To fund or not to fund: The big colour education question

Following the SDC 2023 Workplace Education Survey, our technical director, Andrew Filarowski recently caught up with eTextile Communications to discuss the importance and longevity of ‘learning whilst earning’ in the coloration industry.

If you missed the original article, you can catch up below…

It’s evident that there is a global shortage of qualified dyers and colourists, and the wider impact of this on the industry is now clear to be seen. Innovation, sustainability, and quality are set to be compromised, as the continuation of specialist knowledge and its application hangs in the balance.

Opportunities must be taken to promote our industry and the career paths available. Education helps rising stars of the dyehouse, printworks or laboratory to develop professionally – equipping them to change and improve processes, raise standards, and therefore benefit company performance and profit. 

Earning and learning

While full-time education has its important place in preparing colour scientists for their careers, workplaces also, most definitely, benefit from a ‘grow your own’ policy, promoting earning and learning simultaneously. New skills can be instantly and constantly applied and built upon further, putting forward-thinking businesses ahead of the curve, and best placed to thrive and prosper. 

But how much is being invested into continuous professional development when you’re in the role? As a long-time provider of workplace education and champion for the dyeing and coloration sector, the Society of Dyers and Colourists (SDC) launched the SDC Education Survey 2023, to get a clearer picture of global attitudes towards learning while earning.

The value of education 

An overwhelming majority of coloration professionals in 25 countries underlined the value of colour education to organisations. A total of 82 of the survey’s 105 respondents – 78% of the highly-knowledgeable sample – agreed that current, challenging times for dyeing and coloration mean it is more important than ever that employers educate their workforces, funding qualifications for key personnel. Growing talent inhouse is a long-term solution to the current skills gap.

In fact, our respondents see the perils of ignoring educational opportunities for employees. Some suggested that business continuity itself could depend upon a healthy cycle of education, with a total of 52 (48.5%) stating that their company or organisation could be performing better, and that this was linked with underqualified or underexperienced personnel.

Well-qualified and motivated employees bring clear benefits to organisations, with 73.3 per cent of our respondents stating that their organisation’s success was linked with technical, educational attainment. More than three quarters of participants (76.1%) said their employer appreciated the benefit of having well-qualified staff.

Respondents ranged from company directors and managers in the coloration sector to technicians, academics, students, and retired professionals, from dyehouses, universities and colleges, brands and retailers, print works, laboratories and chemical / dyestuff manufacturers and suppliers.

More than half (54.3%) said they had an undergraduate degree from a university, and 8.6% reported that they held a doctorate. 8.6% had achieved Foundation Textile Coloration Certificate and/or Textile Coloration Certificate (FTCC/TCC) with the SDC, and 16.2% held our degree-equivalent Associateship of the SDC (ASDC). A total of 17.1% of participants were Chartered Colourists (CCol).

The challenges to overcome in 2023 and beyond

Despite this optimism for education, and understanding of the benefits, not enough companies and organisations are currently turning to learning as the answer to the current skills gap. 

Some companies and organisations would love to fund such opportunities but are struggling to meet the financial commitment this requires. The findings reveal difficulties in committing to paying for courses for employees, with nearly half of respondents (46.6%) believing that harsh trading conditions are making it hard or impossible for firms to fund learn-while-you-earn opportunities. 

Like any improvement or innovation, some investment is needed,  though in some cases, schemes are available to offer partial support with course fees. However, almost a quarter of professionals asked (23.8%) felt their workplace could fund qualifications but chose not to.

The truth is, when considering to fund or not to fund, any investment in personnel now will soon pay dividends in the months and years to come. Employee retention is a key positive outcome of educating a workforce. Staff members remain loyal when they can see that an employer is investing in their future and showing them a clear progression path within the business. The cost of developing the skillset of an employee is far less than the expense of attracting new recruits – especially in a sector beset by a lack of suitable candidates. 

Training your employees boosts performance and motivation, helping businesses to hang onto prized personnel. Significantly, almost half of our respondents (49.5%) asserted that they would perform better for their employer if their skills were backed up by more technical education. 

Now is the time to invest

For the future of the sector, and the narrowing of our skills gap, we have a collective responsibility to persuade more organisations to give education the precedence it deserves. 

If individual businesses and organisations are thriving, this puts the coloration industry in a much stronger position to face the challenges ahead. Business, the education sector, and governments all have a role to play in reversing the talent gap before skills are lost and production severely hampered.

Our respondents are clear about the value of workplace education – whether provided by the SDC, universities, colleges, or other operators. They feel employers should step up the qualifications they offer to fund, despite tight budgets and times of uncertainty. 

They know that staff who are able to underpin their skills and experience with technical theory have a clear advantage in driving improvement and innovation, and therefore performance and profit.

So, now is the time to invest in talent, allowing technical specialists the time to learn on the job – and encouraging dyers and colourists at all levels to keep their skills and knowledge current. 

The key findings of our research are outlined in a white paper, now available to download free of charge from the SDC website.

The SDC’s Colour Education Pathway

The SDC offers Foundation Textile Coloration Certificate and Textile Coloration Certificate (FTCC/TCC) and the honours degree equivalent Associateship of the SDC (ASDC) leading to Chartered Colourist (CCol) status, as well as a range of short courses, all detailed on the organisation’s Colour Network.  Those in the UK can get assistance covering up to 60% for the first two qualifications through The Worshipful Company of Dyers which offers help with funding via the Future Dyers’ Fund.