Elements of Leadership

2.5 credits

This course approaches leadership as a set of learned skills that are subject to personal intention and choice. The focus is on cultivating core leadership mindsets and capacities: sense-making amid multiple perspectives, setting a vision, relating to others, and inventing solutions. These capacities are especially useful in team-oriented work settings and in situations where one must influence without authority. The course draws on contemporary theories of adult development and leadership, such as leader-member exchange and the philosophy of servant leadership. The intention is to prepare Simon graduates for the challenges they will face a few years out of school as they transition to roles where leadership and greater complexity come to the fore. Assignments will blend conceptual models and practice, leading to a personal philosophy of leadership and an agenda for continued development.