October 1, 2009 – Bellevue University’s strategic agreement with The Home Depot received the gold award for “Excellence in Academic Partnerships” at this year’s Chief Learning Officer Symposium held in Colorado Springs.

This is the second year in a row that Bellevue University received the Excellence in Academic Partnerships gold award. In 2008, Bellevue University was awarded the first-ever Excellence in Academic Partnerships award for its work with CACI International. Bellevue University is the only university to have received this gold award.

The Home Depot learning program was created exclusively for The Home Depot with input from retail subject matter experts, including The Home Depot senior management and Bellevue University faculty. The program, called Professional Retail Management, is only open to employees of The Home Depot, and is designed to develop Home Depot associates’ knowledge of successful retail management practices with a specific focus on the home improvement industry and an increase in strategic thinking capabilities. It is designed to support the development of a leadership pipeline for the company. Known as “the world’s largest specialty home improvement retailer,” The Home Depot has 2,000 stores in the United States.

“Because the Professional Retail Management program was created with retail industry subject matter experts and Home Depot leaders, key leadership capabilities are built into the courses to support career growth opportunities for students,” said Michael E. Echols, Ph.D., Executive Vice President, Strategic Initiatives, Bellevue University. “The strategic relationship between Bellevue University and The Home Depot is a prime example of innovative corporate learning designed to meet strategic business goals and needs.”

“An important part of the relationship is the measurement of the business impact of this program on corporate performance,” continued Dr. Echols. “Bellevue University’s Human Capital LabSM will measure the impact of the learning program to provide ongoing information on how to make better investment decisions on the leadership pipeline at The Home Depot.”

The Professional Retail Management program can be taken as a major for a Bachelor of Science degree from Bellevue University. It is offered online through Bellevue University’s award-winning Cyber-Active® Learning Platform making it accessible to employees around the globe.

Strategic agreements such as this one with The Home Depot have fueled Bellevue University’s quick path to becoming one of the nation’s leading resources in corporate learning and measuring its impact on business performance.

Bellevue University has been recognized as a leader in corporate learning by industry experts:
 Bellevue University is the only accredited university to win a Corporate University Best in Class (CUBIC) award and has won the award twice. In 2005 and 2007, Bellevue University won “Most Innovative Corporate Resource.”
 In 2007, Dr. Michael E. Echols was named one of the Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals in the U.S. by Training Industry, Inc.
 In 2008, Bellevue University’s Strategic Initiatives Division and Human Capital Lab received an honorable mention in Bersin & Associates Learning Leaders competition for “Vendor Innovation.”

Learn more about Bellevue University’s corporate learning initiatives, innovative offerings including learning solutions and customized learning programs designed to meet corporate needs and create lasting strategic advantage at www.CorporateLearning.com or by calling 877-824-5516.

The Learning in Practice awards are presented annually at the Chief Learning Officer Fall Symposium. The awards are sponsored by Chief Learning Officer Magazine.

Moving unemployed and underemployed workers into true productivity can create genuine growth for Omaha’s economy and businesses. This is typically done with learning programs geared to workforce development. But most of these programs do not engage statistically-reliable or projectable research to measure their effectiveness.

When the Greater Omaha Chamber formed the Omaha Workforce Funding Collaborative with The Workforce Investment Board, United Way of the Midlands and Metropolitan Community College, it wanted to collect evidence and data to build a more effective workforce development system, one benefiting low-skilled, unemployed workers and employers with workforce needs. Data gathered will be used to influence public policy and create a more strategic workforce development system. The Chamber hired Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab and its strategic ally Capital Analytics to measure the economic impact of its workforce development learning programs.

The Omaha Workforce Funding Collaborative, led by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce, will provide learning programs designed to move the unemployed and underemployed into meaningful jobs with local employer sponsors Mutual of Omaha, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska, and others. Metropolitan Community College will deliver the educational programs and Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab will evaluate the effectiveness and provide outcomes of the learning programs.

“Utilizing Capital Analytics’ rigorous measurement standards, The Human Capital Lab is an expert at isolating and evaluating the impact that learning has on employee performance,”  said Dr. Jennifer Moss, Assistant Director of Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab. “In countless studies for the industry, we have been able to tell what direct impact learning has had – whether it is amount of sales increases, increased productivity, better branch management, or whatever management is trying to affect with learning interventions. This measurement is especially important at a time when Omaha is committed to creating a productive, trained workforce.”

