About this course: This course aims to inspire and empower women and men across the world to engage in purposeful career development and take on leadership for important causes---to lead change with more conviction and confidence---and improve our workplaces and communities for all. By offering more complex understandings of issues related to professional women and work, the course will help you increase self-knowledge about your own values and vision, as well as enhance your capabilities as a leader, manager, and team contributor. We will examine the opportunities, challenges, trade-offs, and organizational dynamics experienced by women in work organizations, as well as reflect on and practice effective individual behaviors. The course aims at answering questions such as: What are the valued attributes and behaviors of women in the workplace? How does the gendered nature of organizations impact women? What derails our career advancement and what propels us upward? What are your leadership goals and aspirations? How can you best integrate your multiple family and work life commitments? How do you define career success? What can organizations do to provide women with opportunities to excel? What opportunities could our global economy harness by advancing women to leadership? How can the full talents of the workforce be tapped into and developed? The course is about leadership and inspiring change, but at its core it is meant to inspire and empower women and men across the world to engage in purposeful career development and take on leadership for important causes, to lead change with more conviction and confidence, and improve our workplaces and communities for all. Your involvement in the course activities is essential to help you learn these concepts and develop the necessary skills to implement them. If you watch the videos and read the required articles you will be introduced to some intriguing ideas. If you do the personal reflective exercises and complete the final project you will convert those ideas into relevant experiences to enhance your life and work. Going beyond your personal relevance, your potential learning will expand to understanding and working with others more effectively through either the Discussion Forums in the course or through face-to-face discussions (some of you are taking the course in groups). Each week, we will post reminders, changes, and other relevant announcements.
Created by: Case Western Reserve University
Taught by: Diana Bilimoria, PhD, KeyBank Professor and Chair of Organization Behavior
Organizational Behavior, Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University
| Basic Info | Course 2 of 5 in the Inspired Leadership Specialization |
| Commitment | 5 weeks of study, 1-3 hours/week |
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
WEEK 1: Yourself as a Leader—Developing your Leadership Identity
This week describes the objectives, learning goals, key questions and overview of this course, “Women in Leadership: Inspiring Positive Change!” Current research on organizations in the US and globally is examined to identify women’s leadership strengths, styles and aspirations. We then focus on leading with authentic purpose. We define inspiring leadership and discuss the strategies of high achieving women. Values and leadership vision are discussed in the context of developing the identity of a leader.
3 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Watch: Course Introduction
- Reading: Read: Navigating the Course
- Video: Watch: Our Organizations Need Women Leaders!
- Reading: Read: Required Reading List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What are the benefits to society from having more women leaders?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What are your unique strengths for leadership?
- Video: Watch: Leadership Vision
- Reading: Read: Required and Optional Readings List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What is inspiring leadership?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What is your leadership identity in terms of your values and vision for the future?
Graded: Reflection: Best Self Exercise
Graded: Reflection: Values and Leadership Vision Exercise
WEEK 2
WEEK 2: The Current State of Women's Leadership at the Top!
This module focuses on the representation and status of women in senior leadership positions in organizations and governments across the world. We focus especially on statistics depicting the representation of women executives and directors on corporate boards, and address why women at the top matter, the nature of the glass ceiling phenomenon, and what countries are doing to address and remedy the glass ceiling effect. We then examine organizational, interpersonal and individual level barriers and challenges that constrain the advancement of women. We define and provide examples of important concepts such as second generation gender bias and the accumulation of disadvantage. Strategies to overcome barriers and challenges that are known to work for women are discussed next.
2 videos, 2 readings
- Video: Watch: The Global Context of Women at the Top
- Reading: Read: Required Readings List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: Is there still a glass ceiling?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What are the numbers/proportions of women in senior leadership in your organization, industry and country?
- Video: Watch: Why So Few, Why So Slow?
- Reading: Read: Required and Optional Readings List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What are the organizational, interpersonal, and individual barriers to women’s advancement?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What are the barriers and challenges you’ve faced in your career and how have you overcome them?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What lessons can we draw from what others have experienced?
