News: Performance Management
Investing in staff training fosters 'strong employer brand'
23 May 2008
By investing in training and staff development, businesses can tap into the advantages of a diverse workforce, it has been suggested.
The results of the latest Recruitment, Retention and Turnover Survey from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) indicate that a large proportion of employers feel "there is still a struggle" to find and hold on to the right staff.
"If bosses want to come out of the downturn with a competitive advantage, they would do well to implement strategies aimed at attracting and retaining the right staff," Deborah Fernon, an organisation and resourcing adviser at the CIPD, remarked to TrainingZone.
Ms Fernon went on to recommend that organisations reassess their learning and development strategies, thereby reducing staff turnover and fostering a "strong employer brand" which will help attract key talent.
According to the CIPD's annual survey, 86 per cent of firms are having trouble filling vacancies, and bosses are placing the blame on the UK's skills gap.
Yet despite 70 per cent of respondents citing a lack of necessary skills as a primary reason for recruitment difficulties, only half of companies polled said they have a formal resourcing strategy in place to combat the problem.
At a Confederation of British Industry dinner - attended by the chancellor - this week, British bosses were urged to "show leadership" in the arena of staff training and corporate rewards. 
