A corporate college or university becomes a branch of a corporation. Its role is to offer in-house training and educational services in order to:

• protect proprietary processes
• expand exploration of the value of intellectual properties
  improve the corporate cultural message
• increase efficiencies with value chain members
• strengthen customer relations practices
• provide economies of scale for traditional training services needed by the whole company
• teach features and benefits to more employees and customers of new products and services faster

Most importantly, the corporate college allows an organization to quickly change educational practices as needed in a highly competitive environment when demands for swift dissemination of skills are made and where the shelf life of knowledge continues to shorten.

Such training provides the strategic alignment of human and physical plan resources with ever-changing business goals.

“Today, thousands of corporate universities are up and running, with many mid-sized companies joining the major corporate players of America in devising an educational system as a major function within the business,” says Donna Goss, Co-Director of the Leadership Development Institute.

A well-thought out corporate college will take 1-2 years to put into action. Funding streams have to be identified to fuel it, and these can be charge-backs, state funds, grants and fees for services to business partners. An educational leader who has management skill must be recruited as director and a business plan written and supported with specific goals relevant to the corporation's future growth strategies.

There is a basic process to undergo to found and fund a corporate college. If you would like to explore the possibilities for your organization, please contact the Leadership Development Institute at ksarianos@northampton.edu or 610-861-5590 for more information.

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