There are a new crop of companies opening their doors to administer student loan repayment benefits for progressive companies that view this as a valuable way to hire and retain employees…especially those in the millennial category who are graduating college with heavy debt burdens. Although a benefit such as this can stand alone, I believe there are a number of advantages to including this benefit as part of a more holistic tuition assistance strategy.
With a few changes to an Organization’s existing tuition assistance policy, student loan repayment can be added and administered alongside more traditional education reimbursement programs. By using this approach, a company has a single policy that supports both employees seeking new educational pursuits and those who have already completed education for which they are paying off student loans.
The advantages are many…not the least of which is the ability to support a single annual cap per employee regardless of their use of the benefit. For example, you may have employees who are using the benefit to support BOTH a new program for advancement inside the organization alongside their student loan repayments. That’s fine, as long as the organization has a way to cap these collective amounts annually.
An additional benefit is the ability for a single analytics platform to provide data on programs currently being pursued, and those that have been completed by employees, whether they were completed while the employee was employed or prior to employment. This gives the organization a single view to the competencies obtained by employees. Many of our existing clients don’t have a way to capture the education an employee possesses prior to employment. With a single administrative platform to support all forms of tuition reimbursement, this can be achieved.
Here’s some ideas for ways to edit your Company’s existing tuition assistance policy to support this new benefit:
You are eligible to participate in the Tuition Assistance Program if you meet the following requirements:
The following types of educational expenses are eligible for tuition assistance under this plan:
Annual Caps on Tuition Assistance
You will receive reimbursement for approved expenses incurred not to exceed a calendar maximum of [$DOLLARS].
Process for Receiving Tuition Assistance
The following conditions must be met by an eligible employee to receive tuition assistance:
Those are the main sections of an existing tuition assistance policy that require revisions in order to support student loan repayment.
The MBA Decision
You’ve completed your final course, paid whatever graduation fees might have been due, and you have a shiny, newly minted MBA in your back pocket. Many people who pursue an MBA have some idea of how they want to put it to use. They might want to start a new business, form a partnership, or perhaps eye some greener pastures in some other industries. Others are perhaps more unsure about exactly what to do next. But everyone has in common that they wanted to advance their career in some way.
Much was made about the news that Starbucks offered education benefits to non-exempt employees, and has chosen to do using a single source provider… Arizona State University. In order for employees to take advantage of the benefit, they must choose from the list of online offerings available through this single university. Walmart has a similar approach, limiting choice to a single educational partner…American Public University.
With the importance of technology in today’s world, many professionals in the tech sector desire to move into management to further their careers. Of course, a general Master of Business Administration degree is worthwhile for this, but many schools are offering an MBA with technological emphasis: The MBA in Technology Management. For many people, this degree may be just the thing to help them move to the next level. (more…)
The Earth is rumbling, the ground is cracking and lava is figuratively flowing among the cubicles in your company. You have a genuine crisis on your hands, and all eyes are looking toward you to provide a solution. The pressure is mounting, and the more time that passes, the more damage your company could potentially sustain to its profits, reputation and long-term outlook. Here are some crisis management tips for keeping your cool and moving forward with deliberate action to bring your crisis to a successful conclusion. (more…)
One of the fastest growing fields in information technology is Geographic Information Systems (GIS). This field is the science of computer systems that capture, store, manipulate, analyze, manage and present geographical or spatial data. The most obvious area would be things like storing map data, such as Google Maps. But the field is much broader than that, and with location information become more and more readily available with smart phones, the career prospects have been growing rapidly. (more…)
It’s probably the case that our days are not going to get longer, and the 24 hour day is here to stay. If you can’t get more time, then the solution is to use the time you have more efficiently. Proper time management can help you be more productive, leaving more time for balancing work and leisure. It’s important to develop strategies for managing your time, because it’s not an exaggeration to say that often the difference between success and failure is the amount of time we’re able to spend on a project. (more…)
Employee morale can make or break a company. The best leaders pay attention to employee morale, because happy, engaged employees tend to want to work harder than ones that drag themselves into the office, feeling like they’re just “doing their time” until they’re set free from the prison of their work. Not only can poor morale lead to poor productivity, but it can cause employees to want to seek better opportunities, increasing your turnover rate and training costs. But with the right strategies, you can boost employee morale without breaking the budget. (more…)
Student loans may have been your ticket to getting a degree, but after the fact, you may realize that they weren’t quite the great deal they seemed at the time. Many people naively enter into student loan agreements that end up being a huge financial burden that could follow you for decades, unless you pay them off. But for some lucky folks, you may qualify for student loan forgiveness. Yes, in certain circumstances, all or part of a student loan can be canceled out. (more…)
Security has become one of the most important aspects of modern corporate life. One only needs to read the news to see how damaging a security breach can be, not only for their customers, but for the perception of the company in the minds of consumers. For these and other reasons, it’s crucial to develop a comprehensive strategy to manage your current risks and maintain vigilance of future risks. Here are some tips for keeping your company safe and secure. (more…)