VocMat was developed an delivered by a partnership that involves both education and tourism organisations in England, Estonia, Iceland and Scotland ensuring that the latest tourist industry information was fed into the project and that the most up-to-date educational tools were made available in training.
The education establishments will be responsible for the development of the VocMat Model, the modules and courses to test it and the identification of the curriculum. They are:
- Pärnu College of the University of Tartu, Estonia
- Iceland School of Tourism
- Scottish Centre for Tourism, Aberdeen Business School, The Robert Gordon University
- Centre for Tourism & Cultural Change, Sheffield Hallam University
The tourism organisations were responsible for assisting with the recruitment of the pilot group and promoting the project to the industry in their countries and Europe-wide to generate interest in the use of the VocMat Model after the project ends. They are:
- Tourist Board Training
- Tourism Management Institute
- The Icelandic Association of Tourist Officers
- Estonian Tourist Board
A major aim of the project was to involve other countries, educational institutions, tourism organisations and businesses as the project develops. A number of organisations have expressed interest including universities and tourism bodes from Catalonia, Malta, Turkey, Italy and Finland.
The need to improve the skills and knowledge of managers within the tourism industry has been consistently reported as an issue across Europe but it is recognised that, in many cases, this is caused by barriers that prevent easy access to relevant, high-level, accredited education and training. The development of the VocMat Model sought to address these barriers in a way that can be transferred to other countries.
The VocMat project has been supported by the European Union of Tourist Officers (EUTO) through whom the early design and research was carried out. EUTO has a wide membership from throughout Europe and is a pro-active member of the European Travel & Tourism Action Group (ETAG)..
Additionally, the VocMat project is funded by the European Union through the Leonardo da Vinci Programme.