CHOOSE FROM MULTIPLE LEARNING FORMATS to achieve your goals

Certificates

Earn a Cornell credential as you complete multiple courses.
  • 2 to 6 months
  • $2,000 to $10,000
  • Online

Courses

Learn in a small cohort, with graded assignments and opportunities for live sessions.
  • 2 to 4 weeks
  • $299 to $1,199
  • Online

Workshops

Develop AI skills and strategies in interactive sessions with Cornell faculty.
  • 3 hours
  • $449
  • Online

Degrees

Earn a professional master’s degree from Cornell University.
  • 15 to 24 months part-time
  • Tuition varies
  • Hybrid
Select a Human Resource Program that fits your goals
Explore and compare flexible learning opportunities from across Cornell’s portfolio of world-class Human Resource programs.
Certificates(20)
Courses(52)
Workshops(19)
Degrees(1)
Showing 20 of 20
Ask Sage

Becoming a Mediator: The Business Plan

Course
6 weeks
Online
Two of the hardest and most stressful events of a person's life can be starting a new career, and starting a business. For many aspiring mediators, including those of you interested in mediation, arbitration, and facilitation, these events will go hand in hand. Whether you've just graduated and are looking to enter the field, or you're a seasoned professional ready for a change, you'll need a solid plan for your path into this new career. This course was designed for you by Dick Fincher. Dick is a Cornell alumni, lawyer, neutral and managing partner of Workplace Resolution LLC. In the course, he shares his deep knowledge and experience in neutral work, and creating a successful business. As he shares his experience, he challenges you to leverage his advice into creating your own successful business. During this course you'll complete a project that includes the key components of a business plan, you'll then receive feedback on that project from a successful neutral already working. This work will set you up to successfully take next steps in your career that are appropriate to your unique interests and situation.
$699

Understanding Mass Incarceration and Fair-Chance Hiring

Course
2 weeks
Online
The approach to mass incarceration in the United States has created significant barriers to employment and societal reintegration for justice-impacted individuals. This complex issue requires human resources professionals to develop a deep understanding of how historical policies, systemic discrimination, and societal stigma have contributed to labor market exclusion. While many professionals have a basic grasp of the criminal justice system, a more comprehensive framework is needed to effectively address the intersecting challenges of employment access, racial disparities, and successful reintegration into society. In this course, you will examine the key factors that shape employment outcomes for justice-impacted individuals, including legal restrictions, collateral consequences, and discriminatory hiring practices. Through an exploration of labeling theory, person-centered language, and historical contexts, you'll develop critical analytical skills to evaluate systemic barriers and identify solutions. By understanding these interconnected issues, you'll be better prepared to support successful employment outcomes and broader societal reintegration for justice-impacted individuals.
$999

Onboarding for Success

Course
2 weeks
Online
In today's competitive job market, retaining top talent is more challenging than ever. High employee turnover not only disrupts team dynamics but also demands significant time and resources. A well-designed onboarding process, however, can reduce turnover, accelerate time to productivity, and strengthen long-term employee retention. Onboarding presents a strategic opportunity to align the early experiences of new hires with your organizational goals. A strong onboarding plan does more than teach employees how to perform their roles — it also fosters a sense of belonging, builds connections, and sets clear, measurable objectives that support both individual and organizational success. Drawing on extensive research, Professor JR Keller provides a science-based, practical approach to designing an effective onboarding experience. You will begin by exploring the four major domains of onboarding and their impact on employee engagement, job satisfaction, and organizational fit. From there, you will discover how to map specific tasks to milestones, build a structured plan that involves both new hires and their colleagues, and identify metrics to evaluate your plan's effectiveness. You will also explore emerging technologies that can support and enhance onboarding delivery. Whether you're an HR generalist, hiring manager, or member of a hiring committee, this course will equip you with the tools to transform onboarding from a routine checklist into a purposeful, results-driven program. By the end of the course, you'll be able to create a measurable onboarding plan that fosters early engagement, supports long-term success, and contributes to a positive and productive workplace culture.
$999

Effective Interviewing

Course
2 weeks
Online
Interviewing is one of the most challenging aspects of management, yet many leaders never receive formal training in this critical skill. Without proper guidance, we make hiring decisions based on gut feelings and casual conversations, lacking clear direction on what to look for, what questions to ask, or how to evaluate responses. The good news? There are proven, evidence-based approaches that can transform your interviewing effectiveness. In this course, Professor JR Keller draws on extensive research and real-world examples to provide a clear, three-step process for conducting interviews that enable candidates to shine while delivering reliable hiring decisions. Through practical frameworks and tools, you will design structured questions that predict job performance, create consistent evaluation methods, and implement proven interviewing techniques. The course demonstrates how to apply these principles to both in-person and remote hiring scenarios while minimizing the cognitive biases that often interfere with good decision making. Whether you're an experienced hiring manager or new to interviewing, this course equips you with concrete skills to make better hiring decisions while creating positive experiences for candidates. You will develop efficient systems for managing multiple interviews, setting candidates at ease and evaluating responses objectively. By the end of the course, you'll be prepared to transform your hiring process from conversation based to competency focused, leading to better hires and stronger teams.
$999

