In any HR or transformation manager’s office, you’ll hear the same frustrations: “We are spending millions on skills development and enterprise supplier development (ESD) programmes. Our compliance scores look great, but we still cannot fill critical positions and our ESD beneficiaries are not becoming viable suppliers.”
Money and commitment are not the problem. Rather, it’s that most skills development and ESD programmes are designed to satisfy compliance requirements rather than address business problems.
As a SETA- and QCTO-accredited training provider specialising in integrated B-BBEE implementation, Eruditio Skills Development Consultants has reviewed dozens of such programmes and noted that the same five execution gaps tend to emerge time and again.
Here, Eruditio highlights these issues and outlines what’s needed to fix them.
Fixing five common execution gaps
Problem one: programmes don’t match business needs
Usually, HR gets pressure to improve the skills development scorecard. They often open the SETA catalogue, find programmes offering decent points and enrol beneficiaries. And then three years later, those graduates are unable to fill positions the business actually needs.
The fix:
Before selecting any programme, answer these three questions: Which roles have the company struggled to fill in the past six months? What skills will growth plans require in 18 months? Where do retirements create gaps?
Only after mapping these needs should you evaluate programmes. If standard offerings don’t align, customise programmes that address actual gaps while maintaining accreditation.
Problem two: workplace training
Learnerships require workplace components and most companies treat this as box-ticking. Often learners get dumped in departments that don’t want them, are assigned busy jobs, and are kept away from tasks deemed too important.
The fix:
Treating learners like apprentices are the way to go. Assign specific mentors who get training allowances and have mentoring in their objectives. It is best to create clear learning plans with monthly progress checks and give learners real work that contributes to the business value.
Problem three: no post-graduation employment plan
This is where failure is experienced. Learners complete programmes, and get certificates without further success. There was never a plan for employment because the programme was designed for compliance, not talent development.
HR tends to celebrate completion rates, line managers often complain about unfilled positions, and graduates battle to find jobs. Everyone misses the connection.
The fix:
This can be fixed by creating employment before enrolling people. It is better to define specific positions graduates should fill – not “finance”, but “accounts payable clerk”, for example. Do the math on realistic absorption based on turnover and vacancies.
Consider stepped approaches like fixed-term contracts converting to permanent jobs based on performance, temporary pools for project work, and structured probation with defined requirements.
Problem four: quality assurance
Outsourcing training and forgetting about it until graduation will result in failure because nobody monitors quality or progress, or whether that training is in fact taking place.
The fix: Monthly reviews covering attendance, assessments, and problems can be the solution. Also do regular check-ins with workplace mentors about what learners can actually do. Experts could evaluate competence independently with occasional spot assessments.
Problem five: graduates are left without support
Even well-trained graduates struggle initially. After three months of watching them flounder, managers write them off as “not ready”, and return to external recruitment.
The fix: Try structured support for the first six months. Engage in weekly supervisor check-ins initially, then bi-weekly, and then monthly.
This approach should include coaching on workplace basics that seasoned employees may assume are understood, pairing staff with slightly more experienced colleagues, and offering supplementary training to fill gaps that emerge in day-to-day work.
ESD mirror: same problems, same fixes
Every failure in skills development shows up the same in ESD:
Companies select beneficiaries based on applications rather than supply chain gaps while SMMEs get training but never meet procurement teams or understand real requirements. There are no graduation pathways into active procurement, no quality monitoring, and lack of support after programme completion.
The fixes that work for both: Start with strategic needs mapping, and integrate this into real business processes during development. Also create clear pathways with criteria for graduation. Implement active oversight and provide first-year support.
Connecting SMME needs with skills
A logistics SMME needs skilled staff just as supply chain graduates need employment. Connect them.
Manufacturing suppliers need quality control. Engineering graduates need experience. Structure workplace training at supplier facilities.
Measure what matters
Stop tracking hours and expenditure, and rather track outcomes:
Skills development: This means tracking employment rates 12 and 24 months after completion, graduates’ performance against external hires, and recruitment cost reductions.
ESD: Key measures include supplier revenue growth, the number of suppliers that become active suppliers, procurement value generated by graduates, and three-year survival rates.
Countdown to success
Three actions businesses should take in the first quarter:
One: Map every current learnership to specific business needs. If you can’t explain why it exists beyond points, redesign it.
Two: For current learners, assign mentors with structured plans, and fix what you have now.
Three: For upcoming graduates, document absorption pathways and get hiring manager buy-in before certificates are issued.
The uncomfortable truth
Organisations that achieve higher placement rates versus those stuck at 30% often share one difference. They have designed programmes to solve business problems, not satisfy auditors.
The changes may not be simple, and may be uncomfortable, requiring admission that checking boxes is not the same as building capabilities.
The choice is to either keep running compliance programmes, or fix the execution gaps that determine whether your investment produces employable people and viable suppliers.
With a Level 1 B-BBEE status, Eruditio Skills Development Consultants delivers skills development and ESD programmes that produce measurable business outcomes rather than just compliance reports. For more information, visit the Eruditio website or email info@eruditio.co.za
Read how Eruditio’s targeted ESD support delivered tangible growth for township-based SMME Tembisa Print in this case study.
This article was sponsored by Eruditio.
