John. D. (Jack) Rudnick, Jr., Ed.D.

Professor

Thomas More College

“Bridging the Classroom Content-Workforce Competencies Gap:

Preparing Students for Career Success”

John. D. (Jack) Rudnick, Jr., Ed.D., FACHEProfessor

Thomas More College

1

Select Program Objectives

Establish Presentation Foundation (Graduate/Undergraduate)

Introduce/ Define Glossary of Terms

Summarize Data Collection: Methodologies and Findings

Offer Tools: Survey Instrument/ Audit Template

Engage in Small Group Discussion Questions

Propose Considerations for Issue Amelioration

Identify Recommended Areas for Future Study

2

Select Program Learning Objectives

Understand the ‘triple aim of higher education”

Understand higher education key stakeholders/ stakeholder engagement

Identify competitive forces affecting higher education

Know the differences between “pedagogy” and “andragogy”

Understand the faculty teach ing focus conundrum:

content/ employment

Review select “workforce gap analysis” issues

Propose recommended areas for future study

3

Revised Title

Post-Research Proposed Title Revision!

“The Employability Divide: Faculty Strategies and Considerations for Amelioration”

Modified Objectives:

Narrow Gap: Revise Curricula

Assist Employers with Their Organization’s Gap Analysis

Explore Reciprocal Mentoring

4

Select Presentation Elements

Secondary Research

Triple-Aim of Higher Education

Basic Gap Definitions (e.g., Competencies/Skills)

Employability/Workforce-curricula Gap Analysis

Faculty -- Key Stakeholder

Employer Needs Assessment: Organizational Audit

Experiential Learning—TMC Business Initiative

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Triple-Aim of Higher Education: Defined

High Quality

Reasonable Cost

High Stakeholder Satisfaction

(Rudnick, Cahill, & Schumacher, 2016)

6

Select Definitions: Relevant Terms

Absence of shared uniform language among stakeholders :

Competencies: Broad/Categorical

(Proficiencies, Abilities, Expertise, Attributes, KSAs)

Skills: Specific/Narrow/Vocational/ Technical

Capabilities: Organization Focused: Organization/Individual: Social/Technical

Employability: Attributes needed to get, retain, and develop in a job. (Sulphey,2015)

Workforce Gap: Academic/ real-world deficits

Andragogy : Pedagogy : Self-directed: Top- down

Reciprocal Mentoring: Inexperience workplace youth coaching experienced workforce

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Faculty Conundrum

Purpose of Education ??

Impart Content*

Employment Preparation (Career Success)

*Form character;

* Job vs. degree; focus on lifelong skills vs. list of skills (Dhond, 2011)

8

”

““…the thinker improves the quality of his or her thinking…”

THE CRITICAL THINKING COMMUNITY (2016)

Impart Content

Higher Education: Focus on Critical Thinking

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”

““The least of learning is done in the classroom.”

THOMAS MERTON

TWENTIETH CENTURY UNITED STATES TRAPPIST MONK/SCHOLAR

Employment Preparation

Higher Education: Focus on Experience

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Purpose of Higher Education: Intellectual Fulfillment or Employability ?

Likely Correct Response:

Stakeholder Dependent !

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Stakeholder/Stakeholder Engagement

Baseline Definitions

Stakeholder “… those groups who affect and/or could be affected by an organization’s* activities, products or services and associated performance.

Stakeholder Engagement “… the process used by an organization* to engage relevant stakeholders for a purpose to achieve accepted outcomes.”

* i.e., higher education

(Deloitte , 2016)

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Select Higher Education Stakeholders

Students

Faculty Members

Parents

Prospective Employers

Higher Education Administration

Higher Education Communities

Vendors/Suppliers

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Forces Affecting Higher Education Sustainability

Globalization

Advances in Technology

Competition from Others in Higher Education

Multiple Stakeholder Accountability (Bahhouth & Bahhouth,

2011; Barbera, Layne, & Gunawardena, 2014; Dill, 1999; Emes & Innes-Cleveland, 2003; Matheson, Wilkinson, & Gilhouly, 2012; Stukalina, 1991).

Changing Labor Market/ Industry Demand Patterns

Increasingly “Knowledge-intensive” (Collet,Hine, du Plessis, 2015)

Higher Education/ Employer Alignment Need : “Employability Divide” : (Rudnick, 2016)

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Data Collection: Methodologies and Findings

Employer-Reported Research Findings:

(UG) undergrad. and (G) grad. Competence Deficits:

Human Resource Management

Computer / Digital Competence:

Technology: Data Storing/ Data Analysis/Program Modeling

Big Data: Concepts/Applications

Communication--Written/ Presentation Skills/ Negotiation/ Cultural Discourse—Adaptation (Gibson & Soderman, 2014)

Critical Thinking (Schonberger-Orgad & Spiller, 2013).

