Employee training: ticking the box or building business competence?

Abstract

PurposeThe rise in regulatory requirements for health and safety skills certification over the past two decades prompted a tick box approach to training, with organisations simply undertaking the minimum requirements in order to maintain compliance. But the planned reduction in health and safety red tape combined with growing industry demand for proven skills from contractors and suppliers, as well as the cross skilling that has become so important during the on going economic downturn, is changing attitudes. The purpose of this paper is to explore this.Design/methodology/approachThe paper includes a viewpoint and a case study.FindingsHaving learnt the value of up‐skilling staff in recent years to cope with a recessionary economy, organisations are now actively embracing the value of both company specific and industry standard training to build skills and demonstrate to customers a commitment to quality.Originality/valueEnsuring employees have the right skills goes far beyond meeting regulatory obligations. As this article explains, there is a real opportunity to build strong, long term employee competency, minimise accidents and create the skills base that reflects the business needs of the organisation.