0002015042

Developing the technology platform for Skill Gap Analysis in Maharashtra

Background:

The government of Maharashtra, with financing from the World Bank, is implementing Development of Applied Knowledge and Skills for Human Development (DAKSH) in Maharashtra. The program development objective of DAKSH is to improve skills and entrepreneurship training for enhanced employability in Maharashtra. Result area 1 of the program focuses on institutional strengthening for high-quality market relevant training with robust MIS.

Skill, Employment, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation Department (SEEID), Government of Maharashtra acts as the nodal agency for skill development initiatives in the state and is the implementing agency for the DAKSH Maharashtra program. The department works towards its objectives largely through three institutions:

1.      Directorate of Vocational Education & Training (DVET) that directly manages the 400+ government ITIs and regulates 500+ private ITIs in the state.

2.      Maharashtra State Skill Development Society (MSSDS) that manages central and state government programs in short-term skilling with training partners.

3.      Maharashtra State Innovation Society (MSInS) that promotes entrepreneurship and innovation in the state through various programs including training.

The program boundary for DAKSH includes training at Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) as well as short-term training on NSQF compliant programs through accredited training providers. There are several interventions including on improving the infrastructure, training quality, relevance, and job preparedness.

The selection of training programs to be offered is currently based largely on centralized planning (for ITIs) and industry demand assessment (for short-term training). While there have been quantitative assessments to estimate the number of jobs for each job role, the state would benefit from a structured, comprehensive, and periodic skill gap assessment in quantitative as well as qualitative terms to inform the program offerings, design, and delivery.

To augment the institutional capacity of the department in conjunction with DAKSH Maharashtra program, the International Bank for Reconstruction & Development (IBRD) has received a grant from the Korea - World Bank Group Partnership Facility (KWPF). IBRD plans to utilize a part of this grant to help develop and demonstrate a good model for periodic skill gap assessment in the state.

 

Framework for Skill Gap Assessment:

The skill gap assessment should have a robust and comprehensive framework to look at the demand for and supply of skills holistically as well as to forecast the expected changes to prepare the skill ecosystem for the future.

Some of the considerations while designing the skill gap assessment framework are as below:

1.      Skill demand assessment: Current levels of skill demand in the industry can be assessed by surveying a sample of the employers, studying sectoral reports, and intelligent systems analyzing online job platforms. Analyzing various databases, including those on trade and investments, could provide further insights on skill demand. To understand specific skills and skill levels required for various job roles, expert consultations can be held. Big data analytics of job descriptions for jobs posted on various platforms could also provide useful insights.

2.      Skill demand forecasting: To project the future demand, multiple qualitative and quantitative tools can be utilized to estimate growth rates and employment elasticity. Quantitative methods rely on econometric modeling and statistical analysis and the qualitative methods include use of sentiment analysis using big data and expert consultations using Delphi method, among others.

3.      Skill supply assessment: The quality and quantity of skill supply in the economy can be assessed by an analysis of enrolment and completion at education and training institutions along with assessment of graduates of these programs on skill competencies. In addition to technical skills, the graduates can also be assessed on platform skills, soft skills, analytical skills, literacy, etc. to provide comprehensive picture. Skill assessment at individual level also provides useful input to the learners on further education and employment pathways.

4.      Analysis and insights: Periodic data collection on the above three provides rich data on supply and demand of skills in the economy that can be analyzed to provide useful insights for graduates, institutions, and policymakers. The analysis will provide an understanding of the skill inventory in the state, skill requirement (present and future projected) in the state, and gaps in skills and skill levels.

5.      Technology tools: Implementation of a regular skill gap assessment should utilize technology tools for collection and analysis of data. Additionally, AI could be used to supplement some of the data collection, cleaning, and analysis activities. A dynamic dashboard could summarize the results and provide insights for consumption by various stakeholders.

 

Objectives of the assignment:

Through this assignment, the contractor is expected to develop a technology tool (with guidance from academic partners) to collect and aggregate data on supply of skills (through ITIs and short-term skilling to begin with) and demand for skills (in industry and service sectors at entry levels for roles that usually require vocational training). The technology tool should have the capability to integrate with existing databases as well as the option to upload datasheets from primary sources. The tool will have common skill taxonomy for supply side as well as demand side and standardized assessments for jobseekers and job-roles to assign them skill profiles. Academic partner (contracted separately) will provide sector expertise on skill taxonomy and assessments. Basis the skill profiles of jobseekers and job-roles, the tool should conduct advanced analytics and provide qualitative and quantitative skill gap assessment at district and state levels.

