ABSTRACT
Skilled people are a practice's gold in the bank, the foundation that, if sound, will enable it to flourish. A practice's managers therefore have a primary responsibility to use a practice's human resources effectively. So partnerships must begin to view training, education and professional development, and the accountability of individuals to the practice for their competence and performance, as essential elements of practice business. The starting point is a professional and practice culture that actively promotes learning and excellence of performance.2'3 Few practices operate this way today, so this is new ground.
