A leader in the education finance market offering student loan origination, repayment and consolidation services as well as university business solutions, Nelnet is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange with 3,200 employees and a market cap of ap
by Site Staff
March 1, 2006
A leader in the education finance market offering student loan origination, repayment and consolidation services as well as university business solutions, Nelnet is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange with 3,200 employees and a market cap of approximately $2 billion. The company’s executive leadership believes shareholder value is best derived from an unbridled customer commitment to secure long-term loyalty and resulting revenues.
Nelnet focuses on developing its human capital to differentiate the organization and sustain a competitive business advantage. Therefore, a motivated, educated, engaged and experienced leadership team is fundamental to Nelnet’s core values and successful business strategy.
In recent years Nelnet has grown both organically and through acquisitions, doubling its employee base and expanding its North American offices to span coast to coast and into Canada. Nelnet leaders understood that to maximize existing investments in organizational growth and an emerging leadership team, a formal company-sponsored degree and leadership development program would be needed. The company had to expand organizational capabilities, develop a deeper leadership bench at all levels, develop working cross-divisional leadership teams and integrate talent in acquired companies. The driving force for these goals was the ability to reduce operating costs, increase efficiencies and generate increased revenues through an enhanced understanding of the corporate strategy and a shared vision of the organization’s future objectives.
Once needs and business goals were determined, Nelnet reviewed several possible university partners before engaging Bellevue University. Bellevue was selected due to Nelnet’s familiarity with the university’s corporate development experience and the university’s ability to collaborate with a business partner. What emerged was a customized, accredited master’s program in organizational development structured to prepare those identified as potential candidates for future senior executive positions.
In selecting the curriculum for the program, Nelnet focused on those areas most critical to future company success. The key competencies that were defined include visioning and strategic focus, driving for results, building high-performance teams, acquiring and developing outstanding people, leading and managing change and leading through personal excellence. Curriculum areas included a working knowledge of the company’s accounting and financing model, Nelnet’s acquisition philosophy and the long-term business goals of the organization in addition to enhanced leadership skills. Bellevue University then took these directives and structured the coursework to meet accreditation standards while achieving Nelnet’s customized learning targets.
The result is a corporate-funded 20-credit-hour program that defines the core for the master’s degree program. The program is delivered online with the ability for students to collaborate electronically, by phone or in person based upon location.
While Nelnet’s program is supported by the company’s board of directors (both financially and in principle), the initiative nonetheless must have an acceptable ROI to continue in future years. Measurement occurs on a number of levels with cost/benefit financial ratios assigned specific to Nelnet. Measurements include the ratio at which participants complete the program, the ratio at which participants are selected for career advancement, employee feedback on the leadership effectiveness of program participants, departmental turnover of program participants and contributions participants are able to make to corporate strategic initiatives.
Two key concerns of corporately funded degree programs include:
- Talent departure: Nelnet senior management is intent on creating an energized and focused work environment where engaged employees ensure that the company’s core value of customer focus never waivers. Therefore, the degree program, paired with the other facets of leadership development, was built upon the belief that it will aid the engagement of future executives more fully within the organization as opposed to increasing the risk that these employees will separate from Nelnet.
- Time restraints: In a survey of employees in Nelnet’s first student cohort, 90 percent agree that the program is better termed an “indulgence of time” as opposed to an “encroachment of time.” Ninety percent cited that their experience in the program had already assisted them with one or more of the goals listed above, and 100 percent said their personal level of corporate engagement increased through the experience.
With executive support, customized curriculum and students actively engaged in the learning process, Nelnet has partnered with an accredited university to maximize the value of its human capital for years to come.
Michael Echols, Ph.D., is vice president of strategic initiatives at Bellevue University and author of “ROI on Human Capital Investment.” He can be reached at mechols@clomedia.com.