10 February 2017

BPIF establishes collaborative initiative with Wallace Hind to bring new skills and talent into the sector

A common concern amongst business owners and management teams across our sector is how and where to gain new and fresh talent to help take their businesses forward. Demand for different but complimentary skills and knowledge is led by the changing emphasis on data and technology-led solutions and system integrations.

The issue of skills shortages was again highlighted in the findings of the recent BPIF research and good practice document on decision making and highlighted in a recent PrintWeek mini poll on the benefits of having staff with more technical skills.

Companies have been successfully migrating up the marketing communications value chain for some time. The BPIF provide a portfolio of training services ranging from 1 day courses through to apprenticeship programmes, covering traditional trade programmes for pre-press, printing & finishing but also covering areas such as administration, customer services and management but this new initiative with Wallace Hind seeks to open up a different recruitment pathway from non-print sectors including the highly competitive graduate market. This new pathway is specifically targeted at giving BPIF members a head start when seeking either new employees with specialist technical and sales skills or in retaining and developing key talent. 

Wallace Hind have joined the BPIF as an Associate member and have invested in a fund to provide delivery of new HR services. These will include team performance and culture analysis tools for those seeking to gain an objective view on the current composition of skills and traits within a team and what skills and characteristics best fit when looking to recruit. 

Anna Stretton, Head of BPIF HR, comments, "We are increasingly being asked by members who want to change culture and associated performance criteria for support to align their most valuable asset - people - with their market and new markets. It's an exciting area where we are making a difference by establishing visibility within teams and individuals to 'Start Doing, Do Differently, Do Better and Stop Doing' and align to organisational goals".

Following on from an already established collaboration with the Processing & Packaging Machinery Trade Association (PPMA), the BPIF's initiative seeks to offer members a competitive fee structure and a flexible project management structure. 

As well as opening up a different skill pool source for staff recruitment, the initiative is part of the BPIF's blended range of services to support positive change and help business owners and management teams continue to embrace and capitalise on the changing market. 

For more information, contact Tracey FitzGerald, Partner at Wallace Hind, on 01604 683304;