Corporate Strategy 2012/15

Transcription

1 Corporate Strategy 2012/15

2 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Contents Foreword 02 Introduction 03 Strategy Map 04 Context 05 Goal 1: Enabling People to Meet Their Potential 07 Goal 2: Making Skills Work for Employers 15 Goal 3: Working Together to Improve the Skills and Learning System 21 Goal 4: Achieving Organisational Excellence 26 Keeping Track of Progress 31 Glossary 33

3 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 01

4 02 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Foreword As we could all recognise, being supported to understand, develop and put our skills to good use is central to our ability to succeed in the competitive and changing world of work, and to the success of our communities and businesses. By launching our corporate strategy which covers the next three years, we are marking an important milestone for us at Skills Development Scotland, as we bring to fruition our efforts to deliver coherent and personalised services for Scotland s people and businesses that are fit for the 21st century. Having been appointed to the position of Chair of SDS at the turn of 2012, following a period as Interim Chair since the summer of 2010, I am convinced of the commitment and determination of our people to make sure we make a very real difference to the lives of Scotland s people and the success of its businesses. Since we were established in 2008 we have made great progress in transforming our organisation and in thinking differently about how we deliver our services. And, we have still been able to respond to the very real challenges faced by our customers during this difficult period for our economy. In the coming years, we have a great opportunity to work with our partners across Scotland to continue to join up and target our services so that our customers can more easily access what is on offer, and so that our resources can be deployed most effectively. Our position as a national organisation, working with partners all across Scotland, means we can help to deliver national strategies, including those developed through the Scottish Government s Post-16 Reform Programme, to make a real difference to communities across Scotland. services of the 21st century. We need to deliver better services to more customers, more efficiently, and improve equality of opportunity and diversity as an employer and in our service delivery. As a government body, we are committed to making this our contribution to the Scottish Government s purpose of achieving sustainable economic growth as described in its Economic Strategy. While the economy and labour market continues to be challenging, there are real opportunities for us to use the enthusiasm and energy being invested in making a difference to the way the skills and learning system works. This is brought into sharp focus by the particular need to improve the employment prospects of Scotland s young people. Through our work with individuals and employers, we will broker closer relationships between these users of our services to deliver a lasting improvement in the job prospects for our young people. The Commonwealth Games coming to Glasgow in 2014 provides a positive and exciting platform for us to involve young people and businesses on this important theme. We can only deliver the ambitions set out in this strategy by working closely with our partners. I look forward to our continued joint work, driven by our shared ambition for the success of Scotland s people and businesses, and our communities. John F McClelland CBE, Chair The ambitions described in the Post-16 Reform Programme underpin our work for the coming years as we strive to think and do things differently so that we deliver the services that will make the biggest difference to Scotland s people and businesses. We have listened to our customers (both individuals and employers) and our partners as they have contributed to the continuing development of our services. We are committed to acting on their calls for improvements to the accessibility, appropriateness and effectiveness of our services. Our services must reflect all of the demands placed on public

5 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 03 Introduction We are Scotland s skills body, focused on contributing to Scotland s sustainable economic growth by contributing to the delivery of the Scottish Government s Economic and Skills Strategies. Our services are shaped by the Scottish Government s Career Information, Advice and Guidance (CIAG) Strategy and its Youth Employment Strategy, which we describe more fully later. We work with partners across Scotland to deliver the following services: Scotland s CIAG service PACE (Partnership Action for Continuing Employment) support for those facing redundancy National Training Programmes focused on supporting individuals to secure and sustain employment (Get Ready for Work and Training for Work) Individual Learning Accounts the Scottish Government programme that provides financial support for individual learning Modern Apprenticeships providing a way for businesses to train new and existing employees to industry-recognised standards support for employers to develop the skills of their people improved approaches to working in partnership for the benefit of our customers. The diagram below outlines our role in working with individuals, employers and partners in the skills system. We detail throughout this strategy the national and local dimensions to our work. In this Corporate Strategy for the coming three years (2012/15) we describe our ambitious plans to modernise and better integrate our services with those of our partners. The strategy map on the following page summarises this work, and provides the foundation for the exciting period ahead. SDS engagement and feedback loop Individuals (in and out of learning) Skills and strengths Skills and learning programmes (colleges, universities and training providers) Employers Job opportunities (and/or work experience/ placement opportunities) Career Information, Advice and Guidance

