Leadership and Strategic Management

The climate emergency, rapid urbanisation and resultant need to provide more affordable housing quickly, along with the urgency to transform our food, water, energy and waste infrastructure are key societal and sustainability transitions of our time. Furthermore, technological advancements in the digital space and the changing demographics are also demanding a rethink in the ways organisations function. Moreover, successive crises such as the Global Financial Crisis in the late 2000s and the more recent Covid-19 Global Pandemic have triggered calls for radical change. Put another way, if we keep doing what we have always done, then we will always get the (unsustainable) results that we have always gotten. Thus, there is a need to do things differently, and this is where leadership and strategic management can play a significant role.

In tackling the societal and sustainability transitions highlighted above, simply relying on technical knowledge is not enough. These transition challenges are wicked problems, where simple solutions and incremental change are not sufficient. To address these transitions, there is also a need to inspire people from different backgrounds to activate radical change in our actions. Leadership skills are therefore critical to influence others to take the path less travelled. In addition, projects are increasingly considered and commissioned as drivers of change. Therefore, leadership is deeply connected to the delivery of projects.

The key topics of this course include:

1. Context: Understanding the context of leadership and strategy in transitions;

2. Leadership theories: Complementing management and leadership, and shifting the mindset from planning and control (outputs) to influencing change and transformation (outcomes);

3. Strategic management: Shifting the framing from strategy formulation and (long-term) planning to purpose-driven implementation and strategy-as-practice;

4. Creativity and innovation: Shifting towards more open forms of innovation, and the role leadership and organisational strategy can play;

5. Communication and negotiation: Understanding the power of communication and negotiation practices to influence outcomes;

6. Values and impacts: Critically reflecting on the value, values and impacts of leadership and strategic management.