This course is part of the Leadership & Management track.
Introduction to Management Essentials

LIMITED TIME ONLY

Extra learning at no extra cost. Enroll now and unlock a GenAI Bonus Bundle featuring complimentary lessons on AI fundamentals. Download our guide to learn more about this limited-time offer.
 

Management Essentials

$1,850
Next 8-week session starts May 7th
Master four vital managerial processes: decision-making, implementation, organizational learning, and change management.
8
weeks
4-7
hours per week
4
modules
Self-Paced

 This course earns you a Certificate of Completion from HBS Online. What you earn.

Overview
Syllabus
Enrollment
Stories
FAQs

Key Concepts

Design, direct, and shape organizational processes to your advantage
Influence the context and environment in which decisions get made
Implement strategies, plans, and projects on time, on budget, and at the highest quality
Spearhead learning initiatives that enable your organization to improve and innovate
Manage and lead change in organizations of varying sizes

Who Will Benefit

Whether you’re managing people, products, or projects, gain the skills you need to succeed from day one.
Being able to break down real-life scenarios, and look at the management processes within each—what worked and what didn't—provided a unique method of learning, and incomparable to other course offerings available.
Monica Higgins
Account Director at Hollywood Agency
Elevate your management skills by applying insights from Harvard Business School faculty and expert practitioners.
I thought I knew the subject relatively well and it would be a refresher. I was in for a surprise. After the first module, I realized that I did many things wrong. The most chilling thought was about missed opportunities. The course is giving me a good structure to understand organizational behavior.
Alex Glavkov
Technical Program Manager at Amazon Robotics
Start preparing for a future managerial role through access to best-in-class tools and frameworks.
Meet Raymond, a Management Essentials participant who took the course in order to be more effective in his new role as Manager of Diversity Pipeline Programs for Boston Public Schools.
Raymond Porch
Manager of Diversity Pipeline Programs, Boston Public Schools

What You Earn

Certificate of Completion

Certificate of Completion

Boost your resume with a Certificate of Completion from HBS Online

Earn by: completing this course

Certificate of Specialization

Certificate of Specialization

Prove your mastery of leadership and management

Earn by: completing any three courses within this subject area to earn a Certificate of Specialization

Syllabus

4 Modules, 35-45 Hours
Download full syllabus
10-12
hrs
Module 1

A Process Perspective on Management

Differentiate between the myths and realities of management, and learn how to adopt and leverage processes to your advantage.

Highlights

Managing vs. Leading
Columbia Space Mission Case
Process: The DNA of Management
ShowHide Details

Case Studies

  1. Mount Everest - 1996
  2. Columbia’s Final Mission
  3. Leading Change at Fuerte Construction

Featured Exercises

  • Small group process analysis
  • Peer feedback exercise
10-12
hrs
Module 2

Shaping the Decision-Making Process

Analyze the decision-making process and evaluate potential drivers and pitfalls. Utilize a range of managerial levers to improve individual and group decision-making.

Highlights

Evaluate the Process, Not the Outcome
The Bay of Pigs Case
Talk of the Town Case
Three C's of Effective Decision Making
ShowHide Details

Case Studies

  1. The Bay of Pigs
  2. Trouble at Talk of the Town Designs
  3. The Cuban Missile Crisis

Featured Exercises

  • Small group decision-making simulation
  • 1-on-1 decision-making simulation
  • Peer feedback exercise
10-12
hrs
Module 3

Implementing for the Present and Learning for the Future

Detect and diagnose common causes of poor implementation, and recognize the role learning plays in organizational performance, improvement, and innovation.

Highlights

Healthcare.gov Case
ShowHide Details

Case Studies

  1. Healthcare.gov: The Crash and the Fix
  2. The 2010 Chilean Mining Rescue
  3. The U.S. Army’s AfterAction Reviews

Featured Exercises

  • Giving feedback exercise
  • Giving and receiving advice exercise
  • Delegation exercise
  • Conduct your own review
  • Peer feedback exercise
10-12
hrs
Module 4

Managing and Leading Change

Understand the stages and drivers of effective organizational change, and learn how to lead change in large organizations.

Highlights

The Stages of Change
Adopting a Disciplined Mindset
Making the Transition from Entrepreneurial to Professional Management
ShowHide Details

Case Studies

  1. Scaling Up N12 Technologies
  2. Growing Pains at Stroz Friedberg
  3. Paul Levy: Turning Around the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC)

Featured Exercises

  • Capstone assignment: small group consulting simulation
  • Peer feedback exercise
Free E-Book

How to Become a More Effective Leader

Learn about the difference between leadership and management, uncover the qualities and skills that characterize an effective leader, gain an understanding of common leadership styles, and explore how you can unleash the potential in yourself and others.

