About online professional development:

Online learning is a fun, enjoyable and very productive way to learn. Millions of people are learning online each year. You will engage with and get to know the instructor and other participants. It’s easy, and fun!

For a full listing of courses, visit our course directory.

How the courses work:

It is easy to participate in your LERN online course. After you register, you will be given a web address to access your online classroom. You will use your email address and a password to gain access.

Participate when you want:

You can participate any time of day or evening. The online classroom is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There are no live real-time requirements or meetings. You decide when you want to participate. For the best learning, participants should log into the course on 2-3 different days of the week. For best learning, you should make one or more comments at 2-3 different times each day.

What you will do:

• Access the online readings.
• Listen to the audio presentation for the unit and view slides.
• Take a self-quiz to see how much you have learned.
• Engage in written online discussion with your instructor and other participants.

The content (readings, audio lectures, slides) and self quizzes are accessible for the entire course, so you can work ahead, or go back and review again at your convenience.

Discussion:

The discussion for each unit lasts one week. All comments are made in writing and can be made at any time of the day or evening. Your instructor will log into the discussion area at least once a day and answer questions, make comments, and respond to comments by you and the other participants. We encourage you to make 2-3 comments each day to maximize your learning and enjoyment of the course.

Explore noncredit certificate and noncredit course listings below.

You may enroll up to five days after the start date.

Business

• The Basics of Bookkeeping

  Read more about The Basics of Bookkeeping

  How do you keep track of the day-to-day financial transactions of a business?  Whether you are looking to advance in your career, or you’re an entrepreneur, (or maybe you are a part of a family business), this course will help you if you are looking to understand the numbers. The Basics of Bookkeeping course will help you understand, and know how to record, every penny that comes into your business and every penny that goes out of your business. This course shows you how to create a chart of accounts that meet your needs. All of the money you spend, and all of the money you earn, have a place to go. How do your record them? What are debits and credits? What do the numbers mean?  How do I label accounts? Even if you outsource your bookkeeping needs, you should still have a basic understanding of what happens with the money earned and the money spent. No one should be blind to their finances! In this course, you will learn where the numbers go, and why! You will learn the bookkeeping terminology, as well as what it means to keep track of the numbers. At the end of the cycle, what do the numbers mean? The Basics of Bookkeeping will show you how to keep track of the numbers and why!

• Bookkeeping Certificate

  Read more about the Bookkeeping Certificate

  How do you manage the finances of a business? Whether you are an entrepreneur, running a family business, or just looking to advance your career and add to your skill set, this Bookkeeping Certificate will provide you with the knowledge needed to measure, and manage, the financial health of your business. This program focuses on cash basis accounting.
  
  No one will care more about the financial health of your business than you! It’s imperative that you understand how the process works and are able to complete the accounting cycle accurately and in a timely fashion. Even if you plan to outsource your bookkeeping needs, you should still understand how the process works. No one should be clueless when it comes to the finances of their business. Includes Understanding Debits and Credits, General Ledger and Month End Procedures, and Closing Procedures and Financial Statements. The Bookkeeping Certificate courses must be taken in that order (the classes build off of each other).

• Understanding Debits and Credits

  Read more about Understanding Debits and Credits

  In this course, you will learn about the accounting equation and the five categories involved in every business (Assets, Liabilities, Owner’s Equity, Revenue and Expenses). Every financial transaction falls into one or more of these categories. Learn how to create a chart of accounts that meet the needs of your business. You will learn how double entry bookkeeping works and the process of recording debits and credits. This course will show you how to identify, analyze and record transactions using journal entries under the cash basis accounting method.

• General Ledger and Month End Procedures

  Read more about General Ledger and Month End Procedures

  In this course, you will learn how to post journal entries to the correct general ledger accounts impacted by each transaction. This course will show you how to make sure your general ledger balances at the end of each month by preparing an unadjusted trial balance. You will learn how to look for errors when you don’t balance, and how to determine to correct entries. After posting correcting entries and/or adjusting entries, you will verify debits and credits equal, with an adjusted trial balance. This course also goes through the steps of performing monthly bank reconciliations.

