CURRICULUM
“At the start of L21: Chaos, Conflict and Courage, I was frustrated, mad, and uncomfortable. Never before had I been forced to examine myself so closely. By the program’s end, I was truly a different person. I was re-energized and renewed and I had a greater level of self-awareness than I’d ever had in my life. L21: Chaos, Conflict and Courage was just the experience I needed at a crossroad in my career and in my life. In some ways, my experience moved me beyond words. The dedication and investment of the faculty, staff, and other participants to making this a life-changing experience is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before.”
-Participant, Leadership for the 21st Century
Personal Leadership Challenge and Peer Consultation
A key element of the curriculum will be the personal leadership challenges that you and your colleagues in the program will be asked to discuss and reflect on. These challenges form the basis of peer group consultations throughout the week.
Using the Group as a Case
A unique feature of this program is the insight that comes from using the group itself as a case from which everyone can learn about the dynamics of leadership and authority. Taking part in this real-time case study will enable you to experience the “perspirational” as well as the “inspirational” aspects of leadership.
In class and in smaller group sessions you will discuss how to:
- Exercise leadership without authority
- Analyze and manage the dynamics that impede progress
- Unlock individual and group creativity
- Translate purpose and commitment into effectiveness
- Find your voice
- Stay alive in a leadership role
Sample Leadership Challenges
In just eight years, a thirty-employee nonprofit has established an international network that operates in over 25 countries and includes some of the world’s leading corporations. While the organization, whose goal is to promote corporate social responsibility, wants to remain small and entrepreneurial, it also wants to expand its influence on multinational corporate behavior and global policy. What leadership strategies can the policy and research director employ in order to help meet these two seemingly divergent goals?
A city in California has been pursuing a strategy to enhance a somewhat deteriorating area of town. At the moment, there are a number of redevelopment initiatives underway involving residents, business owners, school, and various city departments. What can the assistant city manager do to help these groups develop a common mission? What is the best approach to ensure success? How can this manager provide the necessary leadership?
As price wars continue to drive the telecommunications market, companies are looking for creative ways to remain both profitable and competitive. A senior manager of one firm has developed a new organizational model that will significantly drive costs down. Because this plan has enormous strategic and organizational implications, some key officers are reluctant to support it. How can the manager convince these officers of the plan’s value?