The bi-annual NES Future Skills conference provides an opportunity for 100 senior delegates from large national employers to meet, share best practice, network and contribute to the country’s evolving strategy for future skills and jobs. On 28 January, Future Skills delegates heard from Stephen Attenborough, Chief Executive of Virgin Galactic, IBM’s Chairman, Larry Hirst CBE and Vicky Pryce, Head of the Government Economic Service.

• Date:

  28 January 2010

• Audience:

  CEOs, HR Directors, Group MDs

• Speakers:

  Larry Hirst, Chairman, IBM; Stephen Attenborough, CEO, Virgin Galactic; Vicky Pryce, Head of Government Economic Service, Simon Fraser, Permanent Secretary, BIS

• Venue:

  Two Temple Place, London

The government has recently published Skills for Growth, its strategy for ensuring the country has the skills that underpin the industries and jobs of the future. This means skills for the high tech, low carbon, high value-added sectors that drive the growth that supports everything we want to achieve as a society.

The government’s commitments include:

• Creating a modern technician class through more advanced apprenticeships
• Investing in skills in the sectors on which future growth and jobs depend
• Simplifying the skills landscape

The CBI believes that “there are tough decisions ahead for the government, but it is right to focus on delivering valuable skills such as science, technology and engineering, and high-skilled apprenticeships.”

But what will these tough decisions mean for the future of highly successful apprenticeship and other accredited training programmes run by the UK’s largest employers? How can businesses secure employees’ progression to higher level skills and associate professional jobs?

Keynote presentations at the conference on these issues came from IBM’s Chairman, Larry Hirst CBE, on his company’s approach to future skills and innovation. Vicky Pryce, Head of the Government Economic Service, will outline the economic context and imperatives. Finally we will get a unique perspective from Stephen Attenborough, Chief Executive of Virgin Galactic about how his company has set about creating an entirely new industry, from the ground up.