A study examined the problems encountered when organizations adopt management strategies based on teamwork and total quality management (TQM) and the effectiveness of training in avoiding such problems. Survey instruments were mailed to 85 individuals involved in implementing work teams at 85 companies in 4 Missouri cities; 23 responses (27.1%…

The effectiveness of Mississippi's policy of offering incentives to promote workplace training was examined through phone surveys of a sample of 101 of Mississippi's 2,617 manufacturing firms with 100-350 employees (47 of the 77 plants that have used Mississippi incentive programs and 54 plants that have not) and in-depth case studies of 4 plants.…

Wisconsin is the country's leading manufacturer of small engines, and the network of companies and suppliers constituting the small engine industry accounts for more than 5% of the state's entire manufacturing base. For the past 15 years, the industry has been rocked by intensified international competition and rapid technological advancement. A…

This newsletter deals with lifelong learning and adult and continuing education. Included in the issue are the following articles: "The Learning Society," by Solveig M. Turner; "Adult Education at the Beginning of the 1980s," by J. Roby Kidd; "Lifelong Learning in an International Perspective: Selected Case Studies,"…

This handbook was designed to provide information necessary for school teachers/administrators to develop an effective and thorough short-term adult upgrade program plan for businesses and to provide advice and suggestions for implementing the plan. The guide is organized in seven sections, plus extensive appendixes. The first section introduces…

Experience has shown that it is possible for vocational educators and industry representatives to work together to meet the education development needs of employees in new and expanding industries. In order to remain a factor in economic/industrial development, adult vocational education must assist industry in identifying their training needs,…

A study examined the training provided to workers by 20 firms across the Nation. In the 12 years between 1969 and 1981, American firms increased their expenditures on employee training from $2.4 to $3.5 million according to an analysis of data gathered by Current Population Surveys. In the same period, members of the American Society for Training…

A study was conducted to determine what is being done to develop leadership capabilities of first-line supervisors. Data was collected through interviews, examinations of company training literature, and primary resource materials at 125 manufacturing plants in fifty states which, in the aggregate, employ more than 155,000 production workers and…

Continuous vocational training (CVT) in the road freight and passenger transport sectors in the member states of the European Community (EC) was examined to identify exemplary and significant practices across the EC and determine the extent of the transferability of the identified exemplary training between and among the member states. In all,…

A MAJOR PROBLEM OF AMERICAN YOUTH TODAY IS THAT OF QUALIFYING FOR AND HOLDING A JOB. GENERAL EDUCATION IS NOT ENOUGH FOR THE GREAT MAJORITY OF PEOPLE WHO MUST OPERATE FARMS, MACHINES, SHOPS, AND OFFICES AND PROVIDE SERVICES. YOUTH FACE INCREASED JOB COMPETITION BECAUSE OF THE INCREASED SIZE OF THE 14- TO 24-YEAR AGE GROUP. UNEMPLOYMENT AMONG YOUNG…

This study addresses the issue of how new forms of work organization (NFWO) are affecting job skill requirements. Practices such as job rotation, problem-solving teams and self-directed workgroups are thought to increase job skill requirements because they tend to broaden job responsibilities. The study uses the 1999 and 2000 waves of the…

The current trend toward expanded use of automation and computers in manufacturing has increased the need for a working partnership between industry and vocational education. One such partnership involves the members of the personnel development staff at Nissan Motors in Smyrna, Tennessee and local secondary and postsecondary vocational education…

The planning and implementation of vocational training in Singapore (training primarily intended for school-leavers) is highly directed toward serving labor force development objectives. This paper explains the vocational training infrastructure (a national system, the conduct of which is vested in the Vocational and Industrial Training Board),…

This document contains transcripts of nine speeches presented at a panel discussion. During the panel presentations, speakers, who are restauranteurs, food service vocational teachers, food service program coordinators, and industry association representatives, described the programs with which they are involved. The programs range from having…

A national survey of electronic data processing (EDP) skills and training needs involved 16 representative firms that employed EDP staff. Separate semi-structured interview schedules were used to interview 266 job holders and 63 managers with responsibility for EDP staff and computing systems. Findings indicated 67 percent of EDP staff had not…