Right  time,  right  place  and  right  people    

The  Business  Cafe  response  to  two  Government  Supported  Reports  February  2016  

     The   following   is   a   set   of   responses   to   the   reports   written   in   the   early  2015  and  the  way  in  which  The  Business  Cafe  has  been  trailblazing  these  solutions   for   SMEs   and   their   need   for   close   networks,   digital   skills,  financial  skills  and  a  place  to  meet  that  is  accessible.    In  October  2013,  Penny  Power  OBE  wrote  a  thought  leading  proposal  on  the  future  of  SME  Support  and  Communities  and  since  then  has  gathered  an  impressive  Board  in  order  to  open  a  network  of  Business  Cafe’s.    The  Business  Cafe  was  incorporated  and  Trademarked  in  2014  and  will  open  its  doors  in  2016.    The   two   core   aspects   to   The   Business   Cafe   are   Community   and   the  provision   of   accessible   and   personally   delivered   Digital   Skills   to   the   local   SME   business  community.  We  are  been  delighted  by  the  two  reports  released  as  they  confirm  our  vision  and  our  desires.   We   seek   to   work   with   local   FE   Colleges   and   we   seek   to   empower   and   grow   small  business.   The   extracts   we   have   pulled   from   these   reports   highlight   the   independent   views   of  others  and  further  confirm  that  we  are  bringing  to  market  a  pioneering’s  concept  that  is  needed  and  desired  by  the  major  stakeholders  that  we  have  been  communicating  with  for  many  years.      

Report  One    The  Skills  Funding  Agency  Review  of  Publically  Funded  Digital  Qualifications  –  February  

2016    Chair   of   the   Review   -­‐   Liz   Williams   -­‐Director   of   Tech   Literacy   and  Education  Programmes  at  BT    Ministerial  Support   -­‐  Ed  Vaizey-­‐  Minister  of  State  for  Culture  and  the  Digital  Economy and  Nick  Boles  Minister  of  State  for  Skills  

Link  to  report  https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/499031/Review_of_Publicly_Funded_Digital_Skills_Qualifications_2016_FINAL.pdf    

 

 

Forward    

“  We  know  digital  skills  are  required  across  the  economy  by  individuals  and  small  businesses  looking  to  make  the  most  of  the  Internet,  through  to  specialist  digital  roles  across  all  sectors.    

To  achieve  these  ambitions,  the  digital  skills  offer  must  be  built  on  two  key  components  –  relevance  and  flexibility.  The  pace  of  technological  change  means  that  skills  requirements  will  continue  to  evolve,  and  provision  must  meet  these  changing  needs.  To  stay  relevant,  standards  must  reflect  what  industry  needs  and  shape  the  provision  that  sits  underneath  them.  Delivery  of  skills  provision  must  also  be  flexible  to  ensure  that  it  meets  changing  local  and  national  priorities.”  

 

   Where  you  see  quote  marks,  these  are  extracts  from  the  report.  

The  report  specifies  3   categories   of  Digital   Skills.   It   is   the  role  of  The  Business  cafe  to   fill   the  ‘General”   one.   Digital   skills   required   for   all   job   roles   across   the   economy.   The   Business   cafe   is  there   to  serve   the  business  population,  although  we  have  muted  a  CSR  plan   to  open  the  cafe  at  weekends  for  the  general  public  and  the  Digital  Inclusion  needs                          “This  is  not  just  about  supplying  skills  for  the  digital  workforce,  but  ensuring  that  every  individual,  regardless  of  background,  experience  or  aspiration,  has  the  opportunity  to  develop  appropriate  

digital  skills”.  

The  need  for  digital  skills  in  the  workforce    “Digitisation   presents   real   opportunities   for   UK   growth   and   competitiveness.   By   adopting  accelerating   technologies   (including   data   analytics,   mobile   technology   and   social   media),  companies   can  perform  10   times  better   than   their  peers   (Exponential  Organisations,  Salim  Ismail,  2014).  In  2014,  an  estimated  1.4  million  people  worked  in  digital  roles.    

Research  from  the  Tech  Partnership  predicts  that  by  2023  the  economy  will  require  one  million  new  people  to  fill  digital  roles  and  it  is  vital  the  future  workforce  is  equipped  to  fill  them”.    

“The  need  for  digital  skills  will  continue  to  increase  in  future.  In  London,  84%  of  businesses  state  that  the  skills  of  their  employees  will  need  to  change  over  the  next  10  years,   identifying   ‘digital  know-­‐how’  as  a  top  new  skill.  A  recent  Deloitte  report  estimates  that  35%  of  all  jobs  are  likely  to  become  automated  in  the  next  20  years,  with  90%  of  all  jobs  requiring  some  level  of  digital  skills.  Digital   skills   have   a   key   role   to   play   in   preparing   people   for   new   job   roles   that   will   emerge  alongside   changing   technologies,   as  well   as   future   proofing   the  workforce   as   existing   job   roles  change”.    