6 04 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Strategy Map Vision Our vision is of a Scotland in which individuals and businesses are supported by a skills and learning system that helps them to reach their potential in contributing to sustainable economic growth. Purpose We help the skills and learning system to better respond to the needs of the economy, and to help individuals and businesses access the right learning and skills development opportunities. More individuals with the skills they need to progress effectively in their working and learning lives. Individuals have access to improved opportunities that support them to progress within the world of work. SDS Outcomes Employers are more involved in developing the skills of their workforce. The supply of skills responds more to the needs of employers. Our customers find it easy to use our services. Our services are better aligned with those of our partners. What we do for our customers/ what we deliver Goal 1: Enabling People to Meet Their Potential Objectives: a) Deliver for Scotland a modern, integrated and holistic CIAG service that empowers individuals to manage their careers. b) Deliver intensive support to those who need it most, particularly young people, to enable them to raise their aspirations and move more successfully between learning and work opportunities. Goal 2: Making Skills Work for Employers Objectives: a) Improve the way the skills and learning system responds to the needs of employers. b) Simplify the process of accessing training and getting involved with the skills and learning system. We have a strong positive reputation with customers and partners. Our services are effective and make sustainable use of our resources. How we do it/support it Goal 3: Working Together to Improve the Skills and Learning System Objective: a) Work with national and local partners to improve, further integrate and make more accessible the services we deliver in response to the needs of individuals and employers. Goal 4: Achieving Organisational Excellence Objectives: a) Make sure our business practices are efficient, effective and sustainable. b) Make the best use of the strengths of our people.

7 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 05 Context The economy and labour market Our work in supporting economic growth by helping people and businesses develop and make better use of skills means that understanding what is happening in the economy and labour market is vital in developing our strategy. At the time of writing (spring 2012) the UK economy was still weak, in a double-dip recession. The outlook for the Scottish economy was similar, with the labour market still being challenging. Estimates of unemployment among 16 to 24-year-olds showed they have nearly doubled since the start of the downturn, with just over 20% of this group having few or no qualifications. Youth unemployment, and its consequences, forms a major policy challenge. These conditions will be further affected by continuing reductions in public spending, restrictions in consumer spending and limited access to finance for businesses. These circumstances will shape both our own services and our work with partners. A particular challenge going forward will be balancing efforts to improve the supply of skills with initiatives to stimulate demand in the economy to improve Scottish job and growth prospects. Economic and skills policy In response to ongoing economic challenges, Scottish Government policy is increasingly focused on supporting jobs and growth. While it emphasises the importance of growth sectors, markets and companies working more with the international business community and reducing the amount of carbon dioxide the economy produces, it also stresses the need to support those parts of the economy which employ large numbers, given their significance in creating jobs and work experience opportunities. Critical to both, as the Government Economic Strategy (September 2011) and Skills Strategy (October 2010) confirm, are the skills and employability of individuals, alongside the creation of high skills, high productivity, healthy workplaces where this talent can be best used (Skills Strategy Refresh, 2010). The government calls for support for skills and employability to be delivered through a combination of: Career Information, Advice and Guidance (CIAG) support for young people employability programmes improved information for employers skills provision that meets employer and industry need a joined-up approach when delivering skills training. All of these are at the heart of what we do.

