National Productivity Week shows why skills are central to business growth
Employers across Scotland are being encouraged to take part in events being hosted as part of National Productivity Week 2026.
Organised by The Productivity Institute, partners including Prosper and Peer Works are taking part in the week’s Scottish programme in collaboration with The Productivity Institute’s Scotland Forum and the University of Glasgow.
Focused on the themes of strengthening productivity through purpose, innovation and place, the week runs from 27 April to 1 May, and brings together researchers, policymakers, business leaders, and practitioners for a nationwide programme of events aimed improving productivity and delivering better outcomes for people, firms and places.
Skills Development Scotland (SDS) offers support for businesses of all sizes in areas including recruitment and training, workforce development and talent attraction and retention.
Users of Skills for Growth, SDS’s bespoke skills diagnostic service, find that the support they receive can boost productivity, with 85% of users reporting increased productivity either immediately, over six months or over the long term.
Businesses employing Modern Apprentices also report increased productivity - employers with a higher proportion of Modern Apprentices in training relative to their total workforce tended to be more productive
Marion Beattie, Head of Skills Growth and Inward Investment at Skills Development Scotland (SDS), said: “There is clear evidence from a range of partners including the Productivity Institute that skills development and training are key drivers for innovation for businesses and employers of all sizes.
“The Scottish events taking place as part of National Productivity Week will provide employers with a range of information and inspiration for how they can boost their own productivity, and SDS is amongst the partners who can support businesses in how training and learning can be a part of that solution.”
There is clear evidence from a range of partners including the Productivity Institute that skills development and training are key drivers for innovation for businesses and employers of all sizes.
Marion Beattie
Head of Skills Growth and Inward Investment
Events during National Productivity Week include a Wake Up and Learn session in Aberdeen on Friday 1 May entitled Purpose in Business – A Practical Guide, launching a new guide designed to help businesses embed purpose into everyday workplace practices to support performance, resilience, and productivity.
Attendees will hear from Stuart Cox and Jean Pryde, co-founders of Moray-based Brilliantly Brave, a design-led greeting card brand which contributes to supporting mental health training and peer support initiatives across Scotland.
On Thursday, 30 April, Dundee’s Life Sciences Innovation Hub is hosting a lunchtime event entitled Life Sciences in Dundee: Investments, Skills and Internationalisation, which will explore how the life sciences sector in the city can boost productivity through innovation, talent, and high‑growth opportunities.
In total, the Scotland Productivity Forum is running eight events across Scotland for National Productivity Week that will explore these themes.
- Smart Rural Scotland: Productivity, Innovation and Regional Prosperity
- Enhancing Productivity in Scotland’s City Regions
- Innovation Driven Productivity: Clusters, Technology and Growth
- Harnessing Data for Productivity
- Financing Women’s Futures: Equitable Investment and Crowdfunding
- Powering Productivity in Scotland’s Life Sciences
- Wake Up & Learn: Purpose in Business – A Practical Guide
- Rural Productivity and Sustainable Growth