Executive education in 'transformation,' leaders say

Executive education and life learning programs are in a period of evolution as the needs of the business world and the demands of people seeking such programs change, according to a panel of education experts speaking Friday at the Daily Herald Business Ledger's Newsmakers' Forum on The Future of Executive Education.

The panel spoke to a group of suburban education and business professionals at the Northern Illinois University Naperville campus, noting traditional MBA programs are being challenged by a number of issues, ranging from the cost of the programs to the changing skill demands sought both by students taking the programs, and the businesses looking to meet their skill requirements.

“We're in a real age of transformation in what model the employee is going to look like in the future,” said Waubonsee Community College President Christine J. Sobek.

Sobek said most employers feel their employees need continuous learning to keep up with their jobs, and many have systems in place to fund professional development. But while the demand is there, she said educational providers will need to adapt programs to address four key areas: that the education needs to lead to a raise or job promotion, that the education prepares them for the jobs of the future, that the program provides usable job skills and class flexibility and that the program provides the ability to network.

“Even though we talk about online learning or blended learning, we still need to connect,” Sobek said. “For people to be successful ... connecting, networking and interpersonal relationships are key.”

Ann E. Carrel, assistant dean of MBA programs at Northern Illinois University, said businesses still consider the MBA “the premiere graduate degree” to prepare employees for leadership roles. However, as the Millennial generation becomes more prominent in the workplace, MBA programs are challenged to meet their needs, and Millennials are not following the same paths as previous generations.

“Millennials are the most educated generation in American history,” Carrel said. “The question we have to ask is how do we teach and learn, how do we create knowledge and what business models do we use.”

Michelle Koppitz, vice president of adult and professional programs at Benedictine University in Lisle, stressed the need to make the education accessible, affordable and attainable. She noted the use of online and “blended” courses and innovative programs like Benedictine's “10K MBA” program are methods that help reach those goals.

“At the end of the day, we want to make sure that the competencies that those individuals are achieving are things that they can apply in their executive education,” she said.

David Coyner, vice president of Downers Grove-based DeVry University, noted a gap between how educators perceive their students being career-ready — at 96 percent in a recent survey — and the perceptions of students and employers, who were at 14 and 11 percent, respectively. As a result, businesses and universities have been working together to find ways to resolve the skills gap in the workforce today.

“There is an intersection of business and universities that is unparalleled,” he said. “We need to create the ability to provide ready opportunities for our grads and students to learn and fit that skills gap.”

All the panelists agreed that online courses have been successful in filling needs of students and providing quality education, but more will need to be done to adapt programs to make them affordable and relevant to future employers and employees. They cited programs that involve not only integrated technologies, but partnerships with businesses, governments and other institutions that will make executive education more relevant in the coming years.

“For those organizations like Waubonsee that are forward thinking, the future is great,” Sobek said. “For those organizations that cannot be flexible, nimble, adaptive, they will be left behind.”

Presenting sponsors for the Newsmakers' Forum were Benedictine University, Northern Illinois University and Waubonsee Community College. Marketing partners were GOA Regional Business Association, Management Association of Illinois, MRA — The Management Association, Small Business Advisory Council, Schaumburg Business Association and Lisle and Naperville Area chambers of commerce.