The Human Capital Lab, in conjunction with Capital Analytics, answers important questions about the learning, such as: Will the learning programs help employees be successful in their positions? Does good performance in the learning program predict improved job performance? Are there common gaps in the workforce preparation of participants? What other factors predict job success besides the learning program? Do participants feel prepared for success after completing the learning program?

“Our man objective is to evaluate the workforce development system in Omaha and its ability to support our businesses,” said David G. Brown, President and CEO, Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.Understanding the business impact of the learning programs and what employers are not currently measuring is vital to the Collaborative’s success. We need to know the ROI of the employers’ time and resources; the impact the programs have on the community; and how the stakeholders in the workforce development system are working differently and more effectively to meet the needs of unemployed and underemployed workers, as well as the workforce needs of the employers.”

Brown added: “We wanted to know the business impact for employers in terms that we could project to future learning and development programs. We were delighted to find a national leader in evaluating the business impact of learning right here in the Omaha area.”

The Omaha Workforce Funding Collaborative is a three-year initiative funded by the National Fund for Workforce Solutions. The Omaha collaborative is one of 20 throughout the country. It was created, in part, to address the Omaha metropolitan area’s most vulnerable populations through enhanced employability and long-term job potential. The collaborative was established on a model for workforce development that: engages employers and workers; meets local demand in high-growth, high-demand industries; builds the capacity of workforce partnerships; and promotes the sustainability of workforce partnerships.

The initiative provides funding and technical assistance in five occupational sectors, including financial services, healthcare, information technology, transportation, distribution, warehousing and logistics, and advanced manufacturing and trades.

A pilot project on customer service training in the financial sector has already resulted in graduates and placement for about 20 workers, and the employer partners have hired job and career coaches who collaborate with human resources departments to support program graduates and assist in supportive services.

About Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab

Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab is a think tank comprised of academic and business leaders devoted to measuring the impact of learning and development investments. The mission of the Human Capital Lab is to develop innovative and valuable approaches to unlocking the long-term potential of human capital investments. The Lab currently works with Fortune 500 companies to evaluate the productivity of learning interventions.

The Human Capital Lab is an entity developed and supported by Bellevue University, a regionally accredited university. A leader in adult learning nationwide, Bellevue University offers learning opportunities for human capital and learning professionals who are intent on leading this industry into the next century, including a Master of Science Degree in Human Capital Management and a Ph.D. in Human Capital Management. For more information, visit www.HumanCapitalLab.org or call 877-234-8720.

About Capital Analytics

Capital Analytics has developed the next generation analytics for measurement of the impact of learning interventions. Their work has been recognized by leading industry groups such as Gartner and is used by Fortune 500 companies to evaluate the impact of learning interventions. Capital Analytics is an affiliate of Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab, providing important research and learning for Lab partners, University graduate students, and measurement support for Bellevue University’s corporate learning partners. Learn more at www.HumanCapRx.com or call 919-403-3770.

About Greater Omaha Chamber

The mission of the Greater Omaha Chamber is to increase business, investment and employment in the Greater Omaha area. For more information, visit www.OmahaChamber.org.                                                      

About The National Fund for Workforce Solutions

The National Fund for Workforce Solutions seeks to improve employment, training, and labor market outcomes for low-income individuals. The Fund’s support will improve both the quality of jobs and the capacity of workers by promoting change at three levels -individual, institution, and system. The result will be better jobs, better workers, and a better workforce development system. For more information, visit www.nfwsolutions.org.

Dr. Jennifer A. Murnane, Senior Research Associate with Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab and Associate Vice President of the University’s Strategic Initiatives division, will be honored with the Outstanding Student Award this summer during the 100th Annual American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (AAFCS) Conference and Expo in Knoxville, Tenn.

Dr. Murnane was selected as the recipient of the Family Relations and Human Development Community’s 2009 Outstanding Student Award for her research and record of achievements. Her doctoral dissertation, “Valuing Stakeholder Knowledge: An Interpretive Study of Knowledge Cultivation and Enablement in a Nonprofit Human Services Organization,” provided research into Boys Town’s effective use of tacit knowledge, or know-how, beliefs, experiences and values. Dr. Murnane found that by collecting, utilizing and communicating individual tacit knowledge, an organization’s employees are more effective at achieving the organization’s mission.

The results of her study can be found in the Spring 2007 issue of Innovation@Work, the Human Capital Lab’s newsletter for human capital strategists.

