CONSOLIDATED CAREER CENTER (CCC)

WHAT IS CCC Founded in 2015 with 5 partners (IBI, FAUL, EKA, RTU and UNIPV) Established as a virtual career center with shared experience and cross-platform digital outlet between universities and the business community A basis for further research in the area of career centers Динамика на реализација

CCC ACTIVITIES Result 6 General focus 5-day ICBSP at the FAUL focusing on the knowledge obtained from the participation Result 7 experience -sharing among project partners technical issues regarding the legal requirements support from the business community the software support for its operational efficiency

STEERING COMITEE Massimo Bianchi, Italy Adrijana Bulevska, Macedonia Jelena Titko, EKA, Latvia Manica Danko, Slovenia Madara Dzene, RTU, Latvia

KEY DRIVERS IDENTIFICATION ANALYSIS The key driver identification analysis was the first element in the establishment of the Consolidated Career Center. The objectives of the preparation of the analysis was aligned with the specific objectives of CCC: To establish a foundation for promoting innovation and various career paths among prospective students: Developing a collaborative link among stakeholders dedicated at increasing mutual linkages on all operational levels Addressing labor market needs, focusing diverse expertise on career guidance and pedagogical services.

KEY FINDINGS Most of the managers think that employees should be allowed to think of solutions to practical problems. Managers also agree that how much employees learn is based on their background knowledge, meaning educational institutions and career centers have the main role in this area of improving student skills and knowledge. The most important areas in which graduates need to excel to succeed working in the organization are the ability to work in a team, the ability to plan and manage time and the capacity to learn. Regarding ICT skills, graduates need to possess Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word knowledge, as well as the ability to efficiently search the Internet for the necessary information For managers, regardless of skills and education, one of the most important aspects when hiring graduate students is whether they have previous work experience, preferably in a similar industry. The next important aspect when hiring are to have a properly developed CV and certificates relating to the field of business.

SOFTWARE SUPPORT Utilizing the mutual expertise of the partnering institutions and other HEIs accompanied with online consultations with business sector representatives a pilot Consolidated Career Centre with a software support was established. As for the beginning it was providing consultancy to students, on employment, career guidance, advice on specific issues, psychological and pedagogical support, guidance for developing an innovative culture and awareness. The platform is a subdomain under the ISPEHE web-site, more specifically the correct URL address is ccc.ispehe.org. This platform is used by all 5 partnering institutions to pool resources together regarding the activities of the career centers, such as including guides, list of workshops and internships, faster communication between career center coordinators and students, sharing best practices, interviews with the business community, the results of the key drivers identification analysis and open job postings.

PLATFORM EVALUATION Continue work on the design of the platform, as this had the lowest cumulative score of the evaluated aspects of the career center. Students should be more involved during the redesign phase to accommodate their needs. Improve the functionality of the platform. This means increasing the amount of content provided, as well as utilizing the creativity of students to generate new ideas and functionalities. Most of the students utilized the platforms to find national and international internships. The work on the Virtual Career Center should focus on this aspect, to be more developed and include future possible partnerships with the business community.

COOL and CCC COOL means Collaborative Online Learning: Students work in an international environment Students work on an international brand/product/service Students interact with peers from other countries In it’s initial phase, it was a developed collaboration with between the Integrated Business Faculty (Macedonia), University of Ljubljana – Faculty of Administration (Slovenia) and State University of New York, Plattsburgh (USA) The idea is for students to get initiated in the world of international business and marketing

OPPORTUNITY TO IMPROVE A project of this size requires: Extensive collaboration and planning, between students, project coordinators and the business community Software solution that is tailored to the needs of the project The BEP platform provided an on-line solution for communication among students and project coordinators, as well as more advanced functions for the latter phases CCC provided tools and formats to include the business community

AUDIO VISUAL SESSIONS Students from partnering institutions of ISPEHE had the opportunity to participate in an online virtual conference (audio-visual consultation sessions) with the business community. Approximately 90 students from the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Administration, Integrated Business Institute, Integrated Business Faculty and the University of New York, Plattsburgh had an interaction with business sector representatives from the US, Slovenia and Macedonia. This event was held through the BEP platform (Business Educational Platform) on 16th of November, 2016. Students, professors and business representatives join the event online, without any physical presence necessary at the location. The event lasted for more than an hour, with both students and business representatives sharing valuable experience and insights.

Microsoft Engineering Excellence SUSTAINABILITY Sustainability of CCC continue to function using mutual expertise Sustainable start with the majority of its core activities The project period Microsoft Confidential