President John F. Kennedy once remarked, “Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.”
Northeast State’s Workforce Solutions staff created the Leadership and You course to develop the skills of leadership. Classes will meet on Thursdays from Aug. 15 to Nov. 14. Class sessions are scheduled from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Wayne G. Basler Library on the Blountville campus next to Tri-Cities Airport. The course fee is $1,984 per person.
The 14-week course delves into management skills, the best communication practices, teamwork and work habits, and the art of delegating. Each class meeting addresses a different theme of building leadership qualities. The scheduled class subject matter breaks down as follows:
Orientation/Aug. 15: Organizational leaders discuss the necessity of training and developing leadership skills in today’s market. Additional orientation activities include goal setting, class overview, introductory video, distributing materials, etc.
Introduction to Leadership/Aug. 22: Students get an assessment on their leadership skills via directing, coaching, supporting and delegating.
Essential Skills/Aug. 29: This first step develops successful managers. By focusing on critical management skills, the program establishes a methodology for productive interactions between team members and team leaders.
Essential Skills of Communicating/Sept. 5: One of two foundation courses and provides the tools necessary to develop clear, concise messages. By developing the essential skills of communicating, managers improve relations with their team members and increase productivity.
Developing Performance Goals and Standards/Sept. 12: Class participants learn how to establish specific, measurable, attainable, results-oriented, and time-framed performance goals.
Coaching Job Skills/Sept. 19: Lead like Lombardi by learning how to coach individuals to perform a job, a task, or a skill. In order to achieve results, coaching must go beyond showing how to do something. Coaching involves observing, analyzing demonstrating, and giving feedback.
Providing Performance Feedback/Sept. 26: Students learn the process using the methods for evaluation. First, relevant performance standards are established. Then the team member’s own performance evaluation is solicited.
Improving Work Habits/Oct. 3: Provides the tools necessary to recognize and to address poor work habits – even those of a team member who may be successful in his or her job.
Effective Discipline/Oct. 10: Helps managers learn effective techniques for addressing problem behavior. Using communication skills, the manager works to preserve the individual’s self-respect and encourage self-discipline.
Delegating/Oct. 17: Provides the tools needed to communicate the “what” and the “why” of every delegated task. Helps an individual understands what is required to facilitate a successful result.
Managing complaints/Oct. 24: How to resolve simple complaints and identify the hidden agendas that so often underlie the chronic grievances. Resolving conflicts: Learn and develop skills to identify the source of team member conflicts.
Supporting Change/Oct. 31: Managers learn how to understand and interpret change via clear communication to reduce misunderstanding and anxiety.
Final exam and completion ceremony/Nov. 14: Class participants give a 5-minute presentation answering questions that pertain to what they have learned and how they will continue to grow in skills.
For more information and how to register for this class, contact Diana Harrison with Workforce Solutions at 423.354.5520 or dlharrison@northeaststate.edu.
I am a Alumnus and would like to benefit from this course but I am a Service Member and cannot attend campus meetings.