The objectives of the project:
1. to carry out comparative research on the impact of the application of design-based thinking methodology in the development of competencies of public sector employees in Lithuania and Ukraine, validating the original research methodology and research tools for impact assessment and methodology adaptation;
2. to create and develop a network of scientific cooperation between Lithuanian and Ukrainian researchers conducting interdisciplinary and comparative research on employee competence development and public management.
Project funding:
Intergovernmental programme administrated by Research Council of Lithuania: Lithuania–Ukraine
Project results:
• Kick-off meeting- seminar in Kaunas University of Technology (Lithuania), 24-25 February, 2020 (3 representatives from Ukraine);
• Validated research methodology;
• A non-formal education training program “Competence Development of Civil Servants Using Design-Thinking Methodology” (16 hours) has been developed and tested remotely;
• Based on the developed program, distance training was carried out on the Zoom platform for IFNTDNU (Ukraine) teachers on the implementation of design-based thinking methodology and research in developing the competencies of public sector employees (using the Train the Trainer methodology)
.• On 23 April 2021, the KTU International Conference (virtual) ICEP – The Future of European Union International Role: Political, Economic and Social Challenges (https://shmmf.ktu.edu/events/icep-2021/) was held at KTU, where a special session was organised to disseminate the project results. During the conference, 7 presentations were given by the project participants on the themes of the project
• A special issue of the journal European Integration Studies (2021; No.15) was published after the conference, which featured peer-reviewed research papers by the project partners and other session participants. The results of the project were reflected in 3 articles published in the journal.
• On 30 September 2021, a scientific-practical conference was held in Ukraine at the IFNTDNU “The Competence Development in the Public Sector: European Standards and Prospects”. During the conference KTU project representatives delivered 3 presentations (one plenary; 2 in the section, prepared with the partners’ representatives).
• The article published in an international indexed journal: Dzvinchuk, Dmytro; Orliv, Mariana; Janiunaite, Brigita; Petrenko, Victor. Creating innovative design labs for the public sector: a case for institutional capacity building in the regions of Ukraine // Problems and perspectives in management. Sumy : Business perspectives. ISSN 1727-7051. eISSN 1810-5467. 2021, vol. 19, iss. 2, p. 320-332. DOI: 10.21511/ppm.19(2).2021.26. [Scopus; DOAJ; ERIH Plus] [CiteScore: 1,70; SNIP: 0,793; SJR: 0,230; Q1 (2020, Scopus Sources)] [M.kr.: S 007]
• 3 publications presenting the results of the experimental development work in Lithuanian, Russian, Ukrainian languages “APPLICATION OF DESIGN-BASED THINKING METHODOLOGY FOR TRAINING PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYEES’ COMPETENCIES”.
• Additional results: during the visit to Ukraine on 28-29 September 2021, training was provided under the pilot programme “Improving the competences of civil servants using the design thinking methodology”; 18 persons were trained at different levels of the public sector (16 academic hours); training was also carried out under the programme in Lithuania (postponed from 2020 due to the pandemic situation); the training was carried out from 28-10-10 to 26-11-11, 2021 (16 academic hours); a total of 14 civil servants from different departments of the Kaunas District Municipality were trained.
Period of project implementation: 2020-01-02 - 2021-12-31
Project coordinator: Kaunas University of Technology
Project partners: Ivano-Frankivsk National Technical University of Oil and Gas