 

 

Methodology:

A technology tool will be developed to collect information on skill supply in the state through training institutions and skill demand at the industry and service sector units. For simplicity and relevance to DAKSH, the tool will only conduct the skill gap assessment for the job roles relevant for ITI and MSSDS trainees. Although there is some movement across borders for employment, to avoid complexity, the tool will only consider industry and service sector employment opportunities in the state.

Information to be collected/generated on skill supply: There are 168 approved programs for ITIs in India. The ITIs in Maharashtra (about 1000 in number) would be offering a subset of these 168 programs. Similarly, there are more than 2000 NSDC approved programs for short-term skilling. MSSDS would be offering a significantly smaller number of programs through its training centers (more than 500 centers). The technology tool should collect the following information for the institutions and programs in the state:

1.      Institution information – ITI / MSSDS center, Govt/ private, District, Rural/Urban, General/ST/Women

2.      Program information – sector, NSQF level, duration, expected skill profile after training completion, actual skill profile after training completion based on standardized assessments administered to a representative sample

3.      Each unique program-institution combination – enrolment capacity, actual enrolment

In the future, the state plans to digitize the ITIs and use LMS & ERP solutions that will generate skill assessment data in digital form for each trainee. The tool should have the capability to generate skill profile for each trainee based on the assessment information and it should be able to aggregate the parameters in skill profile at institution, district, and state level.

Information to be collected/generated on skill demand: The employment landscape in the state consists largely of MSME, but also includes large enterprises. The tool would collect the following information on the skill demand:

1.      For each sector – job roles and their expected skill profile (based on key informant interviews and focus group discussions with a representative sample from each sector), average requirement for each job role per unit of output (e.g. number of mechanics required per 1000 vehicles produced), average output capacity for each size (micro, small, medium, large), employment elasticity

2.      For each unique district-sector combination – number of units of each size (from MSME department district data), expected growth rate of the sector

Based on these inputs, the technology tool should create skill profile of the job roles and number of persons required for each job role at district and state levels.

Comparing supply and demand: The tool should then compare the requirements gathered from the industry with the skill supply from the institutions to generate two outputs:

1.      Expected number of persons required for each job role (or group of job roles) vis-à-vis number of trainees enrolled in programs relevant for these job roles

2.      Qualitative gap between the skill requirement or expectation from the industry for a given job role vis-à-vis the average skill level in skill assessment of sample set of trainees in relevant training program.

 

Scope of work:

The scope of work of the agency will include the following:

1.      Wireframe: Based on the objectives of the assignment, the agency will develop the technological architecture and wireframe for the tool for data collection and analysis.

2.      Pilot technical tool: The agency will develop a prototype of technical tool for conducting skill gap analysis. The tool will be operated with small sample data to check its usability.

3.      Stakeholder consultation: The agency will demonstrate the pilot tool to the government and the World Bank and gather feedback for improving the tool.

4.      Product development: Based on the feedback, the agency will further refine the technical product to include all functionalities required to meet the objectives listed in the previous section.

5.      Quality assurance and security testing: The agency will conduct quality and security tests as per relevant guidelines and to meet country and state-specific regulations.

6.      Conduct the assessment: The agency will conduct one round of assessment by collecting skill supply data from the ITIs and skill demand data from a representative sample of industries.

7.      Knowledge transfer: The agency will create documentation for conducting the skill gap assessment on an ongoing basis in the state. The documentation should include a comparative analysis of various models of conducting the assessment on regular basis including on cost and effectiveness for various considerations of in-house vs. outsourcing.

 

Deliverables and timelines:

S No

Deliverable

Timeline

1

Inception report including

-          Approach

-          Implementation plan

T + 2 weeks

2

Technological architecture and wireframe

T + 4 weeks

3

Pilot tool

T + 8 weeks

4

Stakeholder consultation

T + 10 weeks

5

Final tool

T + 14 weeks

6

QA & Security testing

T + 16 weeks

7

Conduct skill gap assessment

T + 22 weeks

8

User manual and documentation

T + 24 weeks

 

 

SELECTION OF CONSULTING FIRMS BY THE WORLD BANK GROUP

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST (EOI)

Electronic Submissions through WBGeProcure RFx Now

ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW

Assignment Title: Developing the technology platform for Skill Gap Analysis in Maharashtra

Assignment Countries:

• India

ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION

Background:

The government of Maharashtra, with financing from the WorldBank, is implementing Development of Applied Knowledge and Skills for HumanDevelopment (DAKSH) in Maharashtra. The program development objective of DAKSHis to improve skills and entrepreneurship training for enhancedemployability in Maharashtra. Result area 1 of the program focuses on institutionalstrengthening for high-quality market relevant training with robust MIS.

Skill, Employment, Entrepreneurship, and InnovationDepartment (SEEID), Government of Maharashtra acts as the nodal agency forskill development initiatives in the state and is the implementing agency forthe DAKSH Maharashtra program. The department works towards its objectiveslargely through three institutions:

1.Directorate of Vocational Education &Training (DVET) that directly manages the 400+ government ITIs and regulates500+ private ITIs in the state.

