The adequate provision of a skilled workforce is a central tenet of globally competitive economies. Joint action can enable people to acquire and maintain the skills needed for a modern, dynamic knowledge economy and to adapt to changes over their working lives. InterTradeIreland's role in this area is to assist in the development of a strong evidence base to underpin an all-island skills strategy. In particular InterTradeIreland will build on the linkages established between the Skills Expert Group and the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs.

For further information contact the Policy Research Team on policy@intertradeireland.com.

Current Work Programme

• The role of managerial skills in promoting productivity: a study developed in collaboration with the Department for Enterprise Trade and Investment (DETI), the Department for Employment and Learning (DEL) and Forfás to investigate the impact of managerial skills on company productivity and performance. The research will identify changes in management best practice internationally, benchmark North and South management capabilities against international standards and point towards skills shortages at management level and how these could be addressed on the Island.

Recently Completed Projects

• Engineering a Knowledge Ireland 2020 This joint InterTradeIreland / Engineers Ireland report is based on a vision of the Island of Ireland achieving an income per head at the level of the Top 5 economies in the world by 2020. The skills potential of the population is critical to this and the report details how this might be done.

Labour Market and Skills Publications

• Engineering a Knowledge Island 2020
• Toward Mutual Recognition of Qualifications on the Island – An Information Guide