• Closing Procedures and Financial Statements

  Read more about Closing Procedures and Financial Statements

  This course shows you how to create a worksheet used to adjust the account balances and prepare the financial statements. Use your financial statements to measure performance, make improvements and set goals. The final step covered in this course is closing your books and preparing them for the next accounting period; this is done by journalizing and posting closing entries.

• Certificate in Accounting and Finance for Non-Financial Managers

  Read more about the Certificate in Accounting and Finance for Non-Financial Managers

  Every successful person in the workplace utilizes financial information to aid effective decision making. The Certificate in Accounting and Finance for Non-Financial Managers explains the financial concepts and accounting processes used in most businesses and will provide practical techniques that will increase your effectiveness and career.

  Includes Accounting and Finance for Non-Financial Managers, Cash is King, and Financial Analysis and planning for Non-Financial Managers

• Accounting and Finance for Non-Financial Managers

  Read more about Accounting and Finance for Non-Financial Managers

  Every successful person in the workplace utilizes financial information to aid effective decision making. Accounting and Finance for Non-Financial Managers explain the financial concepts and accounting processes used in most businesses and will provide practical techniques that will increase your effectiveness and career. Get a foundation to understand the seven steps in the accounting cycle and use financial information in decision making. Come away with the knowledge to analyze resource allocation and evaluate financial performance.

• Cash is King

  Read more about Cash is King

  Cash is arguably the most important factor in business success. D&B reports 90% of all small business failures are due to poor cash flow—more money gets paid out than collected. It is the non-financial manager who really makes a difference in the day-to-day cash activities. Discover how to maximize cash flow, learn the importance of cash and find out your role in cash flow success.

• Financial Analysis and planning for Non-Financial Managers

  Read more about Financial Analysis and planning for Non-Financial Managers

  With the demands of daily operations, non-financial managers may put financial reports on the shelf. But take a look at some of the most admired companies like Apple, Google, and Berkshire Hathaway. Sure, they are evaluated by their products, innovation, and culture but they would not be in the limelight without profits. Money matters! This course will help you build on your understanding of financial concepts and help you establish your role in the financial success of your organization. Designed for non-financial managers, business owners, entrepreneurs, and other decision-makers, this advanced course will take the mystery out of money matters. Throughout this course, financial information that drives your organization, as seen on the business’s reports, will be assessed and analyzed to understand it. An understanding of this information will help you make smart decisions when it comes to budgeting, setting goals, and assessing performance within your own area of influence.

• Entrepreneurship Certificate

  Read more about the Entrepreneurship Certificate

  Boost your chances of success for your new or small business and reduce your risks. Get the latest on planning your business, brainstorming business ideas and a checklist for going into business. Then learn how to create a business plan, including assessing business feasibility and prepare the management and financial plans. Then take home a step by step approach to attract and keep customers, with an emphasis on customer-driven marketing decisions and building a strong brand. At the end of this certificate, you will be able to identify the abilities required of successful entrepreneurs and how to acquire them, develop goals to help establish your business, develop an outline for your plan, and take home techniques to successfully manage and market your new business.

  Includes Entrepreneur Boot Camp, The Business Plan, and Entrepreneurial Marketing

• Entrepreneur Boot Camp

  Read more about the Entrepreneur Boot Camp

  Starting a business is something that all of us have thought about at one time or another. Everyone wants to be their own boss. Yet statistics show that most businesses fail within the first five years. This course provides insight into the characteristics, knowledge and skills needed to become a successful entrepreneur. At the end of this course, you will be able to identify the abilities required of successful entrepreneurs and how to acquire them, develop goals to help establish your business, develop an outline for your plan, and take home techniques to successfully manage your new business.

• The Business Plan

  Read more about The Business Plan

  Whether starting a business or growing the one you have, a business plan serves as a roadmap and can help secure needed funding. In this course, you evaluate the many aspects and potential hurdles of the business and build the Business Plan, one step at a time. This practical, hands-on approach encourages you to immerse yourself in the vision and planning aspects of your business. Focusing on the most critical components of the Business Plan enables you to uncover hidden risks and assess the business from a marketing, management, and financial vantage point.

• Entrepreneurial Marketing

  Read more about Entrepreneurial Marketing

  To succeed in today's marketplace, entrepreneurs must know how to effectively market their product or service. This course offers you a step by step approach to attract and keep customers, all within a realistic budget. With an emphasis on customer-driven marketing decisions, you will learn how to build a strong brand, analyze which tactics to use, and implement your marketing plan. Whether you are starting a business or growing an existing one, you will take away practical marketing tips and tools that you can use to improve your marketing efforts.