Digital  skills  shortages    

Understanding   the  benefits   of   technology   and  being   able   to   use   it,   requires   every   individual   to  have  digital  skills.   It   is   therefore  notable  that  digital  skills  shortages  are  widely  reported  across  the   economy.   An   estimated  23%   of   UK   adults   do   not   have   basic   digital   skills,   and   the   CBI  Gateway  to  Growth  report  notes  that  61%  of  businesses  surveyed  report  weaknesses  in  IT  skills   competencies,   a   4%   increase   from   the   last   survey   in   2009.   The  UKCES   found   that   “the  greatest  recruitment  challenges  are  currently  experienced  by  those  seeking  workers  with  digital  skills”  and  that  “there  are  particular  concerns  about  the  ability  of  the  education  system  to  supply  the  quantity  and  quality  of  workers  needed  for  digital  roles.”    

The  UKCES  2013  Employer  Perception  Survey  (EPS)  found  that  16%  of  all  vacancies  were  due  to  a  lack  of  basic  digital  skills.    

 

 

 Basic  digital  skills  qualifications    

“Feedback  indicates  that  the  current  basic  digital  skills  qualifications  are  out  of  date,  as  they  are  based  on  standards  and  criteria  that  are  more  than  five  years  old.  Although  a  large  number  of  qualifications  are  available,  most  enrolments  are  on  Functional  Skills  or  ITQs.    

These  qualifications  are  also  predominantly  based  on  out-­‐of-­‐date   standards;  most  on   ITQs   that  are  derived  from  the  NOS  that  are  over  five  years  old.    

Most  enrolments  (62%)  are  on  qualifications  where  productivity  software,  such  as  spreadsheets  and  word   processing,   are   either   the   exclusive   content,   or   form   a   large  majority   of   mandatory  content.   Just   under   a   third   (32%)   of   enrolments   are   on   broad   ITQs.   These   cover   how   to   use   a  computer,  online  skills,  digital  media,  or  other  areas  such  as  imaging  software.    

Part  4:  Recommendations    

Who   and   how:   The   government   should   consider   which   organisation,   or   consortium   of  organisations,  would  be  most  appropriate  to  carry  out  this  work.  This  should  reflect  the  central  importance  of  employer  collaboration  in  designing  and  developing  standards.  It  should  also  take  into  account  activity   to  create  a  discrete  number  of  occupational   routes,  which  has  arisen   from  the  reform  of  technical  and  professional  education.    

Providing  the  general  skills  the  workforce  need    

It  is  predicted  that  within  20  years,  90%  of  jobs  will  require  digital  skills.  The  data  indicates  that  the   publicly   funded   provision   does   not   emphasise   these   skills   sufficiently,   which   will   support  digital  transformation  and  productivity.    

 

Report  Two  –  February  2016  

Self  Employment  Review  commission  by  Rt.  Hon  David  Cameron  _  UK  Prime  Minister  

By  Julie  Deane  OBE  CEO  ad  Founder  Cambridge  Satchel  Company  https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/501735

/ind-­‐16-­‐2-­‐self-­‐employment-­‐review.pdf    

 In  this  excellent  report  Julie  Deane  OBE  highlights  a  number  of  key  themes  that  we  have  identified  in  our  strategy  for  The  Business  Cafe  since  it’s  inception  in  2013.  It  is  a  joy  to  see  this  enormous  workforce  being  given  credibility  and  attention.  We,  at  The  Business  Cafe,  honour  Julie  Deane  for  her  commitment  and  empathy.  Over  900  responses  were  gathered.        

Prime  Minister,    

I  am  honoured  to  have  been  chosen  by  you  to  conduct  this  review  of  self-­‐employment  in  the  UK.  With  record  numbers  (currently  4.6m)  representing  15%  of  the  UK  workforce,  I  have  been  struck  by  the  diversity  of  this  group.  Throughout  the  process  I  have  been  keen  to  engage  with  every  part  of  this  sector  –  not  just  tech  start-­‐ups  but  farmers,  construction  workers,  taxi  and  cab  drivers,  hairdressers  and  artists.      

Julie  Dean  OBE  

 

Key  themes  covered  aspects  such  as  financial  support  in  the  form  of  self  employed  mortgages  and  maternity   pay,  while  we   celebrate   these   considerations,  we   are   focused   on   the   themes   around  skills  and  isolation  and  the  impact  that  technology  can  have  on  this  sector.  

