The COVID-19 rupture of the economy left a harsh lesson to both educators and learners in various industries. One of which is the lack of preparation for the worst. Most entrepreneurs are aware of the famous saying, “fail to prepare, prepare to fail,” and it seems like the best caution quote of 2020 for everyone.
Even so, the onslaught of the pandemic did not break the spirits of business people who probably have seen or lived through the worse. On another positive note, the economy can always bounce back, though when and how remains in the shadows. It is also important to identify solutions that would counter the effects shall the same impacting phenomenon occur.
And of course, one of the best ways to prepare and find solutions, is brushing up on the strategic or technical skills that come with operating a business.
Why take an online business course?
Knowledge plays a huge role in saving our industries and possibly turning them into pandemic-proof institutions. Your preparation to develop a much more resilient business and a stronger contingency model should be starting now. And the right business course can help you do that, along with:
- Having a more in-depth understanding of the market and how changes at the global level may impact them.
- To provide entrepreneurs with updated knowledge and the most innovative tools needed when expanding into a new industry.
- CEOs and business owners who seek funding may need relevant credentials to prove they have the foundation or the mastery and capacity to run a corporation.
Online learning provides flexible and fast-paced platforms that can get anyone equipped with relevant information in no time. And the most recommended business courses to take for 2021 would be, ideally, have the remedy to the mistakes we’ve made before the COVID-19 lockdowns.
Below are the five best online courses we recommend for 2021.
1. MBA in Digital Business
The way to go is forward, and at the forefront of businesses are its digital efforts. As such, schools must prepare students to flourish in an online business context. Part of this would require examining a wide array of digital architecture to user experience topics while tackling challenges managers face in the digital realm.
MBA In Digital Business by EU Business School conforms to busy lives. As such, entrepreneurs can conveniently learn anywhere while running their businesses and be guided by expert academics and several business leaders worldwide.
Each term of this course structure includes five to six modules combined with guest speaker sessions, company tours, seminars, and case studies. Upon its completion, course takers will learn how to design, and launch businesses based on efficient digital models and strategies.
Educational Institution: EU Business School
Duration: One year, three terms
Start dates: October, January, and March
2. AmaSuite 5 Training Programs
While logistics and delivery also received a massive blow during the lockdowns, they are the first to identify protocols and resume operations. Amazon’s supply chain, network, and fulfillment capabilities have been put to the test as the world continues to watch and place orders. Although the challenges affected their progress, they were able to react with incredible speed.
Businesses looking to expand their operations or create a private label brand in Amazon would benefit from the AmaSuite 5 toolkit. Apart from cutting edge research and analysis tools, it gives access to two programs:
- Amazon Sellers Training Course: A program that teaches how to maximize the use of the toolkit. It is perfect for people who want to sell private label products on the platform.
- Amazon Affiliates Training Course: This program contains updated info for affiliates who want to learn more about finding the best products, getting traffic, and effective content for their channels.
3. Robotic Process Automation Course
Having an augmented workforce strategy is one of the hard lessons handed by COVID-19 to businesses unaware of intelligent automation. RPA, which stands for Robotic Process Automation, focuses on value-adding activities and is surprisingly, client-centric. With a huge percentage of jobs having great automation potential, industries can quickly jump to it and claim the benefits that could shield them from an economic tragedy at par or more detrimental than COVID-19.
A good introduction for starters would be this overview of RPA from Udemy. It is perfect for test automation engineers and business owners who want to redefine their workforce strategy and automate their productivity while multiplying their customer value.
The top-rated course offers two hours of on-demand video, an article, downloadable resources, and flexibility of access.
4. Global Business Course
COVID-19 has exploited the weaknesses of having a closed border policy. Definitely, no single company or country possesses all the expertise, the resources, and the experience to adapt to the customer’s buying habits, needs, and expectations. Thus, an economy would need to stay open for sharing, trading, and continuous learning.
This important lesson and the foundations needed to maintain a healthy economy, and a thriving organization are in this course provided by Harvard Business School Online. Students will explore the economic, political, and social circumstances that drive changes and see how decisions, progress, and failures of a domain would affect the global market and your business.
5. MA Interior Design
Tourism continues to struggle, being one of the hardest-hit industries by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, international tourism is expected to fall by 80%, and this is something the world doesn’t want to see. On the other hand, domestic tourism has reopened. While the development of new hotels may not be felt soon, surprisingly, it is the best time to study interior design.
Architecture experts strongly believe that the built environment must evolve post-pandemic. As humanity adapts to the new normal, so should the structures to produce spaces designed to ensure minimum contact and safety. Due to this, private and public entities will request the services of architectures and interior designers to develop a blueprint for these layouts and processes.
Reshaping the world to cater to social distancing requirements, not only of COVID-19 but of the possibility of another pandemic, would require radical planning and an immense amount of work time. Part of the plans would be incorporating workspaces into apartments, creating safer places for rejuvenation, re-thinking school structures, and more.
This MA Interior Design degree from NDA UK prepares its students for a senior role in the field. To take this course, one must complete the Diploma and BA courses provided by the same institution or other relevant courses representing similar qualifications. Apart from the fundamental design elements, students will earn the educational knowledge needed to manage a team of designers and complete a master’s design project to add to their portfolio.
What course should you take?
While any of the above is a winning choice, the best program to take would be the one that’s closest to the heart of your business. However, since the courses mentioned in this article don’t have subjects that overlap, you might want to take one after another. Rest assured, these programs contain the knowledge and training needed to fortify businesses against economic downturns brought by future pandemics and other global hazards.
Angelo Chongco is a content writer for business and marketing niches. Having worked in various trades, he's a well-versed expert in SEO, content management, and business administration.
