IT Predictions for the NGO sector

UK Fundraising website has recently published the top six technology predictions for the community sector in 2009. I have attached the link with full article for your perusal

http://www.fundraising.co.uk/news/2009/01/23/it-experts-suggest-top-six-notforprofit-technology-predictions-2009

MF

The Centre for Social Impact - Summer newsletter

Dear TDN members
The Centre for Social Impact has recently released the summer edition of their newsletter called "Knowledge Connect". It has a couple of interesting articles about leadership in the third sector.
enjoy the reading

http://www.csi.edu.au/uploads/31642/ufiles/Knowledge-Connect-Edition-2.pdf

Miguel Ferrero

A Directory of Education & Training Statistics, 2009 - ABS

The lastest edition of the electronic newsletter community.net published a directory of a national statistical resources available relating to education and training activity in Australia. The directory covers all recent national ABS statistical collections which have education and training as a main focus. I have attached the link to this message for your perusal.


http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/1136.0?OpenDocument

Miguel Ferrero

Communities of Practice: Addressing Workforce Trends Through New Learning Models

Interesting article on how technology, especially, social network sites such us Facebook, MySpace or Flickr are changing the communication dealings of workers and the possibility of creating communities of practice through this collaborative techonologies.

http://www.elearnmag.org/subpage.cfm?article=37-1&section=best_practices

ICT Strategy for the NGO sector

NCOSS is launching the Information and Communication Technology Strategy for the NGO sector on Friday 20th of March. From the Executive Summary the issue of training is mentioned as the sector will require to become more aware of the new technologies availble

http://www.ncoss.org.au/projects/ITStrategy/downloads/Ex_Sum_ICT.pdf

MF

"The Alchemy Project Feasibility Report"

Last December I attended the launch of this interesting report conducted by FAR Social Enterprise. It contains a literature review and views from a broad range of organisations on leadership development issues, needs, challenges and strenghts within the not for profit sector.
By clicking this link you will be able to download the PDF copy

http://www.sydneycommunityfoundation.org.au/content/media/alchemy_project.pdf


MF

"The demand for training" NCVER paper

This paper was presented at the Skills Australia, Academy of Social Sciences seminar in Sydney in September 2008. This paper examines the demand for training. It concentrates on the factors that affect individual and employer demand, and points out that accredited vocational education and training (VET) need to be considered in the context of extensive use of non-accredited and on-the-job training.



http://www.ncver.edu.au/pubs/confs/Demand_for_training_TK_MC.pdf


MF

Systemic innovation in the Australian VET system: country case study report

The aim of this report is to analyse innovation systems and strategies in vocational education and training by bringing together evidence of the drivers for systemic innovation in six different countries (Australia, Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Mexico and Switzerland).

All countries participating in the study have selected two or three case studies of innovations in VET for in-depth analysis by the expert team. The following is a list of issues that the study focuses on in particular:
- How countries go about innovation;
- The processes involved, leadership and the relationships between the main actors;
- The knowledge base that is drawn on; andThe procedures and criteria for assessing progress and outcomes.

The three case studies are: a) research and statistics in VET with a focus on the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER); b) raising the status of VET; and c) the Australian Flexible Learning Framework.


http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/17/38/42243354.pdf

Sydney Facilitators Network - March meeting

You are warmly invited to our next meeting of 2009 on Monday 9th MARCH 2009

“Decision Making in Uncertain Times: Managing Encounters with Uncertainty and Discontinuity” with Dr Elyssebeth Leigh

Once upon a time – so the story goes – to be a successful decision maker only required memorising then following carefully a chosen set of stepping stones called a “decision-making sequence”

You know the kind of thing. First do this, then do that and follow that with the other. And behold! A decision emerges as you cut your way through all the competing options to find your way to clarity and certainty!

Whether you actually thought they were as helpful as their proposers asserted, might have been a different matter. For my self I always felt there was something missing – but could not say what it was – so said naught.

Now I know why I felt something was missing. I have learned that decisions - happen in contexts – which heavily influence your starting point are of different kinds – which kind is yours?
have known and unknown influencing factors – which impact on the extent to which you can make/implement a decision anyway are driven by causes which may have different effects in different conditions concern problems that will not always succumb to applications of logical sequencing. The work of David Snowden and the Cognitive Edge team has opened my eyes to a whole new world of ‘decision making in uncertain times’.
This session will introduce the Cognitive Edge approach to thinking, learning and decision making in the 21st century. The action will focus on Snowden’s model of ‘decision heuristics’ to co-create some new understandings of problem finding and decision creating.

When: Monday 9th March

Venue: Room 5.580 Level 5, Building 10, University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Jones Street, Ultimo corner Thomas Street. Take the lift to level 5, cross the atrium foot bridge, walk straight ahead to room 580.

Time: from 5:30pm to 7:30pm sharp

Social Networking: Afterwards at the Broadway Bar, Cnr. Harris St & Broadway, from 7.30