Evaluation of Strathclyde LECs Investors in People

The Investors in People (IiP) initiative was launched in 1992 to create a national standard for employers’ human resource development. The evaluation focused on the performance of IiP for small and medium sized companies in the LEC areas of Ayrshire, Dunbartonshire, Glasgow, Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire. The evaluation aimed to: review the initiative’s rationale and measure progress against targets; use the Output Measurement Framework (OMF) to measure progress; review IiP’s design and delivery in the studied areas and make recommendations for improvement; and identify the value gained from IiP from the clients’ perspective.

IiP monitoring information was used, face-to-face and telephone interviews were carried out, discussions with LEC IiP staff and other delivery agents were held, fieldwork in Ayrshire, Glasgow and Renfrewshire was undertaken, and previous studies of IiP in Dunbartonshire and Lanarkshire were used to give an overview of the Strathclyde area.

Across Strathclyde, fewer companies than targeted achieved IiP, but the LECs more than achieved targets for performance measures relating to activity levels. Companies which achieved IiP were, on average, larger. IiP contributed positively to business turnover in many cases. The average cost per company of achieving IiP was analysed at £2,507. Smaller and more traditional companies were harder to attract to IiP. LECs were found to be key to the process of attracting companies. Many of the benefits to companies of achieving IiP were intangible.

Not applicable.