Management of uncertainty: leadership, decisions and action

What you will study

On this postgraduate microcredential, you’ll develop better leadership skills and learn to make effective decisions in conditions of radical uncertainty. Over 12 weeks, you’ll cover the following topics.

• Objective accounts of uncertainty, and their limits
• The social construction of certainty and uncertainty
• Uncertainty, stories, imagination and emotion
• Modelling, scenarios and big data – their uses and dangers
• Organising for radical uncertainty: collective mindfulness and organisational resilience
• Leading and influencing in the face of radical uncertainty
• Tolerating 'not knowing' and being curious whilst still acting
• Socially responsible management of uncertainty.

You will learn

By the end of your learning, you’ll be able to:

• identify how, as individuals, organisations and societies, we construct certainty and avoid uncertainty
• apply multiple perspectives on uncertainty and tools for engaging with uncertainty while still being able to act
• reflect critically on the uses, limitations and dangers of big data, artificial intelligence and models in contexts of uncertainty
• demonstrate a critical and ethical awareness of how uncertainty is socially distributed in society and organisations and how your actions as a manager/leader can impact this
• reflect on and develop your own capacity for leadership under uncertainty
• evaluate assumptions critically in planning, forecasting, modelling and strategising to support more mindful organising and greater resilience in the face of uncertainty
• demonstrate the following skills: critical analysis, perspective-taking, personal resilience, engaging with uncomfortable knowledge, tolerance of ambiguity and ambivalence, and ethical awareness.

Skills you will gain

• Critical analysis
• Perspective taking
• Personal resilience
• Engaging with uncomfortable knowledge
• Tolerance of ambiguity and ambivalence
• Ethical awareness
• Leadership
• Influencing
• Management
• Planning for uncertainty
• Decision making
• Strategic thinking

Vocational relevance

The course will benefit managers, leaders, and individuals aspiring to leadership roles. It is particularly relevant for those in senior positions within business, the public sector, or the third sector. The content is also valuable to those working in strategic analysis or consulting, new product development or those managing or commissioning large, complex projects.

Created by leading experts and practitioners from The Open University

• Mark Fenton-O’Creevy is a Professor of Organisational Behaviour at The Open University Business School. Before moving to The Open University, he was a faculty member at London Business School and has over two decades of experience researching and advising on decision-making in organisations.
• Dr Layla Branicki is a Senior Lecturer in Human Resource Management and Organisation Studies at The Open University Business School. She has over ten years of international experience teaching and researching the managerial and strategic implications of uncertainty for organisations through the lenses of resilience, high-reliability organising and corporate social responsibility.

Teaching and assessment

Assessment

You’ll take part in weekly tasks and discussions with co-learners to support and consolidate your learning. Towards the end of the course, you’ll submit a project or assessment demonstrating the skills you’ve acquired. This will be marked and graded by subject matter experts and make up 100% of your final mark.

Study support

• Learn 100% online on the OU’s learning platform with a mix of video, audio and written materials
• Engage in interactive learning through self-assessment questions, polls, tasks and reflection
• Share ideas and experiences in discussion with other learners, building skills, confidence and knowledge
• Receive support from mentors who guide discussions and answer questions
• Study at a time that suits you with the flexibility to access the course from your desktop, tablet or mobile device

What you will gain

15 UK credits at postgraduate level from The Open University*. Academic credits are awarded on passing the final assessment. These will be at postgraduate level 7 of the Framework for Higher Education (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) / level 11 of the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework.

*Academic credit may be used towards selected OU qualifications. For more details, including eligible qualifications, visit Counting microcredentials towards OU qualifications. The credit awarded may also be used at another university, subject to the agreement of the receiving institution.