Government’s skills strategy in danger of missing opportunity to boost economy

Responding to the publication, today, of the Government’s consultation on the future direction of skills policy, CMI (Chartered Management Institute) warns that an opportunity to drive economic growth could be missed.  Whilst CMI supports a renewed focus on the delivery of training to create a better society, Petra Wilton, director of policy and research at CMI, cautions that “too much attention on basic skills that produce high social returns may be at the expense of the higher-level skills that boost economic performance and create sustainable businesses”. 

She says: “There is no doubt that the UK needs a radical rethink of its current skills strategy and initiatives that boost uptake of training and qualifications should be applauded.  However, during hard economic times it is vital that attention is given to developing skills with a high economic value.  Without focusing on higher-level skills, employers will be left with weak leaders who are ill-equipped to do their job, meaning that UK organisations will continue to flounder behind our international competitors.” 

CMI’s recent Economic Outlook report revealed that the majority of business leaders (69 per cent) want greater control over funding for skills development.  The finding came in the wake of a poll suggesting that 81 per cent believe their organisation ‘will increasingly need more employees with higher level skills’. 

Wilton adds: “We welcome the Government’s view that employers must be free to choose the training they think best suits their needs because if development opportunities are demand-led they are more likely to provide a return on investment and more likely to boost current low levels of employee engagement.   By empowering employers and their staff to choose the training they undertake, it will also help ensure money is diverted to where it is most needed.”

 -ends- 

Further information:

Donna White / Mike Petrook,
Tel: 0207 612 8847 / 020 7497 0496; outside office hours: 07931 302 877
Email: donna.white@kindredagency.com / mike.petrook@managers.org.uk 

NOTES TO EDITORS

• The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) is the only chartered professional body in the UK dedicated to promoting the highest standards of management and leadership excellence. CMI is the founder of the National Occupational Standards for Management and Leadership and sets the standards that others follow
• As a membership organisation, CMI has been providing forward-thinking advice and support to individuals and businesses, for more than 50 years, and continues to give managers and leaders, and the organisations they work in, the tools they need to improve their performance and make an impact
• As the only organisation to offer qualifications from Level 2 (GCSE) to Level 8 (PhD), CMI is committed to equipping individuals with the skills and knowledge to be exceptional managers and leaders. Qualifications and accreditations such as Chartered Manager, combined with products such as CMI’s Continuous Professional Development scheme and the online support resource, ManagementDirect, support the development of management and leadership excellence across the UK
• Through in-depth research and policy surveys of its 90,000 individual and 450 corporate members, CMI maintains its position as the premier authority on key management and leadership issues