Business Communication

• Certificate in Customer Service

  Read more about the Certificate in Customer Service

  Customer service is now essential for business and all work organizations. With the increase of technology, human interaction with customers becomes all the more important. Whether it relates to retaining customers, serving your audience, or turning inquiries from potential customers into sales, good customer service is now one of the central factors in organizational success. Learn to improve your customer service skills to enhance your career skill set, improve productivity, and increase your organization’s success. You will also take away some extraordinary customer service techniques you will not find anywhere else. Includes both Extraordinary Customer Service and Keys to Customer Service.

• Extraordinary Customer Service

  Read more about Extraordinary Customer Service

  Transform your customer service into something extraordinary. As a result, more repeat business will improve your bottom line. Customer service separates you from your competition. Extraordinary customer service comes from focusing on the few essential elements that yield big results. Discover how easy it is to tweak your customer service from the ordinary to the extraordinary. You will take away a customer service plan that will help you focus on the key elements that will get you started on your pathway to success.

• Keys to Customer Service

  Read more about Keys to Customer Service

  Learning to build your customer service skills will have a powerful impact on your career success as well as success in other areas of your life.  Through this course, you will discover the direct relationship between service skills and career achievement.  You will become skilled at being an exceptional service provider.  You can help your organization and your career by translating your good service intentions into a workable plan and gain knowledge of ways to consistently deliver great service.  The payoff is enormous. 

• Certificate in Business Writing

  Read more about the Certificate in Business Writing

  Discover the keys to successful writing for the workplace. Whether you are writing a report, memo, letter or publicity notice, business writing has some defined characteristics for success. Successful communicators in the workplace move forward, others move back. Enhance your career by improving this critical communication skill. Begin with understanding the format, construction, and successful techniques of writing good business reports and proposals. Then improve your skills with editing and proofreading. Finally, discover what good journalists know. Learn how to write a news story, press release or other publicity notice that zings. Help your organization stand out with your new skills in business writing. This certificate will take you to the next level where business writing is a skill for personal and organizational success.

  Includes Business Writing, Effective Copywriting, and Writing News and Press Releases

• Business Writing

  Read more about Business Writing

  Take away the key practices you need to develop and hone your business writing communication effectively and successfully. Get the best practices for crafting effective, professional business documents. Find out how to avoid grammatical pitfalls and acquire business writing principles that will be good for years to come.

• Effective Copywriting

  Read more about Effective Copywriting

  Whether you are sending out a press release, communicating internally with a memo or promoting your own skills on LinkedIn, strong writing skills are the key to success. Come away with the tools and techniques you need to improve your copywriting skills and learn how to avoid the common writing mistakes that can hold you back.

• Writing News and Press Releases

  Read more about Writing and News and Press Releases

  Being able to write a good news story, press release or publicity notice is a skill that can set you apart in the workplace. Getting the word out is an essential activity for every organization. Acquire the skills good journalists have and learn how to craft a news story, press release or publicity notice that will get attention.

• Certificate in Workplace Communication

  Read more about the Certificate in Workplace Communication

  Good communication in the workplace is more important than ever and critical to your career advancement and success. Come get a comprehensive and intensive preparation with skills and techniques you can put to use on Monday morning. Take back a workable conflict management model, along with successful and practical conflict management strategies. Then work with a pro to learn how to improve your negotiation skills for a win-win outcome, including helping others to get what they want, so you get what you want. Finally, find out more about yourself and others using personality profiles for better work performance. You will be learning from some of our more popular instructors, and taking away new how-to skills that work.

  Includes Conflict Management, Negotiation: Get What You Want, and Using Personality Profiles for Better Work Performance

• Conflict Management

  Read more about Conflict Management

  A recent study conducted by the American Management Association (AMA) revealed that the average manager spends more than 20 percent of their day engaged in or reacting to a conflict situation. This study also identified that out of twenty-five management skills, conflict management was the only one positively correlated to higher earnings and promotion. Discover a workable conflict management model, discuss case studies in conflict management, and then take away successful conflict management strategies to apply in your workplace.

