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Which HBS Online Leadership & Management Course Is Right for You?

professional taking management and leadership courses online
  • 12 Aug 2022
Catherine Cote Author Staff
tag
  • Leadership
  • Leadership Principles
  • Management
  • Management Essentials
  • Negotiation Mastery
  • Organizational Leadership
  • Power and Influence for Positive Impact
  • Strategy Execution

“Leadership is sometimes misunderstood as a mystical quality that some people embody and others don’t,” says Harvard Business School Professor Joshua Margolis in the online course Leadership Principles.

In reality, anyone can learn to become an effective leader, manager, negotiator, or change-maker with education and practice.

To equip you with the necessary skills, HBS Online offers six leadership and management courses: Leadership Principles, Management Essentials, Power and Influence for Positive Impact, Negotiation Mastery, Strategy Execution, and Organizational Leadership.

Whether you’re a new leader or manager building a foundation for success or an experienced one striving to hone or expand your skills, there’s an HBS Online course for you. Here’s an overview of each course to help you decide.


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Which Leadership & Management Course Is Right for You?

If You’re a New or Aspiring Leader or Manager

Do you want to lead an organization or manage teams? Have you recently earned a promotion and want to bolster your skill set? Start with foundational skills in leadership or management.

Leadership Principles is a six-week course that will empower you to unlock the potential in yourself and others. Taught by HBS professors Anthony Mayo and Joshua Margolis, this course guides you in developing your personal leadership style, provides the tools to mobilize others, and prepares you to pivot and lead in stressful situations.

Management Essentials is right if you want fresh tactics for designing organizational processes, influencing decision-making, and spearheading initiatives that enable your team and organization to be at their best.

This eight-week course is taught by HBS professors Joseph Fuller and David Garvin, who equip you with everything from broad perspectives on management to tools for guiding organizational change.

Related: 5 Critical Steps in the Change Management Process

Power and Influence for Positive Impact is the right course for you if you’re interested in the role power and social influence play in enacting positive change.

Taught by HBS Professor Julie Battilana, this six-week course offers a detailed framework for understanding how power works, guidance for gaining power and influence no matter your role, and how to harness it to positively impact others, your organization, and society at large.

If You’re an Experienced Leader or Manager

If you’re a seasoned leader or manager, consider taking Leadership Principles, Management Essentials, or Power and Influence for Positive Impact to brush up on your skills and gain new perspectives from HBS faculty and business experts from leading companies.

If your goal is to deepen or expand your existing skill set, explore one of our other three courses.

Organizational Leadership is our second course taught by Mayo and Margolis. It can be taken as a follow-up to Leadership Principles or on its own. This seven-week course is right if you’re an experienced team leader who wants to prepare for expanded leadership roles.

Through this course, you’ll learn how to elevate your personal leadership style to apply it to larger teams, influence through other managers, and create organizational alignment by effectively communicating purpose and vision.

Related: 4 Organizational Leadership Skills for Aspiring Executives

If you aim to hone your negotiation skills, Negotiation Mastery is the right choice. Over eight weeks, HBS Professor Michael Wheeler will teach you how to analyze negotiation dynamics, prepare an agile negotiation strategy, de-escalate tensions before they become conflicts, and maximize value in agreements.

Finally, Strategy Execution rounds out our leadership and management offerings. This eight-week course taught by HBS Professor Robert Simons prepares you for what many managers call the strategy process’s most challenging aspect: implementation.

You’ll learn the skills to tackle common execution challenges, create an organizational culture that fosters successful strategy execution, and apply frameworks for managing risk, allocating resources, and measuring your own strategies' success.

Which HBS Online leadership and management course is right for you? Download your free flowchart.

What to Expect from an HBS Online Leadership & Management Course

No matter which leadership and management course you take, there are several hallmarks of HBS Online's learning experience you can expect:

  • World-class faculty
  • Self-paced online coursework with deadlines
  • Engaging, interactive course content
  • Social interaction with fellow learners
  • Real examples of business challenges faced by experts
  • The HBS Online Community, a global network of lifelong learners

Select the course that best aligns with your experience level and goals, knowing you’ll build knowledge that can make you a better leader or manager.

If you still aren't sure which HBS Online leadership and management course is the right fit, download our free course flowchart to determine which best aligns with your goals. If multiple programs interest you, consider pursuing a Learning Track, which enables you to take three courses within the leadership and management subject area.

About the Author

Catherine Cote is a marketing coordinator at Harvard Business School Online. Prior to joining HBS Online, she worked at an early-stage SaaS startup where she found her passion for writing content, and at a digital consulting agency, where she specialized in SEO. Catherine holds a B.A. from Holy Cross, where she studied psychology, education, and Mandarin Chinese. When not at work, you can find her hiking, performing or watching theatre, or hunting for the best burger in Boston.
 
All FAQs

Top FAQs

How are HBS Online courses delivered?

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We offer self-paced programs (with weekly deadlines) on the HBS Online course platform.

Our platform features short, highly produced videos of HBS faculty and guest business experts, interactive graphs and exercises, cold calls to keep you engaged, and opportunities to contribute to a vibrant online community.

Do I need to come to campus to participate in HBS Online programs?

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No, all of our programs are 100 percent online, and available to participants regardless of their location.

How do I enroll in a course?

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All programs require the completion of a brief application. The applications vary slightly from program to program, but all ask for some personal background information. You can apply for and enroll in programs here. If you are new to HBS Online, you will be required to set up an account before starting an application for the program of your choice.

Our easy online application is free, and no special documentation is required. All applicants must be at least 18 years of age, proficient in English, and committed to learning and engaging with fellow participants throughout the program.

After submitting your application, you should receive an email confirmation from HBS Online. If you do not receive this email, please check your junk email folders and double-check your account to make sure the application was successfully submitted.

Updates to your application and enrollment status will be shown on your Dashboard. We confirm enrollment eligibility within one week of your application.

Does Harvard Business School Online offer an online MBA?

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No, Harvard Business School Online offers business certificate programs.

What are my payment options?

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We accept payments via credit card, wire transfer, Western Union, and (when available) bank loan. Some candidates may qualify for scholarships or financial aid, which will be credited against the Program Fee once eligibility is determined. Please refer to the Payment & Financial Aid page for further information.

We also allow you to split your payment across 2 separate credit card transactions or send a payment link email to another person on your behalf. If splitting your payment into 2 transactions, a minimum payment of $350 is required for the first transaction.

In all cases, net Program Fees must be paid in full (in US Dollars) to complete registration.

What are the policies for refunds and deferrals?

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After enrolling in a program, you may request a withdrawal with refund (minus a $100 nonrefundable enrollment fee) up until 24 hours after the start of your program. Please review the Program Policies page for more details on refunds and deferrals. If your employer has contracted with HBS Online for participation in a program, or if you elect to enroll in the undergraduate credit option of the Credential of Readiness (CORe) program, note that policies for these options may differ.

 

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