1. SHRM Survey Findings: Changing Employee Skills and
Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources
and Strategies
In collaboration with and commissioned by Achieve
October 3, 2012

2. Introduction
• This is the fourth part of a series of SHRM/Achieve survey findings titled “Changing Employee
Skills and Education Requirements.” These results look at training budgets, resources and
strategies.
• The following nine industries were included in the sample. Overall results are reported
first, followed by industry-specific results for the following industries:
 Construction, mining, oil and gas
 Federal government
 Finance
 Health
 High-tech
 Manufacturing
 Nonprofessional services
 Professional services
 State and local government
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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3. Key Findings
• Did most organizations have a training budget in 2011? The majority of organizations (57%) did have a training
budget, though there was some variation among industries.
• What industries were most likely to have a training budget in 2011? Industries most likely to have a budget set
aside for training were state/local government (72%), federal government (70%) and finance (59%).
• What industries were least likely to have a training budget in 2011? Organizations in construction, mining, oil
and gas (49%) and manufacturing (49%) were least likely to have a training budget in 2011.
• What was the median total training budget for organizations in 2011? $50,000 was the median total training
budget across industries in 2011.
• What industries had the highest median training budgets in 2011? High-tech ($82,500), federal government
($75,000) and finance ($62,500).
• In 2011, what were the median total training budgets for organizations of different sizes?
– 1 to 99 employees: $20,000
– 100 to 499 employees: $32,500
– 500 to 2,499 employees: $75,000
– 2,500 to 24,999 employees: $150,000
– 25,000 or more employees: $200,000
• Overall, do most employers dedicate training dollars to remedial education to make up for a lack of basic
skills? No. Only a small percentage of organizations’ training budgets are dedicated to remedial education (a
median of 1% and a mean of 7% across industries and organization sizes).
• Where do employees receive their training? The majority (81%) of employees are trained on-site, followed by
employer-provided off-site training (57%) and technical or community colleges (44%).
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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4. Did your organization have a training budget in 2011?
All industries (n = 3,319) 57%
State/local government (n = 544) 72%
Federal government (n = 185) 70%
Finance (n = 348) 59%
Nonprofessional services (n = 242) 56%
Health (n = 429) 55%
High-tech (n = 316) 53%
Professional services (n = 518) 51%
Construction, mining, oil and gas (n = 334) 49%
Manufacturing (n = 403) 49%
Note: Percentages represent respondents who answered “yes.”
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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5. What was your organization’s total training budget in
2011, approximately?
Standard
Industry Median Mean Minimum Maximum
Deviation
All industries (n = 1,880) $50,000 $952,157 $12,176,362 $99 $400,000,000
Construction, mining, oil and gas
$50,000 $900,081 $3,643,882 $5,000 $32,000,000
(n = 162)
Federal government (n = 128) $75,000 $4,708,122 $28,942,677 $1,500 $300,000,000
Finance (n = 204) $62,500 $464,917 $1,934,676 $99 $20,000,000
Health (n = 236) $50,000 $429,082 $2,148,902 $99 $30,000,000
High-tech (n = 166) $82,500 $695,443 $3,102,737 $2,000 $30,000,000
Manufacturing (n = 198) $45,000 $2,238,545 $28,426,488 $99 $400,000,000
Nonprofessional services (n = 135) $25,000 $347,003 $1,211,438 $2,500 $10,000,000
Professional services (n = 262) $40,000 $308,836 $1,634,052 $99 $25,000,000
State/local government (n = 389) $45,000 $408,893 $3,218,211 $500 $53,000,000
Note: Only respondents whose organizations had a training budget in 2011 were asked this question.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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6. What was your organization’s total training budget in
2011, approximately?
Standard
Organization Size Median Mean Minimum Maximum
Deviation
All Industries (n = 1,833) $50,000 $970,427 $12,330,812 $99 $400,000,000
1 to 99 employees (n = 393) $20,000 $32,848 $40,176 $2,000 $250,000
100 to 499 employees (n = 592) $32,500 $328,581 $3,962,200 $500 $80,000,000
500 to 2,499 employees (n = 389) $75,000 $1,333,381 $20,281,289 $99 $400,000,000
2,500 to 24,999 employees (n = 338) $150,000 $1,494,081 $4,937,848 $99 $50,000,000
25,000 or more employees (n = 121) $200,000 $4,526,273 $28,751,593 $2,000 $300,000,000
Note: Only respondents whose organizations had a training budget in 2011 were asked this question.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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7. Approximately what percentage of this budget was for remedial
education (e.g., basic math, communication skills)?