Neurodiversity at Work

Course
2 weeks
Online
It's estimated that approximately one in six people in the United States are now considered to be neurodivergent. Yet nearly 40% of neurodivergent adults are unemployed or underemployed compared to their age peers. Promisingly, in recent years, companies in technology and other industries have come to recognize neurodiverse individuals as a valuable workforce resource, and they have responded by actively recruiting this largely untapped talent pool. This course provides an overview of emerging Neurodiversity at Work employment programs and outlines the implications for HR policies and practices. Course topics include background information about autism and neurodiversity; models of effective recruitment, screening, and onboarding; supervisor training and support; best practices for career progression, advancement, and retention; and strategies for building a broad array of internal and external support systems.
$999

Business Strategy for HR Leaders

Course
2 weeks
Online
Can you describe your organization's approach to creating unique value for customers? What are the internal drivers that set your organization apart from competitors as you meet customer needs? In this course, you will examine why it's important for HR leaders to study an organization's unique value-creating strategy. You'll explore how an organization's investment in core competencies enables it to deliver value to customers, and you'll discover how to identify core competencies at your own organization. You'll also consider how your organization can work to support its core competencies. You'll review how other organizations build and support a value-creating strategy and determine how you might apply their practices to your organization. You'll investigate external trends that may impact the ongoing effectiveness of your strategy, and you'll delve into strategies to help identify growth opportunities for your organization.
$999

HR Strategy

Course
2 weeks
Online
Can you identify and address complex HR challenges to ensure your organization is fully achieving its desired outcomes? How do you guarantee that your employees have the right skills, abilities, motivation, and opportunities necessary to meet those objectives? Throughout this course, you will define what HR strategy is and what it looks like at different levels of an organization. You will examine how to identify key employee groups related to HR challenges then address those challenges using a systems approach. Through the use of tools like the Balanced Scorecard, you will discover how to communicate and justify your HR strategy to leaders and business partners.
$999

Building Diverse Talent Pools

Course
2 weeks
Online
Your talent pool represents all of the potential candidates you can hire for a job. As the first step of the hiring process, it is the first critical indicator of whether your hiring process is inclusive. A diverse talent pool is one that encompasses the many potential candidates on the market who could successfully apply for a particular role at your organization and mitigates areas of bias that often prevent marginalized candidates from joining and staying in the talent pool. Without a diverse talent pool, you cannot interview a diverse array of candidates and hire those candidates to create a more inclusive and representative workforce. By eliminating bias in the hiring process, your organization can build a diverse talent pool and create the foundation for inclusion, from recruitment all the way through to retention and success. In this course, you will establish what diversity and inclusion mean in relation to the hiring process and specifically how they connect to building diverse talent pools. You'll also evaluate your organization's sourcing methods for opportunities to establish more inclusive talent pipelines. You will then enhance your company's messaging to attract a diverse array of candidates and address sources of bias in the initial screening processes that your organization uses for early-stage job candidates. Finally, you'll explore different methods for measuring the effectiveness of your inclusion-based recruitment strategies. These methods will help you create an inclusion-centered approach to hiring that will broaden your talent pool and create more opportunities for your organization to hire candidates of marginalized identities and experiences. It is strongly encouraged for students to take this course first, unless they have a strong amount of hiring and DEI experience.
$1,199

Conducting Effective Employee Relations Conversations

Course
2 weeks
Online
Employee relations is an increasingly important role within the HR function. Maintaining positive employee relations helps boost morale, reduce conflict, and raise workforce productivity. In this course, you will develop an understanding of how to best facilitate relationships between an organization and its employees, employees and their managers, and employees and other employees. You'll be introduced to the Effective Employee Relations Conversations framework, which enables HR professionals to conduct effective conversations with team members at all levels of the organization. Throughout the course, you'll have an opportunity to apply key components of this framework by working through a variety of practice activities.
$1,199

Collective Bargaining Foundations

Course
2 weeks
Online
This course establishes a foundation in collective bargaining, with a focus on identifying and analyzing key aspects of a contract and how they relate to your role. You will gain insights into the bargaining process and what happens when negotiations break down. Those insights will prepare you to assess contracts and determine the requirements for administering its key components.
$1,199

Disability at Work

Course
2 weeks
Online
In this course, you will learn how to make a focus on disability an explicit part of your overarching business strategy. Starting with a broad overview of the role HR professionals play in addressing workplace disability issues, you will learn about important areas for proactive attention that contribute to people with disabilities thriving in the workplace and minimize disability discrimination across the employment process. You will discuss the importance of workplace and workforce participation for people with disabilities, employers, and the business case for aligning a focus on disability with a company's strategic human-capital, talent management, and customer-service imperatives. You will also dive into the implications of effective HR policies and practices in the recruitment and hiring process, career development and retention initiatives, and compensation and benefits programs. Finally, you will utilize metrics and analytics to measure progress on effective disability workplace policies and practices to realize the benefits of maximizing the participation of talented people with disabilities in your organization.
$999

