Students from secondary schools and colleges are being provided with management training in order to address the lack of basic work skills among many school leavers.
The Chartered Management Institute (CMI) has stepped up its efforts to ensure that young people have basic management and leadership skills, and is offering qualifications to students.
According to research from the CMI, 90% of employers believe that young people need basic skills training when they enter the workplace and four-fifths think that young people should be given the opportunity to develop management and team-leading skills at school level.
The scheme, Campus CMI, is currently offered in 150 schools across the country, with 150 more schools expected to take part by next summer, and gives young people the opportunity to gain a qualification in team leading, equivalent to GCSE level, or first line management, comparable to A-level standard.
There have also been calls for universities to provide more employability training, with research from the CBI and the National Union of Students finding that more than half (57%) of students want universities to do more to help them improve their employability skills. The research also found that one-fifth of employers believe that graduates are not proficient in problem solving or team working.
Christopher Kinsella, acting chief executive at the CMI, commented: “Leaders in industry and government have highlighted that young people are simply not ready for the world of work when they complete their education. In a desperately difficult job market, we need to be doing everything we can to help young people.
“As an employer, new recruits who have some experience of leadership are sure to stand out at interview stage, develop quicker and ultimately be more successful. The UK spends less on management training than its European counterparts and by addressing this issue as early as possible we can take vital steps to counter this deep-rooted failure.”
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