Prepared by SARONIS S.A.

March 2020

PREFACE 

NESET – NEETs’ Empowerment for Sustainable Employment in the Tourism sector, is a 3-year project, funded by the EEA and Norway Grants Fund for Youth Employment which aims at supporting on a large-scale transnational basis the sustainability of youth integration in the tourism labour market in the NESET beneficiary countries (BCs), by creating conditions for NEETs’ employment and entrepreneurship in various forms of tourism, incl. alternative tourism.

The NESET beneficiary countries are: Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Romania, whereas Iceland is involved in the project’s implementation as an expertise country.

The Project’s approved Proposal stipulates, among others, that a number of training Modules will be produced to support a Training course addressed to trainees with NEET characteristics in the partner countries. The Modules produced, deal with various types of skills considered to be associated with efforts aiming at strengthening young persons’ skills and upgrading their performance while working in tourism related jobs. One of these Skills’ Groups is “Employability Skills”, while two more Groups, i.e. “Social and Communication Skills” and “Tourism related Entrepreneurship Skills” are also included in the NESET range of training topics. SARONIS S.A. is the Partner coordinating all procedures associated with these Skills Groups’ training material preparation.

Four Employability Skills Related Modules have been produced by SARONIS S.A., for individual skills in that Group i.e. Teamwork Skills (1/4), Problems Solving Skills (2/4), Time and Stress Management Skills (3/4) and Customer Service (4/4).

SARONIS would like to acknowledge Professor Joseph Hassid’s contribution in coordinating these Modules’ Preparation.

 

SARONIS S.A. 

March 2020 

 

 

Employability / Teamwork Skills

Learning objectives: 

Section 1. Employability Skills – What are they? Why are they important?

Section 2. Teamwork Skills

2.1. What are teamwork skills?

2.2. Why are Teamwork skills important?

Section 3. Group activities enhancing Teamwork

GROUP ACTIVITY 1:  Code of Conduct

GROUP ACTIVITY 2: Back of the Napkin

GROUP ACTIVITY 3: Magazine Story

GROUP ACTIVITY 4: Shark Tank

GROUP ACTIVITY 5: Truth and Lies

QUESTIONNAIRE FOR EX-ANTE SELF ASSESSMENT OF TRAINING PARTICIPANTS’ SKILLS.

SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR EX-POST SELF ASSESSMENT OF TRAINING PARTICIPANTS’ SKILLS

SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR ASSESSMENT OF SPECIFIC TRAINING ASSOCIATED ELEMENTS.

Employability / Teamwork Skills

Learning objectives:

Section 1. Employability Skills – What are they? Why are they important? *

At first you may consider Employability to be a rather vague notion of having something to do with one’s preparation (“becoming able”) for a first job. In fact, Employability is a word that can be used in different contexts and with different meanings.   

An appropriate definition would be that: “Employability is a set of achievements – skills, understandings and personal attributes – that makes people more likely to gain employment and be successful in their chosen occupations. This benefits themselves, the workforce, the community and the economy”.

Getting appropriate and sufficient training in a certain subject or vocation can surely give you an advantage in your future career. For a start, you’ll be able to apply to jobs which specify that you must have attended (and successfully completed) certain training course(s), and the subject you studied or the grade you achieved may be relevant to some employers. However, even if you have a good degree and a relevant subject for the position you apply, you will most likely be competing against others who have the same or similar qualifications. Employers generally view Employability Skills along with technical skills as highly desirable attributes for employees. Employability Skills can assist employees to gain jobs, perform effectively at work and win promotions. Employability Skills can also lead to success in other domains of life. In other words, employability skills are useful as they are transferable; they can be adapted to varying situations! 

Therefore, it is one’s employability, the unique mix of skills, abilities and personal qualities that the person has, which will make him/her stand out from the crowd! 

The world of work changes very rapidly. One’s career is likely to involve many different job roles and employers, and even if one stays in the same job it is likely to change its nature over time. Your education and experience may make you eligible to apply for a job but, to be successful in most roles, you will need skills that you are likely to develop over time. Some will be specific to the job, but the vast majority will be so-called ‘soft skills’ that can be used in any job or employment sectors. These soft skills are ‘employability skills’: they are what makes you employable.

