The goal of this course is to help participants gain a better understanding of the foundations of leadership, and to help them to be more effective in leadership roles. This entails developing know­ledge and skills to recognize and manage key issues in motivation, influence, decision-making, interpersonal relations, team dynamics, and organizational change. Analysis of real-life cases will demonstrate that effective leadership involves four critical processes: establishing direction, aligning people, setting and main­taining values, and growth of self and others. These leadership tasks require self-awareness and self-manage­ment, therefore this course will provide participants with an opportunity to reflect on their “leadership story”, assess their leadership style, evaluate their leadership development needs, and create a personal development plan.

In addition to the leadership fundamentals, the course will also address the global and cross-cultural dimensions of leadership. Despite rising anti-globalization sentiments and immigration barriers, at no time in history has the contact between individuals and organizations from different countries been greater. The increase in global competition has spurred an unprecedented surge in cross-border alliances, mergers, and acquisitions. Executives travel around broader regions while their jobs remain headquartered in one place. Global virtual teams are created to address key strategic challenges. As a result, the dem­ands on executives operating in a global environment have increased exponentially.

Another focus of this course is on contemporary leadership issues and emerging new trends in leadership, such as the need for responsible leadership and the question of how to lead with foresight and integrity in our uncertain, high-pressure, turbulent world. We will explore how leaders can help their organizations navigate through periods of radical change, turbulence and disruption, like the global COVID-19 pandemic, and survive and thrive in a VUCA world – an environment that is fraught with uncertainty, difficulties and ethical dilemmas.

Thus, this course is designed to help participants develop a deeper understanding of the challenges facing global leaders today and to equip them with strategies and skills to tackle these challenges. To achieve these goals, we will approach the subject of leadership from a variety of different angles and draw on insights from diverse disciplines, including global strategy, organizational behavior, social psychology, cross-cultural management, behavioral ethics, forensic psychology and social-cognitive neuroscience.

The course is organized around four major themes:

Leadership fundamentals: Leading and developing others and self  (Sessions 1-3)

Global leadership: The global and cross-cultural dimensions of leadership (Sessions 4-5)

21st century leadership: Emerging new trends and contemporary issues in leadership (Session 6)

Responsible leadership and leadership in turbulent environments (Sessions 7-8)

Important: Students who attended or are planning to attend the Becoming a Global Leader or Managing People, Teams and Organizations Across Cultures elective courses (in the winter semester) with Prof. Stahl are not eligible for this course.

By the end of the course participants will have learned:

Knowledge and Understanding

Cognitive and Subject Specific Skills

General Skills

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The course is organized around eight 4-5-hour classroom sessions. Each session addresses a particular leadership challenge (e.g., leading a diverse team) or illustrates a particular leadership concept or principle (e.g., influencing without using authority). Participants will be provided with a set of concepts, analytical frame­works, and practical tools that will help them to develop their capacity to lead people and groups effectively. Our modus operandi will be dialog, and the teaching approach varied, with a mix of lecture input, group discussion, case analysis, videos, and assessments. Effective leadership requires self-awareness, so self-diagnostic tools will also be made available.

The course grade will be computed as a weighted average of three elements:

Participation

Reflection paper: My “Leadership Story” and personal development journey

Group project: Presentation on one contemporary leadership concept, issue or trend

While evaluation is a necessary feature of this and any other course, it is not expected that participants will populate both tails of a normal distribution.

The course grade will be computed as a weighted average of three elements:

a) Participation (30%)

b) Reflection paper: My “Leadership Story” and personal development journey (40%)

c) Group project: Presentation on one contemporary leadership concept, issue or trend (30%)

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