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• Strong industry and community partnerships enable business schools to embed hands-on learning that helps students hone their leadership and problem-solving skills.
• Collaborations with companies and nonprofits create mutual value, boosting students’ confidence and job placement while giving partners access to talent and innovation.
• Signature programs at the Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business integrate industry partnerships and real-world experience into the curriculum.

 
Sixty-five percent of businesses report a gap in critical thinking and problem-solving skills in their workforces, according to a  from the Association for Talent Development. How can business schools help employers close that gap, especially when disruptive emerging technologies, shifting government policies, and evolving societal expectations are reshaping the skills leader need?

One of the best ways that we can ensure that business students graduate with relevant skills is by prioritizing partnerships with industry and community organizations. Through close collaborations with strategic partners, schools can drive three activities essential to their programs: adding more experiential learning opportunities for students; developing students’ leadership abilities and other soft skills; and bringing together students, faculty, and companies to solve rising challenges in today’s business world.

Finding the Best Opportunities

Business schools can begin building long-term relationships by creating smaller networking and collaboration opportunities, such as:

• Industry panels and guest speaker events where business leaders are invited to share their expertise with students.
• Mentorship programs that connect students with alumni and other professionals who can provide connections and career guidance.
• Corporate partnerships that develop internship and job placement programs.
• Community engagement initiatives in which students work with nonprofits on projects that address local challenges.

But as important as these initiatives are, it is equally important for schools to attract the right partners to participate. While business schools must identify key stakeholders who can provide meaningful learning experiences for their students, these relationships will thrive only if they are mutually beneficial. This means that schools should seek partners that have something to gain from the relationships, from businesses looking for pipelines of talent to nonprofits seeking innovative solutions to better serve their communities.

Signature Programs: A Unique Differentiator

In addition to smaller efforts, dedicated programs are excellent ways to support strong, long-term industry collaborations. Through such programs, schools can make partnerships an integral part of their operations.

For example, at Clemson University’s Wilbur O. and Ann Powers College of Business in South Carolina, we develop relationships with businesses and our community through our Signature Programs—these are “emphasis areas” that students can add to their majors and minors. We created these programs so that students can develop skills, boost confidence, and learn more about highly specific business applications in fields of interest.

Over the past five years, the Powers College of Business has created the following three emphasis areas:

• The Leadership Signature Program, which offers students progressive leadership opportunities via a unique, student-led structure that mirrors a corporate environment.
• The Erwin Center for Brand Communications Signature Program, which prepares students for the competitive world of brand management and marketing communications.
• The J. Daniel and Nancy Garrison Sales Innovation Program, which helps students develop skills they’ll need in sales careers, from building relationships to understanding customer needs.

These Signature Programs help us connect our students and college to the business world and our community here at Clemson University. For the last academic year alone, we had more than 300 students participate in at least one of our Signature Programs, with some electing to join more than one.

Currently, our Signature Programs partner with more than 50 companies. We find some of these partners through our network of more than 47,000 alumni around the world. We attract other companies because they are interested in the benefits that participating in our Signature Programs offers.

Building Relevant Real-World Skills

We know that today’s employers want to hire graduates who can lead others, solve problems effectively, and make immediate contributions to their organizations. While the basic knowledge students gain in the classroom is essential for getting them to that point, it’s not enough. We also must provide them with practical experience that prepares them for workplace challenges.

For that reason, the Powers College of Business embeds experiential learning into its programs, supporting much of that learning through industry partnerships. For example, the  (SIP) currently has partnerships with more than 15 companies in a variety of industries. Each company we invite to be a SIP partner must be active in more than one category of sales and hire talent across multiple sales roles.

Through these relationships, our students gain authentic sales experience. For example, a flagship moment in the SIP experience is the Otis Elevator Pitch Showdown, an annual competition that challenges students to deliver compelling 60-second sales pitches in front of peers, faculty, and industry professionals. Structured as a multi-round tournament, the competition provides students with invaluable practice in communication while under pressure. The experience refines students’ ability to present their value with clarity and confidence.

Our partners inform our teaching practices and create opportunities for collaborative research, as well as gain access to faculty with a wealth of knowledge and to a pipeline of future employees.

The event serves as both a skills test and a networking opportunity. Students receive real-time feedback from industry judges and make connections that often extend into internships or career opportunities. For many, the competition is a defining moment in their professional development journey.

The benefits of that experience extend into other areas of our program, such as the , Clemson’s student-led golf tournament. SIP students who elect to participate apply their newly acquired skills to sell sponsorships and fill the player roster, all while working in an environment that mirrors an authentic sales department. Last year, this effort raised over 30,000 USD for , a local nonprofit that helps families and young adults achieve independence from public assistance.

