Sea Change in the Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the latest organisation to join the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) as a corporate member. Read more.

Diplomas on the menu
Leading chefs have praised the impact of City & Guilds' new professional cookery diplomas, which are half way through their pilot year. Read more.

Eastern hub opens
City & Guilds has recently opened a new office in Singapore. The setup is as a hub office, covering not only Asia but also reaching out to Australia and New Zealand. Read more.

A very secure partnership
City & Guilds visited Scotland Yard to see how its qualifications are helping in the fight against crime. Read more.

Passion and energy
ILM's Kim Parish leaves City & Guilds with a proud legacy that brought increased brand awareness and market share. Read more.

A little bit of Knowledge
The world-famous testing system for London's cabbies, the Knowledge, has received official accreditation by City & Guilds. Read more.

British bosses learned to lead at an early age
Today's business leaders got their first taste of leadership long before they reached the workplace. Read more.

Boost for parents
Mary Crowley MBE, Chief Executive of Parenting UK, has been elected to City & Guilds' Council. Read more.

Flawless performance
A team of highly-skilled young people are heading off to Japan to compete in front of 200,000 spectators at WorldSkills 2007. Read more.

 

The Royal Navy is the latest organisation to join the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) as a corporate member. This move will provide them with direct access to the unique benefits of ILM membership, and hundreds of Royal Navy managers are taking advantage of enhanced career support and development.

It also underlines the Royal Navy's commitment to supporting their managers with professional development and serves as a bridge for those looking to develop roles in civilian organisations.

The Second Sea Lord, Vice Admiral Adrian J Johns CBE ADC, is responsible for the policy decision. 'The Royal Navy has always laid great store in the quality of its leadership and management at all levels. I am very proud that ILM has recognised the value of the training and experience our people gain throughout their naval careers by giving us accreditation. There are benefits both for individuals who join up and the organisation as a whole.

'We have to recognise that our people may well leave at some point to begin a career in civilian industry, so it is important that the skills acquired in the Royal Navy are recognised in the business world.'

ILM is the largest provider of management and leadership qualifications in Europe with over 80,000 registrations each year. It also leads in offering personal and professional development opportunities to around 20,000 managers at all stages of their career.

The many benefits of ILM membership include subscription to leading monthly management publication Edge, bespoke member events and activities, an online resource centre with member only access to thousands of e-books and e-journals, a complimentary research service and a legal helpline.

It is also widely recognised by employers who understand that membership of a professional body demonstrates commitment to individual self development and a desire to further improve management and leadership skills.

Petty Officer Richard Way explains his ILM experience so far: 'Taking the Senior Ratings Command Course has been challenging and rewarding. It identified some leadership elements that I thought I had recognised, but obviously hadn't. Now I feel much more confident in tackling problems and leading my team effectively to complete a set task. I am excited by the prospect of achieving the nationally recognised ILM Level 3 Certificate in Leadership and Management because it will be useful for progression either in the Navy or in a civilian corporate role.'

Kim Parish, ILM's outgoing Chief Executive, adds: 'Becoming corporate members of ILM demonstrates that the Royal Navy takes the development of their staff seriously.'

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Leading chefs have praised the impact of City & Guilds' new professional cookery diplomas, which are half way through their pilot year. David Nicholls, executive chef at Mandarin Oriental, says he is 'thrilled diplomas are back on the table'.

Developed to replace the popular 706 qualification series, the new awards will be delivered as Vocationally Related Qualifications (VRQs) which means students complete all 12 mandatory units to gain their level 1 or 2 certificates.

This is good news for employers who have called for the return of a single qualification that gives aspiring chefs the cookery skills and knowledge they need to go forward and work in a professional kitchen.

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City & Guilds has recently opened a new office in Singapore. The setup is as a hub office, covering not only Asia but also reaching out to Australia and New Zealand. The current team in the Asia Hub consists of Calvin Tan, Hub Manager, and Karen Sim, Sales Support Administrator.

