DeakinDigital: Professional Practice (IT) masters on offer next year

DeakinDigital hopes to bridge the gap between information technology education and workforce expertise.

Deakin University subsidiary DeakinDigital will offer a master of professional practice (IT) next year that it hopes will bridge the gap between information technology education and workforce expertise.

Chief executive Allyn Radford says the DeakinDigital model is based on the proposition that students should not have to sit in a classroom to learn what people already know.

“In a profession like IT that’s constantly changing, life experience and skills learned on and off the job are often just as relevant,” Radford says.

“The university and DeakinDigital are setting a world-first precedent by creating a formal pathway between credentials and a postgraduate qualification.”

The DeakinDigital masters program gives professionals the chance to earn credentials by engaging in best-practice assessments of capabilities learned through workplace experience and other learning. It offers credentials in areas such as teamwork, communication, collaboration, problem-solving and digital literacy.

Details: deakindigital.com.

Career focus

Right Management is urging business leaders to abandon hierarchical and paternalistic people-management and prioritise the career development of individuals.

The recruitment consultant has released a discussion paper, Fulfilling Careers Instead of Filling Jobs, which highlights the need for business leaders and human resources professionals to redefine their relationship with employees.

The paper says they must all work collaboratively to build a career culture within organisations, along with career paths that provide professional development opportunities, or risk losing their top talent.

Right Management executive vice-president Bridget Beattie says research has shown organisations that make career development a crucial part of their talent management strategy have 29 per cent higher revenue, higher client and customer retention, and reduced talent acquisition costs.

She says 42 per cent of companies are struggling to fill roles, and employers should consider increasing pay to ensure they find the best talent.

Skills in demand

Hays Office Support says sales and customer service administrators and personal assistants are topping the list of skills in demand in its report for July to September this year.

Senior regional director Alex Jones says more jobs are being offered in office support functions to help businesses through busy periods, projects and maternity leave.

Jones says a continued focus on systems upgrades and IT projects is adding to jobs growth.

“Given all this vacancy activity, the market has shifted and is now candidate short,” Jones says. “It is very common for good candidates with relevant experience to receive two or three permanent job offers. Likewise the temporary candidate pool is shrinking.”

Seeking balance

LeadershipHQ will run debates on diversity in Melbourne on August 12 and Sydney on August 13, challenging stereotypes and encouraging discussion about balance in the workplace. Panels will include Super Retail Group chief executive Peter Birtles, National Association of Women in Construction chief executive Laurice Temple, Nicola Mills from the Pacific Retail Group and LendLease human resources director Chris Lamb. They will discuss their diversity strategies, targets and quotas, and how to balance a worksite ensuring the best candidates are employed.