Viewed from the potential employer’s point of view, while, as a general rule, employers are willing to teach someone the job-specific skills required, such as how to operate particular pieces of machinery, or use particular computer packages that are very specific to that role or company. However, they usually want to see that you already have the other ‘soft skills’ before hiring, because they are much harder to teach.

To conclude:

To make things clearer, let us consider the meaning of some of the so-called employability skills which people surveyed during the surveys conducted, among young persons and tourism industry employers, in the content of the NESET project, were shown to be top priorities:

Communication skills, which enable employees to interact with clients, colleagues and suppliers of products constituted, either as final products that their employing firm sells in the market, or as materials or intermediate products used in the production process.    

Problem solving skills to respond appropriately to technology advancements and to determine techniques and equipment to use for the firm’s product.  

Planning and organising skills to organise commitments and plan work activities.

Organisational skills to source appropriate equipment   and materials, and ensure all gear and equipment is in good working order. 

Numeracy skills to calculate and estimate material quantities to be purchased by the firm.

Technology skills to use efficiently required equipment, tools and materials.

Self-management skills to review and reflect on own performance and set goals to improve production and management techniques.  

On the Table below, the meaning of a wider range of employability skills is defined, together with examples of how these skills may help employees to carry out specific tasks. The skills selected for further elaboration in the series of Training Modules prepared are highlighted. 

Employability skills – Their meaning and how they help

Type of Employability Skill	Its meaning	How does it help?
Social and Communication skills	The ability to explain what you mean in a clear and concise way through written and spoken means. To listen and relate to other people, and to act upon key information / instructions.	I participate in an employees’ group appointed by the firm’s management to discuss and produce recommendations on an intended revision of working hours. My communication and interpersonal skills help me greatly in presenting and supporting my views on the specific subject.
Problem solving skills	The ability to understand a problem by breaking it down into smaller parts, and identifying the key issues, implications and identifying solutions. To apply your knowledge from many different areas to solving a task.	As part of a team of technical personnel, I had to evaluate the information of a map and the weather forecast to decide which the best route to a set checkpoint was.
Initiative and self-motivation	Having new ideas of your own which can be made into a reality. Showing a strong personal drive and not waiting to be told to do things.	At a temping job over the summer, the manager was not around to see me on my first morning, so I introduced myself to the other team members and offered my services until my manager arrived.
Stress and Time management	Handling stress that comes with deadlines and ensuring that you meet them.	On a house building project, we ran out of essential materials shortly before the delivery deadline. We all feel very stressed and available time to address the problem is very limited.
Organisational skills	Being organised and methodical. Able to plan work to meet deadlines and targets. Monitoring progress of work to ensure you are on track to meeting a deadline.	I was part of a group of firm’s employees in charge of organising the annual meeting of sales people from the entire country. This   organising committee had to devise a project plan so that we could keep on track with planning.
Teamwork	Working well with other people from different disciplines, backgrounds, and expertise to accomplish a task or goal.	I am part of my firm’s interdepartmental team that meets every month to discuss various issues. We often do activities as teams.
Ability to learn and adapt	To be enthusiastic about your work, and to identify ways to learn from your mistakes for the benefit of both you and your employer.	In the engineering department of my firm we had to make certain parts move as fast   as possible as possible on a conveyor belt. I couldn’t make mine go any faster so asked for help to improve the shape of the part containing tray – it went substantially faster on the next attempt.
Numeracy	The ability to use data and mathematics to support evidence or demonstrate a point.	Our Oversees Projects’ Manager guided us through an activity to build a road to help communities in a foreign country. We calculated the road cost per mile and if it didn’t reach the next town, we had to redesign it to fit the budget.
Valuing diversity and difference	Knowing the value of diversity and what it can bring. Understanding and being considerate of the different needs of different individuals.	Getting involved in activities, which involve people that are different from you in terms of age, gender, nationality, race, disability etc.
Negotiation skills	To take on board other people’s feelings and express your own requirements in an unemotional clear fashion to achieve a win-win outcome.	I had to present a new version of an existing piece of equipment, to a panel of clients, and negotiate the new higher prices, arguing that the additional cost would be absorbed by the new version’s higher productivity.