• Negotiation: Get What You Want

  Read more about Negotiation: Get What You Want

  Negotiation is a key skill for success in business and everyday life. Knowing strategies to clarify what you want and how to prioritize needs will ensure you get more of what’s essential. Having the skills to help others get what they want will improve relationships and increase your odds of success in the future. Work with a pro to learn how to plan, implement and win in the bargaining process. Save time, grow your business network and gain confidence when dealing with even the shrewdest of deal-makers. Invest in these skills now and reap a lifetime of rewards.

• Using Personality Profiles for Better Work Performance

  Read more about Using Personality Profiles for Better Work Performance

  Understanding yourself and others will increase your overall effectiveness at work, home, and in all of your relationships. Learn how to improve your communication with others, convey your ideas effectively, and improve your ability to understand what is important to those who don’t share your same style. Course fee includes your own DiSC Behavioral Personality Profile assessment and review.

Data Science

• Certificate in Data Analysis

  Read more about the Certificate in Data Analysis

  Data analysis is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after skills in the workplace. Companies have vast amounts of data, but it is rare to have someone with the ability to analyze that data to see trends and make predictions. Add a whole new skill set to your portfolio, and make a big difference in the success of your organization by acquiring data analysis skills.
  
  Begin with getting a basic understanding of how to analyze data in a business setting. Then learn how many of your business decisions involve comparing groups for differences. You will know the statistics behind these group differences and relationships. Finally you will find out how to perform inquiries that will be useful to your business or organization, and have the skills necessary to communicate these results through graphs and text that your fellow employees will understand. Whether your business is home based or a large company, this certificate will take you to the next level where important decision-making is concerned.
  
  Students need to have access to Microsoft Excel to complete this certificate.
  
  This certificate must be taken in the following order: Introduction to Data Analysis, Intermediate Data Analysis, and Advanced Data Analysis.

• Introduction to Data Analysis

  Read more about Introduction to Data Analysis

  Data analysis is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after skills in the workplace. Companies have vast amounts of data, but it is rare to have someone with the ability to analyze that data to see trends and make predictions. This course will give you a basic understanding of how to analyze data in a business setting. Businesses look for candidates with an understanding of how to analyze the data they have been collecting; this course will help you start on that journey.

  Students need to have access to Microsoft Excel to complete this course.

• Intermediate Data Analysis

  Read more about Intermediate Data Analysis

  Many of your business decisions involve comparing groups for differences. For example, would men and women prefer different product features? In addition, you may look at relationships between variables. Does product recognition relate to subsequent product purchase? This Intermediate Data Analysis course will introduce you to the statistics behind these group differences and relationships. In addition, you’ll learn how to work with ratings, graphs and user-friendly reports of statistical results.

  Students need to have access to Microsoft Excel to complete this course.

• Advanced Data Analysis

  Read more about Advanced Data Analysis

  After taking this advanced course in data analysis, you will be able to perform inquiries that will be useful to your business or organization and have the skills necessary to communicate these results through graphs and text that your fellow employees will understand. Take the guesswork out of important company decisions and make decisions based on the statistically significant information. Whether your business is home-based or a large company, this class will take you to the next level where important decision-making is concerned.

  Students need to have access to Microsoft Excel to complete this course.

• Certificate in Mastering Excel

  Read more about the Certificate in Mastering Excel

  A must-have skill to succeed in business, whether an entrepreneur or a valued employee, is the ability to create, edit and manage spreadsheets. Microsoft Excel is the most used spreadsheet tool in the world.
  
  Begin with learning how an Excel worksheet is constructed, populated with content, and edited for delivery. Discover how various menu items, commands, settings and processes affects the look of your Excel worksheets and workbooks.
  
  Then, increase your efficiency by learning how to organize, display and calculate your data into useful information. Identify different types of data and how data can be best visually represented or formatted, by using different data tool techniques.
  
  Finally, you’ll learn a variety of Excel’s most powerful features to analyze data quickly and easily. This Certificate will help you discover how to attractively visualize your data into meaningful information with confidence. Includes Mastering Microsoft Excel, Intermediate Excel, and Advanced Excel.

