How Do We Guide Managers to Ask the Right Questions When Interviewing Candidates?

How Do We Judge Return on Investment From Our Education-Assistance Benefit?
	We are reviewing our voluntary education-assistance program, which presently provides up to $2,500 to eligible employees. For courses that cost more, employees can apply for an exemption, which must be approved by the employee's VP and our VP of human resources. I have heard of some corporations that require a "service return contract" that binds employees to the company for a specified period once a company-paid college degree is earned. What are other companies requesting, aside from these contracts, to get a better return on investment for offering this monetary education assistance? How do we make sure we don't pay for somebody's education only to watch them jump ship?—Education Isn't Cheap, utilities, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
	Education assistance or tuition reimbursement programs are typically one of the most poorly managed benefits that companies offer. While nearly every company offers a variant of the benefit, few even attempt to evaluate the return on investment (or lack thereof). Such programs rarely have goals, and primarily exist just because everyone else has one. You are right to question what must be done to increase the program ROI, but I assure you that service return contracts are not the answer. Consider asking yourself: Historically what is the percentage of participants in the program who have voluntarily separated following completion or near completion of their education? How has completing the education affected the capability or capacity of the program participants to perform their jobs? In other words, does their on-the-job performance increase? Do they receive promotions more often? Does the quality of their work improve? Historically, how has the organization leveraged the education it sponsored? Was a career plan in place to make use of what the participants were learning? Did the organization re-evaluate the position of the participant or their compensation upon completion of the education (re-recruiting them)? What is the performance profile of the typical program participant? Is this a program that is primarily used by existing top performers, average employees or minimally engaged employees who continuously perform just above minimum performance standards? The key in maximizing the ROI of this program, or any HR program for that matter, is to: Develop and clearly articulate a business reason for the program to exist. Cascade that reason down into clearly defined and measurable goals and objectives for the program. Establish metrics relevant to each goal/objective. Routinely communicate program performance and rigorously investigate/resolve non-ideal results. Completing a degree or even adding new skills to one's portfolio increases the person's perceived market value, if not their actual value. Few organizations manage toward that perception. They do not re-recruit the program participant, placing them into a new position that utilizes their current skills. They do not adjust the compensation to levels that a competitor would now pay. And more often than not, they do not even congratulate the employees on their achievement. If such programs can have a positive ROI, achieving it will require that you manage the program for planned results, not administration.     [SOURCE: Dr. John Sullivan , San Francisco State University, July 18, 2006.]