Employment Law Mediator Training

Course
6 weeks
Online
This intensive training program equips participants with knowledge and skills essential for successful employment mediation. A comprehensive blend of substantive law and training in mediation process skills prepares participants to become qualified mediators for employment disputes. By the program's completion, you will be well prepared to become a qualified employment law mediator. The Employment Law Mediator Training program focuses first on employment law that is applicable to employment mediation, then on in-depth role-playing to help you learn and practice the skills to facilitate the process. Instruction is now available online for the one-month asynchronous knowledge building, followed by the synchronous five-day online training.
$2,195

Ethics in Mediation and Arbitration

Course
6 weeks
Online
Strong ethical awareness is an essential competency for mediators and arbitrators. Alternative Dispute Resolution is no longer a risk-free environment for mediators and other neutrals. As codes of conduct and grievance processes proliferate and second-guessing and litigation increase, you must become better aware of the variety of ethical dilemmas you will face. Ethics in Mediation and Arbitration improves your ethical awareness and develops your competency for addressing sticky ethical situations. In this course you'll gain the clarity about the ethics of neutral roles and practice techniques to apply in practice. Sarah Miller Espinosa, a skilled neutral and expert in ethics, will guide you as you explore complex and real situations and cases that present ethical challenges. This work will prepare you to act ethically in your work as a neutral.
$699

Essentials of HR Analytics

Course
2 weeks
Online
Analytical skills are becoming a crucial job requirement for HR as organizations strive to become more data-driven. Unfortunately, there is a shortage of analytical talent to meet this need. Less than 20% of companies identify as having a strong HR analytics function in their business, and over 75% of HR professionals reported difficulty recruiting for essential data analysis positions. To remain competitive, organizations need to rapidly upskill their HR talent. In this course, students will develop and sharpen HR analytics skills as they analyze and visualize data to inform recommendations and decisions. Drawing on his experience and research, John Hausknecht, Professor of HR Studies at Cornell's ILR School, guides students through key steps in identifying insights from HR data and analysis. Students will review HR data, identify key questions that drive the analytical process, and explore basic calculations for correlation and regression. Taking this a step further, students will mindfully interpret findings, looking beyond data as they take a holistic view of the situations they encounter. Through a course project, students will design a presentation and create visualizations of essential HR data to communicate findings to key decision makers. This course does not assume students have prior analytical training or knowledge, nor does it require access to current HR data or metrics. Using Excel and datasets provided, this program equips students with the concepts, tools, and language to start their journey in HR analytics.
$1,199

Aligning Employee Performance with Organizational Goals

Course
2 weeks
Online
Based on the research and expertise of John Hausknecht, Ph.D., you will evaluate the possibility of working with or without a system, identify the properties and benefits of different systems, and explore different approaches to performance management. Steps to mitigate risk will be outlined, common rating and feedback errors will be examined, and support in delivering feedback will be provided.
$999

Fostering a Coaching Culture

Course
2 weeks
Online
Besides technical and legal responsibilities within an organization, human resources staff have a moral responsibility to the individuals in the organization they serve.
$999

Employee Training and Development

Course
2 weeks
Online
In this course, you will learn when training is the right course of action and how you can design and deliver instruction to meet your training needs. Professor Bradford Bell of Cornell's ILR School will take you from the analysis stage to the evaluation stage, as you explore training within your organization. In the process, you will conduct your own analysis, create a training plan, incorporate instructional events that facilitate training transfer, and determine evaluation methods and measurements for your program.
$999

Driving Engagement for HR

Course
2 weeks
Online
Research shows that engagement is the key factor that promotes higher performance. Engagement impacts an organization's turnover rate—and its bottom line. Learn what engagement is and how to encourage it in your own organization.
$1,199

Navigating Labor Relations

Course
2 weeks
Online
This course prepares new and aspiring human resource professionals to deal with the challenges of employee and labor relations.
$999

Employment Law and Policy Issues

Course
2 weeks
Online
Human resource professionals must navigate and deal with a wide range of legal and policy issues in the workplace. They must know the responsibilities and boundaries of their own role, and they must assess issues and consult appropriate legal or expert counsel. This course will help current and aspiring HR managers and staff to establish a structured framework for systematic analysis of employee issues that may have legal implications. It focuses on the layers of employee rights, the HR role, appropriate consultation with legal counsel, and the use of a step-by-step process in the assessment of workplace issues. By the end of this course, you will develop a systematic foundation for managing employment law issues.
$1,199

Facilitating Staffing Decisions

Course
2 weeks
Online
HR professionals need to adapt to changing objectives and market conditions to recruit, select, and retain employees with the necessary skills to further organizational goals—all while steering clear of legal and other risks. Professor Hausknecht draws on his research, teaching, and consulting experience in staffing to provide a relevant and rigorous overview of the field. He offers numerous practical examples to help build the skills needed to staff modern-day organizations and grounds his recommendations in the latest research findings.
$999

