On the one hand EmBrand is located in the context of attracting youngsters for apprenticeship and training to build up a professional career. On the other hand it is located in the context of Small and Medium sized companies (SMEs) facing diverse obstacles to find, hire and retain apprentices and regular professional staff due to a structural disadvantage because of financial resources in comparison to big companies. Also the retain of qualified working staff within the branch is important, because statistics (SOKA-Bau: https://www.baulinks.de/webplugin/2018/1521.php4) show a big leave from construction to other branches based on several severe reasons. To balance this structural disadvantage by developing instruments is the core of EmBrand; a VET-offer for leading staff in SMEs, who deals with human resource development, should be exchange/development goal of EmBrand. EmBrand is about matching interests between the supply side and the demand side of the labour market by presenting career options in SMEs for youngsters and upskilling options for human resource staff in SMEs to improve the image at the labour market (unique sales position). The objective of EmBrand is a definition of ways for upskilling of human resource staff in SMEs when coping with innovative ways to attract school leavers for apprenticeship and/or to attract skilled workers for qualified work. The particular focus lies on considering in exchange conveying methods and instruments for SMEs how to better compete with large companies on the labour market and the like with competitors for staff from other branches. SME staff should be supported (higher VET) why and how to develop a USP-strategy (USP: unique sales position) for themselves for attracting people as working staff. There will also be an exchange about how the image of the (construction) sector could be improved or at least instrumentalized for SMEs purposes to attract workforce on the VET-level (contrary to academics). Furthermore there will be a project phase, how companies and apprentices/workers can better match; which is or could be a task for VET-centres, since SMEs are often clients of VET-centres. An additional phase in EmBrand will focus on retaining skilled workers in SMEs; this will imply the exchange about current and needed VET-skills for in-company trainers and middle management (foremen, site managers) how to keep qualified staff in the organiation. Not least an exchange should be realised how to attract new groups for construction like girls and women. EmBrand reflects the need to support SMEs in upskilling their human resource staff (VET) in order to be more successful on the labour market or in the phase of attracting (qualified) school leavers for work in their very company. The objective demographic decrease of the number of school leavers, the competition among branches (e.g. white collar and blue collar branches) and not least the competition among big and small companies within the (construction) branch puts a lot of pressure on (construction) SMEs to find appropriate staff for their daily operations. Hence the target groups of EmBrand are entrepreneurs, human resource staff in SMEs, managing/leading staff in companies (foremen, site managers) and in-company trainers and in VET-centres the like. A fraction of the current project consortium has previously taken part in the project Talents4Construction (ERASMUS+ Exchange of Experience 2018-20). There, it turned out that Employer Branding was detected as the most vibrant facette to attract or retain working staff for SMEs; what actually is less necessary for big players, as they are mostly well known from their name. EmBrand has a transnational dimension, because the basic input from several countries leaves the opportunity to address a multi-cultural workforce throughout Europe on the one hand and to make international partners benefit from experiences of other countries. The mobility of labour in construction is quite high compared to other branches. EmBrand is placed in ERASMUS+ (i.e. vocational education and training) because the essence of the project should eventually path the way to VET offers being defined in EmBrand and developed possibly in follow up initiatives. A practical training for company staff will be designed basically by the consortium to enable SMEs to attract youngsters and adult people for sustainable careers in non-academic jobs in companies and also set SMEs in motion to promote the various VET-opportunities in their company as well as in the sector.
The intention of EmBrand was to find out whether SMEs know about Employer Branding at all and, when yes, what in detail they know about it. Furthermore, the project intended to find out, what SMEs do to attract and retain staff in companies. On the other hand, in particular looking at youngsters, EmBrand intended to find out how generations X, Y and Z expect to be addressed, i.e. how SMEs can get in touch with them; e.g. social media, school contacts/cooperations, fairs, etc.. EmBrand wanted to detect the gaps and imbalances in that. From that there were derived approaches how those gaps might be filled by VET offers for SME staff and/or entrepreneurs. EmBrand also wanted to detect, whether there are the same mechanisms in all partner countries or whether there were different ones.
EmBrand´s aim, which reflected the needs, was a definition of VET-aspects for upskilling of human resource staff in construction SMEs when coping with innovative ways to attract school leavers for apprenticeship and/or to attract skilled workers. The particular focus was considering/exchanging methods and instruments for the SMEs conveying how to better compete with large players on the labour market and the like with competitors for staff from other branches. SME staff should be supported (development of approaches for Employer Branding in higher VET) why and how to develop an Employer Branding strategy for themselves for attracting/retaining staff. EmBrand discussed important aspects nowadays how to attract youngsters for apprenticeship and training in order to build up a professional career. It was also about SMEs facing diverse obstacles to find, hire and retain apprentices and regular professional staff due to a structural disadvantage which is often caused by limited financial resources in comparison to big companies. To find balancing opportunities - through VET - for structural disadvantage was the project core. EmBrand was about finding matches of interests between the supply side and the demand side of the labour market.