Minnesota’s Professional Services Sector Gives State Competitive Advantage
Discover how Minnesota's burgeoning professional services sector accounts for more than 12 percent of all jobs in the state and includes legal and accounting services, architecture and engineering, human resources, and computer system design.
When it comes to attracting the world’s top companies, one of Minnesota’s more significant advantages is its rich supply of professional and business service providers. This growing sector of Minnesota’s economy accounts for more than 12 percent of all jobs and includes legal and accounting services, architecture and engineering, human resources, and computer system design – all the necessary resources to support relocating and expanding companies.
The state has 367,000 jobs in these sectors, paying an average wage of close to $65,000 a year.
To maintain that steady supply of support services, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU) – a network of 31 public colleges and universities with 54 campuses throughout the state – offers extensive continuing professional education programs.
“Individuals identify a learning need and can go to their local college or university and take non-credit classes in project management or Lean training or OSHA requirements that they might need for their job. We serve 150,000 people across the state that way every year,” says Mary Rothchild, MnSCU senior system director of workforce development.
The University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in areas such as accountancy, human resources, business taxation and analytics. The University also works with companies to provide training for employed professionals through its College of Continuing Education (CCE).
The CCE has opened doors for adults to continue their education for more than a century, says Brian Herman, vice president for research at the University of Minnesota.
“CCE is committed to helping organizations compete in a global economy, with a spectrum of educational options that help employees reach their full potential,” he says