“…There also exists a range of studies that have pointed out the important contribution that human resource skills can make to productivity, employment and economic performance (Acemoglu, 2002;Giles and Campbell, 2003;O´Mahoney and de Boer, 2002;OECD, 2001). As a result, the role of skills and skills development is a topic of considerable academic and political debate (Baum, 2002): Skills matter for individuals, organizations and, more generally, society (Institute for Employment Research, 2004).…”