At the GTA, we are a not-for-profit organisation and part of The Guernsey Institute, promoting and facilitating lifelong learning and development to ensure a skilled and capable workforce for the Bailiwick of Guernsey.
We work with individuals and organisations across all sectors of local industry to deliver exactly the training and support that islanders want and need, and this isn’t just finance and regulatory training; we also offer courses in IT, leadership and management, personal development and project management.
We, like all of you, have faced challenges in the last 18 months, and we have had to adopt flexible models of learning in order to continue offering much needed training. Who knew at the start of 2020 that we, and our partner organisations like the IoD, the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners and the International Compliance Association, would suddenly have to convert courses for delivery in a virtual classroom, or that we would now be offering a hybrid delivery, allowing companies to offer the same training in-house across different jurisdictions.
The rules of the working world have changed and there will never be a more important time for islanders to upskill or to retrain if changing career either by choice or through necessity. Where businesses are unable, at the moment, to find the right person to join their team, maybe it’s time to consider retraining or investing in the development of someone who could grow into the role.
As an island we will always need to rely on the import of certain skill sets but we must do everything we can to ensure that we maximise the skills of the local workforce. A more flexible licensing system may help in addressing skills shortages, but it is important we don’t come to view this as the cure all. It will be essential for local businesses to invest in building the skills they need in order to improve their talent pipeline for the future.
Tom Peters, one of the leading writers of business management practices claims that you should ‘Hire for attitude, train for skill’.
At the GTA, and at the other organisations that form part of The Guernsey Institute (namely the College of Further Education and The Institute of Health and Social Care Studies) we are bringing the island’s further education and higher education offerings together in one place to create a go to centre for the Bailiwick for technical, vocational and professional learning.
We offer a wide range of courses and qualifications from master’s degrees to apprenticeships, from NVQs to management development programmes, from trust qualifications to a half day course on anti-money laundering, customer service or personal effectiveness. We can tailor make courses to your specific requirements and most of our courses can also be delivered in-house at your premises if you have a number of employees who could benefit from the same training. And if we don’t currently offer what you are looking for, or you have learning and development challenges you are not sure how to solve, please come and speak to us.
It is clear that staff shortages are impacting on employee wellbeing and on recovery and growth for many businesses right now, and whilst investing in training and apprenticeships will not improve things overnight, it will at least start to plug the skills and labour gaps. Our team of programmes managers have already built great relationships with many local businesses and we would genuinely like to help the island get through this crisis in recruitment.
If you'd like to speak with our team to learn more about how we can support local individuals and businesses, call us on 01481 224570 or email Michelle at michelle.morley@gta.gg