new competencies and
innovations in logistics

In the Netherlands training of employees is strongly organised at sectoral level. In many sectors, social partners have agreed to reserve a part of the wages for a training fund out of which training activities are financed. Many sectors also have their own training institute. Logistics is an activity, which is not specifically linked to a certain sector, but can be found in many branches in the Netherlands. Because there is no clear link with a certain sector, a logical consequence could be that training in logistics would be organised less efficiently. However, this is not the case. Although employers involved in logistics are spread over various sectors, they have joined forces and are organised in an organisation which is called EVO.

EVO is the lobbyist and adviser for business in the Netherlands, concerning internal and external logistical activities including supply of raw materials or products, their storage, transport or distribution to the customer. EVO stands for Own Carrier Organisation (Eigen Vervoerders Organisatie) and is the main agent for own account operators in the Netherlands. These members are not from one sector, but from various sectors.

Their core tasks are:

• ? Providing information and enquiries.
• Taking care of good education, trainings and company advice.
• Influencing political decisions.
• Promoting good understanding between logistics market parties.
• Functioning as a platform/ carring out the network function.

Membership is voluntary, but offers many advantages in terms of services following from of these core tasks.

EVO has 34,000 member-companies in trade (48.5%), industry (17%), building (16%), agriculture (12%), business (6%) and transport (0.5%). Transport is less involved because they have their own sectoral organisations which give attention to logistical and distribution issues.

Skilled personnel contribute to the effective and efficient functioning of the logistics process. To get and keep the knowledge of the workers on the right level, good education is definitely a primary condition. Therefore EVO offers training courses on the field of logistics. Their training offer consists of:

• Distribution training courses.
• Warehouse training courses.
• Management training courses.
• Training Dangerous Substances.
• Trainings internal transport.
• Trainings international trade traffic.
• Safety training.

This includes various training courses for both functions we selected in the NOVALOG-project. A very popular training for example is the one for forklift truck driving (blue collar), but there are also courses such as logistical planning techniques and logistical performance indicators (white collar). The training courses are accessible for employees of both member-companies and non-members, but the members pay less for participation.

EVO is not only involved in organising training courses, but also has a broader role in certification. Linked to EVO there used to be Logex, the independent exam office of EVO. Logex organised various exams, e.g. for forklift drivers, warehouse control, warehouse management, finances and administration safety adviser. This certification process is more and more integrated with another examination office in this field linked to the transport sector (EVL). The exams have a certain standing. This means that several training providers organise their training contents in such a way that the trainees can go up for the EVL/Logex exam and attain a diploma from EVL/Logex. In practice, this means that the training market becomes more transparent, because if a trainee has attained the certificate, employers know what it stands for. Moreover, because the contents of the examination is revised regularly according to recent developments, various training providers also have to update their training in that direction. It gives a certain structure in the training of many providers in for example the field of training for forklift driving.

The ambition was to come to one logistics exam institute in the Netherlands. In preparation to the integration, Logex and EVL merged in 2002. The definite structure for the 'Building of Exams' was postponed until September 2003. The 'Building of Exams' came finally into effect on 1 January 2004. Within this singular structure for examination in logistics EVL and Logex were joined by CCV. This is the organisation responsible for close to all professional driving licences in the Netherlands. Within this structure they are trying to come to one examination for forklift-truck driver.

Due to the fact that the CCV (certification of licences) joined EVL/Logex, a sort of national platform in certification in transport and logistics came into existence. This makes the market for certification in transport and logistics very transparent.

EVO tries to monitor what is happening in the contents of functions in logistics. In order to help companies to develop their HRM-policy, they have recently published a book with function profiles in logistics. This includes several functions for physical movement in the warehouse, but also includes a (staff) function that is more or less linked with our selected white-collar function. Within every job competences are defined. Because EVO is working in this field of explicating various functions and competences, it is easier to develop a training offer, that is dedicated to the actual demands in companies.

Uniformity in competences to be acquired in the logistics training market is attained through the field of examinations, first through forming Logex, then EVL/Logex and now the new 'Building of Exams'. This improves both transparency and quality.

The fact that there is an employer organisation around logistics that organises training courses does not automatically mean that funds are set aside to finance training. Because EVO is organised across sectors, they are not directly involved in specific sector negotiations about collective agreements in which funds are reserved for sectoral training institutes. Normally these Training and Development Funds (Opleidings- en ontwikkelingsfondsen) contribute to the training costs, but often this is only restricted to training courses of the branch institute or a selected list of training courses. However, EVO has made agreements with a number of these funds that their training courses are included for subsidy out of the fund. If companies in these sectors choose to train employees in a course of EVO, they are entitled to subsidies out of the training fund of their sector.

Although the Logex and EVL requirements and examinations have already been the same for quite a while, it is important for transparency that there is one exam from one institute. The newly established institute has already contributed greatly in increasing transparency in this area when it came into existence.

Yearly EVO instructs 15,000 people, of whom about half are trained for forklift driver. EVL and Logex offer 74 different examinations in fields of transport and logistics with in total about 18,000 participants per year. The new 'Building of Exams' has made the market even more transparent.

First the merger between EVL and Logex, and now the forming of the 'Building of Exams logistics and transport' have resulted in an increasingly transparent field when it comes to examination and certification in logistics. This all makes it much easier for workers and companies to relate jobs, work and tasks to competences that come with certain licences and types of training.

The elements of good practice in this case are the following:

• Employers in various sectors with logistical activities have united together in an organisation (EVO), that behaves as a lobby organisation, but also gives advice, supports in HRM-policy and organises training courses in the field of logistics. Moreover they have negotiated with other more sectoral organisations to profit from training funds available out of collective agreements.
• From EVO an institute developed that organises examinations and offers certificates in the field of logistics, which lead to a more structured and transparent training market. This institute (Logex) has worked close together with another exam institute in this field (EVL). Logex (EVO) and EVL and another relevant organisation called CCV have formed a single platform for examinations in logistics. This results in clarity for people and companies in need of training, a recognised certificate or licence and it greatly increases the transparency of the whole area.

For transferability of, for example the examination / certificates structure, it is crucial that relevant parties see the (shared) advantages of co-operation.