Evidence  has  been  gathered  statistically  of  this  growing  sector  of  the  business  population.  Now  at  4.6  million,  an  increase  of  800,000  since  2008.  This  is  a  diverse  group,  covering  a  wide  range  of  occupations  across  many  sectors  and  industries.                                  Julie  notes  that  60%  of  the  rise  we  are  witnessing  in  the  last  5  years  has  come  from  the  higher  skilled,  professional  and  associate  professional  jobs.    It   is  stated  that  nearly  43%  of   the   self-­‐employed  are   aged  50+  and  only  11%  under  30.  This  validates  our  belief  that  this  sector  requires  empathetic  and  face2face  support  in  providing  them  with  digital  skills.  They  did  not  learn  their  trade  in  a  digital  era.  Women   feature   in   the   report   as   a   growing   trend   of   self-­‐employed,   with   1.49   self   employed  women,   representing   a   third  of   the   total   self-­‐employed  population.  Over  half   of   the   growth  we  have  seen  since  2009  are  from  women.  Through   the  work  we   (The   Business   Cafe)   carried   out   in   2015   for   The   Government   Equalities  Office   we   witnessed   how   women   have   been   missing   out   on   digital   skills   with   many   women  returning  to  the  workplace  and  finding  it  very  different  from  the  world  they  left  before  they  had  children.  Digital  skills  were  key  to  the  success  of  the  program  we  ran  in  Surrey,  helping  100  ladies  back  into  work  through  the  provision  of  community,  confidence  and  skills.  www.surreywise.co.uk      The  list  below  from  1-­‐15  are  direct  extracts  that  validate  the  core  of  The  Business  Cafe’s  drivers  and  the  reasons  we  are  executing  such  a  pioneering  concept  for  local  small  business.    Recommendations  of  the  report  –  the  following  are  exact  extracts  from  the  report    1. It  is  important  that  the  advice  and  support  available  is  as  accessible  as  possible  During  the  review  many  self-­‐employed  talked  about  their  concerns  around  a  lack  of  knowledge  regarding  finance,  cash  flow,  bookkeeping  and  taxation.  These  are  skills  that  would  benefit  many  adults  regardless  of  their  employment  status  and  yet  they  are  still  lacking  from  our  Curriculum.      2. Shared  work  spaces  are  becoming  more  important.  The  location  and  availability  of  such  spaces  needs  to  be  better  communicated  so  as  to  increase  awareness.  Increased  visibility  of,  and  accessibility  to,  shared  work  spaces  needs  to  be  improved.  Consideration  should  be  given  to  incorporating  such  a  space  in  local  libraries  and  community  center’s  bringing  commercial  activity  and  life  to  underutilized  resources  already  in  place.              

