HRM and skills development - September 2019

26 September 2019

OECD urges governments to stimulate skills development for 50+ aged
In the face of rapid population ageing, governments must promote more and better job opportunities at an older age to protect living standards and the sustainability of public finances, says a new report by the OECD. You can read the report online.
Korn Ferry Institutes voices concerns about the reliance on older workers. When the older generation retires, a lot of experience will be lost that won’t be replaced by the younger generation.

Sustainable expansion of tertiary education in danger
The further expansion of tertiary education worldwide will only be sustainable if it matches the supply of graduates with labour market and social needs and gives them the skills required to navigate the future, according to a new OECD report. You can read the report online.

Digital skills gap hampers development in 9 out of 10 organisations
The Open University 2019 “Bridging the Digital Divide” report highlights the extent of digital skills gaps and the impact they are having on organisations and their employees. Currently, 9 in 10 organisations admit they have a shortage of digital skills, which is already having a significant negative impact on productivity, efficiency and competitiveness. You can download the report after filling in your details.
A new PwC survey of more than 22,000 adults across 11 countries on the impact of automation on jobs, shows that the fear of automation is the greatest among those getting fewest opportunities to upskill. You can access more PwC survey results here.
As cooperation between human workers and robots (cobots) is accelerating, engineers at the University of Buffalo (USA) developed a dynamic robot gripper that mimics the adjustable grip of a human hand, an advancement that could improve industrial safety. An article (abstract) about the research is published in IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics.

Safeguarding technical knowledge and skills raises concerns
Technical organisations are not only concerned about recruiting skilled technical personnel (24%), but also have concerns about safeguarding technical knowledge and skills (31%). This is shown by the TechBarometer, a survey conducted by the Dutch education institute ROVC (in Dutch) among more than 1200 respondents from the technical sector. You will receive the report (in Dutch) by e-mail after filling in your e-mail address.

UK manufacturing suffers shortage of suitable workers and profitability drop
UK manufacturers are developing their own workforces in response to a chronic shortage of suitable workers, however they also see turnover and profits nosedive. These are two headline findings of the latest SME Manufacturing Barometer (4.72 MB) by SWMAS and Economic Growth Solutions published on the Manufacturing Growth Programme website.


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