• Mastering Microsoft Excel

  Read more about Mastering Microsoft Excel

  A must-have skill to succeed in business, whether an entrepreneur or a valued employee, is the ability to create, edit and manage spreadsheets. Microsoft Excel is the most used spreadsheet tool in the world. Stay current with this class, as it is always up-to-date and will change as the features of Excel change over time. Examine the life of an Excel worksheet and workbook, from creation to presentation. Learn how an Excel worksheet is constructed, populated with content, and edited for delivery. Master the options that can take your Excel worksheet from plain, drab numbers to exciting and engaging multimedia. You will leave class with a set of skills that are in high demand and will be a deciding factor in your future success.

• Intermediate Excel

  Read more about Intermediate Excel

  Have you ever wondered why Excel is one of the most powerful applications used today by many businesses? Excel is one of the most important applications that you can study now to take your skills to the next level!
  
  This course will help you increase your efficiency by learning how to organize, display and calculate your data into useful information. Find out how you can consolidate your data proficiently into readable rows and columns using different table designs and styles. Create a unique style for yourself to improve your spreadsheet appearance to make the content easier to understand for your target audience. Learn from the trainer on how beneficial it is to become more productive in generating different everyday business functions. Discover how easily pivot tables can be created to quickly summarize large amounts of data. Through this course, these tasks will make your work outstanding and unique in what you do.

• Advanced Excel

  Read more about Advanced Excel

  We are faced with different types of business decisions each day that can change the data we work with, along with our financial outcomes. Have you ever wondered what type of workplace skills you can learn to make wiser decisions? Learning Advanced Excel contains these tools that can help you prepare your worksheets accurately, examine your data for authentication, and then find the answers to your most difficult questions. This course will help you learn these required business functions along with the tools required to analyze data efficiently within the workplace. Save time for yourself by protecting your valuable data, and know with assurance that the entered data is accurate without any errors. By completing the course, discover how to attractively visualize your data into meaningful information with confidence.

• Power BI Certificate

  Read more about the Power BI Certificate

  Gain insights into your data using business intelligence software – Power Business Intelligence. Power BI is a widely used business analytics service offered by Microsoft. Power BI Desktop is a complete data analysis and report creation tool that you install for free. Discover the process of creating interactive reports. Integrate financial, marketing, or any other source data in your accounting system, Excel, or on the Web. Streamline the data to what is needed using Power Query. Create charts, maps, and other visuals to see your data in real time. Delve further into Power Query to ETL (Extract, Transform and Load) your data. Build the Data Model using relationships and DAX (Data Analysis Expressions). Utilize Time Intelligence functions to view YoY or YTD reports. Add user friendly features to enhance your reports and analyze your results. This certificate will enhance your skills in data analysis, giving you greater insight into your organization’s performance and allowing you to make more informed decisions.

  This certificate must be taken in the following order: Introduction to Power BI, Intermediate Power BI, and Advanced Power BI.

• Introduction to Power BI

  Read more about Introduction to Power BI

  Gain insights into your data! Power BI (business intelligence) is a widely used business analytics service offered by Microsoft. Power BI Desktop is a complete data analysis and report creation tool that you install for free. In this course, you will discover how to quickly extract, transform, and load data with just a few clicks. You will create interactive visualizations (charts, maps, KPIs) to provide you with insights into your company’s data to make informed decisions.

• Intermediate Power BI

  Read more about Intermediate Power BI

  Delve further into Power Query to ETL (Extract, Transform and Load) your data. Build the Data Model using modeling features and relationships. Perform calculations using DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) functions. Utilize Time Intelligence functions to view YoY or YTD reports. Add user friendly features to enhance your reports.

• Advanced Power BI

  Read more about Advanced Power BI

  Expand your knowledge of Power BI Desktop to the highest level. This course focuses on the advanced capabilities of Power Query, Data Modeling and Reports. Check for data inconsistencies, design efficient queries, create proper relationships, and write DAX code to ensure reports update quickly and accurately. Add navigation and analytical features to your reports to enable consumers to analyze the results.

• Statistics for Decision Making Certificate (New this fall!)
  

  Read more about the Statistics for Decision Making Certificate

  Improve your decision making success with an advanced practical how-to process for gathering statistics. Help your organization design effective surveys to improve business and workplace effectiveness, and then road test evaluation research for your organization. You won’t be disappointed! Finally, discover the features of action research and how it can be directly applied to answer questions and solve problems in collaboration with others in your specific professional context. Come away with the ability to develop an action research plan to partner with your key stakeholders to collect data, analyze data, and make better decisions.
  
