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Developing your leadership style

Developing a leadership style which is appropriate for your own context can be challenging. Leadership theories and ideas change over time and it can be difficult to know which to apply to your own practice. This course focuses on the introduction and evaluation of different leadership theories and styles which will enable you to understand how leadership is demonstrated within you own organisation and how your own leadership practice can be developed. It is suitable for managers in all sectors, at both first line and middle management levels. It will be particularly relevant for new managers but can also benefit experienced managers without previous management training.

Standalone study only

You will not be awarded credits for studying this course. It is available for standalone study only and cannot be counted towards an OU qualification.

Short course

Short course code: BG005
Credits: This is a non-credit bearing course.
Study method: Distance Learning
Short course cost: See Registration
Entry requirements: See Am I ready?

Course details Am I ready? Registration Study materials

What you will study

This course is a concentrated overview and practice in some of the key skills and knowledge required to develop an effective leadership style and is based around a number of sessions of online study. These include learning materials in a variety of formats including articles and video clips. You will develop knowledge and understanding of different approaches to leadership which can apply across sectors and industries and enhance your employability.

The areas you will study are:

Defining leadership. What makes it different to management? You will have an opportunity to explore your own thinking on what leadership is, and what makes it effective (or not).
Different theories about leadership - You will explore the relevance of these theories to your own practice.
Leadership for 21st century organisations. An introduction to theories which particularly respond to an environment in which organisations are characterised increasingly by flatter structures and complex matrix arrangements.
Adaptive leadership which focuses on how individuals lead without or beyond authority to address complex problems.
The practice of leadership.

You will be asked to complete a series of activities as you work through the course. These activities will help you to prepare a work-based activity, which you need to complete at the end of the course.

Through the activities, you will be able to demonstrate application of theories and approaches within your own work based context and you will also have an opportunity to identify where further personal development may be required. There will be several opportunities to relate what you are studying to your practice at work. Your work context and all aspects of your organisation and the people there form a rich learning environment. You can learn by comparing the ideas from the course with what is happening in practice. The work-based activity offers you the opportunity to practice using the tools in your own leadership situation and also enables you to identify and plan any further development areas.

The strong link between course learning and your work practice creates relevant, enduring and transferable outcomes. It requires no more than 25 hours of your time in total, over whatever period suits you. Register online today and start tomorrow – no need to wait!

The course features the distinctive strengths of The Open University (OU) from its years of expertise in work-based learning:

The convenience of accessing its clearly presented and sequenced materials, activities and support whenever suits you and wherever you have access to the dedicated website – if you prefer, you can print key materials to work on them offline.
The support of an expert learning adviser who can clarify study materials, answer questions and help you relate the course to your specific needs.
A work-based activity helping you to connect the course to your individual and organisational context and needs. A learning adviser will review your work-based activity and provide personal feedback.
Certification of completion from the OU for those who complete the course. You can use this to demonstrate your continuing professional development (CPD) activity to your employer and/or professional body. (NB The course does not carry academic credit points.)

You will learn

After completing this course you should be able to:

Define leadership in different ways
Understand different theoretical approaches to leadership
Evaluate their relevance and apply them to your own context
Identify areas of further personal development to enhance your leadership practice
Plan the next stages of your own leadership development, drawing on the theories you encounter in the course.

Professional recognition

Successful completion of the course enables us to recognise your achievement of the course learning by issuing an OU certificate that you can use to document your commitment to continuing professional development in your personal portfolio, or to provide evidence to employers or professional body.

Learner support

Expert, confidential learner support is available when you need it from a learning adviser, who will respond to you direct within 24 hours. Other support is available via the course forum, library, StudentHome website and computing helpdesk.

Work-based activity

The work-based activity for this course has been designed as an integrated ongoing activity that you submit at the end of your study. It will allow you to reflect on your learning and how to use it in your professional work.

Outside the UK

This course has been written primarily for a UK context, but will have relevance to other contexts.

Regulations

As a student of The Open University, you should be aware of the content of the academic regulations which are available on our Essential Documents website.

Entry

Although there are no formal academic requirements to study any of our CPD courses, you are expected to have some experience in the field and the course assumes a familiarity with the subject.

You can register and begin at any time during the life of the course. You can study at your own pace and submit your work-based activity at any date before the final submission date for the course. Information about the final submission date is available when you register for the course.

Register

Start	End	England fee	Register
At anytime	Flexible - see Entry requirements for more detail	£295.00	Register

Ways to pay

Credit/Debit Card – We accept American Express, Mastercard, Visa/Delta or Visa Electron.

Sponsorship – If this course is geared towards your job or developing your career, you could ask your employer to sponsor you by paying some or all of the fees. Your sponsor just needs to complete a simple form to confirm how much they will be paying and we will invoice them.

What's included

All learning materials, exercises, study support and the work-based activity are delivered entirely online.

Computing requirements

You will need a device with internet access to study this module as a web browser is used to access learning materials and activities. Any other computer-based activities you will need to carry out, such as word processing, using spreadsheets, taking part in online forums, and submitting files to the university for assessment, are specified in the module materials. If any additional software is needed for these tasks it will either be provided or is freely available. You may need administrative privileges to install software required for this module. Windows 10 S is not suitable as it restricts software installation to software available in the Windows Application Store.

Suitable devices are:

A Windows desktop or laptop running Windows 7 or later operating system
A Macintosh desktop or laptop running OS X 10.8 or later operating system.

Some software will not run on Linux, iOS or Android devices.

A netbook, tablet, smartphone or Linux computer that supports one of the browsers listed below may be suitable. However, these devices may not be suitable for some activities. If you intend to use one of these devices please ensure you have access to a suitable desktop or laptop device that uses the Windows or OS X operating system in case you are unable to carry out all activities on your mobile device.

Recent versions of the following browsers are suitable for carrying out web-based activities:

Safari
Chrome
Firefox
Edge

Or Internet Explorer 9 and above.

Using a browser upgraded to the latest version will maximise security when accessing the internet.

Using company or library computers may prevent you accessing some internet materials or installing additional software.

To be able to talk and listen in our online discussions you will need both a microphone and speakers/headphones.

Devices with small screens may make it difficult to view the material provided and carry out the activities. However, a device that has a resolution of at least 1024 pixels horizontally and also at least 768 pixels vertically should be adequate.

See our Skills for OU study website for further information about computing skills for study and educational deals for buying Microsoft Office software.

If you have a disability

The course is delivered online and makes use of a variety of online resources. If you use specialist hardware or software to assist you in using a computer or the internet you are advised to contact us about support which can be given to meet your needs. If you are a new learner with the OU, make sure that you look at our website.

Developing your leadership style

Standalone study only

Short course

What you will study

You will learn

Professional recognition

Learner support

Work-based activity

Outside the UK

Regulations

Entry

Register

Ways to pay

What's included

Computing requirements

If you have a disability

The Open University

OU Community

OU Students Community

Support

Study

Policy

What you will study

You will learn

Professional recognition

Learner support

Work-based activity

Outside the UK

Regulations

Entry

Register

Ways to pay

What's included

Computing requirements

If you have a disability

Where do you live?