How can business benefit from executive learning in the workplace?

How can business benefit from executive learning in the workplace? The Open University model of executive education is wholly innovative as it integrates real work and real projects…

Business gains competitive edge by investing in talent. This means recruiting the right people at the right time but business also reaps rewards by investing, and retaining, existing talent within the organisation.

In 2011, 32 per cent of businesses fell short of recruitment targets after complaining that graduate skills levels often “did not meet their requirements”.

This is clearly an issue for business, universities and government. The OU believes that practice-based learning is at the very heart of how higher education can help to bridge the gap between the theoretical and the practical aspects of learning.

The question of whether universities invest enough time in teaching students how to transfer their skills from academic theory into practical results in the workplace continues. Practice-based learning, where the theoretical and the practical meet, is seen by many in academia and business as increasingly important in providing the workforce of the future, and therefore the businesses of the future, with the skills required to ensure growth and an ability to respond to a constantly changing environment.

OU research into flexible learning has provided us with a deep experience of bringing together work and learning, and we are confident of the impact of this upon students and their employers. In fact, over 71 per cent of OU students work full or part-time during their studies.

“Education wedded with the practical application of the knowledge a student gains continues to work well for my business and our talent. We derive huge commercial value from this approach,” says James Cullens, HR Director, Hays plc.

“The OU have worked with us to design the eLearning and discussion groups, facilitate them around the globe, and support us as we embed this new approach, providing both challenging and helpful feedback along the way,” adds Karen Reilly, Management Development
Manager, Reuters.

Accreditation and professional qualifications that are tied to organisations are increasingly important to many businesses. They recognise that people want to continue to develop and continue to build up transferable qualifications.

The Open University Business School has led the way in the sector by developing professional qualifications specific to each client by incorporating training from the organisation and supplementing it with OUBS modules as a good way of continuing to help people learn and develop. This can also give an alternative way to build up points that are transferable. Practice-based learning and courses provide the scaffold to implement the learning gained from academia.