Earning an MBA while working might just be want your employer wants. According to a study commissioned by EvoLLLution, a higher education industry publication, 70% of employers believe that employees need continuous learning simply to keep up with the demands of their current jobs.
A third party research firm surveyed 200 employers across North America, spanning mid-sized (250 employees) to large (over 100,000) firms in business, technology and healthcare to get their viewpoints on continuing education and professional development. The results showed that 96% of employers said continuing education improves job performance and 87% said it has a positive impact on pay scale, with many citing a direct correlation, especially in the healthcare field.
The research also showed that education allows employees to manage the skills gap between entry-level and mid-level positions, thus facilitating advancement with 78% of employers factoring continuing education into promotions. Furthermore, companies that support employee education for advancement can mitigate turnover costs associated with outside hires, thereby saving money and increasing efficiency.
Related: Tuition Reimbursement Top Choice for Companies to Retain Talent | Database: Search, Sort, Compare Online MBA Programs | School Reports: Full Details on MBA Programs | Specialties: Research MBA Concentrations
Forty-seven percent of mid-level positions required a secondary degree, on top of a bachelor’s degree, and the survey author’s surmised that when companies educate their employees, preparing them for advancement, they were more likely to stay with the business longer. Supporting this conclusion, the survey found that within four years, 64% of externally-hired executives failed at their new jobs. By comparison, 62% of internally-promoted executives stayed with the company over the same time span, and 46% were promoted a second time. This also saved the business money – for executive positions, the costs associated with turnover can be as high as 24 times the base salary and the cost of replacing a failed employee was between 30-45% of the base salary.
The positive emotional effects of continuing to educate employees kept them with the company longer and kept morale high. Seventy-eight percent of employees said ongoing education has a positive effect on career advancement and 87% said that educational attainment positively affects compensation and salary.
Ninety-five percent of the surveyed employers stated they provided some form of tuition support or reimbursement, but found that only 10% of the workforce was taking advantage of the services.
–Alanna Stage, @AlannaTweets
Facebook Comments