Become a Better Business Leader Today. Using Professor Sydney Finkelstein's renowned research into the art and science of leadership and years of experience working with managers and executives around the world, this specialization will help you build the wisdom and skills you need to grow and change as a leader—and as a person.

4.9

stars

161 ratings

Sydney Finkelstein

Top Instructor

5,719 already enrolled

Offered By

Strategic Leadership: Impact, Change, and Decision-Making SpecializationDartmouth College

What you will learn

How to understand common leadership mistakes and keep them from happening to you
How to balance the rational and the emotional to make the best possible decisions
How to crack the code on talent to accelerate your career and help other people get better
How to become a wise leader at work, at home, and in life

Skills you will gain

About this Specialization

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If you're ready to hone your leadership skills and grow as a person, Strategic Leadership: Impact, Change, and Decision-Making for Work and Life is designed for you, whether you're a manager or an individual contributor. Through four courses with Sydney Finkelstein, the Steven Roth Professor of Management at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, you will learn the common mistakes that even smart executives make, the neuroscience behind effective decision making, methods of managing and supporting the people around you, and how to bring together all these lessons to be the best possible leader, and person, at work and at home.

Applied Learning Project

There's no one applied learning project in Strategic Leadership: Impact, Change, and Decision-Making, because the specialization is the applied learning project. Throughout each of the courses, frequent integrated application exercises offer the opportunity to immediately use Professor Finkelstein's teachings to solve your own real-world challenges in real time. These unique exercises are personalized, practical, and—if done with serious intent—will pay off in more ways than you can imagine.

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online courses

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Flexible Schedule

Set and maintain flexible deadlines.

Beginner Level

Approximately 4 months to complete

Suggested pace of 4 hours/week

English

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Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online courses

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Flexible Schedule

Set and maintain flexible deadlines.

Beginner Level

Approximately 4 months to complete

Suggested pace of 4 hours/week

English

Could your company benefit from training employees on in-demand skills?

Try Coursera for Business

See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills

Learn more about Coursera for Business

How the Specialization Works

Take Courses

A Coursera Specialization is a series of courses that helps you master a skill. To begin, enroll in the Specialization directly, or review its courses and choose the one you'd like to start with. When you subscribe to a course that is part of a Specialization, you’re automatically subscribed to the full Specialization. It’s okay to complete just one course — you can pause your learning or end your subscription at any time. Visit your learner dashboard to track your course enrollments and your progress.

Hands-on Project

Every Specialization includes a hands-on project. You'll need to successfully finish the project(s) to complete the Specialization and earn your certificate. If the Specialization includes a separate course for the hands-on project, you'll need to finish each of the other courses before you can start it.

Earn a Certificate

When you finish every course and complete the hands-on project, you'll earn a Certificate that you can share with prospective employers and your professional network.

There are 4 Courses in this Specialization

Course1

Course 1

Why Smart Executives Fail: Common Mistakes & Warning Signs

4.9

stars

125 ratings

We don’t often talk about mistakes and failures, but there’s so much to learn from what goes wrong. In this course, Professor Sydney Finkelstein will teach you why leaders make mistakes, and what you can do to avoid making those same mistakes yourself. Using real-life examples of smart executives who failed, Professor Finkelstein will walk you through scenarios that prepare you to understand, manage, and even take advantage of the continuous change that is inevitable in organizations and in life.

Course2

Course 2

Decision-Making: Blending Art & Science

4.8

stars

41 ratings

Why do smart people sometimes think they are right when they are very, very wrong? Our brains are designed to make quick decisions, and sometimes we miss out on what’s really going on. Knowing this, Professor Sydney Finkelstein walks you through the neuroscience behind decision-making, and teaches you to make conscious decisions that are right for you at work and in life. By teaching you to reflect and move forward even better than before, Professor Finkelstein will help you to be the best you possibly can at whatever you do.

