Topics

Learning and development

Editor's message: Organisations will benefit from a competitive advantage if they develop their workforce - from apprentices through to future business leaders.

Access to learning and development opportunities not only enables employees to improve their knowledge and skills, but can also increase their engagement. It can also be a useful tool in retaining staff in a time of skills shortages.

Investing in learning and development to remain competitive, or to implement a specific initiative such as a programme of leadership development, are key reasons for organisations to increase spending in this area. For organisations seeking to cut back on training spend, there are alternatives to simply reducing the output of their training activities - including making more use of online and informal learning methods.

Whatever the learning and development initiative, don't forget to pay attention to the most appropriate method of learning delivery, and evaluate the outcomes to ensure that your organisation receives value for money and meets business needs.

New and updated

  • Date:
    17 July 2024
    Type:
    Commentary and insights

    Why investing in L&D is a business imperative

    With budgets increasingly stretched, learning and development may be falling to the bottom of HR's to-do list. But new research shows that the best-performing organisations have a strong L&D programme, explains Paula Flores, and this gives them a competitive edge.

  • Date:
    19 June 2024
    Type:
    News

    No sign that generative AI is replacing jobs

    Increased use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is not replacing jobs, according to a pulse survey of technology leaders.

  • Type:
    Leading practice guides

    Succession planning: Key HR drivers and metrics for success

    Leading practice guidance discussing the role of succession planning in driving organisational growth, and key indicators and metrics for monitoring the progress and success of a succession planning programme.

  • Type:
    Leading practice guides

    Succession planning: Making the business case for succession planning

    Leading practice guidance discussing what succession planning is and how it aligns with an organisation's business and HR strategy; why it is a business imperative; and how it benefits an organisation and its employees.

  • Date:
    23 May 2024
    Type:
    Podcasts and webinars

    Podcast: Rethinking recruitment and reskilling

    According to research, almost half of the skills used by the workforce today will no longer be relevant in a couple of years. Given this context of a fast-evolving workplace with shifting needs, it's perhaps unsurprising that organisations are struggling to hire people with the right skills. What is to be done? Career mentor Laurie Macpherson joins us to discuss ways for HR and employees to begin to rethink recruitment and reskilling.

  • Date:
    15 May 2024
    Type:
    Commentary and insights

    Whose responsibility is employee development anyway?

    In today's ever-evolving workplace, a structured approach to staff development has never been more crucial. But when time-poor managers meet with their high-expectation employees, it begs the question: whose responsibility is development anyway? The answer, says career development expert Caroline Green, is all about balance.

  • Date:
    1 May 2024
    Type:
    Commentary and insights

    Three themes HR is likely to ignore in 2024 - but shouldn't!

    Every year it's the same: January rolls around and suggested priorities for HR abound. But with teams increasingly stretched, important issues then get cast aside or neglected. Here, as organisations find themselves deep into Q2, we draw attention to three themes that HR professionals are likely to overlook, based on what they have told us in our surveys. But, for the reasons explained here, they really shouldn't!

  • Date:
    25 April 2024
    Type:
    Commentary and insights

    Four steps HR can take to help businesses and employees embrace the new "squiggly" careers era

    Careers are "squigglier" than ever. Where traditional professional development tended to be linear, individuals now often trace more zigzag-shaped paths as they acquire new skills to adapt to rapidly changing workplace needs. Career mentor and expert Laurie Macpherson sets out four ways in which HR can support employees to upskill, grow their network and track their achievements - so allowing organisations to retain talented members of their workforce rather than losing them to opportunities elsewhere.

  • Type:
    FAQs

    Are employers required to pay apprentices the national minimum wage?

    Updated to reflect the increase to the national minimum wage rate for apprentices in place from 1 April 2024.

  • Type:
    FAQs

    Are apprentices who are aged 21 or over entitled to the national living wage?

    Updated to reflect that the national living wage extends to workers aged 21 and over from 1 April 2024.

About this topic

HR and legal information and guidance relating to learning and development.