An Employer Perspective‪.‬

I will attempt to put forward some personal views from the perspective of employers in response to some of the themes taken up by the very eminent panel of industrial intellectuals who have provided plenary papers. In trying to put forward representative approaches I am falling into the trap of appearing to treat employers as a homogeneous group. This is quite contrary to my own experience that employers come in all shapes and sizes and can have disparate views conditioned by specific industries, economic circumstances, geographic location, objectives, and a myriad of other considerations. What one does at all times in representing employers is to attempt to distill opinions and aims into a strategy that accommodates as much as possible of the stated requirements of those employers you represent. I will bear this in mind in this paper but without doubt there will be employers who would not agree with all of what I have to say.