Hartford Business Journal

16 Hartford Business Journal • September 28, 2015 www.HartfordBusiness.com In-demand skills: risk management, business analytics By John Stearns jstearns@HartfordBusiness.com W hile an MBA is considered the high- er-education degree of choice for many Connecticut companies, there are other in-demand skill sets. Financial risk management, business ana- lytics, accounting, cyber security, and science, technology, engineering and math are among the areas of expertise sought by Connecticut employers, who are also looking for people with "soft" skills like the ability to communi- cate and think criti- cally, according to university educators. Jud Saviskas, executive director of risk management pro- grams at the Univer- sity of Connecticut's School of Business, underscored the demand in financial risk management, noting that about 160 students entered the master's degree pro- gram this fall. The first graduating class in 2011 numbered 23. "Clearly the demand is there," Saviskas said, adding UConn got input from senior executives at about 10 companies to craft the right pro- gram and has stayed true to their input, offering a real-world approach to risk- management theory. Driving demand was the Great Reces- sion and federal legislation that required companies to boost risk oversight, he said. Increasing cyber threats also has made risk management a top priority for employers. "Clearly, insurance companies, financial institutions — they're all affected by that," Saviskas said. While more than half of the master's degrees in financial risk management focus on finance, it's grown beyond that, he said. Big data is driving other areas in which Saviskas sees demand from employers. The financial risk management program deals with big-data analysis and many grads take jobs as data analysts, or financial or risk-man- agement analysts, he said. Connecticut employers also continue to seek people strong in science, technology, engineering and math, said Jill Ferrall, asso- ciate dean for career development at Quinni- piac University. Quinnipiac added business analytics to its list of graduate degree programs last fall, said Ferrall, add- ing that accounting remains in demand and is needed across all industries. In computer sci- ences, cyber securi- ty is huge, she said. Computer gaming and robotics are popular, too. Con- necticut employers also seek people skilled in biomet- rics, forensic scienc- es and nursing, she said. Ferrall also thinks international relations is up and coming. "The basis that I see is that employers want grads that have good math skills, good com- puter skills, good statistics skills and overall good communication skills, that's really what a business needs," Ferrall said. Martin Roth, dean of the Barney School of Business at the University of Hartford, said employers want the fastest return on investment they can get in employees. So the university has taken concentrations it offers in its MBA program — finance, busi- ness analytics and management — and offers them as post-graduate certificates, Roth said. "You can just come and take the set of courses that will enable you to gain the spe- cialized skills that you and your employer feel are the most valuable," Roth said. What's in demand? He sees interest in insurance and risk management, which are addressed by courses in the MBA program, plus business analytics and finance, he said. Financial skills remain key, with continued interest in accounting and taxation, he added. Soft skills key Roth said he is also seeing demand in man- agement in general, "just developing better busi- ness communication, teamwork, negotiation, conflict management and resolution skills — the kind of things revolving around being able to effectively manage people and teams within an organization." Those are some of the soft skills — com- munication, critical thinking, decision-making, innovation, entrepreneurship and negotiation — employers want, said Christa Sterling, direc- tor of continuing education at Central Connect- icut State University. She said compa- nies say they some- times struggle finding young workers who can be critical think- ers, who aren't afraid to make a mistake, and who can write well. In response, CCSU plans to offer more courses that helps close that skills-gap, including a hybrid-writing work- shop that includes in-class instruction and two to three months of online follow-up. "Folks get a lot of technical degrees and then they don't have those writing skills, so that should be really popular," she said. CCSU also is going to offer a social media digital boot camp certificate that Sterling expects will appeal to older workers. Bill Barnett, dean of graduate studies at Trinity College, also sees employers wanting people with certain soft skills that can be cul- tivated in a number of degree programs and other courses, which makes liberal arts and sciences relevant to employment, he said. Trinity, for example, sees attorneys taking graduate courses on American culture and history because they want to understand how the culture relates to their profession, Barnett said. Others might get a master's in English to improve their thinking and writing. Trinity's master's degree in public policy has attracted people from the healthcare sector and state regulatory agencies to learn how policy is made and implemented and to hone their own skills of analysis and presen- tation, Barnett said. n Jill Ferrall, associate dean for career development, Quinnipiac University Jud Saviskas, executive director of risk manage- ment programs, University of Connecticut's School of Business from page 11 Robert Corbett, director of regional projects and development for UConn, said he hopes the school's project swings that pendulum. "There's been a tremendous amount of effort over the last decade to two decades to really change the culture in Hartford," he said. "I think the university is hoping it's the tipping point that kind of gets the whole culture changed." Jason Rojas, chief of staff to Trinity's presi- dent and a state representative serving the 9th Assembly District, senses that momentum, too. Trinity bought the former Travelers Education Center at 200 Constitution Plaza and hopes to revive it by the end of next spring through its own use and by leasing out space, including for offices and retail. Trinity is still studying how it will use the building, but expects to use one or two floors of the five-story office tower. Rojas said he hopes college campus expansions help build connections between Hartford neighborhoods and downtown and build a stronger sense of city. "This is an opportunity to connect Albany Avenue to the University of Hartford, Broad Street to Trinity, Asylum Avenue to St. Joe's, particularly around transportation," he said. n UConn, Trinity growth The University of St. Joseph is looking for more space in downtown Hartford. FOCUS CONTINUING AND GRADUATE EDUCATION FOR PROFESSIONALS AND EXECUTIVES P H O T O | C O N T R I B U T E D ▶ ▶ Companies say they sometimes struggle finding young workers who can be critical thinkers. ! october is educate. educate. engage. engage. employ. employ.

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