Four Things Education Can Learn From Fortune 500 Companies

The world is ever-changing.  Today looks different from yesterday and the future is yet to be seen.  The way we think about work has also changed over the past 20 years.  Companies are offering perks to employees and rethinking motivation and productivity.  Communication is open worldwide and people can Skype with friends and family bringing them closer though miles apart.  Schools are using technology to bring the world into their classrooms, but is this enough?  What else do we need to do to keep up with the change?

I came across this infographic on some of the coolest perks offered by companies.  Imagine being in an environment each day that allows time off when you need it; free breakfast, lunch, dinner; health care and exercise classes on site; on site child care.  These are amazing perks, but they also come with a cost to the business.  I started thinking about motivation and why companies are making these changes.  What benefits do they see?

In January of this year Fortune released their list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For. The companies were ranked on their management credibility, overall job satisfaction and company camaraderie.*     AOL expanded upon this list and included perks from the top ten companies.  ** In order to increase their productivity and moral, companies are offering things from open gyms to open vacation.  Many of these companies offer benefits that focus on employee happiness, health, and family.  They focus on their workers to see moral increase and productivity rise.

So, do teachers stand up and demand on-sight gyms, open vacation plans for mental health days and a cap on weekly work hours?  While this would be fabulous (and well deserved) that’s not where this is going.  Here are four things we can learn from companies that should be part of your classroom.

1. DPR Construction”…allows its employees the freedom/resources available to always look for a better way to do something!”*

 Teachers must do this too. Classroom environments and teaching methods are changing to allow students to be in charge of their learning.  As educators we need to provide students with the resources, guidance, and then step back to allow them the freedom to find creative solutions to real world problems applying the knowledge from our standards and curriculum. To see the second thing we can learn from companies click here.