Professional Development

As Goodwill strives for continuous improvement in all its work, we also encourage employees to seek professional development opportunities so they can continuously improve their work and our mission.

Goodwill offers the following professional development and educational opportunities to employees:

• Professional development: Employees are encouraged to seek out seminars or classes that will further their professional development.
  
  
• Strategic Leaders: Goodwill Industries and the Indiana University School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis offer a graduate certificate program tailored to meet the emerging leadership needs of Goodwill now and in the future. These emerging leaders explore new models by which to lead a growing organization through its dynamic environment. The formal graduate certificate program is designed to enhance the knowledge within the next generation of Goodwill leaders.
  
  
• Management Leadership Series: Goodwill’s Management Development consists of a series of learning experiences developed in-house for Goodwill’s Retail and Commercial Services entry level managerial talent pool and is available for any new or existing manager/supervisor who wants to improve his/her performance. The objectives of the series focus on enhancing employability skills, developing business leaders into well-rounded professionals, and providing internal networking opportunities to bridge the organizational gap between the Retail and the Commercial Services Division. The learning experience includes the following modules: basic computer skills, basic business skills, social entrepreneurship, human resources management, financials and process management.
  
  
• Talent Development Center: Goodwill’s Talent Development Center consists of an internal assessment center to support Goodwill Retail employees in creating and completing customized development plans to contribute to their career goals. The process initiates with feedback from the individual’s manager and a behavioral-based interview conducted by the Talent Strategy Team. Further, and after the interview feedback is shared with the employee, a customized development plan is created, which may include different experiences, trainings and/or coaching sessions.
  
  
• Getting Ahead helps employees in Goodwill’s Retail Division create a plan for prosperity to advance within Goodwill or move on to a higher-paying job with another employer. The goal of Getting Ahead is to help employees build the necessary resources for them to create stable, secure lives for themselves and their families.
  
  
• Good Assets is a financial education program for employees in Goodwill’s Retail Division that is intended to help individuals evaluate their personal financial situation. The program links employees to resources and develops behaviors that will help to stabilize their finances. Good Assets includes a mix of group classroom education and individual coaching.