A dynamic approach to the changing demands of a diverse client base has made Mail Marketing (Scotland) Ltd one of the best established handling and fulfilment companies in the UK.

Since it was established in 1950, its skills base has grown. Trying to keep up with the training within the company was hard enough, without the additional pressure of keeping an eye on the competition.

The firm provides a full range of marketing support activities to clients in finance, drinks, travel, industry and government, the company manufactures and distributes Point of Sale kits, and organises direct and periodical mailings, storage and distribution stock movement and telemarketing.

Regular meetings between directors and managers are used to examine quality measures and, where necessary, to find ways of filling in the gaps. It was at one of those meetings, in 1996, where using IIP as a way to maintain a competitive edge was raised.

General manager Rod Daddow decided to investigate. ''I felt we had wasted a lot of money on unnecessary training over the years,'' he said. ''The results weren't always what we'd hoped, so I liked the idea of specifically targeted training and appraisals to determine its usefulness.

''After research and consultation with Glasgow Development Agency we agreed to commit ourselves to achieving the standards of IIP. I had reservations at first, but once I saw what the system could do for us I got quite excited about it.''

The IIP appraisal process highlighted weaknesses in training and development strategy. Previously, costly training had little result. So training was targeted to skills gaps.

Working as a unit, the company started to build its new development system. Consultation with staff provided important feedback on how goals might best be achieved. Course evaluation reports showed what training was most effective, and constant encouragement from the GDA stopped the whole thing grinding to a halt.

''Yvonne D'Netto at the GDA was superb,'' said Daddow. ''There were times when pressure of work meant things had to slip a little - Yvonne was there to make sure they didn't slip too much and pull us back into line when the going got tough. It was a lot of hard work for all of us.''

It took 18 months for Mail Marketing (Scotland) Ltd to achieve Investors in People status - but it didn't take that long for the benefits to start. As systems and procedures improved so did production and efficiency.

Staff became more involved in their work, more aware of company affairs. As a result they were more motivated, morale improved and job satisfaction increased. Soon the company created a new training wing where employees could research the available opportunities for themselves.

''We are setting industry, department and company goals. We measure our progress every three to six months, and through appraisal of our efforts we meet our objectives,'' said Daddow.

''Those are now broken into individual, department and company goals. Our people can take responsibility for their own learning, go to the training wing and see what courses are there to help them improve their skills. This way they improve, the department improves and the company benefits.

''We're seeing more value for money from our training activities than we did before. We're putting a lot into it and targeting the right courses now - it's giving the employees what they want. They are very proud of our IIP status. The company is proud too - in fact it is treating them to a night out in recognition of their achievements.''

Mail Marketing hopes to encourage and assist the Nottingham branch of the company to undertake the same process. It has even recommended it to other companies.

''Some clients have commented are now thinking of undertaking IIP themselves,'' said Daddow.