8 06 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Context (continued) The Scottish Government s Career Information Advice and Guidance Strategy (March 2011) places a particular emphasis on giving individuals the ability to manage their own career journeys by developing the relevant skills. It also supports the increased use of technology in delivering customer-focused services to a wider range of people, allowing intensive services to be targeted to those most in need. A central theme in all of these strategies is the need to use resources more efficiently. The Christie Commission (June 2011) made clear that changes to public services are essential if resources are to be used more effectively and public services maintained in the face of rising demand. It is essential that the public sector achieves greater efficiency by integrating services, focusing on customer needs, preventing problems rather than fixing them and placing a much stronger emphasis on outcomes. The need to make better use of resources also features in the recent Post-16 Education Reforms and Youth Employment Strategy. In the move towards a regional model for further education, the aim is to achieve more integration in the education and skills system for those aged 16 and over. The Youth Employment Strategy aims to support young people into employment through more effective partnership between businesses, the public sector and third sector and, importantly, better use of government funding and programmes. The Scottish Government s Opportunities for All programme, which offers all 16 to 19-year-olds a place in learning or training, underlines the importance of this work. The impact of technology Economic and technological changes are closely linked. In the last 20 years, advances in information technology in particular have changed how businesses run and people organise their lives. During this time, we have seen and expect to continue to see new ideas that both influence how customers want to access services as well as providing opportunities for organisations to introduce more efficient and effective ways of delivering them. Reports such as Scotland s Digital Future and the McClelland Review of ICT Infrastructure in the Public Sector suggest that digital technology offers great potential for the public sector to deliver improved and simplified public services. Using technology can contribute to better results, reduced costs and less carbon dioxide being produced as goods and services are replaced with online equivalents. This will allow more efficient use of energy. Our equality and diversity duty We are committed to delivering our duties to promote equal opportunities and diversity as an employer, and to deliver equal access to our services as defined in the Equality Act Our challenge In summary, these environmental and policy factors are challenging, yet they provide a clear direction for our services over the next three years. In the face of continued economic restrictions, we can expect increasing demand for our services, alongside rising expectations that these services can be targeted more effectively and delivered more efficiently.

9 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 07 Goal 1: Enabling People to Meet Their Potential Introduction The skills of the people of Scotland are one of the most important drivers of Scotland s economic success. Against the challenging economic conditions we expect to face in the coming three years it is essential that our services prepare people to make the best of any opportunity available to them to succeed in the labour market. This sentiment is reflected in the Scottish Government s CIAG Strategy that aims to help individuals, and raise their ambitions, to gain the skills they need to find and keep a job. This and recent policy reforms such as the reform of post-16 education underline the importance of including CIAG with other learning and skills development opportunities. These services can be delivered more effectively by creating smoother experiences for customers, making a real difference to Scotland s people. Recognising the particular challenges facing young people in the current economic climate, the Youth Employment Strategy outlines the Scottish Government s approach in supporting unemployed young people towards and into work. It sets out how the government will support different partners in the Scottish skills system businesses, the third sector and public sector to work together to deliver jobs, work placements and workrelated learning opportunities for unemployed young people. Central to this is Opportunities for All, the Scottish Government s commitment to offer a place in learning or training to every 16 to 19-year-old not currently in employment, education or training. Our role Working at the heart of the skills and learning system, we are well placed to respond to the challenges described above. By working with others we can make sure that Scotland s people have access to CIAG services, and training programmes that will help them to take positive steps in their journeys through learning and work. We also have a specific role as the lead in developing and delivering CIAG services, provided in a range of contexts and settings, as well as managing the funding for National Training Programmes. The National Training Programmes are aimed at improving the employability and life skills of those facing barriers to finding and keeping employment, offering targeted support for young people, and developing the skills of those in work. Alongside this, we manage the Individual Learning Accounts programme on behalf of the Scottish Government. This aims to encourage involvement in developing skills by providing funding support for individual learning. Each of these services contributes to our commitment to supporting equal opportunities. We also deliver Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE), the Scottish Government s national strategic partnership framework for supporting employers and individuals who are facing redundancy situations. PACE aims to reduce, as far as possible, the time people facing redundancy are out of work by providing skills and support for employment. Our services are closely connected with others in the skills and learning system and we will aim to improve them by working with partners at all levels, both nationally and locally, to improve and further link our services to theirs. Throughout this work we will continue to be driven by our focus on improving opportunities for Scotland s people, especially its young people, and strengthening the links between learning, work and economic growth.

