Ascending the Peak: Finding the Leader Within—Virtual

In each session, you'll explore the insights, behaviors, and formative experiences of an iconic leader, past or present, such as Howard Schultz, Ernest Shackleton, Abraham Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Rachel Carson, Nelson Mandela, Katharine Graham, and Greta Thunberg. Course participants will then break into small Leadership Development Group (LDG) sessions to unpack the lessons learned in each session and to explore and share how they can be applied to their unique work context and to their larger leadership journey. Throughout the process, facilitated by a self-paced HBS online learning platform, you will reflect on your own path as a leader and identify the steps you can take to navigate the next phase of your career with greater purpose and determination.

At the end of the course, you'll walk away with a personal leadership development plan, which combines perspectives and insights from the iconic leaders you have studied along with reflections from the LDG sessions and the faculty chair, providing you with actionable takeaways you can use to advance your career.

Over the course of 8-weeks, you'll experience the power of the HBS Live Online Classroom—discussing, debating, and engaging live with faculty and peers—while charting your leadership trajectory with a small group of fellow class participants. The live classroom sessions with Professor Nancy Koehn will take place every Tuesday from 4:30 to 6:00 PM ET. Participants will need to log into the Live Online Classroom 30 minutes before the start of each session to conduct a technical check. Each live class will be followed by a 90-minute session with your LDG via the Zoom platform. You will have the option to sign up for your preferred time from 6:30 to 8:00 AM ET or 6:30 to 8:00 PM ET.

Participants should also expect to spend about 4-5 hours in preparation of each class and LDG session, as well as in post-session reflections. The estimated total time commitment for the program is approximately 40-50 hours. Attendance at all sessions and meetings with your LDG at designated times is expected and, just as in our classrooms on campus, everyone will be held to a high standard of engagement through lively discussions, debates, and cold calling.

The part-time schedule of this programs enables you to gain leadership insights you can immediately apply on the job without having to put your work on hold.