A campaign to highlight Scotland’s untapped talent is being launched today (Thursday October 9^th) at a Parliamentary Reception for over 150 businesses.

Scotland’s Got Talent is designed to encourage businesses to spot talent where they might not normally look - the long-term unemployed, people from disadvantaged groups and young people with no immediate prospects. It will inform businesses of the bottom line benefits they can gain from helping support people back to work and how it can help them remain competitive during an economic downturn.

The Scotland’s Got Talent campaign is based on a study that investigated how, and why, Scottish businesses engage with hard-to-reach job seekers, and the associated business benefits. Companies told researchers that seeking out and developing talent is more important than ever given the global economic downturn. Staff recruitment and retention are the key ingredients to any company’s success – and these factors become even more important during challenging economic times.

Over 30 companies are already working with Scottish Business in the Community and Scottish Centre for Healthy Working Lives and actively recruiting from disadvantaged groups. They testify that, in a competitive job market during economically challenging times, the business benefits are extensive and include a more motivated and productive workforce, reduced absenteeism, lower staff turnover and enhanced reputation. These benefits go beyond the ‘feel-good’ factor and can have a positive impact on the business bottom line.

Khaled Shabo, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, said: “The drive to get involved in employability comes from a commercial imperative – that imperative is the need to recruit from the widest possible pool of talent”

While recent figures (July 2008) show that employment in Scotland remains higher than the UK average by 1.6 percentage points at 76.3 per cent, the current economic climate could push unemployment figures up.

Supporting the Scotland’s Got Talent campaign, John Swinney, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth, said: “Key to increasing sustainable economic growth is helping the large number of individuals who are currently economically unproductive back into work. Providing the support to do this is not just for the government however, and I am pleased to see the valuable contribution that Scotland’s businesses are making to help people off benefits and back into work.”

However, those employers that wish to tap into the wider labour pool also report barriers in doing so. Companies told researchers that they felt there are too many local agencies, creating a confusing process. Scotland’s Got Talent will help guide companies through the maze and show them how they can tap into the talent Scotland has to offer.

Maree Drury, Campaign Manager, said: “This campaign aims inform businesses of the benefits of getting involved in supporting people back to work. It will provide them with advice, information and ideas on how they can tap into Scotland’s talent through a series of business to business events. We are looking forward to working with organisations from various types of industries during this campaign.”

For more information and case studies go to www.scotlandsgottalent.org