Nima set to kickstart information management education and skills

The move reflects the need for industry and academia to work closely together to ensure the latter is producing the talent the former needs as information management processes and technology take significant leaps forward.

Woddy said: “One part of our plan is to take a different, more detailed approach to a Learning Outcomes Framework that encompasses all aspects of the information management lifecycle, from as many perspectives as possible. I want to create a master list of all information management-related actions, responsibilities and deliverables, which we can filter to signpost people towards what they need to know, specifically for their job role.

“The overall intention is to define tailored curricula for each niche persona and make training more relatable and relevant. The first stage of this work is to get groups of knowledgeable people together over the coming months to review the concept and the work done to date. I would then ask for volunteers to step up and take a detailed look at a small section of the matrix we have, specifically the information management tasks and responsibilities for their profession. We can then recompile the master list and take it to a wider group for validation. Once done, we have a number of use-cases defined for the data, but we can discuss this when we meet.”

In-person meetings to discuss the Learning Outcomes Framework will be held at Buro Happold’s office in central London on 11 February, and at BDP’s office in central Manchester on 25 February. A virtual session will be held in March.

Furthermore, Woddy wants to bring together secondary, further and higher educators, professional bodies, industry partners and digital leaders to redefine the Forum’s purpose, refresh its remit, and strengthen its role in influencing skills, standards and education for the digital built environment.

Woddy said: “With Professor Jason Underwood of Salford University, we are planning a face-to-face conference to be held at Salford’s MediaCity on 16 April. The intent is to reinvigorate the forum, review its purpose and remit, and launch various research projects to explore the current and future capability and capacity in the educational supply chain. The long-term goal would be to expand into an international forum, run by and for its members.”