SITE NEWS
The changing face of skills In the changing world we face, Tes Proos, Site Africa president approached a few members from Higher Education Institutions (HEI) on the current business events qualifications and skills situation in South Africa. The following reflect their personal views and perspectives.
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rior to the Covid-19 pandemic, business events tourism (BET) was recognised as a growing, lucrative segment of South Africa’s tourism industry. This has accelerated the establishment of vocational qualifications that offer related curriculum to address the specialised knowledge and skills for professions in the field. However, Covid-19 has had a significant impact not only on the tourism industry, but also on HEIs that offer BET qualifications. “There are a number of impacts on the academic year brought about by the pandemic,” said Esti Venske, senior lecturer at Cape Peninsula University of Technology and Exco member Tourism Educators SA. She added: “Firstly, the late and disruptive school year of 2020 means that there will be severe delays in getting the academic year started and registrations completed as prospective students await their results which are due at the end of February. However, higher education remains optimistic for the future. As far as I could determine, the applications have been steady, but there certainly is concern around the ability for the industry to absorb graduates in the field with so many retrenchments of very skilled and experienced staff who often act as industry mentors for new students entering this dynamic field. “Secondly, new health and safety protocols, travel restrictions, and digital innovations are changing BET operations, contexts and concepts - we are not sure how prospective students are perceiving the sector, and whether they view it as an exciting or lucrative career choice, especially given the severe economic impact due to the ongoing lockdown, travel and gathering restrictions. “Lastly, the changing landscape of higher education to a more digital/blended format, along with the fact that students are
currently afraid of face-to-face interactions, has an impact on the decision to pursue studies in 2021. The question may be asked, why register at a traditional HE institution if there are other online options available, seeing that there has been a pivot to digital learning platforms. We are yet to see the impact of this heightened level of online competition and, of course, it is important to remember that many of our prospective students do not have access to data and electronic equipment to successfully pursue their studies, so the way bursaries are structured may also have to adapt to include the online/blended modality.” On the issue of on job training during the shutdown, she said: “Students did online projects, and where possible, experiential opportunities continued. The BET workplace has also moved more online, with job opportunities linked to digital event specialisation/IT/social media (that is above and beyond the new emphasis on safety officers). In this current environment, we have to rethink internships in their present format as they are way more technologically driven as a result of industry mentors working from home. Due to many retrenchments in the sector, another challenge is that in many cases, staff are left performing two jobs with little time to really mentor a student.” On a positive note, Ms Venske said: “I think that there are new emerging skills which will be required - such as an event safety protocol officer/hybrid event organiser - running a two or three-day conference fully integrating technology. I think job opportunities may be leaning more towards technological savviness. However, some of our key industry practitioners are leaving the sector, taking years of experience, skills and knowledge with them due to the pandemic. In many cases, I imagine that succession planning within companies, as well as knowledge sharing, could pose a substantial problem and create skills gaps within the sector. We
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do not want to lose our experts and industry champions. But I would like to reiterate that the pandemic has changed much of the familiar industry landscape - it would require upskilling and re-skilling of existing practitioners as well. It is no longer ‘business as usual’, which means it is no longer skills as usual. Knowledge around digital, software and online platforms are becoming more critical. Technical skills related to implementing health and safety protocols, regulations and technology are highlighted and soft skills which demonstrate one’s ability to collaborate and adapt, solve problems innovatively and be flexible are ideal during and post pandemic.” She concluded: “There is an opportunity in this time of crisis to strengthen and align the skills and competencies required for future BET vocations through collaboration. When industry and academia work together, more responsive curriculum development will be developed and implemented. Low hanging fruits may be virtual master classes which will allow industry to co-create, with academia, an agenda with talking points and content for the Master Class responsive to industry trends such as event safety. It may provide a platform for relevant practical/ contextual understanding. Association membership for students and educational institutions is beneficial as it creates great networking and knowledge sharing platforms. It also benefits educational institutions in identifying skills required and incorporating this into the curriculum. At the moment, technology, health and safety are big drivers in the sector. This means educational institutions need to find a way to incorporate these new skill requirements, through collaboration with industry and training providers who can fine tune what exactly is needed and how it can be integrated as a skill.” Zakiyya Muruza-Peerun, operations director of The Tourism and Business Institute of Southern Africa (TTBISA), said: www.businesseventsafrica.com