To obtain more insights of what are “employability skills” and why they are important, we recommend watching an interesting and quite inspiring series of videos some of which are explicitly related to employability skills in general. The rest are of a more general content, having to do with modern teaching and training methods and organizational aspects. We particularly recommend watching the first 4 videos (of more than 10 that the series consists of). The titles of these 4 videos are:

• Introducing Employability Skills (3.36 minutes)
• 5 Essential Skills of Employability (3.28 minutes)
• Employability Skills video (5.08 minutes)
• Employability Skills Demo (6.17 minutes)

The link to the videos is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N0OOB4o7i3k

_____________________________________________________________________________________

*Yorke, M. (2004), Employability in higher education: what it is – what it is not, The Higher Education Academy/ESECT

Section 2. Teamwork Skills

2.1. What are teamwork skills?*

Teamwork skills are the qualities and abilities that allow you to work well with others during conversations, projects, meetings or other collaborations. Having teamwork skills is dependent on your ability to communicate well, actively listen and be responsible and honest. There are many other additional soft skills that can help you be an exceptional teammate at work we will discuss more below.

2.2. Why are Teamwork skills important?

It is generally accepted that every organization’s good performance relies on good efficiently operating teams. Take a moment to think of your work, study, hobbies, and any other activity you frequently engage in: how many of these involve a team? How many teams are you part of right now? Teams are everywhere in our society. Helping people in teams work better together means we will achieve more! 

One way of boosting teams is by ensuring that team members, active or potential, share common values, as far as their own behaviour is concerned and on what their behavior to the rest of the team should be. Developing such qualities, essentially means developed “teamwork skills”.

Effective teamwork in the workplace is of paramount importance for the organisation’s drive toward success. It is however equally important to realise that a team’s functioning also relies on every team member observing certain principles, or, in other words, has his “teamwork skills” sufficiently developed! This would allow that person to become a valuable team player!

See below some of these principles are: 

Team players are genuinely committed to their cause. Good team players might make sure they are where they are expected to be when needed, but great team players will make their presence worth it and contribute as much as possible. They strive for excellence!

Instead of sitting on the bench watching the rest of the team perform, good team players prefer to see the work being done through his or her efforts as well. They are flexible to the situations thrown their way and they participate and tackle challenges without showing too many signs of stress or pressure.

 

It is not in your interest to just sit quietly and get your work done. It’s a good thing to get involved, provided of course that you do not disrupt the team’s work by asking questions you should know the answer to. Great team players come to their teammates having prepared their ideas clearly.

Good team players must show that they are reliable and responsible. They complete the tasks in order of priority, not necessarily in some order that others indicate. When in doubt of what should take priority, then it is better to take this up with the team’s manager.

A good team player respectfully considers the viewpoints and ideas expressed by others. This is why diverse teams have the potential to be more effective, and it all depends on active listening. Active listening is harder than you think. When you hear someone saying something you don’t initially agree with, keep from interrupting and don’t let your mind prepare any counter remarks. Just listen, and consider what they’re saying and more importantly, why they believe that.

Share your opinion and ideas without trying to come up with a plan for taking credit for it. Transparency is key on a team, so keep your team members informed.  Planning for your own success is important, but whether you get promoted may have a lot to do with how you communicate with the rest of the team members

Even if it is not in your job description, be generous with pointers or tips to help your team members. For example, if a member of your team is having trouble with a technology tool that is easy for you, offer to sit down with him and show him what you know.

It seems obvious that you wouldn’t want to shut someone from your team out, or laugh at other people’s ideas, but we do these things in a subtle way, without realizing it, all the time. It is important to become more self-aware of how you treat others. Remember, you’ll receive respect when you give it to others. An ideal team player knows how to have fun, but he would never do it at someone else’s expense.

Your team leader may be working on solving problems, but there is no reason why you can’t offer solutions yourself. Your teammates will appreciate your skills, and this may pay off later when your manager considers you for a promotion!

A good team player will accept a mistake when it becomes clear it’s not the right path. If you believe strongly that your team is making a mistake, you can find a way to come back to the issue when the time is right, but being stubborn is not a quality of a good team player.

Section 3. Group activities enhancing Teamwork *

There are some group activities that may take just a few minutes, some might take hours. Such activities are expected to impact on communication and collaboration skills. Broadly speaking, team building activities can be divided into two categories – indoor and outdoor activities.

 The aim is the same in both cases – to improve communication, trust and collaboration skills. 

We present below a number of team building activities, derived from international sources that can be used in the context of Teamwork Skills training sessions.  

