Tekdata sign up to the ‘Skills Pledge’ scheme, improves its training programme

Today however, everyone at Tekdata has been effectively trained in at least one discipline. Skills are recognised and developed on an ongoing basis. During the past five years over 185 instances of external training, equating to two courses per person, have been carried out successfully. This figure excludes in-house training and mentoring, which is continual.



This learning culture is set to expand in 2010 with Tekdata having signed up to the Skills Pledge. Open to organisations of all sizes, from all sectors, with a workforce in England in the private, public or voluntary sectors, Skills Pledge involve a commitment to:



* Actively encourage and support employees to gain the skills and qualifications that will meet the needs of the business and will support their future employability

* Demonstrably raise employees' skills and competencies to improve their organisational performance through investing in economically valuable training and development



Tekdata’s overall training achievements have already been acknowledged with a Medtech Award. This award was created to promote both emerging technologies and commercial success for “Sustainable Development” in relation to companies training and development programme.



Other training activities at Tekdata include two engineering apprentices, with plans for a further two during 2010, via a work-based learning in partnership with Newcastle under Lyme College. There is also a Graduate Training Programme in place, instigated as part of Tekdata’s succession plan and implemented closely with Staffordshire University as part of a Knowledge Transfer Partnership. The company also plans to work towards getting an “Investors in People” accreditation in the next 12 months.



Furthermore, the ‘Tekdata Training School’ created to counteract the shortfall in niche skills required within the Stoke on Trent area, has been successful in rapidly equipping newcomers into the business with the skills required. Tekdata, a UK-based specialist in high-performance interconnects for markets such as defence, aerospace, energy management and space exploration, announced earlier this year a 23% increase in turnover for the last financial year.