  This certificate must be taken in the following order: Statistics for Decisions Using Surveys, Evaluation Research, and Action Research.

• Statistics for Decisions Using Surveys

  Read more about Statistics for Decisions Using Surveys

  Improve your ability to develop and deliver statistics for decision making by improving your skills in conducting reliable surveys, and help your organization design effective surveys to improve business and workplace effectiveness. You will also learn how to enter your results into Excel and how to present and explain those results.

• Evaluation Research

  Read more about Evaluation Research

  Road test evaluation research for your organization. You won’t be disappointed! Evaluation research can give you and your organization a systematic assessment of the value of resources and time you commit to a project, product, or specific goal. Evaluation research can determine whether or not a process has achieved a goal or yielded the desired results. Get introduced to the characteristics of evaluation research and how it can be directly applied to assess the impact or effectiveness of a program, policy, or procedure you want to road test in a professional setting.

• Action Research

  Read more about Action Research

  Action research is a form of investigation designed to attempt to solve problems and improve professional practices. It involves systematic observations and data collection, which can then be used by the practitioner-researcher in reflection and decision-making. Discover the features of action research and how it can be directly applied to answer questions and solve problems in collaboration with others in your specific professional context. Come away with the ability to develop an action research plan to partner with your key stakeholders to collect data, analyze data, and determine findings to address this curiosity or solve the problem.

Management

• Managing Remote Workers Certificate

  Read more about the Managing Remote Workers Certificate

  Discover the keys to communicating with and managing remote workers, one of the fastest growing sectors of the workforce.  
   
  Some 80% of employers are keeping some or many of their employees working from home part of the week. People working from home are 25% more productive than those who work in an office. Working from home is here to stay.
   
  Tap into the experience of a CEO who has been managing remote workers for 22 years, and has consulted with organizations around North America on managing remote workers. He has pioneered the fundamental processes and procedures you won’t get anywhere else. Includes both Remote Working and Communicating and Managing Remote Workers.

• Remote Working and Communicating

  Read more about Remote Working and Communicating

  Working remotely does not make you an expert on remote work.
   
  Gain new insights, experiences and advanced tips for working from home. Find out the five bad habits too many remote workers and their managers acquire from lack of experience, tools and expertise, and then acquire the latest strategies for communicating with remote workers.
   
  Come away with a deeper understanding of this enormous cultural and work shift going on in the workplace and in society.

• Managing Remote Workers

  Read more about Managing Remote Workers

  You cannot manage remote workers like you manage office workers, but you can manage remote workers better, with greater productivity and efficiency. Discover the keys to successful managing in the new workplace of the 21st century.  
   
  Get a step-by-step practical guide you won’t get anywhere else. Employees and employers both like the new system. You’ll want to apply these practices to your office workers as well.

• Supervisory and Leadership Certificate

  Read more about the Supervisory and Leadership Certificate

  Your employees are your most valuable resources. Ensuring the efficiency of your team is the key to your success and is your most important responsibility. Get practical, easy to understand, and insightful methods for new and even experienced supervisors and managers.
  
  Learn about effective delegation, performance management, and writing performance reviews. Discuss the specifics of the supervisor's role and responsibilities, and strategies for improving your overall effectiveness as a leader. Take home practical information along with tips and techniques that can be applied at your job immediately.

• Management Certificate

  Read more about the Management Certificate

  Enhance your management skills through this program for supervisors, managers, and emerging leaders. Nothing creates success like a solid foundation. Discover the keys for effectively managing your employees. Find out how to create clear expectations, engage and motivate employees, and increase your effectiveness.Then you will explore the principles of collaborative management and gain insight on how to expand your collaborative skills for success of your team or organization. Finally, get the keys to manage different generations in your workplace. Discover what motivates each generation at work, what incentives they respond to, and what messages they value.

  Includes Management Boot Camp, Collaborative Management, and Managing Generations in the Workplace

• Management Boot Camp

  Read more about the Management Boot Camp

  Enhance your management skills through this course for supervisors, managers, and emerging leaders. Nothing creates success like a solid foundation. Discover the keys for effectively managing your employees. Find out how to create clear expectations, engage and motivate employees, and increase your effectiveness through use of the DiSC personality profile (included). By the end of the course we will have you managing like a pro - quickly and with confidence.