10 08 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Goal 1: Enabling People to Meet Their Potential (continued) Looking forward what we aim to achieve Our work with individuals is critical in helping to make sure that Scotland s people have the right skills, and the right opportunities to make best use of them, so they can develop their ability to manage their careers. The outcomes we hope to achieve are: more individuals with the skills they need to progress effectively in their working and learning lives individuals have access to improved opportunities that support them to progress within the world of work. To make progress towards these, we have identified the following objectives for the next three years. These are to: deliver a modern, integrated and holistic CIAG service that gives individuals the ability to manage their careers deliver intensive support to those who need it most, particularly young people, to help them to raise their aspirations and move more successfully between learning and work opportunities. We describe the foundations of the approach behind our service for individuals on the next pages, before we go on to describe our specific areas of work for the next three years. What we have already achieved With responsibility for statutory CIAG services, and the National Training Programmes, we have already responded with flexibility to support individual career progression through activities including: launching our new web service My World of Work (MyWoW) in August 2011 supporting the introduction of the 16+ Learning Choices Framework in Scotland, including Activity Agreements supporting 578,717 individuals to make better career choices and, by working with others, securing the highest ever 88.9% positive initial destination rate in 2010/11 among school leavers supporting youth employment by providing extra opportunities that aim to reduce the effect of the recession and its disproportionate effect on this group, for example through the Employer Recruitment Incentive supporting over 45,000 individuals and over 1,000 employers through the PACE programme between January 2009 and March 2012.

11 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 09 A redesigned CIAG service for the 21st century building Career Management Skills (CMS) As emphasised in various government strategy documents (especially the CIAG strategy and the Christie Commission s report on the Future Delivery of Public Services) there is now a clear demand to modernise public services to respond to both customer needs and rapid economic, social and technological changes. These changes have altered the world of work to a point that the idea of a lifelong career no longer applies, so individuals need to have better skills to manage and develop their careers over time. In response, we have developed a Career Management Skills Framework with partners that describe the skills involved in managing your career as a series of learning outcomes. It contains skills that are relevant throughout life and at any stage of career development. The framework matches the ethos and spirit of Curriculum for Excellence, which aims to build four abilities in all young people to be a successful learner, a confident individual, a responsible citizen and an effective contributor. The central elements of the Framework are described by the following themes: self: developing a sense of self within society strengths: understanding and building on strengths, and pursuing rewarding learning, job and career opportunities horizons: visualising, planning and achieving career ambitions throughout life networks: working and living effectively with others in society. Our new approach to delivering CIAG takes the themes of career management skills and focuses our services around a core CIAG offer. The offer has three parts: exploring options: helping customers understand who they are, what they can do and who might be able to help them making choices: helping customers to know what might be right for them and what they can do realising potential: how customers might review their current position and realise which of their skills, knowledge and experiences they can transfer, if they want to change their career. Note: At the time of writing, a public consultation on the Career Management Skills Framework was being carried out. The information above is for illustrative purposes and the exact wording may change. A redesigned CIAG service for the 21st century integrating our services for individuals and targeting our resources Until recently, our Career Information, Advice and Guidance service has been delivered mainly through face-to-face support, with partners such as schools, colleges and Jobcentre Plus also playing an important role in delivering the service. In response to the drivers mentioned earlier, and in developing our service around the Career Management Skills Framework, we are putting into practice a new model for delivering services. This approach aims to take advantage of the significant opportunities provided by new technology to redesign and better integrate our services. The launch of our new web service, My World of Work (MyWoW), in August 2011 was the first step in this redesign of our services. Please see figure 1 overleaf.

12 10 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Goal 1: Enabling People to Meet Their Potential (continued) Figure 1: Summary service offer Universal service My World of Work The common core of our service, available to all, with resources tailored to the needs of different customers and focused on building the skills needed to manage careers. School Career Management Skills (CMS) built into lesson plans as part of Curriculum for Excellence MyWoW registrations ongoing support from MyWoW, web chat and customer contact centre referral to coaching support where required. 16 to 19 promote MyWoW using social media such as Facebook customer contact centre route into electronic booking system for face-to-face support from us or partner staff. 20 and over promote MyWoW using social media such as Facebook customer contact centre route into electronic booking system for face-to-face support from us or partner staff. Targeted service An intensive service, focused on achieving employment outcomes for individuals that need a little more support in making transitions. School from the third year of secondary school, input to co-ordinated support plan agreed with young person their parent or guardian, school and partners coaching approach to career guidance* group work using CMS framework as basis in some cases, handing over to a Work Coach when leaving school. Leading to: secured place in a learning opportunity secured job or work related opportunity. 16 to 19 (and 20 to 24 facing first transition) coaching approach to career guidance* Work Coach for 16 to 17 year olds who require intensive support planning for opportunity ongoing support to sustain an opportunity. Leading to: secured place in a learning opportunity secured job or work related opportunity continued involvement in opportunity. 20+ (including PACE, Integrated Employability Support (IES) and others accessing our services) PACE support for those facing redundancy IES alongside Jobcentre Plus using MyWoW, group work and face-to-face support face-to-face support for those who need guidance who are not part of PACE or IES where a guidance need has been identified. Leading to: career development plan access to partner services. How involved we are in supporting an individual depends on an analysis, with partners, of their needs and our ability to make a difference. * We give a description of the coaching approach to guidance and the Work Coach role in the following pages.

