Personal development, it is hoped, is a priority for not only managers but all employees. There are many obstacles to this. There are financial constraints and managers struggling to find time to do all the training and mentoring of their team that they should.

The more an organisation has been trimmed, the less likely there are to be promotion opportunities.

The responsibility for improving matters often seems to end up on the shoulders of the HR department. One of the first things that needs to be instilled in employees is a belief that the organisation they work for is in a healthy and stable condition. After all, you can’t expect people to commit their futures to a business that they consider to be on the rocks. In short, employees have to be able to trust the top management.

In order for those leaders to have this confidence, and indeed trust, they must communicate across all levels of the business and show that there is not only a coherent strategy going forward but that it is one that is working. This can be done by showing the progress against key objectives. If the people at the top of the organisation do not supply meaningful information, the vacuum will be filled by rumours and gossip.