2. Unit 1: Communication
and Employability Skills
for IT
OCR Level 3
Cambridge Technicals
in IT

3. So, you want to work
in IT?
Are the qualifications you’re studying for
enough to secure a job in IT?
There will be many skills and
attributes that an employer in
the IT industry will expect from
their employees, beyond their
qualifications.

4. What does an employer
in the IT industry expect?
Any employer will expect you to
have certain personal skills and
qualities that will enable you
to do your job…
Good communication
skills (written and verbal)
Good time
management
Team worker, but able
to work independently

5. Anything else?
An IT employer also wants
an employee who is
aware of:
Legislation
relating to
copyright
Legislation relating
to data protection
Health and safety in an IT
working environment
Good working
practices in IT

6. Communication skills
are key
Having good
communication skills
isn’t just about being
able to talk!
You also need to be able to:
Pick up cues in
verbal
conversations
Proof read your
documents
before sending
them
Use good
questioning
techniques
Make good use
of written
communication

7. What will you learn?
After completing this unit you will:
Understand the
personal attributes
valued by
employers
Understand the
principles of
effective
communication
Be able to use IT
to communicate
effectively
Be able to address
personal
development
needs

8. Unit 1: Communication and
Employability Skills for IT
AIM OF THE UNIT
Communication is a vital skill for any individual. The effective
use of communication and flexibility of styles is a highly
desirable attribute to employers to maintain good working
practice. This unit identifies the principles for effective
communication and introduces learners to the interpersonal
skills and attributes required within a work place and how
different combinations and approaches are required for a range
of job roles it also identifies the different IT tools available for
safe and secure communication and exchange of information
within an organisation. Learners will consider approaches and
adapt the way they communicate, depending on their
audience.

10. LO1 Understand the personal attributes
valued by employers (P1,M1)
• Personal attributes (e.g. self motivation, leadership qualities, respect,
dependability, punctuality, problem solving, determination, independent
workers, time management, team working, written numerical and verbal
skills, planning and organisational skills)
• Good working practices (e.g. Health and Safety, following organisational
procedures, adhering to legislation)
• Specific IT job sectors and personal skills required for the roles (e.g.
Networking, Computer gaming, Computer graphics and animation,
Programming, Web design).

11. LO1 Understand the personal attributes
valued by employers
P1 Explain the personal attributes valued by employers
The assessment criteria could be evidenced by the use of an information
booklet produced by the learners or in the form of a report. It is important
that all areas of the teaching content are covered with examples to show a
depth of understanding. Learners may choose to relate the leaflet to a
specific job role to help them focus on the particular attributes required.

12. LO1 Understand the personal attributes
valued by employers
M1 Explain the different personal skills that employers may
require for specific IT job roles
The merit criterion M1 could be evidenced in the form of a table detailing
personal skills required for a range (three or more) of different job roles and
may be an extension to P1. Learners must show knowledge and
understanding of the requirements across different roles within the IT
sector and the different personal skills depending on role and be able to
explain these. The use of sourced job descriptions could further enhance
the learners work.

13. LO1 Understand the personal attributes
valued by employers
Task 1
• 2-3 slide presentation on a job you’ve held (current,
work experience
• Principle/main responsibilities – what you did, who you
reported to
• Skills required

14. LO1 Understand the personal attributes
valued by employers
Task 2 - Highlight the following in your notes (Colour coded)
• Attribute
• Skills
• Training and Qualifications
• Good working practices

15. LO1 Understand the personal attributes
valued by employers
P1 Explain the personal attributes valued by employers
The assessment criteria could be evidenced by the use of an information
booklet produced by the learners or in the form of a report. It is important
that all areas of the teaching content are covered with examples to show a
depth of understanding. Learners may choose to relate the leaflet to a
specific job role to help them focus on the particular attributes required.
1) Introduction - Define your terms what are Attributes & Skills why are
they important to employers
2) Key attributes inc. examples
3) Skills inc. examples
4) Training and Qualifications inc. examples
5) Good working practices (Health & safety, adhering to legislation.
Following organisational procedures)

16. LO1 Understand the personal attributes valued by
employers
P1 Explain the personal attributes valued by employers
information booklet a report.
1) Introduction - Define your terms what are Attributes & Skills why are
they important to employers
2) Key attributes and why valued by employers inc. examples
3) Skills valued by employers inc. examples
4) Training and Qualifications inc. examples
5) Good working practices that are valued by employers
M1 Explain the different personal skills that employers may require for
specific IT job roles
• With reference to 3+ IT Jobs/roles
Should include a supporting table Table

17. LO1 Understand the personal attributes
valued by employers
Task 3
• Presentation details of 3 Jobs you can find advertised
(3 Different fields – 1 must technology/IT Related)
What:
• Personal Skills/Attributes
• Experience
• Qualifications
Do they require? http://jobs.theguardian.com

18. Software Developer
We’re in the content delivery business. We have a reputation for powerful
investigative journalism, a global audience and a passion for community
collaboration. We’re reinventing our digital products and we need great engineers
to help us.
Us
Development of digital products is central to the future of the Guardian. We build
the products that showcase our diverse and important journalism. We create the
tools that the journalists and editors use to write their stories securely, anywhere
from London to Syria. We write the APIs and services that allow those stories to
be distributed across the globe. We write the products and interfaces that show
off and monetise that content to its maximum potential.
We mostly program in Scala and Javascript, but we use the best tool that fits the
problem. We have hacks in the wild in all manner of languages. Our infrastructure
lives on AWS and our own OpenStack private cloud. We encourage product
teams to implement, manage and support their own stack. We do our coding in
public. Sadly, the same can be said of our karaoke.

