Speech by Minister Kelleher at the Launch of the Irish Hardware Skillsnet

Irish Hardware Skillsnet

I am informed that The Irish Hardware Skillnet aims to respond to and address the ongoing challenges its members face in the following areas:

• To ensure that the workforce of the network members is appropriately skilled and equipped so that members can:
  • continue to operate and provide high value jobs
  • remain competitive while facing ever increasing demands and pressures from competitors of lower cost economies and
  • continue to up-skill and grow the knowledge and competency base of its employees  
  • To promote and support the ongoing development of the network as a strategic response to existing and emerging competitive challenges facing the sector and its growing sub-sector base
  • To provide improved access for employees to develop their skills and competencies to meet the increasing high quality standards required of the sector
  • To improve the level and quality of training and development activities available to the sector through collaborative negotiation, networking and alliances between members to access, develop and facilitate training initiatives
  • To enable members to remain competitive and to sustain profitability
  • To deliver training that will overcome current skills deficiencies in the sector and widen the skills base amongst retail, wholesale and distribution company members, at owner manager, manager and employee levels resulting in greater competitiveness
  • To promote sector and industry standards amongst the wider sector and industry audience through the organisation of the networking events, seminars and conferences

Training Investment

The network has been approved funding of €524,655 under the Training Networks Programme for the period 2008/2009. Member companies are investing a further €112,245, bringing the total training fund to €636,900. I am pleased that Skillnets has approved this funding which is sourced by my Department from the National Training Fund .

Training Networks Programme

Skillnets is responsible for the operation of The Training Networks Programme. The first programme took place from 1999-2002 and a result of the success of this initiative, Skillnets was given a further mandate to continue the programme for the period 2002-2005. In 2005, a new mandate was announced for Skillnets which sought to make available a new €55 million fund for industry training over the 5 years from 2005 to 2010.

Pursuant to commitments in towards 2016 and in the context of the National training strategy, the Government has significantly increased Skillnets’ core funding. The allocation from the NTF for 2008 is €26.6 million.  Continuing this level of funding through to 2010 would see an almost doubling of the NTF investment originally envisaged for the period 2005 to 2010. This, I believe, clearly demonstrates the government’s commitment to supporting enterprise led training in the interests of improved competitiveness and enhanced worker employability. The allocation for 2008 facilitates the funding by Skillnets of 123 training networks, which is a significant increase on the numbers of networks previously funded under the Training Networks Programme.

Skillnets’ Approach

The Skillnets approach has stimulated a new leadership of enterprise training by key industry bodies, leading companies, trade unions and HR managers.  Through their member networks, 32 industry federations, chambers of commerce and trade unions have promoted, championed and led training awareness and activities.  In each network champions of workplace training have joined steering groups and supported and encouraged other enterprises to participate in the process.

This leadership by industry has been one of the most important and effective key success factors of the Training Networks Programme and has been key to the uptake of training within over10,000 companies. To date over 80,000 employees have benefited from Skillnets training.

The Skillnets approach is cross regional, and cross-functional. It is firmly grounded in the strength and synergies of networking. Networks are self-selecting and guided by a commonality of need. Decision-making is devolved to the level of the industry group or other network grouping so as to maximize enterprise involvement in all aspects of delivery.

Funding for training is based on co-investment by enterprises and Skillnets. A high level of dialogue, linkages and partnerships between and across organisations has taken place with Skillnets as a facilitator and enabler of the processes.

In total, companies participating in Skillnets’ supported training networks have contributed an average of 32% of training costs.

Conclusion

The Irish Hardwell Skillsnet is a particularly striking example of companies in a sector working together to their mutual advantage and to the improvement of standards in their sector. I wish the Skillsnet well in its continued efforts to support upskilling in its member companies.

ENDS/LA268