Paper by Manjit Monga

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Management Capabilities and Training Needs in Australia's SMEs

This is a summary of the report by Dr Manjit Monga. The full report is available as an HTML version (for reading on screen) or a PDF version (for printing).

Study of training needs finds strong demand for new approaches

One of the first priorities for the recently founded Smartlink project was to discover what the major training needs are for Australia's small and medium manufacturers. Smartlink commissioned a study from Dr Manjit Monga, of the University of South Australia, to review recent reports in this area. She found 33 previous studies and reports, that in some way touched on the management capabilities of manufacturers - including some which dealt with all SMEs (small and medium enterprises), not just with manufacturers.

On reviewing the 33 studies, Dr Monga found ample evidence of a need for both hard and soft skills in the industry, and evidence that there was need for improvement in these skills if Australian SMEs were to be globally competitive.

The soft skills identified as most important included

leadership skills,
communication,
cultural diversity management,
problem solving and analytical skills, and
interpersonal skills.

The training needs identified for hard skills included those related to lean and agile production,

supply chain management,
quality management,
quantitative marketing skills, and
skills related to information technology.

It will be a particular challenge to meet the training needs of small manufacturers. Many of these are under-resourced, and their managers are so busy meeting their immediate demands that they have little or no time available for further training - but in the long run, without that training, their future will be less secure.

The Karpin Report indicated that formal management education was considered too time-consuming, expensive, and difficult to access. The VET system was seen as inflexible. Dr Monga's study indicated that less formal, more short-term, and more focused delivery methods were popular, and that training should be relevant, flexible, and affordable.

Manufacturers around the world are realizing that above all, a commitment to continuous learning is essential. The pace of change is expected to increase, the solution is to build an ability to learn into regular work: this is the "learning factory".

With the continuing trend to leaner organizations, teamwork is inevitable, and consequently multi-skilled workforces are essential. Managers' and skilled workers' training needs will have much in common in the future. Both "soft skills" and "hard skills" will be essential, and everybody will need to be involved in life-long learning.

So what are the outcomes for the Smartlink program? This program, as developed since June 2000, addresses four key needs identified in this study: lean and agile manufacturing, people management, supply chain management, and management of networks and alliances.

Two needs not specifically addressed in the initial Smartlink program were innovation management capabilities and e-commerce.

To meet these needs, Smartlink is now strengthening its links with the Queensland Manufacturing Institute's PD-net workshop scheme, which focuses on new product development and innovation, and with the University of SA's Centre for the Development of Entrepreneurs.

The importance placed on e-commerce in the most recent reports suggests that smartlink should address this area. In view of the plethora of training opportunities in e-commerce, Smartlink will focus on the issues most relevant to manufacturers, particularly the use of the Internet in supply chain management. But above all, the Smartlink project can encourage the principle of life-long learning.

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