Agile Leadership

Overview

The electronic credential or badge for Agile Leadership is awarded by the Agile Strategy Lab at the University of North Alabama. The credential holder has completed an asynchronous online course of seven modules, with each module taking 2-3 hours to complete. The course is based on the book Strategic Doing: Ten Skills for Agile Leadership (Wiley, 2019). The course is designed to equip the participant with a set of skills that can be used no matter what role they hold in an organization, in settings from 1:1 conversations to leading teams.

To successfully complete the course, a participant does the following in each module:

  • watches 1-2 short videos on key concepts;
  • completes a set of written exercises from a workbook that accompanies the book, practicing the skills described in the book and videos;
  • takes a short quiz;
  • responds to a question prompt in an online discussion forum, and comments on at least one fellow learner’s response.

The participant must complete each module and must earn at least an 80% score on each quiz and workbook assignment (they may re-take either or both if necessary).

Course Learning Objectives

Participants in the course will:

  • understand current organizational trends and challenges and what kinds of challenges require a new approach to management and leadership;
  • explore the idea of a “safe space” for conversation
  • practice moving from problem-based conversation openers to appreciative questions
  • learn about different kinds of assets and how to link and leverage them to identify new opportunities
  • be familiar with a range of decision-making techniques (consensus, consensus minus one, sticky dot voting, 2×2 matrix) and each technique’s strengths and drawbacks
  • explore how describing measurable outcomes can be used to help motivate others
  • learn why “quick win” starting projects are important and how to pick an appropriate starting project
  • use “agile” principles of  to help a group identify and carry out a “quick win” project as a starting point for a more complex initiative
  • practice the mechanics of developing an action plan with specific task assignments
  • understand the concept of double loop learning and how to use it in “real life” to improve outcomes
  • explore three key strategies for maintaining momentum in an ongoing project

Contact us with any questions related to this course or the electronic credential. To find an upcoming session for this course, check our calendar.