Leading Change

Course Director: Andrew Schenkel, Emma Bell

Purpose

The purpose of this course is to develop students’ knowledge, understanding and skills in leading change, as a creative, responsible practice of influencing others.

Content

This course will help students to develop the knowledge, understanding and skills that are needed to lead change in a wide variety of organizational contexts. These skills include: interpersonal communication (talking, listening, negotiating, emotional awareness and body language); teamworking; creative thinking; and ethical thinking. The course will provide students with insight into the practice of leadership by selectively drawing on theories of how leaders are (visionary, authentic, responsible), and considering the different forms that leadership can take (heroic, distributed, shared) in a range of different situations.

Format and structure

The course will involve interactive lectures, experiential learning activities led by international guest academics, workshops on communication and embodied performance, and talks from senior change leaders from business and other organizations. Students will be expected to read selected textbook chapters and articles as recommended during the course.

Course administrators: Staffan.Alsparr@hhs.se, 
Bernalee.Karlsson.Anthony@hhs.se

Upon successful completion of this module, students should be able to:

• Explain essential concepts that enable analysis of leadership.
• Understand and apply communication, teamwork, negotiation and ethical leadership skills in a variety of different contexts.
• Critically evaluate claims about leading change from multiple perspectives.
• Engage in continuous personal and professional development as a change leader and a follower.

General entry requirements

• Ladkin, D. (2020) Rethinking Leadership: A New Look at Old Questions. 2nd edn. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
• Jackson, B. and Parry, K. (2018) A Very Short, Fairly Interesting and Reasonably Cheap Book About Studying Leadership. 3rd edn. London: Sage. (First or second edition may also be used)

You will be guided towards reading specific chapters in the above texts in class. Additional readings related to specific weeks will be posted on Canvas with links.

Responses to Experiential Learning Activities (individual assessment, 20 points; 5 points x 3 + 1 point x 5)

15 points in total will be awarded for successful completion of three Experiential Learning Activities (ELA) that students elect to submit for assessment from a total of five ELAs scheduled during the course.

To receive the 5 points for a given ELA, students must complete three short written responses in Canvas immediately following the ELA class. Each ELA will be marked as pass/fail. Written responses must be submitted within a specified time window starting immediately after the class and ending the following day.

The three responses are:

• Immediate experiential response – Students identify and describe an immediate reaction to the simulation, including a moment or situation that stood out and the emotions or reactions it generated. (150 words)
• Theoretical reflection – Students connect their experience to relevant course concepts and theories. This response asks students to consider how theory helps to illuminate, complicate, or fails to capture the experience of the ELA. (200 words)
• Group synthesis reflection – Students discuss their responses in small groups assigned at the start of the course. Following this discussion, each student submits an individual written reflection summarizing the key issues, tensions, or perspectives that emerged in the group conversation, as well as their own position in relation to these discussions. (150 words)

Five points will also be awarded for questions that are pre-submitted by students in advance of each of the guest talks given by experienced change leaders. To receive these points, students will need to submit a question in the allocated time period ahead of each talk (1 point per question). They will also need to be available in class to pose their question to the guest speaker if called upon.

Together, these activities are designed to assess students’ active participation in class, critical reflexivity, and ability to connect embodied experiential learning experiences to relevant theoretical perspectives.

Filmmaking Project (group assessment, 30 points)

Students will work in assigned groups of 5-6 to make a short (4-5 minute) film. The film should demonstrate understanding of leadership and change using theoretical ideas covered in the course. A filmmaking skill development workshop will be provided. The film should be accompanied by: i) a written transcript of the film; ii) a 1,500 word summary of relevant theory and how it is used in the film, including references; iii) a 500 word summary of the group working process (Film length and word limits +/- 10%). The Filmmaking Project will be graded according to the following criteria: a) creativity and communicative skill; b) understanding of theory; c) depth of insight developed. The deadline for submission of the Filmmaking Project is Wednesday 19 May at 17.00.

Exam (individual assessment, 50 points)

There will be a two-hour open-book exam where students will analyze theoretical ideas about leadership and change and relate them to their experience by drawing on the guest lectures and other learning activities in the course. The exam will be graded according to the following criteria: a) clarity of writing; b) understanding of theory; c) analysis of how experience relates to theory; d) depth of insight developed. Further guidance on preparing for the exam will be given during the course.

Note: This course is designed for you to develop the skill of critical reflexivity. This is a human skill, so you should be cautious about using AI in assessment on this course. You may use AI to help you learn and engage with the course content, but the ELA responses and exam answers should primarily be based on your own reflection, linked to theory.

Find the course schedule in TimeEdit

Have you been granted educational support because of a documented disability? If so, please contact the course director as soon as possible so that adequate accommodations can be made.

Contact specialneeds@hhs.se if you have questions about being granted educational support or need a copy of your educational support certificate.

For more information, visit the Specific Educational Needs page on the Student Hub (login required).