Rule Systems as Designed Systems

Course
2 weeks
Online
In this course, you will examine the function of rules in your daily business operations along with the elements that make an effective rule system. As you explore the ways in which rules can protect your business processes, you'll also discover that they can make your work more efficient. In order to prepare for possible risk, you will examine how rule systems can help you identify sources of risk within your organization and serve as a tool for risk mitigation. By the end of this course, you will recognize the different elements that need to be included in a rule system and feel prepared to create your own.
$999

Getting Results Through Talent Management

Course
2 weeks
Online
Organizations today face a multitude of challenges when it comes to effectively managing their talent. In mature markets, demographic trends are forcing companies to accelerate their efforts to build a pipeline of future leaders. In emerging markets, companies must develop talent strategies that are both nimble and effective at engaging and retaining key human capital. To achieve these goals, companies need an integrated, systematic approach to attracting, developing, engaging, and retaining critical talent. Cornell University Professor Brad Bell offers a learning experience that challenges students to dig deeper into understanding their organization's key talent management challenges and uncovers solutions that can be used to overcome these challenges. This course adopts a systems view of talent management in order to demonstrate that various talent practices and processes need to be aligned to create effective solutions. It also examines current trends and cutting-edge thinking in the talent management field.
$999

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Practice for HR

Course
2 weeks
Online
The management of diversity, equity, and inclusion has evolved from "counting the numbers" to "making the numbers count." Organizations that no longer look at inclusion as having a good mix of diverse people, but as a way to fully engage employees, partners and customers have an opportunity to compete globally. Diversity, equity, and inclusion must be embedded in an organizational culture to make a positive impact on performance. This course, based on the expertise of Cornell University Professor Lisa Nishii, differentiates diversity from inclusion and how organizations often miss the real opportunity. Students assess three levels of inclusion and identify evidence that can be used for each level to assess presence and effectiveness. HR executives and leaders share their perspective on diversity and inclusion and how they made the shift to inclusion at organizational, managerial and work group levels.
$1,199

Human Resources Leadership

Course
2 weeks
Online
More than ever before, HR managers, supervisors, and directors are expected to demonstrate technical acumen while also contributing to organizational success in many other areas. Whether it's addressing the “people challenges” of large organizational changes or speaking up to protect shared norms and values, HR professionals must now be organizational leaders as well. In this course, Cornell University's Christopher J. Collins develops insights from his research on the changing role of HR leaders into clear, actionable steps you can take to succeed in this shifting landscape. You will discover the evolving role of the modern HR leader and define what this means for your own role and your goals for growth. You will reflect on the importance of relationships to your success and examine a method by which you can strengthen your working relationships with senior leaders in your organization. You will then explore why acting courageously is key to your success as an HR leader and how to make the difficult decision of when to speak up. Finally, you will discover Professor Collins's SEE change model, the steps of which will help you to ensure the success of major changes at your organization.
$999

Using Design Thinking in HR

Course
2 weeks
Online
This course brings the time proven benefits of design thinking to the field of employment. You will identify factors affecting the workplace and the personal experience of employees. You will then use a six-step approach to analyze employee issues and develop appropriate solutions. The goal is to enhance employees' workplace experience and improve the ability of an organization to attract and retain a productive workforce.
$999

Mediation for Managers

Course
2 weeks
Online
Mediation is widely used to settle disputes ranging from conflict between neighbors to conflict between nations. Though personal disagreements and international commerce don't share the same substance or consequences, the key procedural elements of the mediation process are the same for both, so workplace conflicts tend to take the same shape regardless of the industry or the size of the conflict. In this course you will focus on the use of mediation in resolving organizational conflict where the manager or supervisor serves in the role of mediator. Even if you are not a trained mediator, you can draw on proven mediation techniques to help resolve workplace conflict in productive ways. During this course, you will closely examine a workplace scenario and practice properly setting expectations for mediation of that conflict. In each module, new information will be revealed that will ask you to adapt to the various needs of the disputing parties. Additionally, you will practice handling unforeseen emotional outbursts in a productive way and ultimately propose solutions that consider everyone's interests. Through creative work in examining the scenario and reflecting on how the lessons might apply to your own workplace conflicts, you will learn how to expertly prevent inevitable workplace conflicts from escalating.
$999

Preparing for Labor Negotiations

Course
2 weeks
Online
This course will help build your skills in the “nuts and bolts” of effective labor negotiations. You will start by identifying the organizational goals central to your bargaining strategy, then see how to move from these business goals to negotiation goals. You'll take a look at the impact of external factors and share your analysis of these factors in a discussion with your peers. Your deep understanding of the collective bargaining agreement, the unit, and the employer will lay the groundwork for success. This course provides a combination of theory and practical applications, down to expert advice on how to manage the administrative aspects of negotiations. Finally, you will choose an appropriate collective bargaining strategy for your organization. Will you take a fostering approach or a forcing approach? And how do you determine which is best? How do you mix the two approaches effectively, and what are the pitfalls you need to avoid? And lastly, you'll evaluate behaviors and styles that make negotiating so challenging. This course includes a negotiation simulation with peers. You are required to have completed the following course or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Collective Bargaining
$999

