Evaluating Attrition Risk in SkillsFuture Earn & Learn Programme

This report examines whether the risk of employee attrition discourages companies from supporting the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn Programme, a work-study initiative designed to provide polytechnic graduates with relevant industry skills. The analysis incorporates a literature review of various journals discussing the SkillsFuture scheme, employee retention, and the challenges companies face. The research methodology employs a qualitative approach, utilizing analytical research design and interviews with board of directors from multinational organizations in Singapore to understand their attitudes toward the long-term viability of the Earn and Learn Programme. Data collection involves both primary data gathered through interviews and secondary data from journals and online sources, analyzed through narrative analysis to identify patterns and connections related to company perspectives on attrition and program support. Desklib provides access to this report and many other solved assignments.

Risk of attrition will discourage companies from supporting the SkillsFuture Earn and
Learn programme.
Introduction
The SkillsFuture Earn and Learn Programme is a work as you learn programme that gives
polytechnic graduates a head-start in careers related to their skill related courses.
Collaborating companies can recruit the local graduates and trained them for workforce in
25 sectors.
For individual gradates, they can gained job experience valued by the company and will
received a signing on fee of $5000.
For participating companies, they will be able to groom and retain suitable talent with the
relevant skills and aptitude to meet the needs of the company. Companies also receive a
grant of up to $15,000 per individual placed in the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn Programme.
(SkillsFuture - SkillsFuture Earn and Learn Programme)
However, some companies may take advantage of the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn
programme to hire staff as they receive monetary incentives per individual trained in the
program. In a tight labour market situation, some companies may find workers leaving after
they complete their current training. Mover according to the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn
programme website, workers can keep the $5000 sign up grant if they continue in the
different company within the same industry. Therefore this will discourage companies from
taking up the new graduates from polytechnic who pursue the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn
programme due to the possible high attrition rate. (Attrition risk may put firms off
SkillsFuture. Today, 26 Feb 2015)
Literature Review
In the Journal of Asian Public Policy, J.J. Woo mentions the different components of the
SkillsFuture schemes. He shares about the provision of incentives, subsidies and
information. This helps to encourage individuals to take up skill training programmes (J. J.
Woo, 2017). This journal focus on the structure of the SkillsFuture scheme. However as it
was a 2017 journal article, it mainly shares about how the Singapore government attempts
to carry out SkillsFuture. The utility of the article in evaluating SkillsFuture is however
limited as SkillsFuture is a current program and therefore cannot provide quantity results to
prove its effectiveness.
In the second article Skilling the nation empowering the citizen, Carl Ng expands on the
SkillsFuture scheme by explaining how SkillsFuture is extended beyond the workforce to
young school children (Ng, C. J. W. 2018). This article shows that the Singapore government
is going beyond working adults for life-long learning. By extending the scheme to school
goers, it will set a culture of continuing learning and relearning throughout the lives of
Singaporeans. However the article is not clear as how SkillsFuture is implemented in young
school children as it states that $500 credit will be given to Singapore citizens above 25
years old (ibid).

From Lifelong Learning through the SkillsFuture Movement in Singapore: Challenges and
prospects, Charlene Tan brought up the context of SkillsFuture. This is noteworthy because
she researched that CEO of MNCs have observed that Singapore employees are weak in the
willingness to try new things (Tan, C. 2016). This provides a reason to support the Singapore
government’s program for lifelong learning. However the willingness to learn is not in the
DNA of Singaporeans, she states that Singaporeans lack the mind set and the appreciation of
need to learn-unlearn-relearn (ibid). Smooth execution of the Earn and Learn programme
might have some obstacles as individuals and companies may not be united in working
toward shared goals. Companies’ resources and expertise are not always available to
support the job-training, and that relevant job opportunities may not be offered to the
employees. Charlene Tan’s journal article provides an insight to a possible obstacle to the
success of SkillsFuture.
The employee turnover/attrition is considered to be the most challenging aspect in an
organization. It usually creates huge insecurities for the organizations. There are many
negative effects of employee turnover in a workforce. In almost every industry, it is the
most focused on topic of the management. Organizations go through many financial and
operations drawbacks due to sudden employee attrition. In the article of Lu and Gursoy
(2016), the negative effect and the consequences of employee turnover and retention on the
organizations have been discussed in detail. In this article, the researcher has analysed the
current economic situation and inspected any association to the heightened turnover rates.
The implementation of the employee recognition programs and the rewards systems might
facilitate employee retention. The study is aimed at the possible suggestions for employee
retention that could be supportive to the different industries in increasing their
performance and productivity.
In the article of Holtom and Burch (2016), the authors have developed a turnover –based
model of the organizational disruption for understanding when and why the disruption
occur for guiding the future researches. Especially, this article examines how the different
types of turnover impact the customer services. They also explore so many potential
moderators and the mediators too. The article concludes by elaborating on the fruitful
directions for research in future.
On the other hand, in the article of NG JING YNG the main emphasis has been put on the
attrition risk which may put the firms off skills Future. The author supports the imposing o
Bond on the trainees by the employers. It has explored the opinions of the firms. The firms
thought the incentive system for both the trainees and the participating companies should
be signed up for 12- 18 months. The companies may choose to impose one bond but it is
not compulsory. They concluded that there is a need to ensure their career progression and
the fair system of the remuneration which will be based on the skills and capabilities of the
individual in order to retain the employees. The employee training help to increase the
productivity of the corporation. The companies in this regard must incorporate the system
orientation, a collaborative approach, the problem solving, the experimental learning,
human values, contingency orientation and levels of intervention for better outcomes.
While creating the training programs the financial incentives from the government will