     3. Technology  has  revolutionised  the  way  we  work  and  offers  great  opportunities  for  the  self-­‐employed.  Trade  and  professional  organisations  must  take  responsibility  for  keeping  members  up  to  date  with  technological  advances.  The  self-­‐employed,  if  wanting  to  grow  their  businesses,  need  to  use  whichever  networks  and  forums  they  feel  most  comfortable  with  to  keep  their  knowledge  base  current.  I  would  advocate  combining  disparate  age  groups  and  underutilized  existing  community  resources  to  facilitate  this  exchange.      4. I  am  keen  to  see  more  private  sector  organisations  start  such  initiatives,  which  I  believe  are  mutually  beneficial.  Private  sector  corporations  can  reap  the  benefits  from  providing        5. The  support  that  Government  gives  should  be  objective,  without  commercial  bias.  The  importance  of  this  should  not  be  underestimated.  This  is  why  it  is  important  that  that  advice  and  support  is  as  accessible  as  possible.  It  is  not  the  role  of  government  to  dictate  how  to  start  a  business,  nor  how  to  run  a  business.      6. Although  the  majority  of  people  whom  I  spoke  to  would  not  go  back  to  employment,  when  asked  what  they  missed  about  being  an  employee,  the  most  popular  responses  were  colleagues  (25%);  infrastructure  (14%),  regular  income  (12%),  job  security  (10%)  and  benefits  –  including  sick  pay,  holiday  pay  and  an  employee  pension  (9%).      7. Unsurprisingly,  given  the  diversity  in  business  types  and  methods  of  working,  the  ways  in  which  people  intended  to  grow  were  very  varied.  However,  there  were  some  broad  themes  –  by  far  the  most  popular  method  (29%)  was  seeking  to  take  on  more  work  and  clients,  by  developing  existing  partnerships  and  improving  and  increasing  their  reputation.  15%  of  people  sought  to  grow  by  diversifying  their  existing  goods  and  services;  and  11%  sought  to  grow  through  increased  marketing  and  communication.      8. It  was  identified  that  being  self-­‐employed  can  be  a  solitary  and  often-­‐lonely  occupation  with  25%  of  respondents  to  our  online  survey  stating  the  thing  they  missed  most  about  being  an  employee  was  their  colleagues.  This  becomes  less  of  an  issue  for  those  who  decide  to  take  on  an  employee  but  less  than  a  fifth  of  say  they  plan  to  take  on  more  or  any  employees  in  the  next  year.    9. Of  great  concern  to  me  was  the  fact  that  of  those  who  were  planning  to  expand  and  grow  their  business,  only  7%  planned  to  do  so  through  innovation  and  new  ideas,  and  even  fewer  (4%)  highlighted  exporting  as  a  method  they  were  considering  using  to  grow  their  business.      10. According  to  BIS  research,  46%  of  people  said  that  they  had  worked  with  other  self-­‐  employed  people  on  the  same  job  or  project  as  part  of  team  whilst  64%  of  people  had  referred  people  on  or  shared  clients  for  different  jobs.      11. Never  before  has  there  been  more  flexibility  in  working  arrangements,  be  they  informal  networks  or  hubs.  Often  the  fastest  growing  businesses  are  those  which  are  most  inventive  in  this  area.      12. However  over  half  (55%)  of  the  people  who  answered  my  online  survey  had  not  heard  of  them  (shared  workspaces),  or  had  not  used  them.  A  quarter  of  people  (25%)  said  that  they  would  be  encouraged  to  use  a  work  hub  if  they  were  available  in  a  location  that  was  more  accessible  to  them  and  the  third  that  had  used  them  found  it  to  be  a  positive  experience.      13. Internet  -­‐  A  surprisingly  small  percentage  of  people  -­‐  only  78  out  of  the  697  who  answered  the  question  (11%)  –  said  they  used  it  for  marketing  activity.  This  indicates  a  lack  of  awareness  of  the  commercial  opportunities  afforded  by  social  media  which  is  a  fantastically  low  cost  and  effective  way  to  communicate  with  customers  outside  the  immediate  locality.        

     14. There  is  a  tremendous  opportunity  for  a  hook  up  of  two  disparate  age  groups;  the  younger,  more  tech  savvy  generation  with  digital  and  social  media  skills  and  the  55+  age  group  who  we  have  identified  as  being  a  key  part  of  the  self-­‐employed  population    15. Problems  with  limited  broadband  connection  and  poor  Internet  speed  were    raised  (9%).  It  is  important  that  the  UK  has  the  latest  and  most  up  to  date  digital  infrastructure  in  order  to  be  competitive  in  the  new  global  market  place.  This  should  be  available  regardless  of  geographic  location.      

The  Response  from  The  Business  Cafe  CEO  and  Founder,  Penny  Power  OBE    These  reports  are  both  gratifying  and  motivating  and  further  motivates  the  Board  of  The  Business  Cafe  to  bring  to  market  a  new  infrastructure  that  provides  the  social  workspace  that  combats  many  of  the  challenges  of  being  self  employed,  together  with  the  enormous  opportunities  for  collaboration,  knowledge  share  and  friendship.    Our  strategy  of  bringing  the  online  and  the  offline  together,  while  also  creating  an  environment  for  the  young  and  the  old  to  share  skills  is  unique  and  pioneering.    Under  pinning  our  strategy  is  the  belief  that  Government  should  not  build  this  infrastructure  and  the   impetus   and   funding   should   come   from  businesses   that   stand   to   gain   from   the  growth  and  stability  of  this  increasing  workforce.    We   are   on   course   to   create   a   groundbreaking   business   community   and   look   forward   to  welcoming  the  partners  that  see  this  need  and  support  its  growth.      Penny  Power  OBE  CEO  and  Founder  The  Business  Cafe  19th  February  2016  

Summary  from  Julie  Deane  OBE  

There  can  be  no  question  that  technology  has  revolutionised  the  way  we  work  and  offers  great  opportunity  for  the  self-­‐employed.  To  capitalise  on  this,  trade  and  professional  organisations  must  take  responsibility  for  keeping  their  members  up  to  date  with  technological  advances  and  the  self-­‐employed,  if  wanting  to  grow  their  businesses,  need  to  use  whichever  networks  and  forums  they  feel  most  comfortable  with  to  keep  their  knowledge  base  current.  I  would  advocate  combining  disparate  age  groups  and  underutilized  existing  community  resources  to  facilitate  this  exchange.