Commercial competency and computing students: Using the skills framework for the information age in higher education

Commercial acumen has emerged recently as a third aspect of employability which employers expect from computing graduates, in addition to technical capability and “soft skills” (or similar terms like transferable skills). Our experience has been that viewing commercial acumen (or even commercial awareness) as simply one of the soft skills, has failed to meet the needs of local employers, who tell us they seek innovation skills and entrepreneurship. A case study illustrates a structured approach to adding commercial awareness to the computing curriculum, and, more generally, tying the learning experience more closely to the achievement of standardized competency statements. Changes to future provision are discussed following workshop discussion of a draft of this case study. This paper will be of interest to computing and engineering academics who seek to increase the commercial awareness of their students, and to those who seek to align their courses with commercial definitions of competency.