GROUP ACTIVITY 1: Code of Conduct

A simple but meaningful activity that builds the team’s consensus on shared values. Teams list what matters to them on a whiteboard.  

Number of participants: 10-30

Duration: 45+ min

Objectives: Build mutual trust, establish group values.

How to play:

1. On a whiteboard, write down the words “Meaningful” and “Pleasant”

2. Ask everyone in the group to indicate what, in their view, will make this workshop meaningful and pleasant. Alternatively, ask them to write their ideas on sticky notes.

3. For each suggestion, ensure that all participants have the same understanding of the idea. If not, change the suggestion until it has consensus from all participants.

4. Go through each suggested item and ask participants how they would ensure that the idea is carried out during the workshop. Record these on the whiteboard in sticky notes.

5. All ideas mutually agreed on as being “pleasant” and “meaningful” make up the Code of Conduct for the group. The group has the responsibility to uphold this Code through the remainder of the workshop.

Strategy:

For any team building activity to be successful, the team has to have a few common values and beliefs about what makes a successful team meeting. Establishing these values early in the workshop/team meeting can make the rest of the workshop run much smoother.

GROUP ACTIVITY 2: Back of the Napkin

Draw the solution to a problem on the back of a napkin, like all entrepreneurs of legend. Teams will have to work together and solve problems creatively for this game to work.

Number of participants: 6-24, divided into teams of 3-4

Duration: 45+ minutes

Objective: Promote unconventional thinking and teamwork

How to play:

1. Come up with a number of open-ended problems. These could be related to a business, an imaginary product, an environmental problem, etc.

2. Divide all players into teams of 2 to 4 players – basically, what you would see in a team of startup co-founders.  

3. Give each team a folded napkin and a pen.

4. Ask the teams to draw a solution to the problem as a flow chart/sketch/graph. 

5. Comment on the solutions suggested and pick the best one.

Strategy:

The “back of the napkin” is where so many product and startup ideas first emerge. This simple team building exercise replicates this tiny canvas, giving participants something fun to do while promoting teamwork and “out-of-the box” thinking.

GROUP ACTIVITY 3: Magazine Story

In this activity, each team has to create an imaginary magazine cover story about a successful project or business achievement. They have to get the right images, come up with headlines, formulate quotes, etc. A great exercise in creativity that can also inspire your team to think bigger.

 

Number of participants: Any

Duration: 60-90 minutes

Objective: Visualize future success, motivate team members and encourage them to think big

How to play:

1. The goal of this game is simple: get players to create a magazine cover story about your company or project (choose either). The players don’t have to write the complete story; they only have to write the headlines and create images, quotes and sidebars.

2. Divide participants into teams of 3-6 players. Give them markers, pens, and anything else they will need to create a fictional magazine cover.

3. Create several templates for different elements of the magazine story. This should include: (a) magazine cover, (b) cover story headline, (c) quotes from leaders and team members, (d) sidebars about project highlights, and (e) images.

4. Distribute these templates to each team. Ask them to create a magazine story, filling in each template and focusing on the project or business.

5. Choose the best magazine cover.

Strategy:

Seeing your project or business’ success featured in a magazine is the high-point of any organization. This creative exercise helps your team members think big and visualize their future success. It can also be a powerful motivational tool. 

 GROUP ACTIVITY 4: Shark Tank

Teams will have present you’re their own product pitch in front of a mock “Shark Tank” of investors.   This type of activity is highly popular as it gives team members the opportunity to work together and be entrepreneurial. You, as a moderator and “judge”, get to play ‘investor’ and pick the best pitch.

 

 

Number of participants: Up to 24 people, split into teams of 2-6 participants

Duration: 60+ minutes

Objective: Promote unconventional thinking, collaboration, entrepreneurship and teamwork

How to play:

1. This team building activity is based off the eponymous USA TV show. The objective is the same: teams pitch mock products in front of a group of “Sharks” (usually senior team members) to secure investments.

2. Divide participants into teams of 2-6 people. Ask them to come up with an imaginary product and develop a pitch for it. This pitch must be professional and include:

• Brand name
• Brand slogan
• Business plan
• Marketing plan
• Financial data (predicted sales, market size, profit margins, etc.)

If people have difficulty figuring out the pitch requirements, you can play them videos from the Shark Tank show.

