Leadership skills deficit harming UK productivity

UK businesses risk falling behind their international competitors unless the government addresses an increasing leadership skills deficit, warns the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).

The Institute is calling for a pan-government skills strategy to run in partnership with key employer and professional bodies to prevent government efforts to reduce the nations productivity gap being "fatally undermined" by a lack of people management skills.

The proposed strategy would centre on a campaign to boost employee engagement by promoting best practice on leadership and people management in order to "nudge" employers to invest more effectively in those skills.

Stephanie Bird, CIPD director of public policy and HR capability, said: "We are concerned that too much spending on skills - by government and employers alike - is being wasted because managers lack the skills to engage, motivate, coach and develop people in the workplace.

"Effective managers also manage stress, conflict and absence effectively and provide support when employees are facing problems."

Responding to the government's Skills for Sustainable Growth consultation, the CIPD has highlighted the "skills multiplier effect" that good management can have in unlocking the potential of wider investment in skills.

Last year a government commissioned report on employee engagement led by David MacLeod recommended that "more support should be devoted to the people skills vital to leadership and management which lie at the heart of engagement".

It said these softer skills included the ability to consult; engage; communicate effectively; have difficult conversations; as well as broader interpersonal skills.

Despite these recommendations the CIPD says the UK invests less in management development than its main international competitors, and its managers are rated less positively by employees.

"This is clearly a shared problem which requires action by both employers and government," concluded Bird.