2.Maharashtra State Skill Development Society(MSSDS) that manages central and state government programs in short-termskilling with training partners.

3.Maharashtra State Innovation Society (MSInS)that promotes entrepreneurship and innovation in the state through variousprograms including training.

The program boundary for DAKSH includes training atIndustrial Training Institutes (ITIs) as well as short-term training on NSQFcompliant programs through accredited training providers. There are severalinterventions including on improving the infrastructure, training quality,relevance, and job preparedness.

The selection of training programs to be offered iscurrently based largely on centralized planning (for ITIs) and industry demandassessment (for short-term training). While there have been quantitativeassessments to estimate the number of jobs for each job role, the state wouldbenefit from a structured, comprehensive, and periodic skill gap assessment inquantitative as well as qualitative terms to inform the program offerings,design, and delivery.

To augment the institutional capacity of the department inconjunction with DAKSH Maharashtra program, the International Bank forReconstruction & Development (IBRD) has received a grant from the Korea -World Bank Group Partnership Facility (KWPF). IBRD plans to utilize a part ofthis grant to help develop and demonstrate a good model for periodic skill gapassessment in the state.

Framework for Skill GapAssessment:

The skill gap assessment should have a robust andcomprehensive framework to look at the demand for and supply of skillsholistically as well as to forecast the expected changes to prepare the skillecosystem for the future.

Some of the considerations while designing the skill gapassessment framework are as below:

1.Skill demand assessment: Current levelsof skill demand in the industry can be assessed by surveying a sample of theemployers, studying sectoral reports, and intelligent systems analyzing onlinejob platforms. Analyzing various databases, including those on trade andinvestments, could provide further insights on skill demand. To understandspecific skills and skill levels required for various job roles, expertconsultations can be held. Big data analytics of job descriptions for jobsposted on various platforms could also provide useful insights.

2.Skill demand forecasting: To project thefuture demand, multiple qualitative and quantitative tools can be utilized toestimate growth rates and employment elasticity. Quantitative methods rely oneconometric modeling and statistical analysis and the qualitative methodsinclude use of sentiment analysis using big data and expert consultations usingDelphi method, among others.

3.Skill supply assessment: The quality andquantity of skill supply in the economy can be assessed by an analysis ofenrolment and completion at education and training institutions along withassessment of graduates of these programs on skill competencies. In addition totechnical skills, the graduates can also be assessed on platform skills, softskills, analytical skills, literacy, etc. to provide comprehensive picture.Skill assessment at individual level also provides useful input to the learnerson further education and employment pathways.

4.Analysis and insights: Periodic datacollection on the above three provides rich data on supply and demand of skillsin the economy that can be analyzed to provide useful insights for graduates,institutions, and policymakers. The analysis will provide an understanding ofthe skill inventory in the state, skill requirement (present and futureprojected) in the state, and gaps in skills and skill levels.

5.Technology tools: Implementation of aregular skill gap assessment should utilize technology tools for collection andanalysis of data. Additionally, AI could be used to supplement some of the datacollection, cleaning, and analysis activities. A dynamic dashboard could summarizethe results and provide insights for consumption by various stakeholders.

Objectives of theassignment:

Through this assignment, the contractor is expected todevelop a technology tool (with guidance from academic partners) to collect andaggregate data on supply of skills (through ITIs and short-term skilling tobegin with) and demand for skills (in industry and service sectors at entrylevels for roles that usually require vocational training). The technology toolshould have the capability to integrate with existing databases as well as theoption to upload datasheets from primary sources. The tool will have commonskill taxonomy for supply side as well as demand side and standardizedassessments for jobseekers and job-roles to assign them skill profiles.Academic partner (contracted separately) will provide sector expertise on skilltaxonomy and assessments. Basis the skill profiles of jobseekers and job-roles,the tool should conduct advanced analytics and provide qualitative andquantitative skill gap assessment at district and state levels.

Methodology:

A technology tool will be developed to collect informationon skill supply in the state through training institutions and skill demand atthe industry and service sector units. For simplicity and relevance to DAKSH,the tool will only conduct the skill gap assessment for the job roles relevantfor ITI and MSSDS trainees. Although there is some movement across borders foremployment, to avoid complexity, the tool will only consider industry andservice sector employment opportunities in the state.

