Basically, here's the deal: Things are changing fast.
Training is super important: To stay competitive and strong, companies really need to invest in training their staff. But, here's the problem: Right now, Northern Ireland isn't doing as well as other parts of the UK when it comes to training.
We're spending less money on training per employee.
Fewer businesses are actually funding training. And apprenticeship numbers are lower than they should be.
On top of that, its getting harder to find people with the right skills for jobs.
It's not all doom and gloom though! There are some good things happening: There are programs to help businesses learn new things and train their staff.
Government-funded initiatives are offering support towards skills development.
So, what needs to happen?
Businesses need to really see the value in training their people. Its not just an expense, its an investment! Training needs to be flexible and easy for everyone to access, especially for smaller businesses. Everyone needs to work together - government, schools, and businesses -to create better training programs.
We need to get more people into apprenticeships, so they can learn on the job.
What are we saying at Global?
"We are here to support you and make change happen as smoothly and efficiently as possible"
Did you know, you can currently put a new or existing member of your team into the government's funded apprenticeship programme to upskill your staff?
Apprenticeship no longer means plumber or electrician . . . any skill set can have an apprentice, at any age or stage of career. So long as you are in a new role, or acting up into a new role, you are eligible for funded training to help you as your career develops. Not only that, for each individual employee who successfully completes their training programme the EMPLOYER will receive a financial bonus back into the business. That's what we call a WIN-Win at Global!
What do we offer you? Well, Programme Highlights include:
- Training delivered online and/or at your business premises
- No requirement for day release
- Customised training programmes built on nationally recognised standards to meet your needs
- Training delivered at times convenient to your business
- Qualifications achieved in 6-12 months
- Added value training in first aid, food safety and health & safety included
- Employer incentive payments paid following each successful apprenticeship achievement. At NO COST TO YOUR BUSINESS
In a nutshell: We've got a bit of a skills gap, but there are ways to fix it. If everyone works together and businesses invest in their people, Northern Ireland can have a really strong and skilled workforce going into the future.
To find out more about our range of business upskill opportunities and open academies, get in touch with Catherine
Email catherine@ghskills.com