Principles of Costing

Course
2 weeks
Online
The parties in any collective bargaining contract negotiation are seeking to balance costs and benefits in order to achieve mutual agreement. Developing proficiency in assessing relative value and costs of a benefit improves your ability to compare apples to oranges. Costing a contract entails a comfort with the fundamentals of workplace math and statistics, as well as the ability to effectively communicate this aspect of negotiation. Are you prepared to estimate numbers and explain them? The importance of this foundation is often underestimated. This course fills gaps for both management and labor by developing a new mindset for costing a contract. You will use basic costing tools to calculate the value of a collective bargaining contract with a focus on calculating and communicating relative value and costs. You will explore the six key principles to estimate costs in order to create agreement proposals. At the conclusion of the course, you will have applied the tools and principles to a sample proposal and counterproposal. You will have practiced the skills to assess the contract's impact to employees and developed strategies for educating stakeholders. Whether you‘re making a counterproposal or you're ready to get a contract ratified, you will be better able to explain your numbers with the confidence and experience gained from this course. You are required to have completed the following course or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Collective Bargaining
$1,199

Handling Grievances

Course
2 weeks
Online
When grievances occur, taking a strategic approach is the key to productive outcomes. It takes preparation and a solid grasp of the facts and context of a situation to conclude whether a complaint is a grievance that should be heard and resolved. A complaint becomes a grievance when the issue is specified in the contract language. By reading the grievance clause carefully, you can determine whether a complaint should be heard as a grievance and consider resolution possibilities from the perspective of both parties. This course will advance your ability to read grievance clauses effectively. You will explore the specific language included in these clauses and recognize meaning provided by common rules of interpretation. With the tools needed for solving problems and the confidence to employ them, you can overcome potential obstacles in the grievance resolution process. You are required to have completed the following course or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Collective Bargaining
$1,199

Arbitration

Course
2 weeks
Online
For a variety of reasons, workplace grievances aren't always resolved through negotiation and require arbitration. The outcome of the arbitration hearing is determined by the arbitrator, but as a participant in an arbitration you have a critical role in the process and the results. In this course you will review the typical components of a hearing and, using proven processes and tools, practice the steps of arbitration. You'll discover what a hearing looks like, how a hearing proceeds, and who participates. You'll analyze cases to identify facts critical to your argument and develop a theory that will lead to an issue statement. By becoming familiar with strategies for questioning witnesses, you will be prepared to present your opening and closing arguments. You are required to have completed the following course or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Collective Bargaining
$1,199

Adopting Inclusive Hiring Practices

Course
2 weeks
Online
Candidate evaluation is the second stage of the hiring process. The evaluation stage allows your organization to determine which candidates from your diverse talent pool are the most qualified to meet the needs of an open position. During candidate evaluation, every step, from reviewing résumés to conducting interviews and making selection decisions, offers an opportunity for inclusion. Yet each step within this stage of the hiring process also has pitfalls that can result in candidates of marginalized identities being excluded and impacting your organization's long-term inclusion goals. In this course, you will begin by examining how the candidate evaluation stage fits within an inclusive hiring approach, including the power of decision making in candidate selection. You will explore best practices for early-stage candidate evaluations and for interviewing candidates, and you'll evaluate the potential challenges of common approaches like pre-interview assessments and interviewing for “fit.” You can use these best practices to make inclusive selection decisions that reduce bias and emphasize equity in candidate selection. You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Building Diverse Talent Pools
$1,199

Promoting Inclusive Onboarding and Employee Success

Course
2 weeks
Online
The hiring process does not stop at making a job offer. Onboarding and retention that lead to employee success make up the final stage of an inclusive hiring process. When you hire a new candidate, that candidate will be integrated within your organization through onboarding and hopefully grow over their time of employment. Candidates from marginalized backgrounds do not want to enter a new organization only to feel excluded immediately upon onboarding or to find themselves unable to advance. By providing candidates with inclusive onboarding measures and equitable, proactive opportunities for growth, you can maintain inclusion both within your hiring practices and within your organization as a whole. In this course, you will begin by reviewing the concept of employee integration and how it is impacted by onboarding and cultural inclusion. You will then determine the value of making inclusive offers to your candidates, including what equitable benefits and negotiation practices look like. You'll explore how to build an inclusive onboarding experience as well as how to sustain an employee's success beyond onboarding through internal hiring practices. Finally, you will revisit methods of tracking and monitoring DEI and inclusion progress over time to ensure that your organization recognizes the tangible benefits of an inclusive approach to hiring. You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Building Diverse Talent Pools Adopting Inclusive Hiring Practices
$1,199

Countering Bias in the Workplace for HR

Course
2 weeks
Online
Despite decades of legal and social reform aimed at reducing discrimination in the workplace, inequality continues to be a significant problem in all societies and most workplaces. Learn how to address and bridge that gap.
$1,199

