Toolkit to Grow Employer Partnerships

Key Insights

The higher education industry is in a period of significant financial stress. The demographic for college-aged students has plateaued, and state support for public institutions varies widely across state lines. As a result, universities are under increasing pressure to find and sustain alternative sources of revenue. To face these challenges, higher ed employer partnerships through PAE units were identified as ways to generate revenue to support mission-critical programs and offerings.

However, this is currently an imperfect solution. PAE units have struggled to fully capitalize on employer partnerships in a sustainable and profitable manner. For most PAE units, less than 14% of revenue comes from tuition reimbursement, and the average PAE unit five-year growth rate stands at a mere 6%.

While PAE units boast expertise in the training services they offer, their current sales approach is outdated and littered with potential pitfalls. The increasingly long decision cycles that are present in today’s organizations are a key impediment to universities that are sourcing partnerships with business and industry. As organizations become increasingly large and complex, key decisions around partnerships and purchases necessarily involve more people than ever.

To aid in implementation of critical disciplines to grow higher ed employer partnerships, use the following tools to navigate the most complex portions of the partnership process.