3. Choose 3-4 people to be the “Sharks”. Give them imaginary backgrounds (“X is the founder of ABC Clothing and the owner of a major NFL team“). You can also give them an imaginary pool of money to invest in pitched ideas.

4. Ask each team to develop their pitch and present it in front of the Sharks. Encourage the Sharks to ask questions as if they’re evaluating a real business and parting with their own mock funds. If a pitch is promising, the Sharks can “invest” their mock money into the business.

5. The team that wins the most investment at the end “wins”.

Strategy:

Shark Tank is one of the most popular shows on US television. Getting your team to participate in your own version of this show can stimulate entrepreneurship and creative thinking. Since all players have to work in teams and divide duties to be successful, it will also promote teamwork and collaboration.

GROUP ACTIVITY 5: Truth and Lies

A simple game to get people to open up. Teams gather together in an intimate environment. Each team member says three truths and one lie about himself. Team members have to guess the lie out of the four statements.

Number of participants: 4-10

Duration: 30 minutes

Objective: Break the ice and get people involved

 

How to play:

1. Ask the players to sit in a circle.

2. Each player has to think up three truths and one lie about himself.

3. Each player then gets up in the center of the circle and says four statements about himself (three truths, one lie).

4. The rest of the group has to guess which of the statements is a truth, which one is a lie.

5. The process repeats for all other players.

Strategy:

There is no competitive element to this game. Instead, it’s designed to get people to open up and get to know each other better. The opportunity to lie can also get some very funny statements from players, which further improves the group’s mood.

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*Adapted from: https://www.workamajig.com/blog/team-building-activities

 

QUESTIONNAIRES FOR TRAINING MODULES’ SELF-ASSESSMENT  

 

QUESTIONNAIRE FOR EX-ANTE SELF ASSESSMENT OF TRAINING PARTICIPANTS’ SKILLS

 

For the specific type of Skills: EMPLOYABILITY / TEAMWORK, which the series of sessions you are going to participate aims to upgrade and for which specific Learning Objectives have been set, HOW would you rate your existing knowledge?

	My knowledge is practically non-existing	I know very little	I consider my knowledge to be moderate	I consider my knowledge to be rather adequate	I claim to have a very good knowledge
	1	2	3	4	5
MODULE 1/4: Employability / Teamwork Skills
Learning Objective 1
Learning Objective 2
Learning Objective 3
Learning Objective 4
Learning Objective 5

    

Learning Objectives:

1. Define Employability Skills – What are they? Why are they important?

2. Understand their meaning and how they help

3. Know what teamwork skills are.

4. Realise that a team’s functioning relies on its members’ observing certain principles.

5. Know what these principles are and be able to appreciate the consequences of failing to adopt them.

 

SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR EX-POST SELF ASSESSMENT OF TRAINING PARTICIPANTS’ SKILLS

 

For the specific type of Skills:  EMPLOYABILITY / TEAMWORK, which the series of sessions that you have attended aimed to upgrade and for which specific Learning Objectives had been set, How do you NOW rate your knowledge?

	My knowledge is practically non-existing	I know very little	I consider my knowledge to be moderate	I consider my knowledge to be rather adequate	I claim to have a very good knowledge
	1	2	3	4	5
MODULE 1/4: Employability / Teamwork Skills
Learning Objective  1
Learning Objective  2
Learning Objective  3
Learning Objective  4
Learning Objective  5

 

Learning Objectives:

1. Define Employability Skills – What are they? Why are they important?

2. Understand their meaning and how they help

3. Know what teamwork skills are.

4. Realise that a team’s functioning relies on its members’ observing certain principles.

5. Know what these principles are and be able to appreciate the consequences of failing to adopt them. 

SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR ASSESSMENT OF SPECIFIC TRAINING ASSOCIATED ELEMENTS

 

Having attended training sessions aiming at helping you upgrade your EMPLOYABILITY / TEAMWORK SKILLS, how do you rate the various elements of your training?

	Very Poor	Rather Poor	Acceptable	Very satisfactory	Excellent
	1	2	3	4	5
Training Material
Training Handouts distributed
Multimedia presented
Other resources suggested
Training Methods Used
Face-to-Face lectures
Group Activities & Discussions
Customised Learning Platform
Trainers involved
Knowledge of the subject
Level of preparedness
Effectiveness in knowledge transfer