• Collaborative Management

  Read more about Collaborative Management

  Whether you manage or lead people, collaborative skills are essential to help harness the energy of groups and teams for maximum performance and productivity. Knowledge of collaborative skills will enable you to gain participation quickly, get input and buy-in for building consensus and plan for cooperation to get crucial projects completed. This course will help you explore the principles of collaborative management and gain insight on how to expand your collaborative skills for success of your team or organization.

• Managing Generations in the Workplace

  Read more about Managing Generations in the Workplace

  Get an understanding of managing workers in different generations in the workplace. Discover what motivates each generation at work, what incentives they respond to, and what messages they value.
  Generations X and Y are significantly different than the Boomer generation. Each generation has different expectations and styles of work in the workplace. Come explore the characteristics of the different generations in the workplace. Discover the current motivations of Boomers, Gen Xers and Gen Yers and what messages they value. Then Identify practical, how-to tips and techniques for managing Boomers, Gen Xers, and Gen Yers in the workplace.

New Media Marketing

• Digital Marketing Certificate

  Read more about the Digital Marketing Certificate

  Come get a fundamental, yet advanced introduction to eMarketing, including improving email promotions, analyzing your website traffic, doing search engine optimization, and how to successfully employ online advertising.
  
  This course is relevant for any type of organization, including businesses, companies, non-profits, and government agencies. No eMarketing experience or expertise is necessary. If you are already at an advanced level, your instructors are experts and can provide the latest most advanced information and answer your toughest questions. Includes Improving Email Promotions, Boosting Your Website Traffic, and Online Advertising.
  

• Improving Email Promotions

  Read more about Improving Email Promotions

  Discover new ways to improve your email promotions, including when to email, what to email, and testing email copy. Then, find out how to analyze your email response rates, including getting the benchmarks for open rates and click-through rates. Learn how to improve your email promotion and responses with tracking and testing.
  
  Get a basic introduction to email promotions. If you are advanced, your instructor is an email expert and can answer your toughest questions.

• Boosting Your Website Traffic

  Read more about Boosting Your Website Traffic

  Acquire the basic skills to boost your website traffic, including how to analyze your visitor traffic, how to use search engine optimization to get greater visibility and exposure in Google searches, and how to redesign your website copy to increase your visitors and results.
     
  There is no experience necessary, but if you are at an advanced level, your instructor is an SEO expert and can answer your toughest questions.

• Online Advertising

  Read more about Online Advertising

  Get the keys to making online advertising work for you, and for your organization. See how pay-per-click advertising with Google AdWords works.  Find out how to test low budget AdWord campaigns. Learn how you can target local audiences. Then, discover Facebook advertising and how you can determine the demographics and even numbers of people you want to reach.
  
  There is no experience necessary, but if you are at an advanced level, your instructor is an online ad expert and can answer your toughest questions.

• Podcasting

  Read more about Podcasting

  Businesses are turning to podcasting to grow their brand and connect with customers. People with a niche hobby are turning podcasts into a business. Podcasting is experiencing a rebirth as mobile devices are everywhere. The intimate nature of the audio medium allows potential clients to get to know who you are and determine if you are the kind of company with which they want to do business. Learn how to take your business or hobby and turn it into a podcast. This step-by-step class will take you from start to finish and cover the required elements needed to get your show online. Come to class with your idea and end with your show online for all to hear.

Social Media for Business

• Social Media for Business Certificate

  Read more about the Social Media for Business Certificate

  Get in on this exciting and growing way to communicate, market and serve your customers and clients. This certificate is ideal for businesses, nonprofits, government, and other organizations. From Facebook to Twitter, blogging, YouTube, LinkedIn, and more, discover the new principles of communication that apply across all networks and how these specific social networks work and the possible uses for your organization.
  
  Learn how social networks are used to develop a two-way communication and marketing strategy for your organization, and then find out what you can be doing, what you should be doing, and take back a plan to integrate social networks into your communication and marketing.
  
