How GenAI Costs Sank Duolingo’s Stock 20% Despite Record Growth

Class Central is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Harvard University

Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles

Harvard University via edX

Go to class Write review

Overview

Coursera Plus Annual Sale: All Certificates & Courses 25% Off!
Grab it

The crises of our time generate enormous adaptive challenges for our families, organizations, communities, and societies. The need for leadership that can mobilize people to meet these challenges and improve life is critical.

In this introductory course, you will explore strategies for leading in a changing world where adaptive pressures will continue to challenge all of us. You will discover new ways to approach complex organizational systems and take thoughtful action on the work we all face ahead. Most importantly, you will reflect on how to move forward on the leadership challenges you care about most.

Syllabus

  • Introduction: Get on the Balcony
  • 1 Identify the Work to Be Done
  • 2 Lead With, Beyond, and Without Authority
  • 3.1 Take Action: Think Politically
  • 3.2 Take Action: Build Trust
  • 3.3 Take Action: Orchestrate Conflict
  • 4 Anchor Yourself
  • Conclusion: Staying Alive

Taught by

Ronald Heifetz

Tags

Reviews

4.9 rating, based on 24 Class Central reviews

4.7 rating at edX based on 1079 ratings

Start your review of Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles

  • Profile image for Adrian Isai Sanchez Herrera
    Adrian Isai Sanchez Herrera @iamadrianx
    I would like to say that this course has changed the way I view leadership, from the concepts to the strategies that were taught. The strategies learnt can be applied to both personal and work life.
  • Anonymous
    The content was great and I loved the philosophical yet systematic approach to being a leader.
    I felt very betrayed in the fact that it does not state clearly when you begin this course, that you will not obtain the passing grade unless you upgrade and pay for this.
    With a course that has trust as a topic, I felt very let down as I worked diligently to gain the maximum scores - without realising that a pass was not available to me whatever the outcome.
  • Anonymous
    This course is outstanding and is highly recommended. What is most impressive besides the contents and everything you'll learn about leadership is the method of delivery by the instructor. This instructor is very engaging, even though you are taking this course asynchronously. He inspires you to continue to learn, reflect, and practice using your own leadership problem to apply what you've learned so that the information is very memorable and personal to you. This course will change your understanding of leadership and help to shape you so you can become a better leader by properly diagnosing the problem and using best practices to approach the work to be done. Bravo to this instructor! This is the best course that I've taken on edX.
  • Sylinda C.
    I would definitely recommend taking this course, the instructor was very knowledgeable in leadership and explaining the steps to become a better leader. The material was easy to comprehend, and I enjoyed reading viewpoints from people in the class. I also enjoyed the instructor sharing his own experiences and how it impacted his work life and the importance of being compassionate. This is my first time taking a course on edx.
  • Anonymous
    Thank you for the course; it's excellent. It helped me properly understand the meaning of leadership with concepts and key strategies that I can now apply in my work environment. Highly recommended and indispensable to take, as it opens up such a broad perspective on how to make decisions effectively. Greetings from México.
  • Anonymous
    Simply Fantastic. The instructor is great, I like how he conducts the course and delivers the message. The content itself is great, very helpful and educational. However, the best part of it is the delivery of the content by the instructor and how the self reflections get you to a place in which you gain clarity about your leadership approach and how you can address different situations.
  • Anonymous
    This course by Ronald Heifetz has been nothing short of motivational, inspirational and invigorating. It was less of a course but more of a journey he took me through in understanding the true nuances of leadership. It's a must do course for all budding leaders.
  • Daniel Paterson
    Many interesting concepts and new leadership tools to be found Most intriguing to me where the everyday practical tools you come away with from this course. I found myself reinvigorated to go back and attack the challenges that lead me to look for self improvement in this course. Highly recommended
  • Anonymous
    Very concise and to the point. Leads to important self-reflections. It has led me to understand how and why a skilled-leader can be poised still even in the midst of big challenges - without "leading".
  • Anonymous
    Excellent course and excellent teacher. All the material is super valuable for implementation not only in organizations and for leadership, but in life itself.
  • Anonymous
    Not a lot of courses have the ability to inspire you like this one. Aside from gaining a better approach when it comes to leadership and facing challenges, you'll find this course inspiring until the end. You'll learn how to tackle issues and problems faced in leadership with the tools presented in this course.
  • Anonymous
    Amazing course. Very formative and gives you a lot to think about. Highly recommended for newbie approaching leadership
  • Anonymous
    I am a athlete from 2005 doing marathon, I specialise with long distance 10km to 90km's. I'm doing marathon throw for my heart so now I have NPO Non profit Organisation for the youth and open category to improve my community throw sports teams, to a…
  • Anonymous
    It is a deeply insightful course that will make you rethink and reflect on your ideas about leadership. The presenter, Ron Heifiez, allows the audience to apply the learning to their own leadership contexts and learn from others on the shared platform.
  • Anonymous
    Must attend for Adaptive leaders. The Course involves the concepts of leadership but not management. But leadership is different from management so it is good to attend the course.
  • Anonymous
    I loved the instructor! Super engaging and had insightful knowledge to share. I definitely learned a lot from this course!
  • Trish Monaco
    Having been a Marketing leader for many years, this course still taught me new things about leadership, such as how to analyze different types of challenges (technical vs. adaptive) and the value of a "stakeholder map" in determining the extent of collaboration needed for an issue. It also provided solid strategies to address issues and had participants complete exercises that allowed you to analyze your own personal scenarios. The balance of instruction vs. personal reflection was very effective.
  • Anonymous
    Good is not measurable. It's my most personally important takeaway from the course. The course is a good introduction to important concepts that will shape the way you think about what leadership is and what to do as a leader, in a way I have not seen in any other course. It would be a good decision to enroll.
  • Anonymous
    The course is excellent. During the course is possible to obtain a clear vision about the leadership foundamentals. All strategies and tools that we learn during the videos are usefull and aplicable in the real world.
  • Anonymous
    It was a well taught course, I saw leadership from another perspective and now I can relate well with it. The examples, and the "use yourself as a case task" were really helpful.

    Thank you it was well explained.
Go to class

Never Stop Learning.

Get personalized course recommendations, track subjects and courses with reminders, and more.

Sign up for free
Someone learning on their laptop while sitting on the floor.