Identifying and bridging the skills gaps in our local business community.

A ‘collaboration across organisations’ delivered by MK College (local provider of education services), with the aim to understand what skills local organisations really need to make an impact to bridging the skills gaps in their employees.

Delivering a number of career focused forums, it provides MK businesses the opportunity to interact with local education and training providers. Putting businesses and educators side by side, the forums will contribute actively to developing and delivering new skills training. This understanding will support the needs of local business to increase their productivity and growth.

The forums will bring together businesses in vertical sectors to work collaboratively to complete their TNA. This is designed to expose local businesses’ needs and support local employers to employ local people.

‘An Informed Digital Future’ – delivered by Biztech. (MK’s Business and Technology Hub). Aimed at small and medium-sized businesses and designed to address the digital skills shortage.

The programme will offer training and mentoring for businesses as well as liaisons with the training providers. This will address the gap between the needs of companies and the education curriculum. Practical training courses in digital skills will improve career prospects for local people and support Milton Keynes employers in finding the talent they need.

‘Driving a Technological Future’ – delivered by MKAI. (A community-led project to improve AI fluency). The demand for expertise in artificial intelligence, cloud and robotics is increasing rapidly with new technologies continuing to emerge with businesses struggling to fill job positions in these areas.

The SkillsHub:MK will be the focus for providing networked, high-tech learning aimed at skills development in AI and automation. The Hub will engage with business, training providers and their students, sharing resources to develop the skilled workers of the future.

Being able to think differently about AI and how it can impact on business needs is the first step. By recognising the need for a highly-skilled workforce, businesses will be more able to keep pace with developments in their own sector.