13 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 11 What we will do next To deliver a modern, integrated and holistic CIAG service for individuals that helps them to manage their careers, we will do the following: 1) Continue to modernise our service focusing on a blended approach to delivery Moving forward, one of our aims is to achieve seamless integration of all service delivery so that customers can easily access our services, and that these are coherent and joined up with those of our partners. At the heart of this is our focus on developing ways for our customers to access our services in a way that is most suited to their needs and preferences. We are already making progress in shifting towards this more customer-focused approach. In this strategy period, we will further join up our services so that they are easier to access and can be better targeted. We will harness the strengths of our people, those delivering services through partner organisations, as well as the ability of new technology to create a blended and flexible approach to delivering services. This will make sure we can focus our resources on the services that will make the most difference to customers, and that we can continue to respond to their changing needs. Our web service, My World of Work (MyWoW), is at the heart of this adaptable and personalised service. It gives us a way to reach many more customers in different contexts and settings. Working with partners, we will encourage more people to use MyWoW to access CIAG, learning and employment services. By supporting more individuals through MyWoW, our contact centre, and through our partners services, we will be able to make sure we target the intensive support provided by our staff more effectively at those who need it most. Being creative in how we fully exploit the opportunities for supporting more people through MyWoW is central to our strategy for the next three years. 2) Make sure that CIAG services in Scotland are supported by a flexible, highly skilled and professional workforce By making best use of MyWoW and our contact centre services, we will offer targeted and intensive face-to-face support for those who would benefit most from that approach. The flexibility we aim to build in to our new service will allow us to be adaptable to the changing circumstances and needs of our customers. Using a coaching approach to guidance is essential to the future shape of our service. This builds on the current practice of careers professionals, and the increasing importance of helping people to help themselves. Through a coaching approach, we aim to inspire and motivate our customers to take action that will support them in building their skills to manage their own career and making best use of the benefits these skills bring. Supported by the resources available through My World of Work, we will encourage individuals to take continued ownership of their learning through their use of our service; building their confidence and keeping their interest over time. During 2011 we began rolling out a tailored coaching programme. In the years to come we will set up an in-house Academy to improve the coaching skills of our people. Our partnership with providers of career-related learning such as schools, colleges, Jobcentre Plus, and other learning and training providers is central to our new approach to the way we deliver our CIAG service. This will be backed up by development work with partners to complement existing career-related learning, and to strengthen the career management skills of individuals. This will include a shared approach to professional development. As we modernise our service, we need to make sure that it remains a consistently high quality service. We are working with partners to develop a quality-assurance framework for the Scotland-wide CIAG service and will begin to roll this out during 2012/13.

