Modern Advances in Leadership Certificate Program: Jan. 20 - Apr. 14

Our newest leadership development program, Modern Advances in Leadership, is an innovative program designed to provide transformative and interactive learning experiences for individuals and organizations seeking to refresh, re-equip or advance their leadership skills. Throughout the program, each course focuses on a unique area of leadership prominent in our ever-changing business world. The interactive approach in this program teaches both future and current business leaders how to implement each unique leadership practice.

This program is open to UT graduate students and beginning-mid level professionals in the business community seeking further leadership development. Leaders with three or more years of experience are encouraged to apply. Participants will receive a certificate upon completion of the program.

Please note this program is in-person.

Sharpen your leadership acumen

Improve your leadership mindset

Enhance your negotiation skills

Develop your entrepreneurial leadership spirit

Discover your potential through team leadership

Understand the contextual factors in the workplace

As part of this program, each participant will receive three complimentary leadership coaching sessions by professional coaches.

January 20, 2026 - April 14, 2026

6 to 9 p.m. (select Tuesday evenings)

The University of Tampa

Sykes College of Business, JS 131

Early Bird Registration: $1,500 (Available for a limited time)

Nonprofit Organization Registration: $1,500

General Registration: $1,650

UT graduate students register via Workday as BUS 698. | Registration required.

For questions about this program, please contact Dominique Madley, coordinator of operations for the Sykes College of Business, [email protected] or (813) 257-3782.

Program Overview

Module 1: Current Issues in Leadership

January 20: The Essence of Leadership: Given the changes in today’s environment, the leadership landscape is significantly different today. This introductory segment of the program examines the new challenges confronted by leaders in today’s context, the ABC’s of a true leader, and the latest trends in leadership. Participants also develop a framework of their personal leadership goals and actions required to become better leaders in their organization.

Facilitators: Dean Frank Ghannadian and Bella Galperin

February 3: Strategic Leadership Workshop (Mandatory): Participants will develop a personal and professional plan under the guidance of our professional leadership coaches. After engaging with coaches and sharing information about their work experiences, background, and dream jobs, participants will be paired with coaches who have mutual interests. They will meet with their professional coaches three times during the semester.

Facilitators: TBD

Module 2: Advancing in your Organization

February 10: Multigenerational Implications for The Future @ Work: There has been increased interest in the role of multi-generations in the workforce. Despite the media attention, some researchers dispute whether generation gaps matter or even exist in the workplace. This seminar discusses the landscape of today’s organizations and uncovers myths about how multi- generations approach work and their view of leadership. Organizational and leadership implications of the future at work, trust, and communication are also discussed.

Facilitator: Michele Norris

February 17: Legal Issues in Human Resources: Employment litigation and resolution in the United States cost corporations millions of dollars each year. This workshop uses an experiential approach to develop an understanding of some of the best practices in compliance and litigation avoidance within several HRM functions to achieve long-term sustainability in organizations in the U.S. Implications for U.S. companies that are going global and non-U.S. companies operating in the U.S. are also discussed.

Facilitator: Stephanie Thomason

February 24: Leading Teams and Increasing Productivity: Building and leading effective teams is one of the most complex and critical challenges facing organizational leaders. In this session, participants will: (1) gain an understanding of the stages 2 of team formation, (2) gain an understanding of the effective tools used to build, participate in, and lead diverse teams in different contexts, (3) understand how to effectively manage and motivate influential team members, and, (4) understand how to inspire team members to enhance and maximize individual performance within teams. Participants will also develop a set of skills associated with teamwork, such as diversity awareness, effective communication, negotiations, trust building, emotional intelligence, conflict management, and managing virtual teams and remote workers.

Facilitators: Deirdre Dixon and Bella Galperin

March 3: Integrative Negotiation — A Tool for Leaders: Great leaders know that integrating interests, cultural competencies, and using principled negotiations get win-win results. Participants will experience a hands-on lesson that will develop skills for achieving this goal locally or in an international setting. Everyone negotiates on a daily basis, so why not improve outcomes and demonstrate leadership?

Facilitator: Cindy Goldman

Module 3: Implementation

March 10: Mastering Innovation: Understanding and Tapping into the Entrepreneurial Mindset: In today’s economy, business leaders are dependent upon innovation and creative problem solving in order to stay competitive. While opportunity, resources, agility, and a diversified workforce are vital ingredients for innovation, it is the entrepreneur and his/her team that are the recipe for success. Self-knowledge and intellectual honesty are the cornerstones for a strong entrepreneurial leader. Participants will learn about their own entrepreneurial profile and the latest evidence-based research that defines the entrepreneurial mindset and identifies competencies for enhancing human performance in corporate entrepreneurship and business venturing.

Facilitator: Rebecca White

March 24: Blue Ocean Strategy to Blue Ocean Leadership: Is there a shortage of top talent or a shortage of motivation? The Blue Ocean Strategy framework transformed the way many companies approached their competition and markets. In this seminar we explore how Blue Ocean Strategy concepts and analytical tools can create a vibrant workforce, thereby releasing “oceans” of energy and unlocking new profitable opportunities.

Facilitator: Susan Steiner

March 31: Strategic Thinking in Your Company: The best strategy occurs at the intersection of understanding one’s company and the opportunities in one’s industry. Thinking Strategically is a seminar that covers the state-of-the-art techniques for identifying opportunities in the industry and for assessing the competencies of one’s company. The seminar will be based on a model called the Strategy Process Cycle. During the seminar, techniques will be presented as stand-alone skills that you can practice and take back to your company as part of your strategic planning.

Facilitator: Chris Crawford

April 14: Participants’ Personal Action Plan*: After reflecting on each of the workshops and on the meetings with professional coaches, individuals present their personal action plans to the group.

*Requirements for the written and oral presentations will be provided to participants in the first session.

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Host or Publisher The University of Tampa TECO Energy Center for Leadership