November 4, 2007

Business Certificate Programs Can Provide Career Boost

By Chicagoland Publishing Co. | Subsidiary of the Chicago Tribune

If you answered “yes” to any of the above, it’s time to investigate graduate certificate programs in business at local colleges and universities that have business schools or are affiliated with them.

In a nutshell, they’re a nice way to get skills, credits, credentials and contacts without the MBA price tag or time commitment. Of course, if you want to continue your business education, the credits earned in a certificate program typically count toward a degree at that school, or may even be transferable.

“We are a very credential-conscious society, and the job market is very competitive, particularly for older people who want to distinguish themselves from the pack,” says Richard Scovie, program manager of business and professional programs at the University of Chicago’s Graham School of General Studies, which offers business certificate programs.

“Our job here at the Graham School is to offer a different format for people who don’t have the time or financial resources to get a master’s or don’t need an MBA to achieve their goals. Often they use one of our programs as an intermediate step on the way to graduate school,” Scovie says.

There are 13 business and professional certificate programs at the Graham School. They range from financial decision making to medical writing and editing. They change with the times and the needs of the marketplace. For example, this fall a Certificate in Diversity Management was launched. It is designed for organizational leaders, human resource professionals, managers and directors.

It teaches them to build diversity initiatives, support diverse workplaces, and extend their efforts outward through supplier diversity programs.

Another program launched last year – Professional Communication – has proved very successful among students and employers.

It evolved from employer feedback that said college graduates today are so used to communicating through technology they lack traditional business communication skills. “They were shocked at how poorly they presented in meetings and how badly they wrote,” says Stephanie Medlock, who designed the program.

[…] What if you want to work for a company but want to start your own business instead? There is a certificate program for that too: the New Entrepreneurs Program, which is a partnership between the Graham School and Round Table Group, a company that helps clients gain access to experts in various fields.

Round Table Group founder and University of Chicago graduate Russ Rosenzweig says the program is designed for professionals in their 30s, 40s and 50s who have always had a dream to start a business.

[…] “It is really unique because it is one-on-one instruction,” Rosenzweig says. “Students come in with ideas for a business plan and are paired with a faculty mentor. They meet for at least two hours, twice a week with their mentor. During that time, we are engaged in writing a business plan and launching the business.” The catch? In order to get the certificate, you have to complete the course, complete the business plan – and launch the business.

About 30 have graduated over the past seven years since Rosenzweig launched the program, which he describes as “intense”.

Kelly Cutler, CEO of Marcel Media, an online strategy firm in Chicago, is both an alumni of the program and a faculty mentor. Back in 2002, she was working at Time Warner Inc. when she had an idea for a business of her own, which later became Marcel Media. 

“I was interested in a fast-track MBA program but needed some sharpening of my business skills with an emphasis in entrepreneurship,” she says. She chose the program because of its unique approach and flexibility.

Cutler started working on her business from home, the launched it after the plan was complete in 2003. Now she has 10 employees and is looking for more.

Though Cutler didn’t need an MBA, she says the program was her key to success because it drew upon the expertise of highly successful people who have reviewed many business plans.

“Often all your energy gets put into looking for clients when you start a business,” Cutler says. “Writing the plan takes second place. I needed the motivation to write the plan.
No one will take you seriously without it.”

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