Episode Transcript
[00:00:05] Speaker A: Welcome everybody to Moraine Park Technical College's Talent Talk podcast. I'm Kelly Karpinski, Business Development Manager in Economic and Workforce Development at mptc. Today my guest is Mindy Boynton. She is the Associate Dean of Customized Training in EWD and she'll be talking to us about micro credentials and digital badging. Mindy, welcome and thank you for joining us.
[00:00:32] Speaker B: Thanks for having me, Kelly.
[00:00:35] Speaker A: All right, well, let's start in and this is a tongue twister for me. What are micro credentials and digital badges? And also talk to us about how they differ from traditional credentials.
[00:00:49] Speaker B: Well, micro credentials are like bite sized learning nuggets. They're like mini courses. They focus on specific skills or competencies. Think of them like espresso shots of education. Small but potent learners can acquire these skills without committing to a full degree program. They're perfect for professionals seeking targeted up to date knowledge. When learners successfully complete a micro credential, they can receive a digital badge and as a visual representation of their achievement. So digital badges serve as a condensed version of a micro credential. They highlight specific skills acquired. These badges contain metadata, making them transparent and verifiable. Learners can showcase them on places like LinkedIn, in their email signatures and other social media platforms. Learners can earn them through formal education workshops, volunteering, or even for attending conferences and events. LinkedIn Learning is a great example of a micro credential. Credibly is another one. And we here at the college have workforce skills hub where we offer our own form of a digital badge for interpersonal skills and we attach them to some of our in person leadership skills offerings.
[00:02:33] Speaker A: Yes. That's great. So can you explain the significance of micro credentials in the context of workforce training that you just mentioned?
[00:02:43] Speaker B: So micro credentials have become increasingly significant in workforce training due to their flexibility, relevance and ability to quickly address the evolving needs of industries. At Moraine Park Technical College, we are leveraging digital badges to enhance our in person leadership training programs. They serve as a wraparound tool reinforcing the learning and ensuring that our participants can apply their new skills effectively and build upon the foundational knowledge that they've gained in the in person training sessions.
So I shared that we are offering our workforce skillshub digital badges. We are now offering these with some of our leadership programs such as Supervision 101, influential leadership leading Others, and we're in the process of adding this to our Managing the Performance of Others leadership program as we speak.
[00:03:40] Speaker A: All right, so how are these credentials transforming workforce development?
[00:03:50] Speaker B: Micro credentials are transforming workforce skills development by providing flexible, targeted and cost effective training solutions. They help bridge skills gaps, promote continuous learning and enhance employability, ultimately contributing to a more dynamic and adaptable workforce. Many of the employers in our district are increasingly focused on hiring based on specific skills rather than solely on academic credentials. You've probably heard a lot of employers that you work with talking about skills based hiring and micro credentials provide a clear and verifiable way to showcase these skills or develop these skills in a short time frame.
[00:04:37] Speaker A: That's, that is fantastic. So how do these tools empower the individuals compared to like a traditional training program?
[00:04:51] Speaker B: I'm not sure about traditional training programs because most of what we do is so customized and untraditional. But what I can say is that compared to a traditional degree program, micro credentials have unmatched flexibility. Whether you're aiming to gain expertise in PLCs or leadership skills, you can pick and choose the skills you need. When you need them, they are generally more affordable, relevant and accessible. They can be immediately applied in your job to start making an immediate impact.
[00:05:36] Speaker A: So can you share some success stories of companies or individuals you know who have been, who have benefited from digital badges?
[00:05:46] Speaker B: So like I said, we are still kind of piloting in the pilot phase of our digital badge programs. But what I can speak to is our PLC micro credentials which we have been offering for quite some time. We've been offering micro credentials in PLC, which are 18 hour one credit classes that companies are offering to their employees which have been delivering immediate results and return on investment.
[00:06:16] Speaker A: What future trends do you foresee in the realm of micro credentials and digital badges?
[00:06:23] Speaker B: The future of micro credentials and digital badges looks promising with seven several key trends. Emerging employers are increasingly adopting these credentials to efficiently fill skills gaps, making them a part of the hiring process.
While traditional education systems are integrating them into degree programs for more flexible learning paths, There's a growing focus on digital and soft skills driven by automation and digital transformation. The concept of lifelong learning is gaining traction with micro credentials supporting continuous upskilling and professional development strategies. Additionally, partnerships between educational institutions and employers are expected to rise. I know we're seeing that here at Moraine Park. Our year over year growth, our increasing investment in training and our increase in grants and workforce training is just through the roof. So the public private partnerships, the continuous growth and expected rise is no surprise for us here.
But also that is leading to industry specific credentials that align to these job market needs.
[00:07:41] Speaker A: So how can employers take advantage of these tools to enhance skill building?
[00:07:49] Speaker B: Employers can leverage micro credentials and digital badges to enhance skill building by offering targeted training programs that address specific skill gaps, integrating these credentials into professional development plans and partnering with educational institutions like Moraine park to create industry relevant programs and working with business development managers like Kelly Karpinski and Angie Gerlach.
[00:08:18] Speaker A: Yes, thank you very much. So employers, if you are listening and want to learn more about these digital badges and micro credentials, you can talk to your business development representative. So that is either me or Angie Gerlach in our office as well. So we welcome any of your questions.
[00:08:42] Speaker B: On those One more thing Kelly. I'd be remiss if I didn't share. I am very grateful for the opportunity. I will be co presenting at the Manufacturing First Expo on October 30 with Lakeshore Technical College.
So we'll also be speaking more on micro credentials and sharing some best practices and some case studies. So if you have the opportunity to come up to Green Bay and view our presentation there, it's another great opportunity to continue learning and we're excited for the opportunity to present there as well.
[00:09:18] Speaker A: Yes, and we will have a booth there as well so you can stop by and say hi. So again, that's the Manufacturing First Conference that's put on by Insight Magazine and numa, which is the Northeast Wisconsin Manufacturing Alliance. They'll be doing that October 30th at the Resch center in Green Bay. You can just bring up a search engine and plug that information in for all of the details to get the agenda of when Mindy and her cohort from Lakeshore will be presenting.
With that, I would like to thank Mindy for her time today.
We really appreciate it. So thank you very much Mindy and.
[00:10:00] Speaker B: Thank you for having me. Kelly Listeners, to make sure you are.
[00:10:04] Speaker A: Among the first to know about future Talent Talk podcasts and much more, subscribe to our newsletter. To do that, visit morainepark.edu newsletter that's morainepark.edu newsletter. That concludes today's Talent Talk podcast. Thank you for listening and have a wonderful day.