19. Software Developer
You
You’re a passionate, intelligent human being who loves technology. You might
love the news, or you might want to reinvent it.
You like inspiring the people you work with and being inspired by them in return.
You have experience of getting stuff done.

You are a talented Engineer who is, or will be, an expert in their chosen field and
has a strong interest in all software engineering disciplines

21. •LO2 Understand the principles of effective communication
1. Interpersonal skills (e.g. verbal conversation, lip reading, signing)
2. Cues in verbal exchanges (e.g. body language, use of intonation, nodding,
summarising and paraphrasing)
3. Barriers to effective communication (e.g. language, distraction, noise, lack
of concentration)
4. Questioning techniques (e.g. closed, open, probing questions, response
times)
5. Written communication (e.g. emoticons, note taking, reports, letters, faxes,
. email)
6. Proofing documents (e.g. grammar checking, spell checking, proofreading,
. punctuation).

22. •Assessment Criteria P2, P3 and D1
•Learners could produce a report or presentation explaining the
principles of effective communication and the potential barriers.
This must draw on a range of different examples and show
knowledge and understanding of all the categories identified in
the Teaching Content. Learners should explain these giving
examples in context.
•The distinction assessment criterion D1 learners must
demonstrate their understanding explaining how some of the
identified potential barriers to communication can be reduced or
removed. This could be presented in the form of a report or
presentation that explains their options and solutions and why
they are appropriate

23. •Assessment Criterion P4
•This could be evidenced by the use of observation by
tutors or others which should be supported by
documentary evidence. There must be at least three
examples of the use of effective interpersonal skills and
the learner should identify the situations they are
evidencing and why they thought the skills were
appropriate.

24. LO2 Understand the personal attributes valued by employers P1, M1
Leaning Intentions
 Understand the personal attributes valued by employers
Learnings outcomes
Success Criteria
• Reffered to 3+ IT Jobs/roles
 Included visual examples
 Made reference to techniques and decisions regarding your work

25. LO3 Be able to use IT to communicate effectively

26. LO3 Be able to use IT to communicate effectively
Research Task
Find an example of (free) software/websites that will enable you to
communicate in the following ways:
 Blog/ing
 Vlog
 Computer screen capture
 Podcast
 Website
 Video/conferencing
 Presentation
Extension – identify means of publishing
sharing these mediums

27.  Blog/ing – ‘blogger,’ ‘Wordpress,’ Typepad’
 Vlogv – Youtube, Mad video (http://www.themadvideo.com/what-
for/bloggers.html?id=518e6c7e7126246d08000052&ms=247287&vid
=518e62487126246b08000048?utm_source=google&utm_medium=u
k-sem&utm_campaign=UK-Search&gclid=CJyYm-
zs8LsCFernwgodYw4AFQ)
 Computer screen capture – Camstudio, BB Flashback recorder,
BandiCam, Ezvid, Wink
 Podcast – Podom7atic, Juice, iTunes
 Website – Moonfruit,
 Video/conferencing – Oovoo, Skype, Facetime (Apple)
 Presentation – Slidedog, Przezi, Visual B
 Phone/Tablet Apps (App Shed)
Extension – identify means of publishing
sharing these mediums (Youtube, Istore, Moonfruit)

28. Assessment Criteria P6
Learners need to communicate technical information to a specified
audience. For this they could prepare documentation for users which
may be in the form of a “dummies” guide for an identified topic or a
technical manual or leaflet or report depending on the audience they are
aiming the technical information at. Alternatively, they could communicate
the information orally. The evidence must show that the technical
information has been communicated clearly and appropriately for the
audience they have clearly identified. The details of the specified
audience may be presented separately.

29. LO3 Be able to use IT to communicate effectively
• Communication technology
• presentation software
• word processing
• email
• web
• blogs/vlogs
• instant messaging
• video conferencing/podcasting

30. Assessment Criteria P5, M2, D2
Learners could provide screen shots as evidence or video evidence for
their use of IT to aid their communications. They should provide
explanations as to the content and purpose of the different technologies
and options which may be presented as a separate document or report.
For the merit criteria M2 learners must annotate or accompany work
submitted with explanations as to the choices of the IT used to aid
communication. This should include details of the communications and
the IT resources used and is an extension of P5. This evidence may be
added to the work submitted for P5 or submitted as a separate
document.
For the distinction criteria D2 learners must expand the reasoning for the
choices of the IT they have used and justify in detail why these options
were chosen above others, the alternatives and why they were rejected
making reference as to how it has aided their communication.