Two new staff members will join the team in the near future a Hub Accreditations and Recognitions Executive who will work to develop recognitions strategy and negotiations of recognitions with government and employers, and a Hub Quality Manager who will ensure City & Guilds' quality assurance requirements are supported by international and government departments throughout the region.

The opening of a hub office in Singapore is strategic and timely, in line with the City & Guilds International growth strategy for the Asia Pacific region. Singapore as a nation has positioned herself as an education hub of Asia. Employment trends in Asia Pacific are proving the relevance of vocational training and Workskills in an increasingly competitive and globalised world; the new Singapore office will certainly be up to the task of supporting City & Guilds' long, term growth strategy for the Asia Pacific region.

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City & Guilds Director-General Chris Humphries and Director of Sales and Customer Relations Sue Hill descended upon Scotland Yard by invitation of the Metropolitan Police, to find out about the ongoing work of two police officers, Bob Masterson and Paul Bermingham. Through their organisation, the Diplomatic Training Group, they carry out the training for security guards providing security services both in Scotland Yard and in other locations throughout London.

Previously the training and achievements for the vital work that security guards do went unrecognised. Now they work towards the Level 2 Certificate for Security Guarding and the benefits have been many, including improved customer service, more efficient working, and consistent processes and procedures.

Providing screening services for all visitors to Scotland Yard, similar to those that are carried out at airports, is not only an essential but also highly skilled job. 'After chatting to some of the security guards and observing them at work, we were then privileged enough to be invited on a tour of the notorious Crime Museum,' said Hill.

This grisly collection is not open to the general public. Managed by a retired Police Officer, the museum contains many examples of rifles and guns cunningly disguised as walking canes and pens and knives that have been incorporated into belt buckles.

Moving on, the City & Guilds duo arrived at Downing Street to witness the work of the security team who guard the whole street but in particular No 10 and 11. These security guards work alongside armed members of the Metropolitan Police to ensure that only unarmed and expected visitors gain admittance.

With the risk of criminal attack and emergency situations, the role of the security guard is becoming more complex and the crucial. 'It was reassuring to see how City & Guilds can work in partnership to make a winning team,' said Hill.

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This June sees Kim Parish, Chief Executive of ILM, move on to new challenges in Australia. In the two years that Kim has been in post at ILM she has turned around the organisation to be a leading part of the City & Guilds Group.

She explained: 'As an ex HR Director I wanted to put the leadership theories into practice. It's about having a vision, being passionate, having confidence in the organisation, putting the customer first and engaging everyone in the team. There is also a large dose of Kiwi in there - muck in and get it done.'

Under Parish's leadership, ILM has grown both in stature and market share, with 2005-2006 candidate registration numbers rising to over 80,000, securing a 51% share of all funded management and leadership qualifications in England.

Coming from Scottish & Newcastle, Parish brought with her a strong passion to get things right for the customer. Parish and her team have worked hard to build the credibility of ILM and this has paid off in major partnerships with a string of high profile customers including Harrods, Sodexho, British Gas, Legal & General and Virgin Trains.

Her passion for providing ongoing learning and development support for candidates via membership extended across City & Guilds where she has led the development of the Learner Engagement initiative that will have up to one million members by 2012.

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The world-famous testing system for London's cabbies, the Knowledge, has received official accreditation by City & Guilds. In order to become a licensed taxi driver in the capital, candidates must pass the Knowledge to prove they have an in-depth understanding of the city's complex road network.

Initiated in 1851, the system ensures London's licensed taxi drivers remain amongst the most qualified in the world to get passengers from A to B, with applicants usually needing at least 12 attempts at the final test.

Chris Humphries Director-General of City & Guilds, said: 'It's important for both drivers and passengers to know that the Knowledge is a sound training and examining system. It will give passengers peace of mind to know that the system has been independently assessed and approved. It is also a great way of professionalising one of the country's oldest occupations. City & Guilds is proud to lend its name to the Knowledge.'

