Since she began working with Oak Ridge Associated Universities — a 121-member university consortium that brings together faculty and student researchers to collaborate on major scientific initiatives — Meredith Goins’ responsibilities have evolved significantly. First, as a subcontractor, she identified subject matter experts to serve as scientific peer reviewers of grant proposals. Then, after she joined ORAU as an employee in 2013 (“best decision I ever made, besides marrying my husband,” she says), she oversaw her own team. Now, as a Group Manager, she’s responsible for keeping two teams busy, encouraging research, and breaking down barriers the teams may face.

“When I was promoted to Group Manager,” Meredith says, “I found that my staff were really diverse — from fresh out of college all the way to inches from retirement. I needed to better understand how to support and build teams with Millennials as well as Baby Boomers.”

For Meredith, the short, intensive course on “Leading Millennials” was a perfect fit. Then she chose “Leading Change,” she says, “due to the constant amount of change organizations face these days. Since so few change management projects actually stick, any knowledge I can gain to be more effective in implementing change can make the difference for my teams and my organization.”

Meredith intends to make the trip at least one more time to Nashville from Oak Ridge for another course to earn her business excellence certification from the Executive Development Institute. “I have found it rare to have such high-end faculty teaching short courses such as these,” she says. “These classes also remind me how important it is to network with other business leaders from all over the country. Learning in a professional environment that is not on my company’s campus allowed me to disconnect and take in the message.”

“Learning in a professional environment that is not on my company’s campus allowed me to disconnect and take in the message.”