New online course to support the drive towards collaborative contracting strategies and improve project outcomes
The Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) has created the Foundations of Effective Project Collaboration course to help developers, contractors and their supply chain better understand the cultural and behavioural attributes which can impede project success. It introduces effective collaborative practices to support improved project delivery.
The course is designed as a starting point before moving on to use the ECITB Project Collaboration Toolkit, which has been successfully deployed by industry and recognised by the North Sea Transition Authority as good practice in robust project delivery.
In response to demand from industry, the interactive e-learning training is available free of charge via a new portal that will run parallel to the ECITB’s Learning Experience Platform (LXP), called ECITB EXPLORE. The LXP provides more than 8,500 free-to-access online courses for in-scope employers in the engineering construction industry (ECI).
The additional academy has been created to give access to ECITB-created courses and playlists to a wider audience including clients and asset owners, as well as non-ECI companies.
“The need for greater collaboration between delivery stakeholders in engineering construction projects has long been recognised.
“The new course is designed for organisations looking to instil collaborative project delivery practices, including project developers and asset owners. It encourages a shift from conventional contract norms, towards an integrated and aligned vision with all parties delivering to successful project outcomes.
“The Project Collaboration Toolkit was developed to provide guidance about how to create the right environment and encourage the necessary relationships and behaviours for collaborative project delivery strategies.
“It has been used successfully on a range of engineering construction projects of varying size and complexity to demonstrate the range of benefits that can be supported by effective, collaborative project delivery.
“But people in industry are still looking for more support on how to build a case to drive project collaboration forward. It is hoped that this e-learning training will support accelerated industry interest and demand.
“Promoting this approach widely with client organisations through ECITB EXPLORE will help build understanding around the opportunities collaborative contracting can bring.”
Andrew Hockey
ECITB Chief Executive
Learning outcomes
Industry was consulted and contributed to the development of the course, with Bilfinger UK, Dana Petroleum, Eni, EnQuest, Kingsfield Academy, Net Zero Technology Centre, Phillips 66 and Worley helping hone the training and what it delivers.
Designed for anyone working in the delivery of projects, including legal and procurement professionals, the foundation course is split into seven modules (see below diagram), which each include reading material, links to external sources, interactive on-screen activities, a multiple-choice assessment and a learning reflections section to help apply what has been learned to a person’s own role and organisation.
Learners take away how to introduce collaborative practices and why they work; what the characteristics of effective collaborators are; practical techniques to overcome barriers to effective collaboration; types of collaborative contracts and frameworks; and how to use the Project Collaboration Toolkit (PCT).
The toolkit, relevant for any sector across engineering construction, has now been used on several projects where pooled resources and shared skills and expertise have improved efficiency and provided a wide range of benefits.
Appetite for project collaboration course within industry
Tony Maplesden, the first chair of the ECITB Project Management Steering Group, played a significant role in the design and development of the PCT, drafting much of the toolkit’s content. He was a key contributor in developing the content for this new, online course.
Tony said: “As the author of the Project Collaboration Toolkit, I was privileged to develop the content for this important digital resource, which has been brilliantly converted into an attractive, interactive and appealing online course.
“The course will provide the platform for much wider adoption of collaborative project delivery strategies by the organisations, project teams and team members that use it.
“When we put the course out to industry representatives for review as part of the pre-release process, we got a positive and enthusiastic response indicating a demand and appetite within project stakeholder organisations to use it.
“The course will provide the skills necessary to enhance performance through collaboration, particularly on large, complex, multi-stakeholder projects.
“It will be of huge relevance to the challenges of delivering the portfolio of energy transition projects in the UK.”