Graded: Reflection: Global Context of Women at the Top Exercise
Graded: Reflection: Connect with the Experience of Others Exercise
WEEK 3
WEEK 3: Women's Leadership Presence
This week we discuss the so-called “gender confidence gap” where women are seen to have lower self-confidence for leadership than men, and then redefine and reframe self-confidence as a combination of authenticity, self-efficacy, adaptability and resourcefulness, and persistence and grit. The module brings in one of Dr. Bilimoria’s doctoral students to talk about her own self-confidence journey. Finally we provide some tips about demonstrating self-confidence through voice and effective non-verbal communication. Next we focus on navigating politics and gaining influence in organizations. We define organizational politics and power, and discuss strategies to respond positively to political situation in organizations and deploy power and influence. We discuss the role of unwritten rules in organizations, how to develop social capital to build relationships and form alliances necessary for effective performance and career development.
2 videos, 2 readings
- Video: Watch: Acting with Self-Confidence
- Reading: Read: Required Readings List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: Is there a gender confidence gap?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What is leadership presence for women?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: How can women develop self-confidence?
- Video: Watch: Navigating Organizational Politics
- Reading: Read: Required Readings List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What are the unwritten rules of career advancement?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: How can women learn to better navigate organizational politics?
Graded: Reflection: Self-Confidence Assessment Exercise
Graded: Reflection: Power Map Exercise
WEEK 4
WEEK 4: Leadership Tools for Women
This week we focus on building the skills of negotiating effectively. We start with understanding the gender gap in negotiating, and the consequences of not negotiating for women. The skills of win-win negotiating are discussed in terms of employing a collaborative approach to negotiating. Key concepts such as interest based negotiation, BATNA, and emotions in negotiating are examined.
1 video, 1 reading
- Video: Watch: Developing Win-Win Negotiation Skills
- Reading: Read: Required and Optional Readings List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: Do women negotiate less?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What is the gender pay gap?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: How should women negotiate?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: How can you improve your negotiation skills?
Graded: Apply your Skills: Negotiation Practice Exercise
WEEK 5
WEEK 5: Purposeful Career Development for Women
In the course’s final module, we first discuss two key issues of purpose-driven career development: defining one’s own success and gaining enhanced clarity about career planning and work-life integration issues. This segment concludes with two exercises, “Life Roles” and “Defining Own Success”, followed by a reflection about insights gleaned. Finally, a closure to the course, “Women in Leadership: Inspiring Positive Change!” is offered, recapping the sessions completed and offering encouragement for participant’s future leadership that makes a positive difference to the world.
1 video, 1 reading
- Video: Watch: There is No Single Trajectory for a Fulfilling Career
- Reading: Read: Required and Optional Readings List
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: What does success look like for you?
- Discussion Prompt: Discuss: How can work-life integration be achieved?
Graded: Reflection: Current and Ideal Life & Defining Your Own Success Exercise
Graded: Apply your Skills: Praxis Paper
FAQs
How It Works
Coursework
Each course is like an interactive textbook, featuring pre-recorded videos, quizzes and projects.
Help from Your Peers
Connect with thousands of other learners and debate ideas, discuss course material, and get help mastering concepts.
Certificates
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Creators
Case Western Reserve University
Case Western Reserve University is a leading national research university located in Cleveland, Ohio. Through its seven schools and college, Case Western Reserve offers top-10 programs in health law, organizational behavior and social work and top-25 programs in biomedical engineering, international law, medicine and nursing. More than 4,000 undergraduate and nearly 6,000 graduate and professional students are enrolled at CWRU, representing all 50 states and more than 90 countries.
Pricing
| Purchase Course | Audit | |
|---|---|---|
| Access to course materials | Available | Available |
| Access to graded materials | Available | Not available |
| Receive a final grade | Available | Not available |
| Earn a shareable Course Certificate | Available | Not available |
Ratings and Reviews
The course was very helpful in bringing my thoughts together and get them into a concrete personal plan. The most important takeaway for me the concept of centered leadership, thinking about success in a holistic way is very logical and empowering.
Being exposed to the fact that women in well developed countries face the same issues we face in developing countries changed my opinion that women issues where I live is just another symptom of broken systems and if these systems improve women situations will "automatically" improve.
Identifying what I need to work on, knowing that there are well established tools to handle them was also great.
In fact the "Inspiring leadership specialization" in whole is really useful program and I am glad I came across it. Thanks to everyone who put an effort on it.
superb program.. love the richness and simple format it has.
Fantastic learning experience. Very important to be exposed to this work for personal and professional growth. I also learnt about my own unconscious bias. Plus the module (week 4) on negotiating effectively was awesome.
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excellent course. I work with many women and it was great to learn more about the influence they have on the work force.