  Whether you are new to social networks or already involved, you will come away with both an understanding of social networks and practical, how-to techniques to integrate social networks into your organization or business. Your instructors are outstanding practitioners who also speak, write, and train others on social networks.
  
  Introduction to Social Media must be taken before Marketing Using Social Media and Integrating Social Media in Your Organization.

• Introduction to Social Media

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  Get involved in the move from in-person to online communication. Learn what social media are and their role in your business and personal life. Find out the top sites and how businesses are using the sites for communication, customer retention, branding, marketing, market research, needs assessment and serving customers and clients. Explore the options for your organization, look at case studies of what other organizations are doing, and let your instructor guide your exploration of Facebook and YouTube. This course is ideal for anyone interested in social media.
  
  Your instructor is a nationally known speaker, consultant, and trainer on social networks and social media.

• Marketing Using Social Media

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  Develop a two-way communication and marketing strategy for your organization using social media. Let your instructor guide you in exploring major social media, including Twitter, LinkedIn, and blogging. Learn quick, easy ways to use Twitter, blogs, and LinkedIn to engage your customers or clients and keep them interested in your organization or business. You’ll find out the advantages and disadvantages of each, and learn what’s right for your work and kind of organization.

• Integrating Social Media in Your Organization

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  Take away a practical strategy and techniques for implementing a social strategy for your organization or business. Learn the top five considerations when starting a social network as well as tips to manage an online community. Discover how to create your own private social network using the Ning platform. Discuss the top tools to use to manage your social media life and build integration into your website. See how Google Docs and Calendars work and how to use online video to further your business goals. Hear about mobile check-in applications and how companies are using coupon and deal sites. Get your company listed properly on local search engines so more customers can find you. Discuss how web design has changed and get feedback on your website while discovering usability testing and user interface design. Finally, learn how to manage this influx of information created by the new media revolution. Develop a manageable workflow and get productivity tips to be more efficient. Learn what you might be doing wrong in social media as well as essential policies to have in place for your employees and company. See what trends are on the horizon and where your goals fit with those new trends.

Technology Skills

• Mastering Computer Skills for the Workplace

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  Must-have skills to succeed in the workplace include the ability to create, edit and manage presentations in MS PowerPoint, documents in MS Word, email and calendars in MS Outlook, and spreadsheets in MS Excel. Microsoft Office Suite of applications is the most used software tool in the world. Stay current with this class, as it is always up-to-date and will change as the features of MS Office change over time. Master the most common uses so that you can work faster and more efficiently and can take your computer skills from plain and drab to exciting and engaging. You will leave class with a set of skills that are a workplace requirement in today’s fast paced ever-changing environment and will enable your future career success.

• WordPress Certificate

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  WordPress is the most popular content management system (CMS) for website and blog design. During the first week, you will learn or refresh your knowledge of all of the initial steps and the required elements for having a website. Then find out how to build a simple WordPress website or blog. Topics include an introduction to CMS, WordPress installation and setup, page and content creation, administration, themes (selection, purchase, installation, and setup), working with widgets and plugins, and more.
  
  Finally, acquire advanced knowledge about WordPress options and features. You will learn how to modify WordPress web pages by hand-coding, learn about simple yet effective search engine optimization (SEO) techniques that improve your website ranking, and much more.
  
  After successfully completing the WordPress Certificate, you will know how to build a WordPress website or blog, customize your WordPress site by hand-coding HTML, CSS, and PHP, know necessary regular WordPress maintenance, create WordPress website backups, and know how to apply SEO techniques in WordPress.

You may cancel your registration up until you receive your login in and password from LERN and receive a full refund minus any credit card processing fees. After that date, no refunds will be given. Cancellations must be received by the program manager, Christina Draper, via email.

In the unlikely event that this program is canceled or postponed due to insufficient enrollments or unforeseen circumstances, VCU Continuing and Professional Education will fully refund registration fees, but cannot be held responsible for any other expenses, including change or cancellation charges to include but not limited to airlines, hotels, travel agencies, or other organizations.

VCU Continuing and Professional Education offers a variety of noncredit online courses and noncredit online certificates in partnership with The Learning Resources Network (LERN).

Some VCU Continuing and Professional Education offerings are ineligible for waiver use due to partnership agreements. The following text will appear on the registration page: “*exempt—this offering is ineligible for waiver use.”