Consulting Skills for Internal HR

Course
2 weeks
Online
Learn the skills needed to be a dynamic internal HR consultant by taking part in numerous consulting scenarios.
$999

Strategic Engagement

Course
2 weeks
Online
Learn the difference between an average, generic engagement effort and one that has the potential to really drive superior organizational performance through a research-based learning experience.
$999

Strategic Talent Analytics

Course
2 weeks
Online
More than ever, HR leaders are expected to be proficient in the use of HR data and analytics. However, figuring out where to start with analytics, how to evaluate and critique HR data, and how to best communicate and translate results to the broader organization remain key challenges. This course focuses on building analytical acumen and taking a strategic view of talent analytics. Using a framework presented in this course, students will examine outcomes and drivers throughout an organization to assess strategic talent needs. As they complete activities throughout the course, they will also fine-tune their evaluative, presentation, and communication skills using critical thinking enhanced with analytical best practices shared by Professor Hausknecht. This course is designed for HR professionals who want to build their organization's HR analytics capabilities, derive meaning from metrics and results, and tell persuasive stories involving HR and organizational data. With these skills, students will have a stronger voice in using talent analytics to persuade others toward actions that best align with organizational goals.
$1,199

Applied Predictive Analytics in HR

Course
2 weeks
Online
As organizations strive to succeed in a continuously evolving world, talent must be continuously assessed and evaluated to ensure alignment with strategic goals. It is no longer acceptable to serve in a consultant capacity on problems that arise or to offer strategic advice based solely on experience and policy. Today, HR teams must partner with senior leadership in driving effective and efficient change using credible data and analysis. Predictive analytics help organizations anticipate and plan appropriately for the future. In this course, learners will apply rigorous measurement and analysis techniques to common HR areas involving hiring top talent, evaluating workforce diversity, engaging the workforce, and managing retention. Through activities and assignments, learners will explore foundational HR metrics and measures to more advanced predictive models. As learners examine key inputs and data sources, they will use data to predict patterns and trends in areas such as diversity, engagement, and performance. Ultimately, students will use metrics and analytics to assess the current talent landscape of an organization and outline recommendations they would present to senior leadership. This course assumes a basic comfort level in working with HR data and analysis. It is designed to equip students with the concepts, tools, and language specific to key areas within HR analytics. The course provides examples using Excel. Other data analytics software will not be presented, although the information shared is transferable for those fluent in other programs.
$1,199

Valuing HR Initiatives

Course
2 weeks
Online
The need to justify spending and the use of resources applies as much to talent as it does to business in general. With that in mind, how can HR professionals show the return on investment in human resource programs? In this course, learners will explore the steps involved in conducting a credible return on investment (ROI) analysis and will examine strategies for overcoming common ROI challenges such as isolating the impact of a program and converting the benefits of a program to a monetary value. This course also goes beyond the steps involved in calculating ROI – it provides learners with a framework to decide when ROI makes sense (and when it does not) as well as tools for planning a successful ROI and effectively communicating the results to key stakeholders. This course does not assume learners have a data analytics background but does assume learners possess basic exposure to HR analytics (from experience or a prior course such as Applied Predictive Analytics in HR).
$1,199

Total Rewards Compensation

Course
2 weeks
Online
The conversation around employee pay has changed over the years from one of base salaries, bonuses, and cash compensation, to a “total rewards” approach that seeks the right blend of monetary and non-monetary elements that will engage each employee while generating valuable business results. Cornell University ILR School faculty Linda Barrington and Diane Burton are the thought leaders behind Cornell's prestigious Institute for Compensation Studies. This team of authors offers a learning experience that applies evidence-based, social science approaches to the field of compensation. This course will equip you with the tools and insights needed to apply a “total rewards” view to compensation that aligns with your organization's strategic goals and operational realities.
$999

Designing and Managing Compensation Structures

Course
2 weeks
Online
How does your organization determine how much to pay employees across their different roles? How do you balance the need to attract and retain talent with the need to promote internal pay fairness? It is crucial that your organization define clear answers to these questions. Employee salaries are typically among the highest business expenses. Making compensation decisions in ways that attract the best talent and contribute to internal fairness is a major concern of human resource professionals. Some organizations have compensation structures in place, while others do not use them at all. This course provides a comprehensive overview of the use of compensation structures. You'll start by exploring some of the philosophical concepts underpinning pay structures. You'll look at the decisions your organization will need to make before creating a pay structure. After you examine the philosophical and practical considerations, you'll see how to develop a pay structure. Professor Tae-Youn Park leads you through the process of building a pay structure for your organization, providing a step-by-step framework that you can bring back to your organization. He then gives you hands-on experience with developing a pay structure that matches both your organization's needs and its values. Along the way, you will discover how to collect, choose, and use market pay data. Finally, you'll take a close look at some specific issues with pay structures. You'll discover how to use a pay structure to make decisions around employee pay. You'll explore the advantages and disadvantages of pay transparency. You'll end the course by identifying the various teams within your organization who need to be engaged to help manage pay structures effectively. By the end of this course, you will be ready to make informed decisions about pay structures for your organization. You'll be able to assist senior leaders in articulating a pay philosophy and determining a pay transparency policy. You will also have the insights you need to advise senior management. Throughout the course, Professor Park weaves research-based information with practical advice so that you'll be prepared to guide your organization through the process of designing and managing compensation structures. The following course is required to be completed before taking this course: Total Rewards Compensation
$999