31. LO3 Be able to use IT to communicate effectively
1) Introduce your project – Who is your specific audience and what is
the technical information they need (what will you be communicating, to
whom and why)
2) Content – how has you information been communicated effectively
and appropriately to your specific audience? What did you communicate,
what choices did is you make for this audience?
3) Information technology – explain the technologies you used to
communicate the technical information? Which technologies did you use,
what is their purpose why are they appropriate/what are their advantages
in this instance? How did you use them?
Dist – why were the technologies you chose more appropriate than other
alternatives (what technologies did you reject/not use)

32. Specific Audience 1
Tesco goes for the grey pound with its Super Silvers crack tech squad
Tesco has launched a UK-wide initiative to make buying a smartphone easier for
those over the age of 50, after research showed that older shoppers are more
daunted by the prospect of buying a mobile phone than going to the doctors or
their bank manager.
Tesco Phone Shop talked to many customers in the over-50s category and 48
per cent said they felt "baboozled by jargon used by technology store staff". It
has, therefore, created the Super Silvers, a nationwide "hit squad" of older mobile
phone experts who can talk to their peers in jargon-free terms.
There are eight in the squad at present, including Arthur Gardner, Peter Statham
and Jean Thomas, the the last of them having worked for Tesco for 29 years and
the Tesco Phone Shop for the last 11 months. She applied because she loves
technology and claims she "would not be able to live without her iPad".
It's certainly a lucrative market if the Super Silvers can help entice the grey
pound. Tesco's research also found that more than two thirds of the over-
50s it quizzed thought it was important to keep up to speed with the latest
tech and 54 per cent of all those asked said they enjoyed learning about
new advancements.
Long gone are the days when you'd be scared to let your nan near the TV
remote control.

33. Specific Audience 2
Good design can cash in on the grey pound
As the trends continue for increased life expectancy and active mobility well into later life,
new ways of responding to ageing must be embraced by businesses. A cursory review of
products designed for the elderly reveals a pricey and stigmatised cocktail of sterile colour
palettes, oversized feature clichés and unsophisticated engineering.
There is no need for creative apathy. The business opportunities presented by the elderly
market are enormous. Some 80% of the UK’s wealth is controlled by the over-50s.
Consumer products tend to be designed with young demographics in mind, but savvy
businesses are starting to embrace the commercial value of meeting the needs of the over-
65s in fresh ways. Any business wanting to access this market needs to start by truly
understanding their potential customers. A good design agency will send an open-minded
multidisciplinary team out of the office to get immersed in the lifestyle of the target user.
Observational research is a powerful
way of breaking a cycle of ingrained beliefs that drive companies to think they know what
their customers want “because that’s what we’ve always done”.
Emotional and physical well-being contribute equally to older adults’ ability to maintain
their independence, while lower levels of energy and poorer senses challenge this. New
ways must be sought to maintain the quality of interaction
with the surrounding world. The best products talk to their potential customers on an
emotional level, as well as satisfying functional needs.
A rigorous design process will achieve this by involving users in the development,
simulation and prototyping of the emerging concepts. This allows data gathering to expose
the quantitative and qualitative value of the innovation as well as users’ emotional

35. LO4 Be able to address personal development needs
 Identification (e.g. self assessment, appraisal meeting
notes, feedback, performance data)
 Recording needs (e.g. target setting, appraisal records,
performance management reviews)
 Addressing needs (e.g. work shadowing, team meetings,
training, conferences)
 Learning styles and characteristics (e.g. active or reflective,
visual, auditory or physical)
 Preparing a well structured CV and application (e.g.
focussed, accurate, relevant, proofed).

36. Strength and weaknesses
 Find and complete an online S&W test
Complete a preferred learning style test
Print your CV

37. Assessment Criteria P7, P8
You must put together a personal development plan and
evidence it in an appropriate format. They should clearly
identify their objectives and the steps to be taken to achieve
as well as their own negotiated timescales. This must be
followed over a period of at least three months so that
progress can be monitored and reviewed. Evidence may
include review meetings, assessment outcomes where the
learner and tutor get together in order to evaluate progress
within the plan.
 Strength and weaknesses
 Gantt chart
 CV
 Plan
 Review notes

38. Development Plan
 3x updated copies of
each

39. Review Meeting

40. Development Plan – print 3x updated (colour )

41. Assessment Criteria, M3
For the Merit criteria M3 learners could use their CV and
covering letter as evidence this must include two copies one
the actual copy for an employer and the other annotated to
show tools, techniques and decisions on the information
included by the learner and the reasons. Learners should
also include copies of job descriptions to support the
decisions made and approach taken and identify where the
improvements they have made or are making as part of their
development plan are affecting their application.