Information to be collected/generated on skill supply: Thereare 168 approved programs for ITIs in India. The ITIs in Maharashtra (about1000 in number) would be offering a subset of these 168 programs. Similarly,there are more than 2000 NSDC approved programs for short-term skilling. MSSDSwould be offering a significantly smaller number of programs through itstraining centers (more than 500 centers). The technology tool should collectthe following information for the institutions and programs in the state:

1.Institution information – ITI / MSSDS center,Govt/ private, District, Rural/Urban, General/ST/Women

2.Program information – sector, NSQF level,duration, expected skill profile after training completion, actual skillprofile after training completion based on standardized assessmentsadministered to a representative sample

3.Each unique program-institution combination –enrolment capacity, actual enrolment

In the future, the state plans to digitize the ITIs and useLMS & ERP solutions that will generate skill assessment data in digitalform for each trainee. The tool should have the capability to generate skillprofile for each trainee based on the assessment information and it should beable to aggregate the parameters in skill profile at institution, district, andstate level.

Information to be collected/generated on skill demand: Theemployment landscape in the state consists largely of MSME, but also includeslarge enterprises. The tool would collect the following information on theskill demand:

1.For each sector – job roles and their expectedskill profile (based on key informant interviews and focus group discussionswith a representative sample from each sector), average requirement for eachjob role per unit of output (e.g. number of mechanics required per 1000vehicles produced), average output capacity for each size (micro, small,medium, large), employment elasticity

2.For each unique district-sector combination –number of units of each size (from MSME department district data), expectedgrowth rate of the sector

Based on these inputs, the technology tool should createskill profile of the job roles and number of persons required for each job roleat district and state levels.

Comparing supply and demand: The tool should thencompare the requirements gathered from the industry with the skill supply fromthe institutions to generate two outputs:

1.Expected number of persons required for each jobrole (or group of job roles) vis-à-vis number of trainees enrolled in programsrelevant for these job roles

2.Qualitative gap between the skill requirement orexpectation from the industry for a given job role vis-à-vis the average skilllevel in skill assessment of sample set of trainees in relevant trainingprogram.

Scope of work:

The scope of work of the agency will include the following:

1.Wireframe: Based on the objectives of theassignment, the agency will develop the technological architecture andwireframe for the tool for data collection and analysis.

2.Pilot technical tool: The agency willdevelop a prototype of technical tool for conducting skill gap analysis. Thetool will be operated with small sample data to check its usability.

3.Stakeholder consultation: The agency willdemonstrate the pilot tool to the government and the World Bank and gatherfeedback for improving the tool.

4.Product development: Based on thefeedback, the agency will further refine the technical product to include allfunctionalities required to meet the objectives listed in the previous section.

5.Quality assurance and security testing:The agency will conduct quality and security tests as per relevant guidelinesand to meet country and state-specific regulations.

6.Conduct the assessment: The agency will conductone round of assessment by collecting skill supply data from the ITIs and skilldemand data from a representative sample of industries.

7.Knowledge transfer: The agency willcreate documentation for conducting the skill gap assessment on an ongoingbasis in the state. The documentation should include a comparative analysis ofvarious models of conducting the assessment on regular basis including on costand effectiveness for various considerations of in-house vs. outsourcing.

Deliverables andtimelines:

S No

Deliverable

Timeline

1

Inception report including

- Approach

- Implementation plan

T + 2 weeks

2

Technological architecture and wireframe

T + 4 weeks

3

Pilot tool

T + 8 weeks

4

Stakeholder consultation

T + 10 weeks

5

Final tool

T + 14 weeks

6

QA & Security testing

T + 16 weeks

7

Conduct skill gap assessment

T + 22 weeks

8

User manual and documentation

T + 24 weeks

FUNDING SOURCE

The World Bank Group intends to finance the assignment / services described below under the following:

• BB: Bank Budget
• TF0C1413: KWBP

ELIGIBILITY

Eligibility restrictions apply:

• [Please type list of restrictions]

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

The World Bank Group invites eligible firms to indicate their interest in providing the services. Interested firms must provide information indicating that they are qualified to perform the services (brochures, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, availability of appropriate skills among staff, etc. for firms; CV and cover letter for individuals). Please note that the total size of all attachments should be less than 5MB. Firms may associate to enhance their qualifications unless otherwise stated in the solicitation documents. Where a group of firms associate to submit an EOI, they must indicate which is the lead firm. If shortlisted, the firm identified in the EOI as the lead firm will be invited to the request for proposal (RFP) phase.

Expressions of Interest should be submitted, in English, electronically through WBGeProcure RFx Now

NOTES

Following this invitation for EOI, a shortlist of qualified firms will be formally invited to submit proposals. Shortlisting and selection will be subject to the availability of funding.

Only those firms which have been shortlisted will be invited to participate in the RFP phase. No notification or debrief will be provided to firms which have not been shortlisted.

If you encounter technical difficulties while uploading documents, please send an e-mail to the Help Desk at corporateprocurement@worldbank.org prior to the submission deadline.