20/03/2003

Modernisation of public services under threat

A shortage of staff with a combination of public sector experience and business management skills could threaten the success of the government's programme to modernise Britain's public services.

According to leading UK recruitment consultants Huntswood, consulting firms are desperate to recruit staff with public sector experience to exploit the rapidly expanding public sector market for their services.

However, consultancies are finding that there are simply not enough appropriately skilled staff available.

Recent research by Huntswood has shown that while 68% of consultants anticipate growth in public sector business in 2003, more than for any other part of the market, only 4% of consultants have public sector experience.

"If the management consultancies can't find the right staff to enable them to improve the efficiency of our public services, if follows that the public sector itself faces a resourcing problem," said Keith Mackenzie, Huntswood's director of operations.

Keith Mackenzie made his remarks in the speech to the annual conference of the Institute of Management Consultants, in London recently.

Huntswood is a leading search and selection consultancy operating in three specialist practice areas: management consultancy; accountancy and taxation in the professional services market; and industry & commerce.

(MB)

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