Ramsac launches business school to find 'stars of future'

MSP claims 12-month internal training programme will give it the edge on the competition

Managed services provider Ramsac is running a 12-month programme offering all staff business-focused training to identify future leaders.

Launching in September, the Ramsac Business School will cover various aspects of business leadership and strategy.

Twenty of the Godalming-based Microsoft partner's 52 staff have already signed up for the programme, which is designed to unearth the "future stars of the business".

"The senior leadership has always participated in business as well as technical training and has benefitted a great deal, as has the business, so we decided to open this up across the entire business," said Ramsac managing director Robert May (pictured above, left, with brother Dan).

The programme, which will be led by May but will also draw on outside expertise, will give Ramsac an edge over the competition, May claimed.

"We've always invested heavily in industry training but any business in the channel of a similar size to us is going to be doing that on the technical side, in order to deliver the solutions and retain partner status," he said. "This is about ensuring we have the best possible business and technical talent."

May said Ramsac's turnover is approaching £5m, emphasising that it is "consulting and strategy led".

"The key for us is that when we are talking to a client, we spend time with the board, understanding their business strategy," he said.

The push to grow leadership talent does not signify an imminent change in top management, added May, who founded the business in 1992.

"It's still a relatively young leadership," he said. "This is about making sure we are growing and developing staff."

Roger Harry, CEO of Cardiff-based VAR Circle IT, said his firm had always done business training but just had "never shouted about it".

"In Wales, there is a lot of grant money available for training of that ilk so we've got a very strong training budget," he said. "We put all our middle managers on leadership programmes and have people on Six Sigma. We do it because it helps with staff retention and delivery, but as a differentiator to drive more business, I'm unsure whether it increases turnover and profitability."