Basis of the ACCSTP
At the eleventh meeting of the ASEAN Task Force on Tourism
Manpower Development, a set of minimum competency standards within a
qualifications framework for professionals in retail and wholesale travel
companies, housekeeping, front office, and food & beverage service was
presented. The standards were based upon the competencies
required to perform a set of commonly agreed job titles in retail and wholesale
travel companies, housekeeping, front office, and food & beverage service.
Parameters for ACCSTP Framework
In the development of the ACCSTP Framework (2004-2005), ATFTMD helped to identify the
minimum competency standards essential for each job title within the following
parameters:-
• The
ACCSTP Framework common competency standards matrix must be compatible with
best practice to be recognised internationally;
•The
ACCSTP Framework is the best available common denominator or commonlanguage to
advance the interests of the ASEAN community;
• The
ACCSTP Framework would only include competencies that were current,relevant and
applicable to member countries. A ‘mainstream
approach’ has been used in cross-matching
the common competencies (among member countries);
• Given
an agreed ACCSTP Framework, each member country or industry maychoose to add (at a later date) additional competencies
that may be necessary to suit local requirements.
The Importance of a Competency Framework
The ACCSTP are based on the concept of competency –
the knowledge, skills attitudes (KSA)
that individuals must have, or must acquire, to perform effectively at
work. Competence is all about demonstrable performance
outputs and in the case of ACCSTP relates to a system or set of minimum
standards required for effective performance at work. A ‘competency framework’ is a structure that
sets out and defines each individual competency (such as
problem-solving, checking in hotel guests or managing
people) required by individuals working in a tourism
organisation or part of an organisation.
Structure of the Competency
Standards
Competency standards set down the specific knowledge and skills
required for successful performance in the workplace and the required standard
of performance. They are organised into units, each with a
code and title. The standards for hospitality and tourism
cover both general areas common to all sectors (e.g. communication, leadership and
occupational health and safety), and sector-specific
areas.
The ACCSTP Framework lists the minimum common competency
standards that should be widely used in the region to allow the skills,
knowledge and attitudes (competence) of
tourism professionals to be assessed, recognised and equated to comparable
qualifications in other ASEAN countries in order for an MRA to function.
Common Labour Divisions
The ACCSTP are arranged as sets of competencies required by
qualified professionals who seek to work in the various divisions of labour
that are common across various sectors of tourism in ASEAN Member States.
Minimal Competencies
Compliance with these “minimal” competencies will be an essential reference or benchmark for
anyone wishing to apply for a position in another ASEAN Member State. The terms minimum or minimal simply refer to the essential
basic skills required for a particular job description. It
is useful in setting a basic benchmark or standard in professional performance. In the ACCSTP Framework, the minimal competencies required are
arranged on a framework using common divisions of labour as illustrated in
Table 2.1:
The positions listed under each labour division are of varying
levels of sophistication and responsibility, some of which might require
extensive vocational training whereas others might only require short-term training of one to two weeks or on-the-job training.
2.7.2
Setting Job Positions
The principle for setting job positions is that for some
positions it is entirely possible that someone can carry out a series of
responsibilities in a highly professional manner without any formal education. This is certainly the case within the industry where some
managers have little formal education but a great deal of life and industry
experience. This is not to say that formal education at
the higher managerial levels is not important but clearly industry experience
needs to be recognized in any hiring process.
Divisions of Labour
The term labour division might be slightly misleading in that
some of the tasks are operational in nature and labour intensive, but many of
the position classifications are clearly supervisory or managerial.
Core,
Generic and Functional Competencies
The competency standards for tourism professionals listed in the
ACCSTP Framework are the minimum acceptable common competency standards
required by industry and employers to enable the standard of a qualified person’s skills to be recognised and assessed equitably in ASEAN
countries. This is an essential mechanism required for the
effective operation of an MRA.
In the ACCSTP Framework, the Competencies are graded into three
related groups of skills: Core, Generic and Functional
Competencies.
Core
Competencies
Competencies that industry has agreed are essential to be
achieved if a person is to be accepted as competent in a particular primary
division of labour. They are directly linked to key
occupational tasks and include units such as ‘Work
effectively with colleagues and customers, and Implement occupational health
and safety procedures.’
Generic Competencies
Competencies that industry has agreed are essential to be achieved
if a person is to be accepted as competent at particular secondary division of
labour. The name ‘life skills’ is sometimes used to describe these competencies and they
include units such as: ‘Use common business tools and
technology,’ and ‘Manage and resolve
conflict situations.’
Functional Competencies
Functional Competencies are specific to roles or jobs within the
labour division, and include the specific skills and knowledge (know-how) to perform effectively, such as ‘Receive and process reservations, Provide housekeeping services
to guests, and Operate a bar facility.’ These competencies
could be generic to a Labour Division as a whole, or be specific to roles,
levels or jobs within the Labour Division.
Future Developments
As part of the ongoing work of ASEAN, the following activities
will take place:
•
Development
of a Regional Qualifications Framework and Skills Recognition System (RQFSRS)
•
Development
of 242 Toolboxes for each Competency Standard in the 6 Labour Divisions
(Housekeeping Division has already been completed)
•
Training
of Trainer Programme for Master Trainer and Master Assessor for Front Office,
Food and Beverage Services, Food Production, Travel Agents, and Tour Operators
•
Establishment
of a Regional Secretariat for ASEAN Tourism Professionals.
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น