How can HR maintain training for all staff?

The problemI am the HR manager of a manufacturing firm. Although we have seen a downturn in output, we are confident we can continue to trade and are already starting to consider how we can make the most of the green shoots of recovery. However, while senior managers seem keen to maintain their own development, I am under pressure to cut back on more general staff training opportunities. This doesn’t feel right and I think we need to balance the investment we make in our people across the business. Am I right – and how should I broach this issue with the top team?The adviceNick Holley, director of the HR Centre of Excellence at Henley Business School Forgive me for being provocative but I think you are coming at this from the wrong angle. Your role is not to deliver training and other HR “stuff” but to help make the business more profitable.Having just completed a major piece of research on the impact of the recession, we found the HR people who are thriving in the current environment are the ones who are getting even closer to the business, not only immediately, in terms of cost control, but also by planning for the future, in terms of building the capability to thrive once the recession is over.