This
month’s news in brief
Vauxhall
gears up
Car
manufacturer Vauxhall is introducing an employee training programme of 30,000
hours as art of a £200m investment at its Ellesmere plant.
The
programme has been sparked by the transformation of the Cheshire car factory
into a "flex" facility to produce the Vectra alongside the Astra
models.
Representatives
from every workstation along the production line are receiving detailed
hands-on training in the lead-up to full production next April.
Co-op
shops for software
The
UK’s largest convenience retailer the Co-op is furthering its intentions to
respond quickly to training needs by running a network of 30 "training
stores".
The
company has bought the Fountain software from Snowdrop Systems which will allow
it to run training administration in the field, as opposed to from one central
department.
"Each
of the 30 stores acts as a training hub for 30 stores," explained general
manager HR development Adrian Egglestone. "The software will raise the
role of training officers to update and plan courses," he said.
Society
launches network
Best
practice organisation The Industrial Society is launching The Learning and
Development Network.
The
Network will meet seven times a year for a networking lunch, followed by a
session with a guest speaker. The sessions will be chaired by Andrew Forrest,
The Industrial Society’s senior associate consultant and chairman of the judges
for Training Magazine’s TD2001 Awards.
The
annual fee for the Network is £1250 + VAT. For information call courses manager
Julie Amber on 020-7479 1000.
IIP
is not a panacea
Success
in completing the Investors in People scheme does not, on its own, guarantee
business success, according to the Institute of Directors.
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The
IoD has surveyed of 275 members who said involvement with IIP improves
employees’ ability to do their jobs, but does not lead to an rise in
profitability.
"IIP
is not a magic wand," said IoD business policy executive Richard Wilson.
"If there is a downturn in the market, IIP will not give directors the
Midas touch."
