Cue Skills 2020, an integrated skills and education strategy that will touch every part of BAE Systems over the next 10 years. The strategy is BAE Systems answer to ensure the company has the right skills to remain competitive and operate successfully up until 2020, and beyond.
The programme was launched in 2010, following a review by the Institute of Manufacturing at Cambridge University, which identified the key skills and challenges that BAE Systems and its peer group will need and face throughout the next decade.
The programme brings together a multitude of innovating schemes that encourage interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). With more than 18,000 engineers, BAE Systems invests £79 million annually in its Skills 2020 strategy to address existing and future workforce issues:
- At any one time more than 1,000 young people are participating in our apprenticeship programmes, and over 400 people on our graduate training schemes
- By the end of 2011, over 100,000 school children had participated in our nationwide engineering roadshow to learn about the excitement and rewards of STEM based careers
- Partnership work is being carried out with 30 UK universities to ensure we maintain leading edge capabilities and technologies
- The skills base of our entire 38,000 strong workforce is being continually developed through multi-skilling, re-skilling and upskilling
Nigel Whitehead, Group Managing Director Programmes & Support said: “People are our best asset, which means that we have to actively seek out and build on talent, develop it to its full potential and put it to good use. Working together, industry, academia and government can help to build on this country’s existing skills and economic position, and ensure that it maintains its established position at the forefront of worldwide innovation and engineering excellence.”
Read Our Skills 2020 review document to keep track of our progress.