Tuition Reimbursement Implementation, Case Study Example

During the recent profitability of the company a portion of the budge has been allocated for the expansion of benefits offered to current and future employees. Benefits to the employees provide multiple benefits to the company as well and in order to maximize the investment for benefits it is important to choose the correct mixture in the portfolio. Educational tuition assistance provides a return on investment by providing learning and development opportunities in current employees. Providing tuition reimbursement provides an opportunity to invest in the employee’s career and facilitate their advancement as well as investing in the human resources already established in the company to build future leaders, decision makers and operational facilitators.

Tuition reimbursement is more than repaying a student loan or enabling an employee to take a few night classes to fulfill a short term learning objecting. The overall program aims at providing the means and medium for the employees to pursue a bachelor’s degree in business and communication to not only better themselves which makes them more valuable but also to better their current and future roles within the company. The traditional career trajectory for a business degree includes providing the employee the opportunity to utilize their technical and functional skillset in the real world business environment. The knowledge gained through their education will facilitate their decision making ability in the ever changing business world.

The education garnered from the business establishes the technical foundation to become a business leader in the corporation. The career tracks for the employees with a business degree include front line managers, operating unit directors, project managers and business portfolio managers to name a few. An outstanding aspect of a bachelor’s degree in business is the flexibility and adaptability inherent in the degree itself. It facilitates the career while not limiting the opportunities available to the employee.

In our corporation being a leader is not a position on the organizational chart but a function of the person handling the situation and task at hand. Knowledge is the measurable portion of the business matrix the employee will be able to implement in their key business tasks such as budget planning, strategic scope definition and resource allocation but other part that is key for an employee to become a successful business leader is problem solving.

Problem solving is a skill that needs all of the training and education accomplished as possible before a business critical scenario is encountered. The tuition reimbursement benefit allows the employee to build their fundamental education in business which directly relates to the education of problem solving. Adapting to change, while not always easy, is vital to success and the vitality of the corporation. Getting from point A to point B without clear guidance or direction will only be achieved by a person with the proper experience, education and know-how to get the job done.

In regard to the communication portion of the undergraduate degree, in order to achieve anything in the business world information must be communicated to other entities. The typical career choices a communications major would benefit the corporation include human resources department leads, business communication, marketing, logistics or many other business leadership roles.

In the business world communication must be clear, concise and able to be interpreted correctly. Proper communication at the right time, in the right medium and content allow ideas and directions to flow to the proper recipients so that key business decisions are implemented and acted upon in a timely manner. With a concentration in communications the skillset necessary for effective and efficient communication are fortified by the educational achievement provided by the tuition reimbursement program that allowed the employee the opportunity to achieve their educational aspirations. Both the business and communication undergraduate degree tracks provide tangible and measurable results such as educated business leaders providing the guidance to run an efficient and impactful operating unit while in the same token receiving and providing business communication in the clearest fashion.

With the benefits of impacting business practice established there is also the benefit of growing the employees within the corporation by providing opportunities to improve not only themselves but their business units. Building the employee with their educational benefits strengthens the employee’s skillset but it also builds the relationship between the corporation and the employee. Investing time and money into the employee illustrates that the company cares about the person and the position. The relationship shows that the employee’s hard work and dedication has a reciprocal effect and benefits and opportunities abound. The more the employee puts in the more they expect in return and providing tuition reimbursement shows they deserve to benefit from the hard work with educational opportunities and growth opportunities.

Individuals with bachelor degrees have a huge increase in earning potential over the course of their business career. Individuals receiving just a high school education earn a paltry $21,569 per year while those who earned a bachelor’s degree earned $42,783 per year (U.S. Census 2012). The amazing part of this scenario is that this is the average amount all bachelor degrees earned and a degree in business has more earning potential than other non-business related degrees such as degrees in Humanities or social science (Forbes 2008). The financial benefits are apparent to the employee as well as the company. The employee would benefit from higher earning potential and the corporation benefits from all of the enhanced skillsets enabled by the higher education. A smarter workforce leads to smarter results, better products and services and increase wealth to the shareholders or bottom line. By providing the means to provide a higher education the corporation also provides a recruiting tool to enhance the limited resource in the pool of talent in which future leaders and employees can be pulled.

The benefits of providing an education tuition reimbursement benefit spans both the employee and the corporation. Providing investment in the individual the relationship is strengthened by showing that the company cares about the person, their career and their aspirations and goals. The tuition reimbursement policy is also aligned with the corporate objectives of building business leadership and knowledge as well as increase the ability and efficiency of communication. Bachelor’s degrees in business and communication are selected to fill the current needs of the business which will enable current roles to be filled as well as potential development of future opportunities within the corporation.

References

Badenhausen, Kurt. (2008). Most lucrative college majors. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/2008/06/18/college-majors-lucrative-lead-cx_kb_0618majors.html

Council of University of California Staff Assemblies (CUCSA). (2008). Bridging the univserity of california’s educational benefits gap: a comparative study of employee educational benefits offerings in higher education. Retrieved from http://www.ucop.edu/cucsa/documents/cucsa_rfep_rpt_08-09.pdf

U.S. Census Bureau. (2012). Annual earnings by work status and education level. Retrived from http://www.census.gov/prod/2011pubs/acs-14.pdf