20_SHD_May:ShD re-design 1/5/07 09:43 Page 20
■ ShD Investigates
Mind the
skills gap...
Investing in skills is essential for the economics, morale and efficiency of any good
business. However, the logistics industry is not renowned for its commitment to
training. With illiteracy and unskilled school leavers on the increase, focusing on skills
has become more important than ever. Nikki Catchpole investigates.
cannot afford to ignore. can go out and get short-term training quickly
Investment in employees through and effectively.
training, skills and development “A lot of people are getting frustrated with
will also encourage continued the perceived inadequacies of and
professional development and irrelevancies of long-term development
provide companies with that training simply because it doesn’t seem to
competitive edge. affect people in terms of day-to-day
What, therefore, are the key development,” he explains. “They need
issues that the logistics industry something on top of that which is going to be
should focus on? What is being much more effective.”
done to encourage employers to
take training and skills seriously,
Long-term developments
and actively engage in the future of Others also see the benefits behind a radical
their industry and employees? Has approach to training but believe in its
the government begun to effectiveness when applied to long-term pro-
appreciate the role of logistics and active development. Last December, Lord
look after the interests of the Leitch delivered his Review of the skills the
materials handling industry? UK needs to boost our economic prosperity
David MacLeod at Learn for and improve opportunities for all. The UK
Logistics has been involved in faces major challenges from other countries
logistics for 10 years and believes whose productivity outstrips ours. Lord Leitch
that the same questions about says that by 2020 the UK needs to at least
training are still being posed, and double the numbers of skilled people at all
that the industry is trying to close a levels. It would be difficult to achieve such
competence gap in terms of stretching ambitions under the current system
making people effective logistics of education and training.
and supply chain managers. Lord Leitch also recommends radical
Recent research figures suggest that half However, a lack of action on employers’ parts change right across the spectrum: from young
the country’s school children leave is slowing down any progress. “There’s still, people to adults; from basic skills to craft and
education without qualifications and that even at basics level, quite a lot potentially to technical skills and on to the highest levels of
20 per cent do not have basic skills. be done, and a lot of it doesn’t get done; management. Central to his proposals is a
Unacceptably low skills levels, which people just muddle on,” he says. He takes a demand-led, market-based system in which
include the UK’s seven million functionally radical view of training and argues that a lot employers, through their Sector Skills
illiterate adults, is said to be the ‘greatest of potentially good training is wasted simply Councils, will have vastly more influence
threat this nation faces.’ Logistics is a because employers do not ask their employees when they engage and invest in skills
competitive industry and companies are what they actually want. development. There is now a three year
now recognising that their employees are David argues that businesses are not asking window to invest in skills before the
what separates them from the crowd. A the right questions about training nor enabling Government makes training mandatory if it is
workforce which lacks basic skills will be employees easy access to short-term business unhappy with progress.
an unproductive one, affecting the output, related training. “What I would like to see is a Dorothea de Carvalho, director of
morale and economic aspects of a business. far more radical approach in terms of self- Professional Development at the CILT (the
Therefore investing in training and skills is development and developing people, with Chartered Institute of Logistics and
essential and an issue that employers companies providing a climate where people Transport), also advocates the need to look
20 ShD May 2007
Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68