What is the issue?

To compete in the emerging global economy, businesses need to harness the talent and skills of people to create a globally competitive workforce in the UK, now and in the future.

70% of the 2020 workforce have already completed their compulsory education

By 2020, 5 million UK jobs will require higher skills.

Low skills currently cost UK industry billions of pounds a year in lost orders, increased wastage and high recruitment costs, and threaten the ability to compete globally.

75% of the 2020 workforce is already in employment, yet half Britain's current workforce is not qualified beyond Level 2 (5 GCSE's).

A third of businesses don't currently invest in training at all.

This is not just about the education system; attention must also be paid to skills development in the workplace during these turbulent times, for existing staff to become more productive and deliver a higher quality product or service. Business must be innovative in order to thrive – a recent study found that businesses are two and a half times more likely to fail if training is not taken seriously. In these turbulent economic times, that is a stark warning.

Britain’s knowledge-based economy, where people and their talents are the principal resource, makes addressing the Talent Challenge an imperative for our future success.  

Responsible businesses engage, inspire and develop talent within the workplace and the wider community to address the emerging skills gaps of now and the future.

Investing in skills is changing the way business does business. Here is a snapshot of the significant returns for companies:

• Recruitment and retention – 95% of line manager positions and 7 out of 8 power station director positions at EDF Energy are now filled through internal promotion – saving hundreds of thousands of pounds in recruitment and induction costs

• Employee Engagement – McDonald’s has seen a 9.1% higher job satisfaction level compared to 2006

• Improvements in Safety - Laing O’Rourke has seen a 60% reduction in Accident Frequency Rate as a result of skills development

• Organisational culture and change  - Marshall’s has developed a culture of learning and expertise with 97% of operators now having a formal qualification compared to 5% previously