I'm currently negotiating compensation for a new position I've just recieved in my company, and part of what I've negotiated is an education budget. So I wanted to ask for the advice of the board on what to spend it on.
The quick rundown of my history:
Education-
Bachelors degrees in English and Computer Science, 2002
Career-
2001-2002 Junior software developer, tech startup (essentially an intern)
2002-2003 CEO of my own tech startup (4 employees at largest)
2003-2005 Lead software developer for financial services startup (1 full time managee, 1 intern)
Currently Director of technical product development, same financial services startup (2 managees, 1-2 offshore developers)
Basically, I'm a software and technology guy, but I'm only an adequate software engineer. Mostly I do high level product development, "big picture" project planning/project managemement, process streamlining, etc.
So now that I have an educational budget, the question is: What classes should I be taking? I'm not especially interested in pursuing an MBA, although several people have suggested that it might be the best fit for where I want to end up. Should I just go for classwork, or should I be shooting for professional certifications, or both?
I guess what I'm looking for here is first hand experience/advice on what types of courses/certifications are useful, both in terms of job performance and career advancement. Should I be out looking for a graduate level course on management? Should I be looking for 6 Sigma or other certifications? What has worked for you guys?
