Small business insurance customers are advised to form links with local further education (FE) institutions to improve workers' skills, according to the latest research.
"The case for greater collaboration between employers and colleges is compelling - being flexible and competitive is even more important for firms during a recession," says Richard Lambert, director general of the Confederation of British Industries.
He asserts that small business insurance customers need to consider what colleges can offer in the way of training, while FE centres need to "up their game" to provide employees with the relevant skills.
According to research commissioned by the Learning and Skills Improvement Service, over half of business insurance customers are not confident that colleges are turning out enough skilled workers to meet future demand.
This week, Suzanne McCreedy, a manager from Business Link Northeast, writing for nebusiness.co.uk, advised small firms to engage in their local communities as they are a good source of consumers.
