Promote Yourself by Dan Schawbel Read Free Book Online Page B

detail.
    Â 
    Company-Sponsored Education
    Smart companies have learned that in order to attract and retain young people, they have to provide opportunities for advancement. Otherwise, young workers are going to move on to an employer that values them more. Many large companies offer in-house courses—sometimes with instructors in the room, sometimes via webinar or some other technology. Sonie Guseh, an Account Manager at Google, takes advantage of every learning opportunity the company offers. “Workshops, webinars, and conferences are some of my favorite ways to continue to be knowledgeable about new innovations, creative best practices, and develop new skills that are relevant for current and future roles,” says Sonie. “Some of my favorites have been on developing leadership skills and on understanding the ever-changing face of media consumption.”
    Other companies offer online training courses that can be taken onsite or remotely. Some employers will pay for you to take courses someplace else, say at a local college or an online university. And just about all companies will pay for you to attend professional conferences or specialized events as long as you’re going to learn something that will benefit them. But you’ll never know any of this unless you ask about it.
    When David Roman, a Business Systems Analyst with American Express, asked he got an enthusiastic thumbs-up. David was preparing to take the PMP (project management professional) exam, and Amex paid for him to take two week-long classes to develop his project management skills. “They also allowed me to rearrange my work schedule because the classes were only taught during the day,” he adds.
    Unfortunately, it’s not always easy—especially if you’re a relatively new employee—to find out about the kinds of company-sponsored education and training that may be available. So your first step will be to tap into your network—your manger and coworkers—to find out what they’re doing to stay relevant and what they suggest that you do. They’ll undoubtedly give you some great advice on opportunities that shouldn’t be missed and some that you shouldn’t bother with.
    But don’t forget about your HR department, which can be your most powerful resource. Most people have contact with HR during the hiring and orientation process, but once they’re on board, they never come back. Big mistake. One of HR’s primary roles is to develop talent within the company, and they’ll have a good handle on in-house and outside training that would be appropriate for someone in your position.
    And if your company has an active intranet, that’s probably the first resource HR will suggest that you look into. In case you haven’t heard of an intranet, it’s a proprietary computer network that shares information among employees of a particular company internally. If you don’t work for the company that owns it, you can’t access it. Every company’s intranet has different types of content. Some have little more than their corporate newsletter. Others may offer online, in-house training and job postings—which usually include a detailed description of the skills required. When you have some free time, spend a few minutes browsing those listings—especially positions that you think you might be interested in at some point.
    Keep in mind that the quantity and quality of company-sponsored education is all over the map. Ford pays up to $5,000 per year in tuition and fees for employees pursuing degree programs. They also cover up to $200 per year for books. When I was at EMC, I took a whole bunch of courses and trainings through EMC University: writing, EMC products and technology, Six Sigma, and many more. These were not lightweight courses. Six Sigma, for example, was an intense six months and included a lot of work that I had to do on my own time. Many of the