By Nicki Donnelson
UniteNews Contributing Writer
Building on your talents and getting better at your job is a way to improve your ultimate quality of life. You may increase your salary by improving your skills, showing leadership and gaining new credentials.
Why not make it your New Year’s resolution to try new things and grow your professional toolbox in 2024?
Offering quality professional development throughout the year is one of the ways that we help individual Missourians and improve the regional economy. We know that by providing these training opportunities, we invest in the community, strengthen the talent base and grow educated citizens who will live and pump their vitality and livelihood back into Missouri.
Building businesses
Becoming your own boss may be part of your vision for the American dream: It is for many. To that end, we offer training to get aspiring entrepreneurs and small business owners educated on the fundamentals of business. This includes a sound understanding of financial literacy, legal and regulatory issues, and the building blocks of strategic planning. With these in place, businesses are set up for success.
Due to our Innovate SOMO program, we are offering this type of training – Early-Stage Business Boot Camps – throughout the region at no cost to the participants. They consist of eight expert-led workshops to give you practical applications, case studies and takeaways that you can implement right now. All you have to do is sign up.
Similarly, if you already own a small business that is expanding rapidly, we offer a program called Elevate. It was designed in recognition of the fact that as you gain more employees and revenue, your responsibilities and challenges shift, and many early-stage workshops don’t fully prepare you for this change. Elevate provides custom-tailored counseling and a network of peers to help you explore opportunities and best practices.
Growing your talents
Maybe becoming your own boss doesn’t interest you or perhaps it just isn’t the right time. Growth opportunities are still available to elevate your career success in your current organization and build your confidence.
One of the most frequently requested courses we offer is Essentials of Effective Supervision. It is a deep dive, 12-week course designed to help new supervisors, and those aspiring to become supervisors, with a unique blend of knowledge, skills and strategies in the areas needed to effectively and efficiently supervise others. Beyond the topic being incredibly relevant, the instructors stand above many of our competitors due to their deep experience in the field.
We also have access to a plethora of other career training through Missouri State University’s collaboration with CareerStep. Due to this partnership, you can explore job skills and certifications in many fields related to healthcare and information technology. These options are available online at your convenience, and they can change your trajectory.
Space for you
In addition to talent development and business support services, we hope you’ll explore efactory as a potential home away from your home office. It’s not a one-size-fits-all situation here. Multiple options exist depending on how much space you need, how often you would like to office here, and what resources you’d like to access.
Imagine 2024 being the year where you take the reigns of your professional life, and then do it.
