Ontology-based model sustaining competence management within corporates: competence certification in CSR. The SADA Spa experience

Abstract

The theme of competences is characterized by the complex nature, as the possible definitions can be traced back to various fields that belong to the psychology, the world of work and the quality of the reference society. The concept of competence, depending on the perspective of analysis, has assumed different meanings over time, pointing to conceptual uncertainties that inevitably reflect on the procedures to define its measurability and transferability. The polysemy of the term competence is probably not due to terminological fragility but is due to a not yet completely consolidated concept. Thus, this ambiguity is perceptible both in the theoretical matrices but more so in its modes of use so it seems interesting to note that competence assumes value and centrality precisely in function of the vision of the reality that it generates. Although the concept of competence derives from uncertain perimeters, it represents a significant "attraction" as: in knowledge economy, competence is a source of added value and competitive advantage in the light of the dynamic needs of the customer and the uncertainties of the market. whose development of employee skills is an important component of personal development and individual self-management. To simplify the discourse on skills, a multidimensional lens can be useful, capable of highlighting the different approaches to the theme and illustrating the backgrounds to which they refer. Therefore, in this paper some of the most important contributions and models that have fueled the debate on skills have been analyzed. The purpose is not to propose a systematic literature review, but to present the main points of view of the scholars of the industry and some of the different meanings that this notion can assume. These are the theoretical basics from which to start with the theme of recognition, validation and certification of skills that have been debated over many years and in the main segments of labortraining policies. Such attention is probably due to the "unifying function" of skills certification in the labor market, as a process capable of ensuring fluidity and support for the employment transitions of individuals. In fact, aspects such as mobility, interdisciplinarity and the internationalization of workers increasingly require the construction of training and professional paths rich in diverse experiences and competences, able to adapt to changing demands and conditions, but also recognizable by the organizations and professional communities. Expanding the needs of skills and training opportunities corresponds to the extension of what is defined as the learning environment through the rediscovery of non-formal and informal learning. Therefore, the identification, validation and certification of competences can be considered as fundamental processes for the purpose of enhancing human capital as, in the transition from the training chain to the employment market, allow a rethinking of learning outcomes, more recognizable and informative. In transitions in the labor market, these processes embody impetus on worker mobility by favoring reintegration through the emergence of tacit skills and those accrued in nonformal and informal areas, considered subsidiary and functional to access to job opportunities. Therefore, skills are considered the "common metric", the "interoperable" language that allows different systems (school, training, universities, businesses, public institutions) to refer to the same "competence standards". For these reasons, for decades, these issues have played an important role in the labor, education and training policies of the European Union and Italy. In this regard, a further aim of the dissertation work was to analyze the theoretical framework of validation and competence certification processes as well as the relevance of the concept of lifelong learning, which is also a shared reference framework for the concrete exercise of rights of European citizens to recognize their training pathways and experiences of life and work throughout the community. The examination of the "certification" pathway continued with the analysis of the main approaches, policies and tools adopted by the European Union and Italy for its implementation. Finally, the results of a preliminary investigation into the usefulness of the Europass Portfolio and the Diploma Supplement, presented by the graduates of the University of Salerno, were presented. These premises are fundamental to better understand the context of the proposed approach in this dissertation, which aims to achieve cross-competence certification. The context developed refers to Corporate Social Responsibility and Competence Model. The progressive and rapid evolution of the concept of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) over the last few years has prompted a rethink of the same goals that companies are called upon to pursue, alongside the traditional production function, which constitutes the constituent element of their being and work, the principles of sustainability, in a way that is capable of enhancing not only economic capital, but also natural and human capital. This represents the response of organizations to continual changes in the outside world, so better services or goods not only affect the corporate image but also in terms of energy saving orientation, reduced distribution costs, environment and greater protection of workers. Therefore, there is a need to go beyond the generic concept of Corporate Social Responsibility, taking into account rather the concept of corporate sustainability, whereby the satisfaction of the needs and expectations of the parties involved must be supported by means of 'triple bottom line approach. In the light of this, human capital formation exerts a significant impetus on the economic and social growth path of a community, as defined by economist Gary S. Becker in 1964, according to which human capital represents the whole of the productive capacity that an individual acquires through the accumulation of general or specific knowledge, of savoir-faire. It is an intangible resource that, like any other capital, has the capacity to reproduce, throughout the life of the individual, through different types of learning: formal, non-formal and informal. In particular, modern technologies, greater market demands and the search for a combination of efficiency and quality assurance, which have led to the emergence of new forms of production organization, will also have considerable repercussions on the level of qualifications and skills required to workers. In addition to a greater need for more declarative and procedural specific knowledge, key qualifications, system understanding and professional skills are also important. Therefore, job-based learning becomes more and more important to qualify workers inside and to benefit from new organizational forms. Learning potential involves the possibility that learning processes take place in a particular workplace. This is the result of the interaction between the characteristics of workers (qualifications already possessed, learning abilities and willingness to learn) and learning opportunities offered by the job. While the other model considered as the context of the proposed approach in this study is the model based on the ontologies proposed by Miranda et al. (2017) that enables you to represent your skills through the Semantic Web's own languages and tools. This model represents the tool that, within CSR, and thus the enhancement of human capital, enables you to organize, represent and "standardize" skills in order to govern the various factors that affect the CSR Management path. In addition, it is based on the idea that it is possible to implement an approach that identifies, evaluates and certifies skills in organizations by exploiting ontologies or through the ability to describe knowledge within a specific domain, while also enabling the automatic processing by the computers of the knowledge thus represented. Therefore, in the light of this theoretical framework and theoretical context, the main aim of this paper lies in the possibility of implementing a model based on competence-oriented ontologies in CSR organizations, in order to increase the competitive advantage precisely through the management of human resources, or through the management of their intangible skills. The experimentation of this implementation took place at the company Sada Spa. [edited by author]