Standard
Industry Median Mean Minimum Maximum
Deviation
All industries (n = 1,856) 1% 7% 13% 0% 100%
Construction, mining, oil and gas
5% 9% 16% 0% 100%
(n = 161)
Federal government (n = 128) 5% 9% 14% 0% 98%
Finance (n = 200) 4% 8% 13% 0% 99%
Health (n = 233) 1% 6% 10% 0% 75%
High-tech (n = 164) 0% 4% 11% 0% 100%
Manufacturing (n = 197) 5% 9% 14% 0% 99%
Nonprofessional services (n = 135) 0% 7% 15% 0% 95%
Professional services (n = 261) 0% 5% 12% 0% 100%
State/local government (n = 377) 0% 6% 12% 0% 100%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations had a training budget in 2011 were asked this question.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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8. Approximately what percentage of this budget was for remedial
education (e.g., basic math, communication skills)?
Standard
Organization Size Median Mean Minimum Maximum
Deviation
All industries (n = 1,813) 1% 7% 13% 0% 100%
1 to 99 employees (n = 389) 0% 5% 12% 0% 100%
100 to 499 employees (n = 582) 1% 7% 14% 0% 100%
500 to 2,499 employees (n = 387) 2% 7% 13% 0% 99%
2,500 to 24,999 employees (n = 333) 5% 8% 12% 0% 99%
25,000 or more employees (n = 122) 5% 8% 12% 0% 75%
Note: Only respondents whose organizations had a training budget in 2011 were asked this question.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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9. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? All Industries
On-site 81%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 57%
university)
Technical or community college 44%
College or university 41%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
9%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 4%
Other location 9%
Note: n = 3,433. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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10. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? Construction, Mining, Oil and Gas
On-site 84%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 67%
university)
Technical or community college 48%
College or university 36%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
7%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 4%
Other location 8%
Note: n = 347. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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11. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? Federal Government
On-site 80%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 58%
university)
Technical or community college 34%
College or university 34%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
7%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 5%
Other location 13%
Note: n = 192. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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12. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? Finance
On-site 85%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 56%
university)
Technical or community college 30%
College or university 37%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
12%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 8%
Other location 9%
Note: n = 363. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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13. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? Health
On-site 85%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 51%
university)
Technical or community college 49%
College or university 46%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
6%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 5%
Other location 7%
Note: n = 441. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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14. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? High-tech
On-site 70%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 62%
university)
Technical or community college 47%
College or university 53%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
7%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 6%
Other location 9%
Note: n = 328. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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15. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? Manufacturing
On-site 85%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 57%
university)
Technical or community college 64%
College or university 43%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
6%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 2%
Other location 7%
Note: n = 418. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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16. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? Nonprofessional Services
On-site 86%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 44%
university)
Technical or community college 31%
College or university 28%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
6%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 4%
Other location 7%
Note: n = 247. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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17. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? Professional Services
On-site 77%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 53%
university)
Technical or community college 35%
College or university 43%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
10%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 6%
Other location 11%
Note: n = 530. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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18. Generally, where do employees at your organization receive
training? State/Local Government
On-site 80%
Employer-provided off-site (other than
technical or communitycollege or 61%
university)
Technical or community college 50%
College or university 40%
Conferences, seminars, workshops, profess
13%
ional organizations, etc.
Webinars or other online training 3%
Other location 10%
Note: n = 567. Percentages do not total 100% due to multiple response options.
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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19. SHRM Survey Findings: Changing Employee Skills and
Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources
and Strategies
In collaboration with and commissioned by Achieve
Survey Methodology
• Response rate = 18%
• 4,695 HR professional respondents from a randomly selected sample of nine different
industries in SHRM’s membership
 Construction, mining, oil and gas = 491
 Manufacturing = 526
 Federal government = 356
 Nonprofessional services = 479
 Finance = 530
 Professional services = 492
 Health = 526
 State and local government = 848
 High-tech = 447
• Margin of error +/-1%
• Survey fielded March 28-April 30, 2012
SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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20. SHRM Survey Findings: Changing Employee Skills
and Education Requirements
About SHRM Research
• For more survey/poll findings, visit www.shrm.org/surveys
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www.shrm.org/customizedresearch
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SHRM/Achieve Survey: Changing Employee Skills and Education Requirements—Training Budgets, Resources and Strategies
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