By BRITTANY KHOO

THE new managers and entrepreneurs in today's dynamic economy need to be well-rounded and have to know every facet of their business, says NUS Extension's director James Tay.

'As information moves at an ever-increasing speed and businesses are affected by multiple variables, entrepreneurs have to be able to react to and understand a lot more about their situation,' says Mr Tay. 'It is, therefore, essential that they stay updated and relevant.'

This is where NUS Extension comes into the picture, taking excellence in higher education and offering it to industry. As part of its mission to promote life-long education, NUS Extension offers courses on four platforms - Professional and Management, Enterprise Leadership, Entrepreneurship Development, and Personal Enrichment - to engage and stimulate continuous learning.

The courses and programmes are carefully mapped out to span the whole perspective of a professional's career path.

But is education relevant for corporations, and especially small firms, in the current downturn, when the main concern is to stay afloat?

'Of course, one cannot take one's eyes off the business, whether in a good or bad economic situation,' says Mr Tay. 'Entrepreneurs and senior management have to restrategise and reposition their business and make tough decisions where necessary.

'But once these decisions have been made and put in place, the next best thing to do is to focus on the life blood of the business - which is the people you have. The quality of staff is the thing that makes the difference in these times - such as their productivity, attitude and ability to handle more with less.'

He reckons that taking advantage of the slowdown to train and invest in staff is the way to go, because it will prepare them once business begins to turn around. 'In the long term, it comes back to benefit you,' he explains.

As for entrepreneurs and senior management, they too should take a long-term perspective and pursue self-improvement and advancement, he says.

'Learning is about staying relevant - learning about tested concepts, framework processes and acquiring the tools to help you manage or run the business,' he points out. 'It is about learning from the accumulated experiences of others.'

As supporting partner of the Emerging Enterprise Awards, jointly presented by The Business Times and OCBC Bank, NUS Extension sponsors an education grant of $30,000 per winner to facilitate the training and upgrading of staff.

But when course fees have to be paid, can entrepreneurs can spare the money for education programmes?

'The important thing about pricing is that it is closely related to learning outcome,' says Mr Tay. 'In interviews with people who trained with us, most feel that if the learning outcome justifies the course fees, then cost is not an issue.'

As for the other opportunity cost, time, he says most workshops run for only two or three days, and the maximum duration for Entrepreneurship Programmes - conducted by renowned overseas trainers - is a week.

And while management and language programmes may last up to a year, actual training is concentrated in short blocks of weeks interspersed throughout the calendar.

Mr Tay also says NUS Extension regularly reviews its courses to suit changing times so that they remain relevant for business.

'We review our programme offerings every six months to introduce an update of curriculum so that it is in line with the mix of industries and business environment,' he says.

'Given the current economic situation, we are focused on supporting government initiatives in the area of professional workforce education - training for SMEs, entrepreneurship and more customised programmes that fit the companies' needs.

'In fact, we have submitted some programmes we are running for SPUR's approval', referring to the Skills Programme for Upgrading and Resilience.

On a broader note, Mr Tay says the main challenges for NUS Extension are to move forward in a fast-changing environment and to continue to provide the right programmes by working with government organisations and being in touch with global learning communities. This will ensure that NUS Extension can deliver the best learning outcomes.

He encourages anyone considering lifelong learning to think about how continuous education plays a bigger role in the community than merely economic development - it enhances self-esteem and the quality of life.

'If people earn, they can upgrade themselves and become more capable of assuming higher roles and responsibilities,' Mr Tay says. 'The quality of their life is affected in this way.

'People are ultimately the lifeblood of any business, and investing in them will ensure there are many returns if they perform or help the company to be successful. That's my take on it.'

This article was first published in The Business Times.