14 12 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Goal 1: Enabling People to Meet Their Potential (continued) Deliver intensive support for those who need it most, particularly young people, to help them to raise their aspirations and to move more successfully between learning and work opportunities. Due to the particular needs of some of our young people, the modernisation of our CIAG service includes a concentrated effort on developing dedicated support to those facing barriers in getting involved in learning and work. This development work includes better joining up of our CIAG service with the National Training Programmes and forms part of our contribution to the ambitions of Opportunities for All. To deliver this aspect of our service, we will do the following: 1) We will provide targeted and intensive coaching for those in most need In line with the wider development of our service, we plan, based on consultation, to introduce more intensive support for those young people at risk of disengaging in learning and employment through our Work Coaching service. Our Work Coaches will identify opportunities for young people and support the young person in making the most of the work or placement opportunity. They will also support the employer throughout the process. This new approach will be in early development from April 2012 and will be rolled-out to provide intensive support to those individuals for whom we believe it can make the biggest difference. We will continue to work closely with national and local partners to further improve the next steps planning for all 16 to 19-year-olds using the 16+ Learning Choices model. This will include improving support for groups such as those who need extra help; including children looked after by local authorities, care leavers, young offenders and young carers. This aims to make sure these young people receive their entitlement to an offer of learning and training before the date they plan to leave school and before leaving any future learning, training or employment (up to the age of 19). Related to this is our role in the further development and roll out of Activity Agreements, led by local authorities, across Scotland. Our staff are part of the trusted professional workforce and will continue to work closely with local delivery partners. Our priority will continue to be to work with partners to try to make the process of finding and moving between education and work as smooth as possible for those in the most vulnerable groups who need extra support. We will continue to focus on the individual, creating clear pathways to learning and work opportunities, supported by effective follow-through. This will mean setting clear roles and responsibilities across partner organisations so that each can most effectively target their resources. Behind this will be preventative work delivered alongside schools to support individuals in using My World of Work from the third year of secondary school and through lessons that aim to develop career management skills delivered by schools, and shaped by us. 2) Work with employers and the Scottish Qualification Authority to design and roll out a new Certificate of Work-Readiness Recognising the difficulties employers sometimes face in understanding the qualifications young people may have done and the skills that have been developed through these, we will work with industry to develop a new National Certificate. The new independently accredited Certificate of Work-Readiness is likely to include assessment of key skills such as numeracy, literacy, team-working, problem-solving and work experience. It will help employers to recruit with confidence and support young people in recognising the skills they have developed. It will also provide a helpful framework for individuals to use, with the support of our services, in preparing for the world of work. 3) Work with others to improve employability skills support for young people To create a more effective and clearer package of support for individuals, we need to work with our partners in the skills system to make better use of our collective resources. Over the period of this corporate strategy, we will work closely with the government and our partners to do this. we will deliver improvements to National Training Programmes, focusing on improving skills, including: providing flexible support including incentives to employers to support 16 to 24-year-olds from disadvantaged groups such as care leavers and young carers to get them into jobs improving the work experience part of the Get Ready for Work employability skills programme and test out developments to the programme

15 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 13 we will contribute to the Scottish Government s exploration of the potential for a national fund that brings together funding from a range of sources to provide more flexible pre-employment support for young people and adults we will continue to work with Community Planning Partnerships to improve the contracting process for local employability programmes Get Ready for Work and Training for Work. This approach aims to better meet local training needs and contributes to the drive towards building a single skills pipeline in each local authority area. This includes working more closely with colleges, as outlined in the diagram below. Skills pipelines identify the support available to develop skills at a local level we will work with Jobcentre Plus to bring together skills and employment services to improve access and progression for those who find it harder to find work. We will also look for further opportunities to link our service to those from a range of partners by taking part in the Better Alignment of Scotland s Employability Services (BASES) working group set up by the Scottish Employability Forum we will manage some of the funding for colleges in academic year 2012/13 to support young people to move into employment and more advanced learning. Figure 2: We will work with partners to deliver joined-up support for young people, our contribution to Opportunities for All What we bring staff, money, national programmes and incentives information on the labour market, research expertise Work Coaches Certificate of Work-Readiness Our Skillsforce (see next chapter). Working with partners Joint delivery through: 32 Youth Employment Action Plans and new Service Delivery Agreements with Community Planning Partnerships and Jobcentre Plus, Scottish Funding Council and colleges, the third sector and employers. Our contribution to the Opportunities for All offer 32 Youth Employment Action Plans young people supported by Work Coaches Certificate of Work-Readiness businesses supported through Our Skillsforce number of people starting Modern Apprenticeships achieved and jobs still held Training for Work and Get Ready for Work supported college places registered MyWoW users.

16 14 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Goal 1: Enabling People to Meet Their Potential (continued) Goal 1 summary outcomes, objectives and main activity areas SDS outcomes Strategic objectives for the next three years High-level actions more individuals have the skills they need to progress effectively in their working and learning lives individuals have access to improved opportunities that support them to progress within the world of work. we will deliver a modern, integrated and holistic CIAG service that gives individuals the ability to manage their careers we will deliver intensive support to those who need it most, particularly young people, to help them to raise their aspirations and to move more successfully between learning and work opportunities. To achieve these objectives, we are committed to: continuing to modernise our service, focusing on an integrated approach making sure that CIAG services in Scotland are supported by a flexible, highly skilled and professional workforce providing targeted and intensive coaching for those in most need working with employers to design and roll-out a new Certificate of Work-Readiness working with others to improve support for young people. Outcome indicators increased level of career management skills across customer groups the percentage of individuals taking action in relation to education, employment or training, following engagement with SDS the level of individual participation in our programmes and services the percentage of individuals moving into positive destinations (see glossary) the percentage of individuals sustaining positive destinations.

