Investors in people at twenty – new push to support small business growth

3 Oct 2011

Investors in People, the UK’s leading business performance tool, will celebrate its 20th birthday this week at an event to showcase its impact on small business growth.

The event at ExCel, London, on Wednesday 5 October, aims to encourage small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) to use Investors in People to support their plans for growth. A series of new case studies in which small business owners tell their stories of business growth will be published on the same day.

John Hayes MP, Minister of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning said:
“The government is committed to doing all it can to help small businesses build the skills for growth.  We are creating the biggest and best apprenticeships programme our country has seen, specifically tailored to deliver the training local firms need.  It’s right that Investors in People is working with us to help small firms get the best from their people, helping build more successful companies, stronger local communities and a more diverse and resilient economy.”

One of the case studies featured is Yorkshire-based business Geoplan. Managing director John Taylor credits Investors in People with helping him to transform Geoplan into a profitable company with a global client roster:  “Investors in People gave us the framework we needed to be credible, to play at a world-class level and to offer consistent quality and service. With Investors in People I’ve finally been able to develop the business I wanted.”

Since it was launched in October 1991, Investors in People has been voluntarily adopted by employers who represent over 40% of the UK workforce, benefiting more than 10 million UK employees. More than 6,000 organisations own the Standard to such an extent they’ve worked with Investors in People non-stop for ten years or more.  Three organisations - vehicle manufacturer Nissan, mining and construction equipment manufacturer Komatsu, and the Oxford-based Alternative Travel Group were amongst the first group of 28 employers ever to receive Investors in People, and are still working with the Standard 20 years on. 

A number of research studies have demonstrated the impact of Investors in People on business performance. The most recent, Cranfield University School of Management’s Investors in People, Managerial Capabilities and Performance (2010), offers empirical evidence showing that Investors in People underpins effective management through its impact on the development of managerial capabilities and management performance.

Contact:
Alex Curling, 01709 774890,alex.curling@ukces.org.uk
Media may also attend the event at ExCeL on 5 October. Please RSVP by 1700hrs on Monday 3 October 2011. WorldSkills London 2011 opens at ExCeL on 5 October, and you will need to register in advance to access the venue.

Resources:

• New Investors in People case studies - advance copies/interviews with the businesses featured contact Sue Martin on 020 7833 1191. Otherwise available to download on Wednesday 5 October 2011.
• To arrange interviews with Valerie Todd, Commissioner, Chair of the Investors in People Advisory Board and a UKCES Commissioner contact Alex Curling.
• Research: Investors in People, Managerial Capabilities and Performance, Prof. Mike Bourne and Dr. Monica Franco-Santos, Cranfield University School of Management (January 2010). See the research directory on theInvestors in People website.

Notes to Editors:

1. Investors in People offers a practical, flexible and easy to use framework for improving business productivity, performance and competitiveness in organisations of all types and sizes through good practice in people management. An organisation that has achieved Investors in People has been successful in adopting and maintaining its three fundamental principles:
   • Plan - developing strategies to improve the performance of the organisation, from business goals to leadership strategies; 
   • Do - implementing those strategies, taking action to improve the performance of the organisation; 
   • Review - evaluating and continuously improving those strategies, measuring their impact on the performance of the organisation.
     The UK Commission for Employment and Skills has strategic ownership of the Investors in People framework. Investors in People is part of the UK Commission’s ambition to improve skills, employment and productivity across the UK.
2. National Training Awards Annual Winners of the Year Ceremony
   Immediately after the Investors in People event, the National Training Awards, now run in association with Investors in People, is hosting its Annual Winners of the Year Ceremony where National Training Award Winners have the unique honour of celebrating their success on a global stage at WorldSkills London 2011. This once in a lifetime event will enable NTA winners to demonstrate their commitment to developing skills and raising standards in workplace learning and showcase their success alongside other top international businesses and organisations.
   Media who wish to attend should contact the National Training Awards press office:
   E:pressoffice@skillsfundingagency.bis.gov.uk
   T: 07808 917739 
   For more information about the National Training Awards, visitwww.nationaltrainingawards.com 
      
3. WorldSkills London 2011 will be held over four days at the ExCeL London exhibition and conference centre in London's Docklands from 5-8 October 2011. Nearly 1,000 competitors from more than 50 countries/regions will compete in 46 skill areas. Organisers expect more than 150,000 visitors from across the UK. See:www.worldskillslondon2011.com