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Methodologies and Findings (cont’d):

Employer Expectations: “Soft Skills”

Self Management

Strategic positioning/ Implementation

Interpersonal Communication

Leadership

Critical Thinking

Ability to Question Basic Assumptions/ Curiosity

Development of Strong Intellectual Skills

(Collet,Hine, du Plessis, 2015)

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Methodologies and Findings (cont’d)

Employers’ Assessment of Skills Deficiencies (UG):

Basic reading

Writing

Mathematics Skills

Professionalism

Teamwork

Oral Communication

Ethics and Social Responsibility (Green & Stahura. 2014)

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Skills deficits include:

Data storing

Data analysis

Spreadsheet preparation

Competency deficit:

Big Data

Technology ,computer competence, and maneuverability (Suvedi, Ghimire, & Millenbah, 2016)

Methodologies and Findings: (cont’d)

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Methodologies and Findings (cont’d)

Technology/ Big Data (aka: ‘digital competencies)

Human Resources

Communication –Written, Oral, Presentation Skills

Diversity—Adaptability, Cultural Awareness

Higher Order Thinking (Critical Thinking and Problem Solving)

Relevant Anecdotes

Gender (e.g. women more competent in teams)

Rural background

(Gibson & Soderman, 2014)

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Students lack competencies in:

Corporate Social Responsibility Awareness

Ethics

Professionalism

Research Skills

“Soft Skills”: (interpersonal, etiquette, cultural sensitivity) proficiencies (Gibson & Sodeman, 2014)

Teamwork and conflict management skills

Leadership skills; absence of critical traits

Methodologies and Findings (cont’d)

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Methodologies and Findings (cont’d):Organizational Capabilities

“Eleven” Select Organizational Capabilities

Individual/Organization

Technical/ Social

Talent

Speed

Shared Mindset and Coherent Brand Identity

Accountability

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Methodologies and Findings:Organizational Capabilities (cont’d)

Eleven Organizational Capabilities (cont’d)

Collaboration

Learning

Leadership/

Customer Connectivity/

Strategic Unity/

Innovation/

Efficiency (Smallwood & Ulrich, 2004)

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Methodologies and Findings (cont’d)

Faculty Behaviors :“Silo-Cross”

Interdisciplinarity: involving two or more academic,

scientific, or artistic areas of knowledge ...

Transdisciplinarity: different disciplines working jointly

to create new conceptual, theoretical, methodological, and translational innovations integrate and move beyond discipline-specific approaches to address a common problem.

Pluridisciplinarity: researching an object from the

perspective of one and the same discipline through several disciplines at once. (Wilson & Zamberlan, 2012)

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Elements to Triangulate Gap Analysis Accuracy

Subject Matter Expert Discussions

Human Resources

Communication

Cultural Assimilation

Critical Thinking

Technology

(Personal communication, P. Borne, D. Cahill, & A. Crawford, September 27, 2016)

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“Reciprocal Mentoring”

Assumption: Young students lack experience

Reciprocal communication and technology benefits:

• Knowledge of technology

• Social media proficiency

• Virtual communication medium

(Collet, Hine, & du Plessis, 2015)

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Proposed Focus: Andragogy vs. Pedagogy

Definitions:

Andragogy: Self-directed, self-motivated, collaborative, cooperative, adult focused (Bahhouth &

Bahhouth, 2011; Diffen, 2015.)

Pedagogy: Top-down, authoritative, child and adolescent focused (Bahhouth & Bahhouth, 2011.)

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Select Anecdotal Acronyms

SEMS: Small and Medium Sized Enterprises

BEP: Business-Employee Programs

ICT: Information and Communication Technologies

e-Leadership: Comprehensive Information and Technology-Based Skills (Ivanov & Arenas, 2014).

CSR: Corporate Social Responsibility

EV: Employee Volunteerism

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Formulas: Employability Divide

Employability (Capital= Assets – Liabilities)

Desired Human Capital= Human Resource Assets – Deficit Skills Liabilities

“Divide” / Workforce Gap

Difference Between Desired Skills/Competencies and Current Skills/Competencies (Rudnick, 2016)

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Employability Index Ratio

Skills/ Ideal Skills = Employability Index

(Rudnick, 2016)

“A man is like a fraction whose numerator is what he is and whose denominator is what he thinks of himself. The larger the denominator, the smaller the fraction.”—Leo Tolstoy

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Discussion Questions for Small Group Consideration

DQ 1 Do you teach content that students will readily use in their work life?

