News in brief

of the business and coping with economic uncertainty are the biggest challenges facing entrepreneurial businesses throughout the UK, according to the findings of a new survey of 2,400 business owners and managers conducted by business and financial advisers Grant Thornton. Graeme Forbes, head of entrepreneurial services at Grant Thornton, said: "The survey highlighted a number of key business issues, such as retaining and motivating staff, planning for succession and the burden of red tape, which respondents were asked to rank in order of importance. The current state of the economy and ever increasing legislation emerge as barriers to success and are clearly issues on which Government and the business community must take action."

The NCC has just released its Best Practice Guide to IT Skills - Recruitment and Retention. The guide is aimed at decision makers in IT responsible for planning and implementing IT staff recruitment and retention strategies. It contains key recommendations for addressing this critical issue of national concern. Achieving organisational stability and changing business objectives are primary concerns for all organisations and the effective use of IT in meeting these objectives is critical. With the current estimated UK shortage of skilled IT practitioners running at around 50,000-70,000, workforce stability and ensuring the right mix of IT skills are essential business requirements.