Our Difference

Management Essentials provides participants with key tools and techniques to become more effective managers and get things done
Stay active by engaging in a new activity every three to five minutes and applying your knowledge through peer feedback, decision-making simulations, and a capstone assignment.
Stay active by engaging in a new activity every three to five minutes and applying your knowledge through peer feedback, decision-making simulations, and a capstone assignment.
Get social by collaborating with a global community of peers before, during, and after your course. Learners who successfully complete an HBS Online program will be added to the HBS Online Community's Official Networking Group and gain exclusive access to events and other networking opportunities.
Get social by collaborating with a global community of peers before, during, and after your course. Learners who successfully complete an HBS Online program will be added to the HBS Online Community's Official Networking Group and gain exclusive access to events and other networking opportunities.
Immerse yourself in real-world, case-based examples brought to life by industry-leading experts from companies like Amgen Pharmaceuticals, Uber, and United States Digital Service.
Immerse yourself in real-world, case-based examples brought to life by industry-leading experts from companies like Amgen Pharmaceuticals, Uber, and United States Digital Service.

About the Professors

Joseph Fuller
Management Essentials

Professor of Management Practice
"Organizations are complex bodies. And it's your job to navigate all the complexity, to help your people get the work done."

David Garvin
Management Essentials

Roland Christensen Professor of Business Administration
"In this course, you learn the essential skills and techniques to become a more effective manager."

Dates & Eligibility

Starting
May
07
8 Weeks  $1,850 + applicable international taxes
Enrollment deadline May 1
View weekly calendar
Enroll Now
Starting
Oct
01
8 Weeks  $1,850 + applicable international taxes
Enrollment deadline September 25
View weekly calendar
Enroll Now
  • No documentation required

All learners must be at least 18 years of age, proficient in English, and committed to learning and engaging with fellow participants throughout the course.

Learn about bringing this course to your organization.

Learner Stories

87%
acquired new skills that were immediately applicable
This program debunked many myths about management. I highly recommend anyone with or without managerial experience take this course. It is much more than just about managing the people.
Samir Ghosalkar
Chemical Engineer at Norbrook Laboratories
Professor David Garvin is so sentient and poignant in his discussions of process and decision-making. The case studies of significant historical events are like looking back through a time machine. People lost their lives because of faulty processes. I know this is a dubious feeling, but I can't get the thought out of my head that with more and more case studies, you could swell your brain with a better recipe for living as well as running a company. So if you are on the fence about taking this course, get off on the correct side. Take the course so we can talk about it.
Richard Pitts
* Source: 2022 surveys and course data
 
All FAQs

Management Essentials FAQs

Participants in Management Essentials are eligible for a Certificate of Completion from Harvard Business School Online.

Participants are expected to fully complete all coursework in a timely manner. This will mean meeting each week’s course module deadlines and fully answering questions. This helps ensure your group proceeds through the course at a similar pace and can take full advantage of social learning opportunities. In addition to module and assignment completion, we expect participation in the social learning elements of the course by offering feedback on others’ reflections and contributing to conversations on the platform. Participants who fail to complete the course requirements will not receive a certificate and will not be eligible to retake the course.

More detailed information on course requirements will be communicated at the start of the course. No grades are assigned for Management Essentials. Participants will either be evaluated as complete or not complete.

You will have access to the materials in every prior module as you progress through the program. Access to course materials and the course platform ends 60 days after the final deadline in the program.

At the end of the program, you will receive a PDF summary highlighting the key concepts introduced in the course.

Harvard Business School Online
Certificate in Management Essentials
[Cohort Start Month and Year]

List your certificate on your LinkedIn profile under "Education" with the language from the Credential Verification page:

School: Harvard Business School Online
Dates Attended: [The year you participated in the program]
Degree: Other; Certificate in Management Essentials
Field of Study: Leave blank
Grade: "Complete"
Activities and Societies: Leave blank
Description:
Management Essentials is an 8-week, 35-hour online certificate program from Harvard Business School. Management Essentials takes a distinctive, hands-on approach to management. Participants in this course learn to identify, understand, design, and shape critical organizational and managerial processes as a means of getting the work done.

The course focuses on four of the most essential processes for managers: decision-making, implementation, learning, and change. Participants work through real-world challenges faced by managers across a variety of industries, and come away with tangible tools and techniques that they can readily apply in their organizations to create higher quality, more efficient work.

 

Related Programs

7 Courses

Credential of Leadership, Impact, and Management in Business (CLIMB)

CLIMB enables new and experienced leaders to ignite their careers with a combination of vital and forward-looking business skills, self-reflection, and an immersive cohort-based learning experience with a diverse global network.

1 year, 5-9 hrs/week
Apply by September 10th, Enroll by September 13$15,000 (four installments of $3,750)Credential 

Leadership Principles

Professors Joshua Margolis & Anthony Mayo

Learn to bring out the best in others by applying and adapting your leadership style and managing the conditions that drive team performance.

6 weeks, 7-9 hrs/week
Enroll by May 15$1,850Certificate 

Organizational Leadership

Professors Joshua Margolis & Anthony Mayo

Elevate your leadership skills to drive organizational success and effectively implement transformative change.

7 weeks, 6-8 hrs/week
Enroll by May 22$1,850Certificate 

Negotiation Mastery

Professor Michael Wheeler

Master negotiation techniques to secure maximum value for yourself and your organization.

8 weeks, 4-5 hrs/week
Enroll by June 12$1,850Certificate