Ken Livingstone said: 'The Knowledge has a worldwide reputation for producing highly-trained, and now City & Guilds accreditation will provide an additional, independant seal of approval.'

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Today's business leaders got their first taste of leadership long before they reached the workplace - on the school sports field, in the music room and even in the great outdoors. Richard Branson was the captain of football and cricket teams, and by the age of 15 had started two ventures before leaving school.

A survey of 500 UK business owners and managers by the Institute of Leadership & Management (ILM) reveals that many were marked out as future leaders from an early age with 44 per cent having been school prefects, nine per cent head boys or girls and 22 per cent captains of a school sports team.

The sports field proved a valuable learning ground for today's leaders with 69 per cent having competed as part of a school team. The survey also suggests that extra-curricular activities played a role in the development of future leaders.

One third of male leaders (34 per cent) were once members of the Boy Scouts while 42 per cent of their female counterparts were Girl Guides and 16 per cent were once members of the school choir.

Kim Parish, outgoing Chief Executive of ILM comments: 'This study shows that many young people learn about leadership at a very early age. Activities often seen as childhood hobbies such as being a member of the Scouts or Guides, or playing on a school team actually furnish young people with skills such as team ethos and goal setting.'

Thirty per cent of business leaders felt that holding a position of responsibility at school was the most important indicator of a good future leader. And despite the social bias towards higher education, today's business leaders believe that academic qualifications are not a prerequisite for success.

One third (32 per cent) said that academic performance at school was the most overrated indicator of a good leader and only one third (32 per cent) left education with a university degree.

In fact, a significant proportion of today's leaders owe their current role to experiences outside the classroom, as 12 per cent left school under the age of 16 and seven per cent had no qualifications at all when they left full time education. Parish adds: 'The leadership lessons learned in childhood can help sow the first seeds of leadership ambition.'

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Mary Crowley MBE, Chief Executive of Parenting UK, has been elected to City & Guilds' Council. Parenting UK supports people throughout the country who work with parents and was responsible for establishing the National Occupational Standards for Work with Parents.

Crowley believes her appointment reflects the growing importance of work-related qualifications for people working in sectors like parenting support, as well as the key role that Parenting UK plays in establishing the qualifications. 'At Parenting UK we've always felt that there is a real need to recognise that working  with parents does require particular skills and that these are distinct from those for general work with  children,' said Crowley.

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A team of highly skilled young people are heading off to Japan to compete in front of 200, 000 spectators at WorldSkills 2007.

WorldSkills is an international skills competition held every two years, where 48 member countries meet and compete in 40 different vocational skills, including beauty therapy, cabinet making, floristry and engineering.

The team was selected from all over the UK following a series of play-off events, which took place across seven colleges and training organisations. Now the chosen few will begin a highly-demanding training programme to ensure that they can deliver a flawless performance at the competition in November. 'Through their achievements these young men and women are ideal ambassadors for vocational education and training,' said Skills Minister Phil Hope.

At least 200,000 spectators are expected to attend the intense, four day competition in Shizuoka, Japan. The UK WorldSkills team is supported by City & Guilds, and managed by UK Skills, in association with partners from education, government and industry.

Jacqui Henderson CBE, the Chief Executive of UK Skills, said: 'Every person selected for the 2007 WorldSkills team has demonstrated in the team selection competition that they are among the best in the UK in their sector.

It is exciting to watch them progress from national to international standards of excellence, and the level of proficiency they have demonstrated bodes extremely well for WorldSkills Japan.'

The 2007 competition is a crucial milestone on the road to WorldSkills 2011 to be held in London, for which City & Guilds is a premier partner. Chris Humphries in his role as Chairman of UK Skills, commented: 'The support that we received from the government, education and business sectors for Worldskills 2011 was encouraging. It shows people recognise the clear link between economic productivity and vocational skills.

'However, we need more organisations and, crucially, individuals to understand that there is a need for serious investment in high-quality skills training and development.'

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