Lean times ahead for skills funding
The skills industry is split over whether the coalition government’s plans to divert funding from a vocational training scheme in order to create extra apprenticeship places would be a positive move or not. According to a survey undertaken by the World of Learning Conference & Exhibition (WLCE) organisation in June, 50.9% of respondents do not […]
Proskills launches training calculator
Businesses interested in calculating the cost of not investing in training for staff can now use a dedicated skills calculator to see where improvements can be made. Proskills Academy for Materials, Production and Supply, has recently launched its Predicator Calculator, aimed at helping businesses across its industries calculate the cost of not investing in training […]
Goverment launches public skills consultations
Skills Minister John Hayes has launched a couple of public consultations, with the aim of understanding how scarce public resources should be used to best effect to meet employers’ requirements. The ‘Skills for Sustainable Growth’ document outlines the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills’ view on skills’ priorities and how they should be delivered, while […]
Harrods to offer degrees to staff
Harrods has become the latest employer to devise a tailored degree course for its staff in conjunction with a university in what appears to be a growing trend. The move follows the announcement last month that the University of Portsmouth had developed a bespoke workplace learning programme in Strategic Quality Management with high-tech giant Hewlett-Packard […]
Staff willing do skills training in their free time, says report
The majority of personnel would be willing to give up their free time to undertake training in a bid to boost their salaries and help them fulfil their potential, according to new research. A study undertaken among 2,200 employees in the UK, France, Spain and Germany by learning and development provider Cegos found that 76% […]
Skills training should be government priority, says ProSkills
An employer’s body has called on the coalition government to invest in skills training ahead of next week’s emergency Budget to help the manufacturing industry tackle skills gaps and fill 3,500 job vacancies. Proskills, the Sector Skills Council for the Process and Manufacturing sector, said that, while it was not expecting blanket subsidies, it believed […]
Wales gets WISE with sustainable skills training
Wales has had a good week in terms of training opportunities following the opening of an institute to deliver learning in new environmental technologies and the provision of funding to teach traditional conservation skills. Jane Davidson, Welsh Assembly Minister for the Environment, opened the Wales Institute for Sustainable Education (WISE) yesterday, which will specialise in […]
L&D under fire reveals report
Despite the direct link between investment in L&D and financial performance, nearly half of all UK employers made cost-cutting rather than innovation a priority during the recession. According to a survey among 200 learning and development (L&D) professionals in organisations with more than 1,000 staff undertaken by Loudhouse Research on behalf of Thales Training and […]
All you ever needed to know about Time to Train
Cheryl Clemons gives us the low-down on the latest government training initiative and how to ensure you are complying. We know it makes business sense for organisations to provide their employees with the right training and tools to help them perform well in their roles. So, encouraging organisations to make training a priority is, in […]
Cardboard cop-out
Another great episode last night – and finally we got to see a bit more of the other candidates. What’s more, it was one of my favourite design tasks (remember the bum exerciser and the doomed ‘gym in a box’?) This week the youngsters are confronted by several pairs of wellies in the hallway before […]
Managing coalitions: Do they ever work?
Stephen Walker discusses new political coalition and asks, do too many cooks always spoil the broth? You had to have been in an isolation tank (or not in Europe) to avoid hearing the outcome of the UK’s General Election. The media has ramped up discussions and tried to reinforce public interest in the latest speculation. […]
Sector Skills Council unveils ‘Train the Trainer’ initiative
A Sector Skills Council for the process and manufacturing sector has unveiled a ‘Train the Trainer’ initiative in Northern Ireland to accredit in-house training professionals. The project was developed by Proskills and funded by the Department for Employment and Learning in order to try and tackle a skills shortage that had resulted in local employers […]
British Gas opens green skills training centre in South Wales
British Gas has opened a green skills training centre in South Wales, with the aim of equipping 1,300 local long-term unemployed and its own engineers with the necessary expertise to handle the emerging technology. The centre, which was opened by Carwyn Jones, First Minister of the Welsh Assembly Government, is based in Tredegar in […]
Sainsbury’s train unemployed to fill skills gap
Sainsbury’s has struck a deal with 60 of its suppliers to train 100 unemployed people in trades that are currently suffering from underinvestment and skills shortages. The Sainsbury’s Supplier Trainee Partnerships scheme will provide successful applicants with a 12-month paid contract to work for one of the supermarket chain’s key suppliers in construction, engineering, facilities […]
Managing the magnificent middle
Are we failing our leaders when it comes to skills and talent management? Paul Daley argues that it’s time to embrace the mid-level management. The future of talent development is something that I have to consider in my job every day. And there are many opinions on how to get the best out of a […]
20 reasons to invest in sales training
Often we as sales trainers are asked to justify why a business should pay for our services. In this article I will provide 20 compelling reasons why sales training is not simply a cost that your company should carry but rather an investment that all ambitious companies and organisations should seriously consider to help them […]
Training budget crunches causing management skills gap
While the UK is suffering from wider skills gaps than ever, it is a particular problem among those in leadership, management and technical roles because investment in training is not being targeted correctly – or simply not being made available at all. A report, which was commissioned by the government and has just been published […]
The skills jigsaw puzzle
How can you identify skills and skill gaps in your organisation? George Blair shows us how with this handy ‘can do’ chart. When it comes filling competency gaps and recruiting the right people it’s all about planning ahead, rather than just by throwing money at the problem. This is achieved by focusing on implementation, as […]
Free resources: Piece negotiations
Another great free resource. This group energiser also focuses on boosting negotition skills. A big thank you to Andrew Wood of Trainer Bubble for supplying this. If you have any free resources you would like to share with the community, please let us know – drop us a line editor@trainingzone.co.uk Image credit: Miamiamia Another great […]
Skills crisis threatening the future of UK manufacturing
The manufacturing and process industry has called on the government to invest directly in retraining its workforce to cope with new technology in order to help pull the sector out of recession and ensure that it remains competitive in world markets. Proskills, the Sector Skills Council for the industry, has got together with the British […]
