Ireland – 15th May, 2008 – The skills challenge facing the Irish economy was the subject of a major seminar organised jointly by the National College of Ireland (NCI) and the National Centre for Partnership and Performance (NCPP), and held in Dublin on May 15.

The ‘Learning at Work’ seminar was chaired by NCPP director Lucy Fallon-Byrne and was addressed by Minister for Lifelong Learning Seán Haughey, Leo Casey of the Centre for Research and Innovation in Learning and Teaching and Prof Chip Bruce, National College of Ireland.

Four national initiatives, designed to promote and encourage learning at work, were showcased also at the seminar, providing the 100-plus delegates with real-life examples of innovative responses to the future skills challenge.

Among the issues discussed at the seminar were:

• The role of workplace learning in driving and growing the Irish economy;
• The opportunities for, and obstacles to, workplace learning that exist in Ireland today;
• Effective ways of engaging employers and employees to ensure Ireland is equipped for the future skills challenge.

National College of Ireland president Paul Mooney said the message was simple:

“For Ireland Inc. to succeed, the barriers to workplace learning must be identified and systematically removed. To survive and prosper in a tougher global environment, we need to collectively up our game to out-think the competition.

“The highest performing companies of the future are the ones that are becoming engaged in workplace learning initiatives today. The time is now and there is zero room for complacency on this. The future is decided by those who sense change and actually start to do something to respond to this. For everyone else, the time bomb is ticking.”

A new DVD was launched by Minister Haughey. Produced by NCPP, the DVD profiles the practical experiences of five Irish public and private-sector organisations that have recognised and embraced workplace learning as an enabler of change. Their stories illustrate the value of promoting human talent and creativity in the workplace, and make a powerful business case for lifelong learning and workplace training and development.  Upskilling is now a necessity.

Copies of the DVD are available (free of charge) on request from the National Centre for Partnership and Performance.  Simply drop an email to Conor (conor@ncpp.ie) with your contact details, and he’ll post them out to you as soon as possible.

Source: Education MATTERS

Galway, Ireland – 31st August, 2008 – Learn Skills the web-based skills and compliance based company has now partnered with AT&F Solutions Ltd, ‘Advanced Training & Fire Solution’, a leading compliance training company based in the UK.

AT&F Solutions Ltd have been providing low cost online training solutions for over 10 Years and has both the specialist knowledge, quality and experience that sets its online training aside from the other solutions that are currently available in the market.  By partnering with AT&F Solutions, Learn Skills can deliver quality, relevant and up-to-date compliance training that is at a reasonable price for all.

At&F have recently launched a dedicated E-Driver Safety Risk Assessment Tracker program that will allow any company the opportunity to record and track their own drivers for a complete audit trail, a must for any company employing car or van drivers.  Allied to this will be the E- Driver Safety Training module for both LGV and company care drivers

Other courses that will be available through the Learn Skills platform for individual purchase or as part of a bundle option for larger numbers of courses include:

• Driver Safety (NEW 2008)
• Driver Risk Assessment Tracker (NEW 2008)
• Fire Safety Training (industry & commerce edition)
• Fire Safety Schools (In association with the WMF Arson Task Force)
• DSE and Office Ergonomics
• DSE Pro (includes call centre workers)
• Manual Handling and Risk Assessment
• Slips Trips Falls
• HSE Induction to working safely (employers and employees)
• Corporate Manslaughter Induction to the new LAW
• Risk Manager and Tracker (complete risk management system)
• Infection Control
• Patient Moving and Handling
• Fire Safety HTM and Fire Code
• DSE Clinical Workers

“The compliance training provided though the partnership between AT&F and Learn Skills will go along way to addressing and documenting Health & Safety training for all organisation.  Quality content and course materials backed with powerful features for both user and administrator can only lend itself to a successful compliance training delivery”, said Sean Griffin, Co-Founder of Learn Skills.

Why are more companies choosing e-Learning for corporate training?
“e-Learning delivers more training to more people for less money. e-Learning saves time, money, resources, and it delivers measurable, tangible results”, according to Sean Griffin, Co-Founder of Learn Skills, the web-based skills and compliance based company.
Instant access to information is one of the driving factors in today’s Knowledge Economy. Lifelong learning is the key to a successful career. The key to this success is moving knowledge from the people who have it to the people who need it. e-Learning gives you the power to do exactly that. Virtually anyone can sharpen skills or develop new ones.
Key benefits associated with e-Learning with Learn Skills include:

• Inexpensive and Cost Savings: Without travel time or expenses, you’re putting more of your training budget into training, thus saving up to 40 to 60 percent. And students can access their courses as often as they need.
• Accessibility of Training: Deliver knowledge on-demand, with up-to-the-minute information. Learners can access training instantly, when and where they want or need it, either at the office or at home, 24/7.
• Flexibility: Students can choose from a variety of interactive self-paced courses, and they can take advantage of our extensive course listing. They have the option to complete a course in one session and split it into smaller chunks.
• Consistency: e-Learning is a more consistent delivery and not not reliant on the skills and knowledge of the trainer.
• Measurement: Learn Skills provides a selection of tools and applications to monitor learner’s progress, and produce detailed activity reports. You can easily monitor what employees have learned, when they’ve completed courses, how they performed, and their levels of improvement.
• Variety: Hundreds of in-depth courses are available instantly; covering everything from business skills and leadership to workplace safety and IT.

Learn Skills provides you with the learning environment that engages the unsupervised learner, resulting in employees who show more participation, more enthusiasm, and ultimately, greater learning success and increased productivity.

Our staff are ready to help you with any questions you may have, simply contact us.