Working successfully worldwide

For many employees, everyday work is becoming increasingly international. So far, this trend has only been reflected in training regulations in isolated cases. In light of this, and on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) has developed a competence toolkit with wording options relating to international occupational competence. Now, if a training occupation with an international context is updated or newly developed, the experts can use the toolkit.

The toolkit specifies the competencies which enable skilled workers to function successfully in an international working environment. International occupational competence is subdivided into the three dimensions of "international specialist competencies", "intercultural competencies" and "foreign language competencies". The toolkit lists a number of possible occupational profile items for each of the three dimensions. In the area of international specialist competencies, for example, relevant wordings have been developed for commercial and IT occupations.

This therefore provides experts involved in regulatory procedures with a specific orientation and decision-making aid. The structured presentation of relevant competence dimensions and potential occupational profile items makes it easier to reflect and decide upon the relevance of an international occupational competence to a specific occupation. Toolkit wordings can be transferred directly into the regulatory instruments or adapted where required.

In order to illustrate potential uses of the competence toolkit, there is a guide available, including a fictitious example of its use for a codified additional qualification and elective qualification in the area of IT. The example can easily be transferred to other occupational contexts.