17 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 15 Goal 2: Making Skills Work for Employers Introduction Scotland s employers are both important partners in, and customers of, the skills and learning system. The success of their businesses relies on the skills of their employees, their ability to put these skills to work and the accessibility of training services that help them to fill any gaps. In contributing to Scotland s sustainable economic growth, we must continue to increase our involvement with employers and work with partners in the skills system to make sure that the services we offer respond to industry needs. This goes not only for training for those in work, but also in preparing Scotland s young people to hit the ground running when they make those first steps into employment a concern raised by the Smith Group in its report published in November Employers and their representatives continue to challenge the skills and learning system to improve the accessibility and appropriateness of the services on offer. They emphasise the importance of the public sector having a joined-up and focused approach to working with employers that leads to meaningful action 1. Our role Recognising both the continuing call from employers to better prepare young people for the realities of the working world, and the challenges facing our young people in finding and keeping a job, we have an important role in fostering closer links between individuals and employers. Through this we will make sure that our service for individuals is directly informed by feedback from industry. If we are not directly responsible for certain parts of education or skills being provided, we will work with our partners, through the joint Skills Committee, to include the views of employers when planning these programmes. This is the essence of the Workforce Development Framework for Action agreed by the Strategic Forum in 2010, and is essential to all of our work in this area. 1 These points have been expressed in many reports published by employer representative organisations, as well as in their evidence to Scottish Government consultation exercises and the Scottish Parliament Enterprise Committee Inquiry in 2010 into the enterprise network restructure.

18 16 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Goal 2: Making Skills Work for Employers (continued) Looking forward what we aim to achieve By further developing the link between both employers and individuals, and employers and the skills and learning system, we have an opportunity to improve the effectiveness of the services we offer. The outcomes we hope to achieve are: employers are more involved in developing the skills of their workforce the supply of skills responds more to the needs of employers. This second outcome is shared with The Scottish Funding Council, which has also identified it as a priority in its strategy. By doing this, we can bring greater focus to this important theme. As we mentioned in the introduction, our work with employers has an important part to play in successfully delivering Goal 1. We rely on their views to help shape our services to individuals so that it is fit for purpose, and we rely on them actively involving individuals in the world of work. What we have already achieved Since we published our previous corporate plan we have made considerable progress in developing our relationships with Scotland s employers. We have: set up a team dedicated to working with companies in the Scottish Government Economic Strategy s growth sectors, who have responsibility for developing Skills Investment Plans for each sector started 68,204 individuals on the Modern Apprenticeship programme worked with the Financial Services Gateway Employer Council to develop re:think, an online resource aimed at young people to promote the range of career routes available within the sector worked with the Federation of Small Businesses to develop and launch the Flexible Training Opportunities programme. Recognising this interconnection, parts of our work in this goal will contribute to achieving the following outcome we mention in Goal 1: individuals have access to improved opportunities that support them to progress within the world of work. In summary, we will continue to work with employers to develop and apply the skills of the current and future workforce, contributing to sustainable economic growth. To progress towards these, our objectives for the next three years will be to: improve the way the skills and learning system responds to the needs of employers simplify the process of accessing training and getting involved with the skills and learning system.