AAFCS is is the only national non-profit organization that provides leadership and support to family and consumer sciences professionals across multiple practice settings across the United States and Puerto Rico.

Dr. Murnane served as the inaugural Assistant Director of Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab. In her role as Associate Vice President of Strategic Initiatives for Bellevue University, she cultivates and manages Bellevue University’s visionary corporate clients who recognize the integral role learning has in reaching business objectives.

She is an adjunct professor at Bellevue University, teaching management and finance, and has worked in strategic planning and research at a Fortune 1000 company. Dr. Murnane earned her Ph.D. in Family & Consumer Sciences Education from Iowa State University and earned her bachelor’s degree in finance and banking and her MBA from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Bellevue University has announced a new strategic alliance with Capital Analytics, a leading research firm on human capital investment, management and ROI. The new strategic alliance supports Bellevue University’s growing body of knowledge in the field of human capital management and measurement.

In late 2007, Bellevue University founded the Human Capital Lab to study and share research about the relationships between learning, productivity and human capital investment. The Lab has established a national reputation for its research in human capital investment.

During the past 18 months, Capital Analytics and Bellevue University have worked together on research that measures the economic impact of learning. Examples include a study that pinpoints the revenue contribution of sales training at Chrysler and the effect that a New Director Transition learning program at Sun Mircrosystems had on director productivity as reflected in performance, promotions and retention. Both of these case studies are reported in the Human Capital Lab’s quarterly newsletter, Innovation@Work.

Their work together demonstrated positive synergies between the two organizations. The new strategic alliance will enhance Bellevue University’s ability to create and share new knowledge in the field and serve its corporate learning partners with the following:

* Capital Analytics will conduct research studies on the value created by learning interventions for Bellevue University’s corporate learning partners. Currently, Bellevue University partners with large corporations and non-profits throughout the country to develop, deliver and measure the impact of strategic learning.

* Capital Analytics will develop and conduct research on behalf of Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab and its affiliates. The Human Capital Lab conducts leading-edge research about the relationships between learning and productivity.

* The experts at Capital Analytics will support the development of curriculum and teach in Bellevue University’s graduate degree programs in Human Capital Management. Bellevue University offers a Master of Science and a Ph.D. program in this discipline, incorporating the research of the Human Capital Lab.

The strategic alliance will include a Bellevue University seat on the Capital Analytics board of directors, and collaborative research development and distribution.

“The Human Capital Lab and Capital Analytics are allies in the drive to create meaningful learning programs that stand the test of rigorous measurement. This helps organizations access a real dollar value attributable to learning,” said Gene Pease, president and CEO of Capital Analytics. “As a team, we can take a comprehensive view of an organization and evaluate what is currently being measured, what should be measured, and what the best way to measure is.”

“In my speaking around the country on human capital measurement, I have had the opportunity to be involved with senior executives and current thinkers on this important topic – and there is no one more cogent or relevant than the experts at Capital Analytics,” said Michael E. Echols, Ph.D., executive vice president of Strategic Initiatives at Bellevue University and director of the Human Capital Lab.

“The university and its board of directors, recognizing the importance that human capital plays and will continue to play in the American economy, is strongly committed to bringing reliable, relevant and credible management and measurement approches to this field,” said John Muller, Ph.D., president of Bellevue University. “We have invested in this important area of know-how, including this investment in Capital Analytics. We see this as a great next step in our momentum toward leadership in this field.”

Profiles in Diversity Journal has named U.S. Air Force Retired Maj. Gen. Roosevelt “Ted” Mercer Jr., a member of Bellevue University’s Military Advisory Board, one of the 25 most influential African Americans in business.

Mercer is vice president and director of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance for ITT’s Space Systems Division in Rochester, N.Y. Prior to joining ITT Space Systems, Mercer was director of plans and policy for U.S. Strategic Command at Offutt Air Force Base. He is a charter member of the University’s Military Advisory Board, which was established last year.

Mercer also was keynote speaker at Bellevue University’s winter 2009 commencement ceremony.

The Bellevue University Corporate Writing Center has partnered with University of Nebraska Medical Center to offer a workshop aimed at improving researchers’ manuscript and grant-writing skills.

