As part of its mandate to promote skills development in the metal, automotive, manufacturing and retail sectors, the Manufacturing, Engineering and Related Services Sector Education and Training Authority (Merseta) is seeking to appoint an appropriate entity to undertake a research study on small, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs).

The primary focus of the eight-month study would be to understand the skills development potential that existed in the SMME sector by identifying employee training blockages and making recommendations to solve these.

The study would also aim to interrogate alternatives available for education and training, as well as determine how informal skills acquisition translated into performance at the micro level.

“The research should engage all SMMEs across Merseta’s five chambers to provide an in-depth synthesis of the unique skills ecosystem of this cluster. The resultant report should allow the organisation to draw on its findings in negotiating strategic shifts where required,” Merseta said.

Importantly, the study should determine the perceptions of owner-managers of formal and informal training providers, as well as identify factors that motivated smaller employees to provide such training.

The approaches, activities and benefits of training for small business should also be contrasted against those of larger ones.

The study would need to be underpinned by a combination of in-depth qualitative and quantitative field research, with findings triangulated by information from the Merseta databases and critical stakeholders.

“The appointed service provider would also be expected to develop an instrument, designed from the research outcomes, that would enable Merseta to categorise any SMME entity in the Merseta sector according to its training potential,” the organisation added.

Respondents were required to have proven research capacity to undertake a project of this nature, as well as be able to demonstrate an understanding of SMMEs operating in the manufacturing and engineering sectors.

The closing date for submissions to be considered was April 17.