England

Please tell us where you live so that we can provide you with the most relevant information as you use this website.

If you are at a BFPO address please choose the country or region in which you would ordinarily be resident.

Accessibility statement

The twenty-first century has brought about new macro-trends. We have seen an unprecedented growth in new information technologies and an increase in the number and scope of profound global events putting people’s lives at risk across the world. How can we cope with these challenges? This is a critical question, and we need to ask it at individual, organisational and institutional levels.

This Continuing Professional Development (CPD) course emphasises strategy creation. You'll learn what a strategy is, who can be a strategist and how you can develop a strategic mindset, which is needed not only to adapt to the new conditions in our lives but also to make sense and, most importantly, to avail ourselves of emerging opportunities.

Unit 1: Understanding the meaning of strategy

This unit focuses on the first of three strategy-creation questions addressed through the course: What is a strategy? You'll learn about strategic management from different perspectives as we address this question.

Unit 2: Who a strategist is – expanding to new contexts

This unit introduces the second key course question: What does it mean to be a strategist? It outlines a wider view of strategist roles, one that stems from the changing nature of strategic management. Today, strategising is essentially about expanding to new contexts, reaching new levels, and dismantling organisational boundaries.

Unit 3: Who a strategist is – a practical application

In this unit, we continue to discuss how a strategist helps organisations to become more resilient by expanding to new contexts. Our focus is on a practical application of the ideas suggested in the previous unit.

Unit 4: Who a strategist is – reaching new levels

This unit continues to explore the question of who a strategist is. You'll learn how strategists help organisations to develop resilience by reaching new levels.

Unit 5: Who a strategist is – dismantling barriers

This unit revisits the question of who a strategist is. You'll learn how strategists develop an organisation’s resilience to external shocks by dismantling traditional organisational boundaries. These could be as (un)natural disasters, economic recessions, and health crises.

Unit 6: How a strategist thinks – linear and systems thinking

This unit explores the third key course question: How does a strategist think? You'll learn about thinking styles underlying a strategic mindset.

Unit 7: How a strategist thinks – the role of metacognition

This unit continues to explore the question of how a strategist thinks. This time, you'll consider metacognition – the process of thinking about thinking – which a strategist develops to lead strategy creation work.

Unit 8: Reflection and integration

In the concluding unit we invite you to reflect on strategy creation work by completing three short quizzes. As you work through this unit, we advise you to revisit the key themes of the course.

By completing this CPD course, you will learn to:

Expert, confidential learner support is available when you need it from a learning adviser, who will respond to you directly. Other support is available via the course forum, dedicated website and computing helpdesk.

There is a practice-based assignment (PBA) which you complete at the end of the course to demonstrate how you have applied, or are intending to apply, the theories and models you have learnt. Once completed and successfully passed you will receive a digital badge and a course completion certificate which you can download as a record of your learning.

The course will require around 20 hours to complete.

You can begin at any time during the life of the course and study at your own pace. The course will be open to you for a time period of between 6 and 18 months, depending on your course registration date, and you will be advised of the specific time limitations upon enrolment.

You’ll have access to a course website, which includes:

As a student of The Open University, you should be aware of the content of the academic regulations, which are available on our Student Policies and Regulations website.

There are no formal academic requirements. If you have any doubt about the suitability of the course, please contact us.

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.

The OU strives to make all aspects of study accessible to everyone and this Accessibility Statement outlines what studying BGXC004 involves. You should use this information to inform your study preparations and any discussions with us about how we can meet your needs.

Start	England fee
At anytime before 31/07/2026	£250

We accept American Express, Mastercard, Visa and Visa Electron.

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.

The fee information provided here is valid for short courses starting in the 2025/26 academic year. Fees typically increase annually. For further information about the University's fee policy, visit our

Fee Rules

You can start this course anytime.