Benchmarking Competitive Pay Levels

Course
2 weeks
Online
This course introduces the idea of benchmarking, or comparing your salaries to those of your competitors. Benchmarking is one of several factors that organizations use to determine employee pay. Additional factors include the organization's compensation philosophy, ways beyond salary that employees are compensated, and the organization's budget. Organizations need to strike the right balance of paying enough to attract and retain quality employees but not paying more they can afford. In this course, you will explore the different salary surveys used in benchmarking analysis and how to decide what surveys are best for your organization. You will also examine strategies for reviewing and analyzing those surveys. Finally, you will consider how to use the results of your analysis to adjust salary structures and how to communicate the results of your analysis to the organization. The following course is required to be completed before taking this course: Total Rewards Compensation Designing and Managing Compensation Structures
$999

Introduction to Employee Benefits

Course
2 weeks
Online
This course provides an introduction to employee benefits. Employee benefits is a key part of an organization's total rewards program, which also includes compensation and other valuable workplace experiences. Employee benefits is a surprisingly large umbrella of programs offered by an employer to the benefit of the employee and their eligible dependents, and every organization can tailor its benefit plan offerings to fit their employee populations and business model. Throughout this course, you will be exposed to the major employee benefit programs and workplace experiences offered by American employers. You will explore the tremendous variation in how these programs are offered, both in terms of the programs themselves and the design features of each program. The breadth, depth, and variation of benefit programs gives each employer the opportunity to design their benefit strategy and offerings to attract and retain their optimal employee workforce. The nation's top employers consider their employee benefits and workplace experiences to be key parts of their employment brand and overall human resources strategy. The following course is required to be completed before taking this course: Total Rewards Compensation Designing and Managing Compensation Structures Benchmarking Competitive Pay Levels
$999

Exploring Executive Compensation and Governance Frameworks

Course
2 weeks
Online
Executive compensation is a critical component of corporate governance, designed to balance the needs of executives, organizations, and stakeholders. This course provides a foundational overview of the governance structures and decision-making processes that shape executive compensation plans in publicly traded, U.S.-based Fortune 500 companies. You will explore the core elements of executive pay packages, including base salary, performance incentives, benefits, perquisites, and contingent payments, while examining how these components align with organizational goals and stakeholder expectations. Through this course, you will evaluate the context in which executive compensation plans are developed and implemented, assess the priorities and influence of key stakeholders, and analyze the tools and strategies used to structure executive pay. By focusing on the governance frameworks and dynamics shaping pay practices, you'll gain the skills to critically evaluate executive compensation programs and understand their implications for organizational performance and accountability. You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Understanding Financial Statements Using Ratio Analysis to Evaluate Financial Performance
$999

Evaluating and Designing Executive Compensation Plans

Course
2 weeks
Online
Executive compensation is a vital driver of organizational success and sustainability, whether in large multinational corporations or smaller private firms. In this course, you will delve into the complexities of executive pay, with a special focus on incentive compensation — performance-based structures designed to align leadership decisions with organizational goals. You'll examine the critical connections among executive compensation, organizational performance, and stakeholder interests, while addressing questions like why some incentive plans fail and how they can be refined to foster accountability and exceptional leadership. Throughout the course, you will develop a deeper understanding of how to design effective annual incentive plans for executives. You'll discover how to use analytical tools to evaluate existing programs and create your own performance-driven frameworks. You'll also explore broader economic, social, and governance implications of executive pay, balancing technical knowledge with real-world challenges. If you work in human resources, leadership, corporate governance, or related fields, this course will help you confidently navigate the complexities of executive compensation and design incentive plans that are impactful and sustainable in today's fast-changing business environment. You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Understanding Financial Statements Using Ratio Analysis to Evaluate Financial Performance Exploring Executive Compensation and Governance Frameworks
$1,199

Equal Employment Opportunity and Employee Treatment Issues

Course
2 weeks
Online
Human resource professionals in the United States must assess and manage workplace issues relating to discrimination, harassment, retaliation, medical and family leave, and other matters dealing with treatment of employees. This course is designed to give you a broad understanding of US laws such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1963, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and similar laws. The course begins with a look at basic terminology and provisions relating to equal employment opportunity, affirmative action, diversity, and inclusion. The focus then moves to legal protections for certain classes of individuals before addressing issues relating to disability, religion, harassment, and retaliation.
$1,199

Benefits, Compensation, Safety, and Other Legal Issues

Course
2 weeks
Online
HR professionals today must consider the legal implications of policies and practices relating to employee leave, compensation, benefits, safety, workplace agreements, electronic communication, and privacy. These often go beyond questions of discrimination or employee treatment and require a basic awareness of relevant laws and the need for appropriate consultation when issues arise. This course provides an overview of US laws in key areas, including the Family and Medical Leave Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, the National Labor Relations Act, the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and others. You will leave this course prepared to work with colleagues and legal experts to address legal issues within your organization.
$1,199

