Reducing Skills Gaps of Freelances through Further Training in Europe

We wanted to offer freelancers and their teachers in Europe practical and easily accessible materials for further training opportunities. The aim was to specifically address the most pressing chal...

We wanted to offer freelancers and their teachers in Europe practical and easily accessible materials for further training opportunities. The aim was to specifically address the most pressing challenges – such as a lack of financial knowledge, inadequate strategic planning and insufficient market knowledge – and to support them with tailor-made training modules. Another important goal was to establish sustainable, transnational cooperation between partner organisations in order to pool experience, develop innovative learning opportunities and create long-term structures.

The project began with regular online meetings, the establishment of joint working platforms and the coordination of all partners. The first transnational project meeting took place in Istanbul rather than Hamburg because our partners from Istanbul were unable to obtain visas at short notice. Two one-week workshops in Antalya trained the teams from the partner organisations to identify skills gaps and develop training content through intensive and lively discussions. Based on these training sessions, the structure of the training modules was developed and then refined jointly. The modules were created and published in several languages. Finally, multiplier events were held in Innsbruck and Hamburg to present the project results.

The most important outputs of the project were the development of practice-oriented training modules for freelancers in Europe. These modules are based on research and intensive exchange between the partners. They offer comprehensible content on entrepreneurial skills in various languages. In addition, a project website was created with freely accessible materials structured according to modules. Another output was reports on skill gaps and challenges in Europe. The learning units also strengthened the competence of the participating organisations in the field of adult education. Overall, the project led to improved cooperation between the partners and to new, sustainable learning opportunities that can continue to be used after the end of the project.