How investing in your employees' education can boost morale and productivity

Millennials are joining baby boomers and Gen X-ers in the workplace, and they are looking for positions that offer more than just a great salary. Today's workers and future business leaders want benefits that improve their quality of life and help them develop the skills they need to advance in their careers. While investing in employee education can help workers, what's in it for employers? Dennis Madigan, senior vice president of operations and finance at New England College of Business, provides valuable insight from his experience working with employers who actively participate in New England College of Business's corporate partnership program.

According to Madigan, the school's 250 corporate partners consider their employees some of their most valuable resources. Therefore, investing in them benefits the company. These companies help their employees develop the knowledge and skills they need to perform their job effectively and, thereby, contribute to the success of the company. For example, communication and situational leadership training for first-time supervisors and managers are excellent employee development programs that yield returns for the company, the trainees and their direct reports.

“Encouraging employees to build their skills through company-provided training and tuition reimbursement programs for higher education tells them, ‘as an employer, we value you and are investing in your professional development to give you the skills you need to succeed,” says Madigan.

Aside from showing appreciation for their workers, New England College of Business corporate partners realize their investment will improve not just their employees' skills and productivity, but also their morale.

“Workers realize that their contributions are meaningful to the company, and everyone wants to do a good job for someone who's given them the opportunity to advance,” Madigan says.

New England College of Business's unique approach to education requires students to build the critical thinking, problem-solving and communication skills that are necessary in today's fast-paced, tech-saturated business environment. Students are required to participate weekly in group discussions, and to share their point of view in a well-thought out and persuasive manner. According to Madigan, these skills are readily applicable to the workplace, and it shows.

“Our partners recognize that our approach to teaching working professionals the competencies needed for success in the 21st-century workplace generates exceptional learning outcomes as evidenced by the statistics from recent graduates,” says Madigan. “They're confident that their employees who are students at New England College of Business will be better equipped to succeed at a higher level.”

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