Course3

Course 3

Superbosses: Managing Talent & Leadership

5.0

stars

40 ratings

How can a company thrive for the long term? It always comes down to people: finding talented people, retaining those people, and doing it continuously. In this course, Professor Sydney Finkelstein will teach participants how to support and leverage their biggest asset, the people around them. By learning to find world-class talent and help them move forward in their career, you will learn to build success for your organization and yourself. Using examples like the NFL’s Bill Walsh, the Slow Food Movement’s Alice Waters, and fashion’s Ralph Lauren, Professor Finkelstein shows that superbosses can be found across industries and up and down the org chart—and teaches us to find the superboss within.

Course4

Course 4

Lessons on Wisdom: Personal Leadership for Your Life

5.0

stars

16 ratings

Lessons on Wisdom: Personal Leadership for Your Life is the culmination of four decades of studying and sharing about leaders and life for Professor Sydney Finkelstein. This course will teach you how to be a wise leader both personally and professionally. It is a personal, meaningful course that encourages all participants to change and grow. In it, you will be asked to think differently about who you are and what you do, so that you can take charge of your own life. By understanding nuance and paradox, by learning who you are as an individual, you will find yourself a wiser—and perhaps even happier—person.

Instructor

Sydney Finkelstein
Top Instructor

Steven Roth Professor of Management

Tuck School of Business

8,821 Learners

4 Courses

Offered by

Dartmouth College

Founded in 1769, Dartmouth is a member of the Ivy League and consistently ranks among the world’s greatest academic institutions. Dartmouth has forged a singular identity for combining its deep commitment to outstanding undergraduate liberal arts and graduate education with distinguished research and scholarship in the Arts and Sciences and its four leading graduate schools—the Geisel School of Medicine, the Guarini School of Graduate and Advanced Studies, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the refund policy?
If you subscribed, you get a 7-day free trial during which you can cancel at no penalty. After that, we don’t give refunds, but you can cancel your subscription at any time. See our full refund policy.
Can I just enroll in a single course?
Yes! To get started, click the course card that interests you and enroll. You can enroll and complete the course to earn a shareable certificate, or you can audit it to view the course materials for free. When you subscribe to a course that is part of a Specialization, you’re automatically subscribed to the full Specialization. Visit your learner dashboard to track your progress.
Is financial aid available?
Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.
Can I take the course for free?
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free. If you cannot afford the fee, you can apply for financial aid.
Is this course really 100% online? Do I need to attend any classes in person?
This course is completely online, so there’s no need to show up to a classroom in person. You can access your lectures, readings and assignments anytime and anywhere via the web or your mobile device.
Will I earn university credit for completing the Specialization?
This Specialization doesn't carry university credit, but some universities may choose to accept Specialization Certificates for credit. Check with your institution to learn more.
How long does it take to complete the Specialization?
The Specialization is self-paced and consists of four courses. Each course contains four modules, for a total of about 75 hours of learning time, plus additional time for application exercises. We recommend completing one module per week. At this rate, you will complete the entire Specialization in approximately four months.
What background knowledge is necessary?
Strategic Leadership: Impact, Change, and Decision Making for Work and Life is designed for anyone who is ready to drive change in their organization and in their life. It is ideal for executives with management responsibilities and for those who are hoping to move into management soon, but will benefit anyone looking to improve themselves, their work, and their life.
Do I need to take the courses in a specific order?
The courses can stand alone, however they do build upon each other, so we recommend taking them all in the following order:
Why Smart Executives Fail: Common Mistakes & Warning Signs
Decision Making: Blending Art and Science
Superbosses: Managing Talent and Leadership
Reflections on Wisdom: Personal Leadership for Your Life
Does this specialization feature an applied learning project?
There's no one applied learning project in Strategic Leadership: Impact, Change, and Decision Making, because the specialization is the applied learning project. By using Professor Finkelstein's frequent application exercises, you can work to solve your real-world challenges in real time.
How can I stay in touch with Professor Finkelstein after completing the Specialization?
After completing the program, you are encouraged to follow Professor Finkelstein on LinkedIn and Twitter for more updates on his research and teaching work.

More questions? Visit the Learner Help Center.

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Strategic Leadership: Impact, Change, and Decision-Making Specialization

What you will learn

Skills you will gain

About this Specialization

Applied Learning Project