19 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 17 Working with employers Continually improving our involvement with employers is central to delivering several of our aims, across our service for individuals, our service for employers and our wider partnership work in the skills and learning system. Delivering the aims within Goal 2 relies on effective involvement both in terms of how we gather intelligence from employers on their needs, and how we use their involvement to shape the services on offer from us and our partners. We have worked closely with our partners in Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, local authorities, employer representative bodies and other partners to join up our involvement with employers so that they receive clear and consistent support from the public sector. However, we do recognise that there is more we can do to present a linked approach in our involvement with employers, and a no wrong door approach when they try to access our combined services. Recognising the different circumstances of different groups of employers, we will tailor our approach to them. This will include working with partners to make sure our services respond to the needs of the Enterprise Areas (see glossary). Whilst all businesses and sectors have distinct needs, our work with employers will primarily focus on the groups listed in the diagram below. Effective involvement across these groups will give us rich insights into the needs of employers and the broader economy for our services and those of partners. Involving employees is equally important as part of this equation, as we will continue to work with the Scottish Trade Unions Congress to raise awareness of our services for individuals and training services. What we will do next To improve how the skills and learning system responds to the needs of employers we will do the following: 1) We will deliver an improved approach to understanding employer needs and planning to develop skills We and our partners will work with employers and their representatives to develop as robust a picture as we can of their needs. We will do this in a number of ways, including using labour market intelligence, research, gathering information through web-based interaction and direct engagement. This approach will build on the success of the model used to develop Skills Investment Plans, in which industry and the public sector work together to develop a shared understanding of the issues faced within particular sectors, and the best possible response to these. Through developing this clear and collective view of needs, we will work with partners to prioritise and use our resources in a way that responds most effectively to them. By recognising the importance of preparing individuals to enter the world of work, we can make sure we can deliver our service for individuals in a way that takes account of the findings and insights from our work with employers. The diagram in figure 3 describes these connections and the approach to planning for skills that we will continue to develop. Large companies Major employers with scope to take part in employability programmes Companies in growth sectors Sectors identified as priorities in the Government Economic Strategy Small and medium enterprises Most of Scotland s businesses, where there is an opportunity to increase involvement in developing skills

20 18 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/15 Goal 2: Making Skills Work for Employers (continued) Figure 3: The skills planning model we aim to develop with industry and the skills and learning system Insights through enterprise bodies and other partners engagement with employers Understanding the needs of employers and the economy Scottish Skills Planning Model Informing individual choices Careers Information Advice and Guidance including MyWoW MyWoW Direct employer input through Our Skillsforce (OSF) Understanding demand (employers and the economy) Data and analysis of skills Needs, including Skills Investment Plans Matching with learning supply and informed individuals Insights from our engagement with employer representative bodies Supplying appropriate skills to drive the Scottish economy and offering employer programmes Scottish Funding Council/Skills Development Scotland investment in skills Creating provision that aligns with employer and economic demand

21 Skills Development Scotland Corporate Strategy 2012/ ) Work with others to align education, skills and learning provision with the needs identified Having worked together to find out the needs of employers, we will increase our work with partners to match what is provided to these needs. Already, our progress in developing Skills Investment Plans has seen a shift in the way resources are being used to support the growth sectors, the Colleges Energy Partnership (described in the next chapter) being a good example of progress in this area. Throughout this strategy period we will work with employers and partner organisations to build on our local relationships and to make sure our work takes into account the needs of the Enterprise Areas. As the administrator of the public funding contribution to the Modern Apprenticeship programme, we are committed to exploring how it can better respond to the needs of employers. Building on the strong foundations of this programme and its industry leadership, we will work with the Scottish Government, Sector Skills Councils and other industry partners to develop the programme further to respond to employer needs and in a way that drives forward Scotland s productivity. This will include supporting the development and implementation of higher level apprenticeship frameworks, and then putting them into practice. To simplify the process of accessing training and getting involved with the skills and learning system we will do the following: Deliver an integrated service for employers We will work with our partners to develop a new web and contact centre service to simplify our work with employers and present a clearer picture of the support on offer from the public sector. Our Skillsforce will provide access to resources to help deliver skills for business, connect users to our services and those of partners, and provide opportunities for users to interact with us to feed in any skills concerns they may have. We will include the insights gathered through the user data from this service into our planning systems and into discussions with the government and partners about future investment in Scotland s skills, as outlined in the diagram (figure 3). This web service will be fully backed-up by contact centre support and by our network of partners in the skills and learning system, as well as employer organisations. We will work with each of these partners to make sure they can provide consistent advice to employers, no matter who their first point of contact is. This major development is being shaped through our continuing work with employer representative organisations, including the Federation of Small Business, Scottish Chambers of Commerce, Confederation of British Industry, Scottish Council for Development and Industry and Sector Skills Councils. The success of this development also relies on our close working with partners to support how they deliver services to employers so that skills support features across the public sector s employer services, including the online business portal currently in development by the Scottish Government. We will continue to support Scottish Enterprise s leadership programme and will work with Investors in People in Scotland as they continue to develop their approach to working with employers.