SAMPLE COURSE - MGMT5150F - Skills For Leadership

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Course Description

This course develops the thinking and reflective skills required for leadership in a turbulent world. Drawing on complexity science, the course applies a multiple perspectives framework to challenge embedded assumptions and advance students’ ability to think creatively, analytically and strategically. Students learn to identify and reframe complex problems more effectively, and to develop and communicate actionable solutions compellingly.

Course Material

Canvas: Canvas is the course website and functions as a digital course outline. You will find the weekly readings/viewings, detailed descriptions and due dates for all assignments, a course calendar, course updates, various course materials and resources, and a companion Twitter feed (@Leaderskills) that is used to share course relevant articles, news items, and resources.

Readings: All mandatory and optional readings and viewings are listed under the weekly modules on Canvas. Some readings can be downloaded directly from Canvas. Others can be accessed through York University’s library website. A link to the library website and instructions on how to access the readings are provided. It is assumed that you have read and thought about the issues explored in the readings before coming to class. Adequate preparation is absolutely necessary to benefit fully from class and be able to contribute to discussions.

There is no textbook for the course.

Course Learning Outcomes

"The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence; it is to act with yesterday's logic." Peter Drucker

“Business as usual” has ceased to exist. Turbulence and transition are the new normal. For anyone who has followed the news in recent months and years, the above rings true. In the current context of rapid economic, social and technological change, capacities for flexibility, innovation, and – in particular – new ways of thinking are at a premium.

This course will introduce students to some of the new mindsets needed for success in today’s turbulent and complex global environment. For example, today’s leaders must have the capacity to accept and deal with unpredictability and be adept at recognizing and integrating multiple perspectives and priorities. They must be able to spot and anticipate emerging trends and patterns; ask and explore provocative questions about their organizations and the world at large; deal with challenging ethical issues; and generally think both “inside” and “outside the box” in a deep and probing way.

To begin meeting these needs, this course fosters the seeing and thinking skills that are required to make a positive leadership difference. In doing so, we will challenge taken-for-granted assumptions about business, organizing, and leadership; promote a triple bottom line approach to sustainable business; and emphasize the need for reflective personal awareness as core themes for guiding the learning process.

In the most fundamental sense, this course is designed as a personal challenge – one that encourages you actively engage in the learning process. Being a passive recipient of information will not yield much value in this course. You are urged to critically examine the course content and its relevance for you and your career, developing both greater “context awareness” (understanding the immediate and larger world around you) and “personal awareness” (understanding yourself and the way you interact with the world around you) in the process.

While many of the attitudes and skills addressed in this course are thought of as “soft skills” – in that they cannot be easily quantified or tied down through rigorous analysis – they are very demanding and can be learned. In that sense, the course is intended to take you out of existing comfort zones and into new territory. It will challenge some of your deeply held beliefs and assumptions, and introduce new ways of thinking and doing. The benefit you derive from the course is directly linked to your ability to rise to the challenge, your personal commitment, and your effort.

You are invited to enter the course with an open mind and a spirit of inquiry and adventurousness, recognizing that awareness of one’s strengths and limitations is crucial for personal development and success. We invite you to be prepared to be challenged; to be provoked; and, at times, to be frustrated. Learning new skills requires challenging existing mindsets and skills. It also requires practice and an awareness of the deeper factors shaping the learning process, especially those forces that can get in the way. The class discussions, exercises, and assignments are designed to help you get on this important learning journey – one that will hopefully continue throughout your future life and career.

To guide you on this journey, we have assembled a diverse and exceptional team of experts. They will introduce you to varied viewpoints and ways of thinking about leadership, organizations and their environments. In addition to your course instructor, who will accompany you throughout the semester and is your contact person for the course, the team includes the following faculty: