Never mind the credit crunch, what about the skills crunch?

Figures bandied about on the productivity levels of the UK BSE workforce come in at under the 50 per cent mark, which by anyone’s standards is shockingly low, and falls way behind that of our European counterparts.

BEST believes there are more than simply training issues to address. What’s required is for employers to address the whole package: planning, leadership and management issues, and behavioural attitudes. These are all interlocking elements that affect the current state of play.

To assist employers in the field of leadership and management, BEST will be launching a complete suite of programmes later this year, with qualifications to suit team leader, supervisory and first-line manager roles. This will help safeguard the sector, ensuring employees who are promoted within an organisation receive formal training in preparation for their step-up.

The real question is, ‘can you afford NOT to train? For those businesses that make the leap into the pool of training investment, the dividends are high. A report published by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) earlier this year revealed 80 per cent of employers believe training and apprenticeship programmes improved their staff retention and turnover, 88 per cent claimed it lead to a happier and more motivated workforce, and 59 per cent said apprenticeship programmes were more cost effective that hiring skilled staff – a compelling argument for BSE employers.

Ultimately, training is a sign of the success of a business and that will inevitably attract employees who want to progress and excel in their career, as well as boosting current employees’ attitudes towards their jobs, improving their productivity, and therefore profitability.