I was at a company function last weekend and had the opportunity to talk to the upper management of my company. I brought up the topic of possible sponsorship or scholarship for existing employees for post graduate studies and found the reply thought provoking.
Unlike many international companies, I work for a local firm which has a global reach. The human resource policy is markedly different from some multi-national companies which I had the opportunity to work for. For a starter, most American based companies value the development of their employees. They are viewed as asset instead of just mean employees. These companies would also be willing to sponsor further education for their staff for self improvement. I have even came across several cases where the company sponsored courses which are not related to its own industry.
Coming back to my company, the reponse I received was higher education was plainly not highly valued. The chances of obtaining a company sponsorship was low or negligible. Even in the rare event that it was granted, the selected course has to benefit the company in the long run.
I have my reservations on such a policy. Admittedly I do come from an academic background so I would be more inclined towards having a structured post graduate program as the cornerstone of skills improvement. No doubt experience can also achieve similar effect in skills and knowledge development but this is my analogy to compare both schools of thought.
Gaining improvement through sheer experience is akin to a warrier sharpening his weapon with each successive battle. He may had a metal pole as his first weapon before sharping into a spear and further shaping it into a sword. Personally I feel this method of improvement it limited and slow. Each improvement comes in small progressive steps and many a times, one will not know the limitations of certain policy or plan until it actually fails. Thereafter, improvement will then made to overcome the flaws.
On the contrary, improvement through education focus equipping one with skills and knowledge before deploying these assets. It is similar to soldiers going through military training. They are taught various war tactics and trained in a wide array of weapons before going to war. Once they are in the battlefield, they will then choose the weapon which they feel is best suited for the battle.
Similar, if employees can have the privilege of higher education, they will be equipped with a broader skill set. Will they ever use every weapon in the armory? I doubt so but at least they know characteristic of the tools are available and they will be in a better position to face oncoming issues.
My wish is for companies to value staff as assets as opposed to workers. In the knowledge based world of today, I believe having support for self-improvement figures highly in the checklist of job satisfaction. What do you think?