Employment Laws Around the Globe

Course
2 weeks
Online
Employment laws vary widely from one type of legal system to another, from country to country, and even from one state or province to another. Human resource professionals may be faced with a need to analyze workforce laws and regulations in places where they have little prior experience. This course provides a bird's-eye view of how employment laws vary by country or region and the underlying reasons for that variation. Practical guidance will be provided for HR specialists who need to research relevant employment requirements and work with relevant authorities and organizations. By improving your knowledge of global employment law, you will gain a competitive perspective allowing you to employ effective strategies with all stakeholders.
$1,199

HR Policies in International Contexts

Course
2 weeks
Online
Human resource professionals may need to go beyond simply gaining a knowledge of how employment laws vary in different parts of the world and in specific countries. When a company begins operations in a new country, HR staff must make changes to their current policies or establish new ones that meet local requirements. This course examines key practices and issues relating to employment and is designed to help your organization adapt its current policies and practices to a new legal environment. Through a multi-part course project, you will have an opportunity to apply what you learn to your own personal or organizational situation.
$1,199

Rule Design

Course
2 weeks
Online
Effective rule design requires you to follow a number of principles. This course will focus on those principles and guide you through the process of creating rules for your business needs. You will start by exploring the importance of clarity and simplicity in rule design and apply these skills by finding ways to make your rules more accessible and engaging. You will then acquire tools that will help you identify your audience and allow you to design rules that are relevant and clear to them. Finally, as a means of enhancing comprehension and application, you will examine design approaches to make your rules easier to implement using psychology, advertising, and visual principles. The skills you take away from this course will help ensure that you and your team are set up for success. You are required to have completed the following course or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Rule Systems as Designed Systems
$999

Rule System Training

Course
2 weeks
Online
The value of rules depends on their implementation, and no other effort is as important to rule implementation as training. This course will explore the principles of rule training and provide you with pragmatic tools to introduce new rules into your organization. You will begin by identifying the most important elements for a successful training program, including the cost of training and potential training alternatives. You will then examine specific training modes that will help your audience internalize new rule systems and use them effectively. Finally, you will focus on presentation tactics for effective training. By the end of this course, you will have acquired useful tools and powerful techniques that will support your training efforts and help to successfully implement your rule system. You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Rule Systems as Designed Systems Rule Design
$999

Policing of Rule Systems

Course
2 weeks
Online
The policing of rule systems is almost as important as the rules themselves. This course will focus on selecting and designing effective policing tools to enforce your rule system. You will explore the importance of policing as a means of maintaining your rule system and you will analyze ways to make policing both impactful and sustainable for your organization. Additionally, in preparation for any concerns, you will address the issue of intentional rule breakers whose actions cannot be prevented with standard policing methods. Overall, the information you gain in this course can help assure you and your stakeholders that your rule system is dependable and sustainable for your organization. You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course: Rule Systems as Designed Systems Rule Design Rule System Training
$999

Grow Your Hr Expertise

Cornell University’s selection of Human Resources programs, including 20+ certificates, combines people-centered leadership with practical organizational strategy through expert-led instruction and small cohorts. Participants build workplace leadership capabilities through applied projects, collaborative learning, and guidance from experienced HR practitioners.

EXPLORE PROGRAM FORMATS
Program TypeEducational GoalCourse FormatOfferedCourse StructureDurationTotal HoursWeekly Commitment
Certificates
Earn a Cornell credential as you complete multiple courses.Online cohort-based (<35 students) with expert facilitator hosting live sessionsRecurring start datesMost certificates include 4 to 8 individual courses with multiple start and end dates to select from; 360 Certificates offer over 20+ individual courses including core courses and electives2 to 6 months depending on individual course requirements40 to 100 hours3 to 8 hours per week for the duration of the certificate
Courses
Learn in a small cohort, with graded assignments and opportunities for live sessions.Online cohort-based (<35 students) with expert facilitator hosting live sessionsRecurring start datesOne standalone course with multiple start and end dates to select from2 to 4 weeks depending on individual course requirements10 to 25 hours3 to 8 hours per week for the duration of the certificate
Workshops
Develop AI skills and strategies in interactive sessions with Cornell faculty.Live, online, and Cornell faculty-led with an interactive cohortSpecific dates and timesOne 3-hour short-form live program with specific dates and times; multiple Workshops offered monthly3 hours3 hoursActive participation during the Workshop only
Degrees
Earn a professional master’s degree from Cornell University. Online cohort-based and on campus in Ithaca, NYSpecific start dates once a year, often in January or AugustA series of 2- to 15-week asynchronous online courses designed by Cornell faculty with weekly live virtual sessions, with between one and three week-long residency sessions on campus in Ithaca, NY15- to 24-month part-time program for working professionalsVary by degree15 to 20 hours per week during each online course; full-time on campus during each week-long residency

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