was also frequent. Organisations used competence modelling for several human resources functions, such as appraisal, motivation and promotion of employees. Surprisingly hiring and compensation functions were not mentioned. Perceptions related to competence modelling were generally speaking positive. The most important challenges were the lack of further actions and sometimes the extraordinary burden to the employees. When anticipating the future, the experts interviewed mentioned several commonly recognised trends, e.g., development of information technology, fragmentation of working life and structural changes in labour markets. All these require more generic competences related to information processing and personal self-management, especially respondents highlighted the importance of self-awareness skills. It is concluded that several useful practices for competence modelling already exist and that present study provides a basis for further quantitative further study.

Rekola, Department of Forest Sciences, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 27, FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland E-mail: mika.rekola@helsinki.fi
Nippala, Suomen Partiolaiset – Finlands Scouter ry, Töölönkatu 55, FI-00250 Helsinki, Finland E-mail: jaakko.nippala@partio.fi
Tynjälä, Finnish Institute for Educational Research, P.O. Box 35, FI-40014 University of Jyväskylä, Finland E-mail: paivi.a.tynjala@jyu.fi
Virtanen, Finnish Institute for Educational Research, P.O. Box 35, FI-40014 University of Jyväskylä, Finland E-mail: anne.virtanen@jyu.fi

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