Enseñas información que los estudiantes la usaran en su vida profesional?

DQ 2 Are faculty members influenced by tenure status when designing courses (e.g. those without tenure take less risks than those with tenure)?

Estan influenciados los profesores de acuerdo a suexperiencia universitaria cuando diseñan los cursos?

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Discussion Questions for Small Group Consideration (cont’d)

DQ 3 Do you teach students how to think "out of the box?” Please offer examples to share how.

Enseñas a los estudiantes como pensar "de manera diferente y efectiva"? Por favor muestrenos unos ejemplos

DQ 4 Do employers share that what you teach is important to students' professional success.

Los ejecutivos empresariales explican lo importante que es la educacion para el exito profesional de los estudiantes?

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Faculty Survey Monkey Instrument

1. I teach content that students will readily use in their work life.

2. Please rank (in order of importance) the skills students need to learn for future career success.

--Critical Thinking

--Emotional Intelligence

--Teamwork

--Technology

--Written Communication

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Faculty Survey Monkey Instrument (cont’d)

3. What other skills or competencies do you think are important?

4. I have taught my students how to think "out of the box".

5. Thomas More College is graduating students with the skills and competencies employers need.

6. Faculty members are often influenced by tenure status when designing courses (e.g. those without tenure take less risks than those with tenure).

7. Employers tell me that what I teach is important to students' professional success.

8. What can we do to better prepare students for the workforce?

9. How long have you been teaching at Thomas More College?

10. Is there anything else you would like to share about this topic?

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Organizational Audit Process Tool : Cultivate Employer Feedback

1. Determine which part of the business to audit

2. Create the content of the audit

3. Gather data from multiple groups on current and desired capabilities

4. Synthesize the data to identify the most critical capabilities requiring managerial attention

5. Construct an action plan with clear steps to take and measure to monitor/assign team to deliver on critical capabilities ( Smallwood and Ulrich, 2004)

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Relevant Academic Theory Constructs

Online Critical Thinking Resources:

Student moderators, (Bahhouth and Bahhout, 2011),

Starters and Wrappers (Williams and Lahman, 2011)

Reflection triggers (Verpooten et al.)

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Faculty Awareness

Employers want:

Visionaries

Futurologists

Menu of industry specific skills

Adaptability

Communication

Resilience

Complex Problem Solving Ability (Schoenberger-Orgad

& Spiller, 2014))

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Faculty Strategies

Heighten Awareness on Culture: “Read” /Adaption/ Assimilation

Differentiate: Become “Best Version of Self”

Fully Exploit Leadership and Management Resources

Consider Self-Actualization (Maslow, etc.) Myers-Briggs

Character Formation/Leadership Self-Awareness (George)

Avoid “Beaten Path” Direction

Stakeholder Needs: Job vs. Degree (e.g. Certificate Option)

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Faculty Strategies (Cont’d)

Consider cross-campus /silo, external resource collaboration

Establish value rubrics (Suvedi, Gihmire, & Millenbah, 2016)

Tap into business partnerships and creative funding

Demographics

Cultivate internships and experiential learning

Offer speaking and professional development

Business volunteerism for mentoring (CSR) (Collet, Hine, & duPlessis,

2015)

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Select Academic Constructs: Potential Business and Industry Application

Lewin’s Change Theory Model

Maslow Hierarchy of Needs Fulfillment

Donabedian Model --Structure, Process, Outcome Model

Deming, Juran: Quality Process Improvement

“Socratic Questioning” (Block and Spartaro, 2014)

Wheelhouse Intersect Model (Rudnick, Cahill, Schuamacher,

2016)

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Recommended Areas ofFuture Study

Consider:

Further collaboration with technical and community colleges (skills)

Focus on generational learning preferences and tendencies

Construct curricula to state of “educational health”

Establish Business Education Partnerships

Establish High-Risk Retention Psychographic Profiles

Refine Metrics: Retention and Recruitment Strategies

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Employability and Curricula Design

Shift of Emphasis Needed ??

FROM:

Instilling and emphasizing a list of

skills

TO:

Cultivating purposeful industry and context

specific abilities

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Questions/ Comments

Gracias!

(Thank you)

???????

