Awards News
A number of the signatory companies also gave their reflections on the Accord:
Amey’s Managing Director of Utilities, David Mcloughlin, said: “The Accord helps us to increase our focus and improve our approach to investing in people and skills for the future. It brings an extra dimension as it connects us to our clients and suppliers in developing the workforce resilience essential to the utilities industry.”
“As part of our ongoing commitment to addressing the skills shortage in the industry, Balfour Beatty is proud to have met with the Accord’s commitments,” added Colin Scott, Head of Procurement – Power Transmission & Distribution. “The real challenge and reward for us has been working with our supply chain partners to ensure they have the same level of commitment to the skills and development. This has helped us choose the right partners to further develop the much-needed skills within our industry.”
Barry McNicholas, Executive Director at Kier Utilities, commented: “Kier Utilities is very proud of our commitment to the Accord, joining with our clients and partners to create and develop our industry’s future technical and operational workforce.”
Sandrine Tidy, Senior HR Business Partner at Morgan Sindall, commented “Being part of the Accord is important to our business strategy. Ensuring we are investing in the development of existing and future workforces is key to addressing the skills shortage across the industry as it grows and evolves. As part of our involvement, we have been working with our supply chain to introduce them to the Accord and the great benefits it provides in supporting with training and workforce development.”
David Wright, Chief Electricity Engineer at National Grid, added: “In National Grid we will continue to promote skills development in the supply chain to ensure we meet the needs of our customers and stakeholders, now and for years to come. The Procurement Skills Accord allows us to leverage our collective position in the industry and reach out to our supply chain partners with a common voice. Only by working together will we be successful.”
Keith Waller, Senior Adviser at the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, commented “Over £60bn is to be spent each year in delivering the National Infrastructure Plan, and boosting the productivity and skills of the workforce that delivers it is vital. Congratulations to every business that has successfully passed the audits to win the Procurement Skills Accord awards, it is fantastic to see the progress that has been made. I urge you though to not stop here or rest on your laurels, and seek even higher levels of workforce investment to help secure the most efficient infrastructure delivery possible.”
Mark Horsley, Chief Executive of Northern Gas Networks, said: “We’re pleased to be part of the Energy and Utilities Skills Partnership and the Procurement Skills Accord. At Northern Gas Networks, talented people are the lifeblood of our business and we’re continually investing in our colleagues to help us be the world-beating business we aspire to be.
“Initiatives like the Accord, that encourage development of people at the heart of organisations, are so valuable in allowing businesses and the wider sector to grow. We believe in innovation and this begins with helping colleagues to grow and find new skills that they can put into practice every day.”
Andy Bilclough, Northern Powergrid’s Head of Delivery (City Zones), stated: “We’re proud to be part of the Accord. Providing training and development to enhance the skills of people working in our industry is key, and the Accord is helping us to extend this priority beyond our business and into our supply chain. Through our procurement processes we’re ensuring that
our suppliers and contractors demonstrate how they are improving skills across their workforce and delivering training and development that will attract and retain quality people.
“Our sector is going through exciting changes with growth in low-carbon and smart technologies. As we move towards more active networks, ensuring we have access to highly skilled people, both in our business and via our supply chain, is vital. The Accord will support our focus on engaging the skilled professionals we need to manage our network now and in the future for our customers.”
Colin Nicol, Managing Director, Networks, SSE, said: “As one of the organisations involved in the development of the concept, SSE is very proud of the achievements of the Procurement Skills Accord over the last two years. The initiative is now widely recognised and, by taking steps to proactively promote the Accord and integrate its use within our systems, we are now seeing real benefits.
“SSE is a people and assets business and we recognise that investing in a healthy and diverse pipeline of talent is vital to our future success. The benefits of having a proactive and collective approach to the skills shortage are clear and we remain committed to working collaboratively across the sector to ensure a skilled and sustainable workforce for 2020 and beyond.”
As a major supplier to the sector, Siemens’ involvement and success has also been welcome. Its Sales Director (Market Verticals), David Brend, said: “Siemens is fully committed to the Skills Accord principles and is pleased to be accredited to the partnership once again. Its work is vital to promote rewarding careers by investing in training and development in the energy industry. Investing in people is vital if the sector is to recruit the best talent and close the skills gap.”
Graeme Crossley MCIPS, Head of Procurement and Supply Chain at Skanska, said: “Skanska has fully embraced the commitments of the Procurement Skills Accord as it aligns to our core values. The skills shortage is a national problem; working together we can all contribute to the sustainability of skills in this vital sector.”
Tim Coles, Head of Commercial at Thames Water, added: “We are proud to be a lead partner on this important initiative and to drive investment in the skills that our sector needs most. We’re committed to tackling the skills gap through collaboration with our supply chain and through our procurement practices. Together we intend to ensure a future sustainable workforce.”
follow us on twitter @draintrader | June 2018 | drain TRADER 31
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