Amusing, you might think, but also worrying at the same time. These types of comments are a sad reflection of the fact that organisations have not managed to develop a people centric training strategy that allows individuals to revel in the opportunity given to them of learning more, and that individuals don't necessarily see the benefit of improving their knowledge and skills.
Train to Pass or Train for Business Improvement?
Firms can either train their staff just to pass exams (surprising as it might sound it still goes on today in many organisations), or forward thinking training teams can effectively use ROI modelling to demonstrate to a business the impact that effective training can have on the bottom line. For example; in the financial services sector, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has certainly taken steps to assist every training team with this dilemma in its recent Mortgage Market and Retail Distribution Reviews. Both of these topics have been in the minds of the regulators for a number of years now, and the industry has known for some time that it was the FSA's intention to require Mortgage Advisers to hold a formal Level 3 mortgage qualification and for Financial Advisers to move from a Level 3 to a Level 4 qualification in order to remain within the industry and advising clients. Now whilst the final rules have been some time in the making, and those in respect of Mortgage Advice are still outstanding, they have finally arrived for the Financial Adviser community.
Better qualified staff will inevitably offer a better service, be more efficient with their client base and will reduce technical errors made that can lead to mistakes and complaints. Last but not least, if individuals then use their upgraded knowledge to provide more holistic advice to clients then it won't be long before businesses will see an improvement in the bottom line. There is just one BUT to consider in all of this, and this is that more trained, and technically more competent staff can and will provide improvements to a business bottom line, but only if they are managed and supervised effectively.
Some interesting Statistics
- 72% of employers reported suffering from skills shortages
- 70% of employers said this was having a detrimental impact on their business
- 38% of employers said they need to target their training spend more effectively
- 34% of employers will either reduce investment in training or keep it at the level of the previous year
Whilst individuals believe that experience counts for everything, employers are reporting that across all staff, both experienced and inexperienced there are skills/knowledge gaps that are affecting their bottom line.
What also is interesting to learn is that employers know that they are not targeting their training resource effectively, which in turn will lead to individuals losing faith in what can be offered from their employers resources.
With some employers reducing training spend this year, or maintaining levels from previous years, it is a shame not to see an upward trend here as there is good research and statistical information that shows that when the economy goes through a recession such as this, a key strategy to help a business move forward most effectively is to invest in its people and their skills to give them competitive advantage.
For anyone suggesting that experience counts more than qualifications then now I believe is the time to think again.
One very wise trainer once told me; "those who attend training and upgrade qualifications and tell you they have gained nothing from the experience haven't tried hard enough on either the training programme or the study course. These individuals need to take a long hard look at whether an industry that demands these higher levels of professionalism is really one for their continued employment."
Julie Pardy, regulatory liason manager at compliance software developer Worksmart
