Behavioural Science for Ethical Leaders and Negotiators

How can you be a more effective leader?

This Postgraduate Award focuses on two of the most crucial 'people skills' in modern business: Negotiating with people and leading them.

Negotiation is a ubiquitous activity in the workplace; we do it all the time. We negotiate with buyers, suppliers, bosses, colleagues and even family members. It is natural to enter negotiations without planning, and doing our best in the moment. 

But, there is a better way, which we will provide in the first two days of this Postgraduate Award. You'll be provided with a theoretical framework for planning and analysing negotiations, as well as tips for how to get what you want while helping others get what they want too, without harming the relationship. Further to this, you'll get the chance to practice hands-on negotiation with your cohort. We will also pay close attention to the ethics of negotiation. How can you negotiate ethically without losing your shirt? 

We'll then turn to leadership, which involves negotiation and more. We are not the first to observe that with great power comes great responsibility, and as a leader you will face many competing demands. But what does it mean to be an ethical leader in modern society? It's natural to think of leadership as simply involving taking charge and funneling your team into a single direction, but this is far from the case. 

You will explore modern leadership theory, which emphasises how there are different approaches to leadership and different styles of leading. You'll then investigate the strategic role of leadership, and what behavioural science has to say about what makes an effective leader. Examples of real-world application and practice will enable you to reflect on and develop your leadership style and show you how to apply theory to the leadership challenges that you are currently facing, and are likely to face in the future. 

Duration

This Postgraduate Award will run across four days of face-to-face teaching at our London base in The Shard, with a six week window to complete your assignments.

Structure

• Day one: The challenge of negotiation.  We will conduct a close examination of several negotiation examples, and provide a solid framework for thinking about negotiation in general.
• Day two: We will carry out more negotiations, and delve into the ethics of negotiation, lifetime negotiation value, and a number of advanced topics.
• Day three: Understanding effective leadership, the application of leadership practices and the Charismatic Ideological Pragmatic (CIP) model.  We'll explore a combination of theory, empirical evidence and real-world examples to bring the topic to life.
• Day four: Explore the importance of stepping back and being quiet through listening activities. You will explore your own biases and delve into dark leadership tendencies. The final day will bring all the learning together so you can understand how to be a better leader.

The assignments for this course include a reflective essay and a case study, where you will be able to apply behavioural science theory in a leadership/negotiation scenario relating to your current role or organisation.