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References

Bahhouth J. & Bahhouth, V. (2011). Significance of e-Learning in traditional courses. International Journal of Education Research, 6(2), 1-9.

Barbera, E., Layne, L. & Gunawardena, C. N. (2014). Designing online interactions to address disciplinary competencies: A cross-country comparison of faculty perspectives. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 15(2), 143-169.

Bloch, J. & Spataro, S. E. (2014). Cultivating critical thinking dispositions throughout the business curriculum. Business and Professional Communication Quarterly, 7(3), 249-265.

Braunstein-Minkove, J.R., & DeLuca, J.R. (2015). Effectively adapting the sports management curricula SCHOLE: A Journal of Leisure Studies and Recreation Education. 2, 12-30.

BusinessDictionary.com (2016). Retrieved from : http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/business-environment.html

Collet, C., Hine, D., & du Plessis, K. (2015). Employability skills: Perspectives from a knowledge based industry. Education and Training, 5(5), 532-559.

.

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References (cont’d)

Deloitte & Touche (2014). Stakeholder engagement. Retrieved from http://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/za/Documents/governance-risk-compliance/ZA_StakeholderEngagement_04042014,pdf

Dhond, A. A. (2011). Enhancing employability through higher education. HEF’s India Journal of Higher Education, 2(2),76-81

Diffen (2015). Compare anything: Andragogy vs. pedagogy. Retrieved from http:/www.diffen.com

Dill, D. D. (1991). Academic accountability and university adaptation: The architecture of an

academic learning organization. Higher Education, 38, 127-154.

Emes, C. & Cleveland- Innes, M. (2003). A journey toward learner-centered curriculum. The Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 33(3), 47-70.

Green, E., & Stahura, K.A. (2014). Business-education partnerships: A corporate –social responsibility and sustainable workforce strategy for commercial casinos. International Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Systems, 7(2), 28-40.

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References (cont’d)

Gibson, L.A., & Soderman, W.A. (2014). Millenials and technology: Addressing the communication gap in education and practice. Organization Development Journal, 63-75.

Ivanova, V., & Arenas, A. (2014). E-leadership skills for SMEs: Challenges to the Universities. Economic and Social Development: Book of Proceedings, 256-264.

Matheson, R., Wilkinson, S. C., & Gilhouly, E. (2012). Promoting critical thinking and collaborative working through assessment: Combining patchwork text and online discussion boards. Innovations in Educational and Teaching International, 49(3), 257-267.

Rudnick,J.D., Jr., Cahill, D.J., & Schumacher, A.J. (2016). Leverage the heterogeneity of critical thinking: Creating new classroom knowledge. Transnational Journal of Business 1(1), 21-34.

Schonberger-Orgad,M., & Spiller, D. (2013). Critical thinkers and capable practitioners: Preparing public relations students for the 21st century, 10(3), 210-221.

Sulphey, M.M. (2015). Patterns of employability skills among business students. IPE Journal of Management, 5(2), 57-73.

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References (cont’d)

Suvedi, M, Ghimire, R.P., & Millenbah, K.F. (2016). How prepared are undergraduates for a career? NACTA Journal, 60 (1a), 13-20.

Sledgiankowski, D. ( n.d.). Accounting majors perceptions of the acquired information technology (IT) skills and their self-perceived employability. Hofstra University, 1-3.

Stukalina, Y. (2008). How to prepare students for productive and satisfying careers in the knowledge-based economy: Creating a more efficient educational environment. Baltic Journal on Sustainability, 14(2), 197-207.

Tewari, R., & Sharma, R. (2011). Managerial skills for managers for

the 21st century. Review of Management, 1(3), 4-15.

Verpoorten, D., Westera, W., & Specht, M. (2011). Using reflection triggers while learning in an online course. British Journal of Educational Technology, 43(6), 1030-1040.

Winsted, A.S., Adams, B.L., & Silah, M.R. (2009). Teaching the ‘soft skills’: A professional development curriculum to enhance the employability skills of business graduates. American Journal of Business Education, 2(5),35-44

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References (cont’d)

Wilson, S., & Zamberlan, L. (2012). Show me yours: Developing a faculty-wide interdisciplinary initiative in built environment higher education. Contemporary Issues in Education Research. 5(4), 331-342.

Willians, L. & Lahman, M. (2011). Online discussion, student engagement, and critical thinking. Journal of Political Science Education, 38, 127-154.

Zehrer, A., & Mossenlechner, C. (2009). Key competencies of tourism graduates: The employer’s point of view. Journal of Teaching in Travel and Tourism, 266-287.

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