Building Effective Employers' Organisations

Effective employers' organizations exist because member enterprises recognize that they add value through the delivery of services, representation and advocacy. The Bureau of Employers Activities programme for employers' organizations provides the building blocks for strong employers' organizations to enable them to better meet the needs of enterprises. The Bureau's vision is to be recognized as the partner of choice inside and outside the ILO for effective employers' organizations.

One key approach to build effective employers organizations is the Bureau's technical cooperation programme for employers, which is global but with decentralized implementation in the field. One element of the technical cooperation programme is to strengthen organizational structures and internal management of employers' organizations and to develop new and improved membership services that make the organizations more valuable to enterprises. Strategic planning and staff competence building are central to this element.

A second related element of the technical cooperation programme for employers' organizations is strengthening the institutional capacity of employers' organizations in policy development and lobbying so that they can influence, national, regional and international policy debates. The focus of assistance in the policy development work includes employment and social policy, labour market planning as influenced by changing demographics, migration, climate, and economic development, and skills development policies and strategies.

The Bureau has also developed a global product-based offer which addresses specific employers' needs. The products are targeted either directly to employers' organizations to improve their organizational structures and management, or are based directly on the needs of the organizations' corporate members. A training package on Effective Employers Organization designed to help employers' organizations build and run their organizations more strategically and effectively is available. It is a set of four different guides on governance - (pdf 3,46 MB), strategy - (pdf 2,19 MB), advocacy - (pdf 3,38 MB) and revenue building - (pdf 2,74 MB).
The package will be expanded in the near future to cover communications and financial management.

In 2009, the Bureau will launch an executive management training programme launched for senior staff of employers' organizations to develop skills in management and leadership at the executive level. The training will create a vehicle for the development of future employers' organization leaders across the globe.