These partnerships also inform our teaching practices and create opportunities for collaborative research projects. Through SIP partnerships, our sales faculty have direct access to companies for impactful business research. For example, one SIP partner contributed to a recent study that highlights the effects of depression over time in the sales profession, as well as ways that companies can best support sales employees throughout their careers. The study’s results not only inform the sales industry as a whole but also help our faculty prepare students for a career in sales.

At the same time, these collaborations provide benefits to our industry partners. These companies gain access to faculty members with a wealth of knowledge that is relevant to current business challenges, as well as benefit from a pipeline of future employees. Many of these organizations hire our students as interns, training them in skills specific to their businesses—ultimately, they hire many of these students for full-time positions.

Soft Skills: The X-Factor in Career Success

Technical expertise may open doors, but soft skills determine long-term success. Companies need employees who can adapt, communicate, collaborate, and lead, as well as manage time effectively and navigate high-pressure environments. Developing these skills requires more than just theory—it demands hands-on application. We rely on our partners to help us deliver experiences that develop the skills in greatest demand.

The Powers College of Business addresses the need to develop these skills with its  (LSP), a five-semester transformative development experience in which students learn the characteristics of a servant leader. Students can elect to join LSP as an elective course.

Each week, students practice essential leadership skills as they operate within a simulated company structure where they rotate through key roles—from C-suite executives to department leads. They are responsible for planning and executing weekly initiatives, organizing events, analyzing case studies, and preparing for competitions. The structure challenges them to lead diverse teams, communicate with clarity, and solve problems under pressure. As a result, they build confidence in both strategic thinking and interpersonal dynamics.

However, the transformative aspect of LSP doesn’t come from analyzing case studies and organizing events—it’s comes from developing leadership capacity over time and learning to lead in a variety of contexts.

“LSP helped highlight my strengths and identify my weaknesses, giving me a safe space to tackle both internal and external challenges,” says Becca Studer, a 2024 graduate who held multiple leadership roles throughout her time in the program. She describes the experience as one that helped her discover the core of servant leadership: “honoring the individuals on your team, meeting them where they’re at, and acknowledging their needs,” while also “pushing them to go beyond the limits of what they think they can do.”

Through LSP, students don’t just learn about leadership—they live it. And by the time they graduate, they’re ready to lead with empathy, resilience, and purpose.

Connecting With the Business World

Networking is one of the most valuable career accelerators. That’s why the best business schools don’t just educate—they facilitate connections. They help students build relationships with top business leaders, entrepreneurs, and recruiters through industry panels, speaker events, mentorship programs, and community outreach.

We designed the Digital and Brand Marketing Signature Program to give our students a networking advantage. Through this program, students collaborate with luxury brands like Tumi and McLaren Automotives to develop branding strategies. For example, in a recent project, students developed customer experience strategies and then presented those strategies to their clients as part of a midterm project.

If we’re serious about preparing students for what’s ahead, we also must get serious about our relationship-building—and make strategic partnerships integral parts of our programs.

Our emphasis on networking also extends to our student-led agency, . As Cadency participants, students tackle client projects for Chick-fil-A, Ally Bank, Whataburger, Smoothie King, and HP, all while gaining firsthand experience in professional brand communications. Additionally, students have the chance to participate in industry trips to New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Austin, and the Pacific Northwest, so that they can receive direct exposure to top companies and business leaders.

Katie Golden, a recent economics graduate, says that the fact that she was able to apply classroom knowledge to real-world scenarios will prove invaluable to her as she transitions into her new career. The program’s emphasis on experiential learning allowed her “to grow as a professional and individual,” she says. “It gave me the confidence and skills I needed to succeed as I step into my new role.”

What’s the Impact?

We can gauge the strength of our industry partnerships by the success of our Signature Programs. For example:

• Graduates of our Leadership Signature Program have a job placement rate of 100 percent.
• Cadency students graduate with real-world agency experience, making them highly sought-after by top marketing firms. Many now work for companies such as Adobe, American Express, Dentsu, Edelman, EP+Co, Disney, Smoothie King, and the San Francisco 49ers.
• On average, SIP graduates receive 1.7 job offers before graduation, often with starting salaries that are above the national average of 74,000 USD.

The only way we can prepare students for the modern workforce is through rich experiential learning opportunities and strong industry connections. We must go beyond traditional classroom instruction to incorporate hands-on projects and industry-specific applications into our curricula, so that students hone not only their technical skills, but also the soft skills that are crucial in today’s workforce.

Ultimately, if we’re serious about preparing students for what’s ahead, we also must get serious about our relationship-building—and make strategic partnerships integral parts of our programs. Only then can we give our students the work-based experience, soft skills development, and industry connections they’ll need to succeed.