come in use. The employer must build a follow up program with the trainees in order to
ensure better experience.
Research purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine whether the risk of attrition will discourage
companies from supporting the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn programme.
Research question
What are the attitudes of the collaborated companies towards the long run of Earn and
Learn Programme?
Methodology
Research Design (qualitative research )
There are usually three types of research designs. These are the analytical, the
explanatory and the exploratory. The analytical research design usually helps to understand
the topic of the study as well as evaluate in the most descriptive manner. The exploratory
research on the other hand helps to understand the concept at the primary stage of the
research and the explanatory research is used to establish and develop a connection
between the two variables (Chuang, Jackson & Jiang, 2016). Therefore, the analytical research
design will be best suited for this study for gaining a detailed picture of the already available
theories. The other two research designs will be rejected as well. The interview guides as a
tool will be given to the interviewees and the interview will be based on that pattern of
questions.
Sample and sampling
The target population
The target population of the research will be the multi-national
organizations from different countries to get and extensive picture. The
different perspectives of the different employers would have been
known and the study could gain a strong foundation (Chuang, Jackson &
Jiang, 2016). On the other hand, the accessible population of the research
will be 10 board of directors in the country of Singapore. It is that
population which will be derived from the target population for the
smooth conduction of the study. The accessible population which will
be used for this study will be used because of the limited time period,
limited resources and it will be easy to manage.
The sample design
The present research will use the probability and the non-
probability sampling techniques. Moreover, the simple random

sampling technique will also be used in this study for gaining better
understanding of the given topic. For the better conduction of the
research, almost 10 board of directors from different companies both
the MNCs and the start-ups will be used. They will be asked to
contribute their knowledge and opinion and requested to share their
perspectives on the present study. The purposive sampling method is
used for a judgmental, subjective and selective sampling. This non-
probability type of sampling technique focuses on the sampling
techniques where the units are based and investigated on the
researcher’s judgement (Bello et al.,2016). This method will be used for
focusing on a particular characteristics of a population which are of
huge interest. In the course of the qualitative research design, the
maximum variation sampling will be used. It will help to develop a wider
picture of the phenomenon. It is also called the heterogeneous
sampling which will be helpful in capturing an extensive range of the
perspectives that related to the topic of the research. The executives of
the companies will be from each level and 10 in number that would be
sufficient.
Instrument (Data Collection)
The study will be based on both the primary and secondary data
(Hughes & Stephens, 2016). The primary data will be collected by the help of
different sources such as the interviews and at the same time, the
secondary data will be collected from all types of printed available data
such as the journal articles, the newspaper and theory books too as well
as the online materials. Both the primary and the secondary sources
will be extremely helpful for conducting this particular study.
The instrument for data collection
As an instrument for the collection of data, the interview method will
be used. The interviews are the best qualitative data collection
process for social research. As a research instrument, which are helpful
in gaining highly personalized data where there are opportunities for
probing to receive underlying factors (Jamali, El Dirani & Harwood, 2015). It is a
viable option for getting good return rate from limited respondents. The
main advantage is that, a complete description and analysis of the
research subject is obtained. Through the interview method, the
variables of the research will be described with an insightful approach.
Since the interviewees will be from the top –level of the organizations,
accuracy of the data will be maintained. The interviews of the 10 board
of directors will be conducted face-to face for 30 minutes each.
Appointment will be fixed beforehand through mail and in case of non-
response, nobody will be forced and the next person will be
approached.
Examples of the questions to be added in the interview are:
 What is your designation?