The workshop, “Writing to Persuade,” meets at UNMC every Thursday for six weeks, beginning Jan. 8. Bellevue University Assistant Professor Gloria Lessmann will lead the workshop. Lessmann leads Bellevue University’s Corporate Writing Center initiative, which partners with corporations and organizations to improve their employees’ business writing skills.

The Corporate Writing Center has worked with Union Pacific, as well, with more partnerships planned for the near future.

Related post: University shows the “write” stuff

Bellevue University corporate partner Boys Town was awarded the gold CUBIC (Corporate University Best in Class) for “Most Promising Corporate University” at Corporate University Week 2008, held last week in Orlando.

Through this award-winning partnership, Bellevue University customized a Master of Science in Family and Youth Services degree, helping Boys Town employees gain the knowledge necessary for licensure and the effective treatment of youth and families. The degree is a combination of courses specific to Boys Town employees, as well as curriculum from an established master’s program offered by Bellevue University.

Partnerships such as this have helped Bellevue University quickly become one of the nation’s leading resources in corporate learning. The university’s innovative offerings include learning solutions and customized learning programs designed to meet corporate needs and create lasting strategic advantage.

For more information about Bellevue University’s corporate learning initiatives, visit www.corporatelearning.com

Learning now finds itself at the center of talent management and at the heart of workforce development, retention and planning. These are among the the key findings of the latest research on learning and development from Aberdeen Group and Bellevue University.

In the new benchmark report, “Achieving Real Business Value with Learning and Development,” Aberdeen Group found that best-in-class organizations leverage learning and development to achieve unparalleled performance gains. Measured gains include an average 22 percent year-over-year improvement in employee performance, and an average 18 percent decrease in the time it takes to bring a worker up to a desired level of competence.

The report is compiled from interviews of human resources, learning and line-of-business managers from more than 500 organizations worldwide. The study was sponsored by Bellevue University’s Human Capital Lab, a leading think tank on measurement of the business impact from corporate training and learning investments.

Currently, Bellevue University is engaged in the development and implementation of programs that include business impact measurement for some of the nation’s largest companies, including The Home Depot, Verizon Wireless, Chrysler and ACS.

The complete Aberdeen Group-Human Capital Lab study can be found at www.corporatelearning.com

Bellevue University has won the “Excellence in Academic Partnerships” award for its innovative alliance with CACI International. Through this partnership, the university customized a Master of Science degree in Organizational Management designed to prepare CACI employees for the changing roles and demands of management, as well as to become effective leaders.

The M.S. in Organizational Management offers a strong organizational and project management curriculum that is highly integrated with CACI corporate strategies and initiatives. The degree is offered online through Bellevue University’s award-winning Cyber-Active Learning Platform, making it accessible to employees around the globe.

Bellevue University received the award recently at the Chief Learning Officer magazine fall symposium, held in Coronado, Calif. The “Learning in Practice” awards are presented to the learning industry’s most esteemed leaders and organizations each year. Other 2008 honorees included Bellevue University corporate partners ConAgra Foods, Chrysler, ManTech International and Sun Microsystems.

Partnerships such as that with CACI have helped Bellevue University quickly become one of the nation’s leading resources in corporate learning. The university’s innovative offerings include learning solutions and customized learning programs designed to meet corporate needs and create lasting strategic advantage.

For more information about Bellevue University’s corporate learning initiatives, visit www.corporatelearning.com

A 2004 survey of 120 American corporations, commissioned by the College Board’s National Commission on Writing, found that one-third of employees in the nation’s “blue-chip” companies wrote poorly. Bellevue University has launched a corporate writing initiative to help companies address this ongoing problem.

Recognizing that writing inefficiencies directly impact a company’s bottom line, the university, through its Corporate Writing Center, partners with corporations to design customized writing instruction that addresses their specific needs. Bellevue University offers instructional workshops on-site at the corporations or, beginning this fall, completely online.

Bellevue University recently completed a pilot corporate writing course with Union Pacific Railroad. Twelve UP employees – from throughout the company with diverse educational backgrounds – volunteered to attend five, three-hour sessions at the company’s Omaha headquarters. On-site sessions were accompanied by online follow-up activities.

Bellevue University Assistant Professor Gloria Lessmann facilitated the sessions, which covered writing topics that responded to Union Pacific’s requests. The class met every other week, beginning in February and finishing in late April. According to evaluations collected by Union Pacific’s human resources department, the response from the railroad employees who completed the course was overwhelmingly positive. As a result, Bellevue University is offering the business writing course at UP again in September 2008.