 How long are you working in this company?
 Does your company provide yearly or six –monthly learning and
development program?
 What do you think about the need for the skill Future Earn and
Learn program?
 According to you what is the best method for employee
retention?
 What do you consider to be the major reason behind employee
attrition?
Data Analysis
The data analysis is a technique to get a brisk and
comprehensive view of the collected data. The qualitative data analysis
differs from the quantitative data analysis method. It is primarily
because the qualitative data is based on the observations, words,
images and symbols too (Chuang, Jackson & Jiang, 2016). The data analysis of
the qualitative data will undergo few steps. First of all, the research will
get familiar with the data by reading or listening to it several times.
The data transcription can also be done when it is recorded in recorder
(Hughes & Stephens, 2016). Then the researcher will revisit the research
objective and recognize the questions which can be answered through
the data. Then a suitable framework will be developed and patterns
and connections will be identified. The present report will analyze the
data collected through the interviews with narrative analysis. It is a
method which will be used to analyze relevant content from different
sources. It emphasizes on applying the stories along with the
experiences shared by people.
Ethical Consideration
During the conduction of a research, the ethical concerns are
highly necessary. Regarding the primary data collection, no interviewee
will be forced to invest their time and consent from everyone will be
taken before approaching further (Choy, 2014). It will also be considered if
the participants want to keep their anonymity. Regarding the secondary
research, the authenticity of the references will be maintained and
there will not be any type of violation of the regulations and norms.
Limitation of the Study
Every research is bound to have a little percentage of limitations
regardless of how well it is designed. Taken for example, the time
frame is always a matter of fact which limit every research up-to certain
extent (Bello et al.,2016). The availability of the resources is another
important factor. In many cases, few resources remain unavailable.
The data collected from the participants are not always sufficient to
answer the research questions. Therefore, the entire research has to be
planned in the best possible way to address these possible gaps.

Proposed timeline of the study:
Activities 1s
t to
3rd
Wee
k
4th
to
10th
week
11
th to
13th
Week
14
th to
17th
Week
18t
h to
21st
Week
22
nd to
23rd
Week
24t
h
Week
Selection of
the topic

Data collection
from secondary
sources
 
Creating
layout

Literature
review
  
Analysis and
interpretation of
collected data
  
Findings of the
data
 
Conclusion of
the study

Formation of
draft
 
Submission of
final work

Fig: Gantt Chart
(Source: As created by the author)

References:
Attrition risk may put firms off SkillsFuture. Today, 26 Feb 2015
http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/today20150226-1.2.7.4
(date of access 4 Feb 2019)
Bello, D.C., Radulovich, L.P., Javalgi, R.R.G., Scherer, R.F. & Taylor, J., 2016. Performance of
professional service firms from emerging markets: Role of innovative services and
firm capabilities. Journal of World Business, 51(3), pp.413-424.
Choy, L.T., 2014. The strengths and weaknesses of research methodology: Comparison and
complimentary between qualitative and quantitative approaches. IOSR Journal of
Humanities and Social Science, 19(4), pp.99-104.
Chuang, C.H., Jackson, S.E. & Jiang, Y., 2016. Can knowledge-intensive teamwork be
managed? Examining the roles of HRM systems, leadership, and tacit
knowledge. Journal of management, 42(2), pp.524-554.
Flick, U., 2015. Introducing research methodology: A beginner's guide to doing a research
project.Sage.
Gast, D.L. & Ledford, J.R. eds., 2014. Single case research methodology: Applications in
special education and behavioral sciences. Routledge.
Glaister, A.J., Karacay, G., Demirbag, M. & Tatoglu, E., 2017. HRM and performance—The
role of talent management as a transmission mechanism in an emerging market
context. Human Resource Management Journal.
Holtom, B. C., & Burch, T. C. (2016). A model of turnover-based disruption in customer
services. Human Resource Management Review, 26(1), 25-36.
Hooi, L.W. & Ngui, K.S., 2014. Enhancing organizational performance of Malaysian SMEs: the
role of HRM and organizational learning capability. International Journal of
Manpower, 35(7), pp.973-995.
Hughes, C. & Stephens, D., 2016. Use Value and HRD and HRM Flexibility: Implications for
HRD Practice. In Bridging the Scholar-Practitioner Gap in Human Resources
Development(pp. 181-199). IGI Global.
J. J. Woo (2017): Educating the developmental state: policy integration and mechanism
redesign in Singapore’s SkillsFuture scheme, Journal of Asian Public Policy,
DOI:10.1080/17516234.2017.1368616

Jamali, D.R., El Dirani, A.M. & Harwood, I.A., 2015.Exploring human resource management
roles in corporate social responsibility: the CSR HRM co creation model.‐ ‐ Business
Ethics: A European Review, 24(2), pp.125-143.
Lu, A. C. C., & Gursoy, D. (2016). Impact of job burnout on satisfaction and turnover
intention: do generational differences matter?. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism
Research, 40(2), 210-235.
Ng, C. J. W. (2018). Skilling the nation, empowering the citizen: Neoliberal instantiations in
Singapore's lifelong learning policy. Journal of Language and Politics, 17(1), 118-140.
DOI: 10.1075/jlp.16012.ng
SkillsFuture - SkillsFuture Earn and Learn Programme
http://www.skillsfuture.sg/earnandlearn (date of access 4 Feb 2019)
Tan, C. (2016). Lifelong learning through the SkillsFuture movement in Singapore:
Challenges and prospects. International Journal of Lifelong Education. DOI:
10.1080/02601370.2016.1241833, 1-14.