ILM Level 5 Certificate in Leadership and Management (City & Guilds)

501 - Managing Improvement - Credits: 3

This unit outlines the evolution of contemporary performance management and examines some of its most influential models and concepts. It also considers the critical link between individual and organisational performance and looks at how different performance management tools can be combined to create an effective performance management system.

Performance management is one of the most hotly debated areas of management thought, more importantly how to achieve an effective performance management programme. This is largely because employee performance is recognised as the backbone of organisational success. A well-executed performance management framework can encourage the development of a high-performance culture and provide a clear link between individual goals and organisational objectives.

Performance management is vital to the success of all organisations, regardless of their size, industry sector, or internal culture. Each organisation should design a performance management system to suit its specific needs. Above all, the approach should aim to align strategic, department, and individual objectives. Furthermore, performance management should be as simple as possible, command visible, involvement from senior management, and be implemented consistently across the organisation.

502 - Making a Financial Case - Credits: 3

503 - Developing Critical Thinking - Credits: 3

504 - Leading Innovation and Change - Credits 4

New ideas and innovations have always been important drivers for organisational growth. In an increasingly fast-paced global economy, an organisation’s ability to innovate for competitive advantage can mean the difference between survival and extinction. Interestingly, breakthrough innovations are more likely to occur when market conditions are tough, and resources are limited. Change is often necessary and important so that a company remains relevant and continues to deliver viable solutions to a growing customer base. But, while a company and its executives may recognize the need for change management, employees may be resistant since change can be hard and uncomfortable.

Successfully leading and managing change is not one single skill; it is a range of skills – all of which can be learned. Understanding the business environment, how change will impact all aspects of it, and what will be required to reach the new state is one side. Understanding people, how they react to change, and how to coach them successfully through the transition process is the other. It is in applying this mix of skills that leaders bring about lasting, transformational change

505 - Managing Individual Development - Credits: 4

This unit outlines the evolution of contemporary performance management and examines some of its most influential models and concepts. It also considers the critical link between individual and organisational performance and looks at how different performance management tools can be combined to create an effective performance management system.

People have differing expectations about what they want in terms of development and what support they expect from their workplace. This is fine when an individual's expectations and those of the organisation are congruent. Difficulties may arise however if there is an imbalance. For example, if funding for training and development is limited people may not be able to undertake the training and development they might like. Alternatively, if an individual does not want additional training but the organisation wants that individual to undergo further training then similarly this could cause conflict. The management challenge is to balance the requirement of both the organisation and the individual, whilst being equitable and fair in distribution of opportunities for development. Performance management is vital to the success of all organisations, regardless of their size, industry sector, or internal culture. Each organisation should design a performance management system to suit its specific needs. Above all, the approach should aim to align strategic, department, and individual objectives.

506 - Managing Stress and Conflict in the Organisation - Credits: 3

507 - Understanding the Organisational Environment - Credits: 5

This unit breaks down strategic processes and allows you to identify external factors within the environment that could have an impact on your organisation.

Many of these will be things the organisation has no control over, but the implications of which need to be understood. A popular tool for identifying these factors is the PESTLE Analysis, which can be used to help you consider Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental issues. Organisations today find themselves operating in an environment that is quick changing. The process of analysing the implications of these changes and modifying the way that the organisation reacts to them is known as business strategy. While your role as a manager is unlikely to require you to make decisions at the strategic level, you may be asked to contribute to meetings where strategic concerns are being discussed. You may be asked to comment on pilot schemes, presentations, reports, or statistics that will affect strategy.

508 - Understanding Organisational Culture and Ethics - Credits: 3

509 - Managing Customer Relations - Credits: 3

This unit will break down strategic processes that will allow you to identify external factors within the environment that could have an impact on your organisation. Many of these will be things the organisation has no control over, but the implications of which need to be understood. A popular tool for identifying these factors is the PESTLE Analysis, which can be used to help you consider Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Legal, and Environmental issues.

Good customer relations develop over time and remain stable if the consumer-business interactions are beneficial for both parties. Customer relation(ship) is a special bond created between buyers and a brand as a result of numerous marketing, sales, and customer service processes. Customer relationship management methods will vary depending on the type of customer and business sector. But total reliance on technology cannot build the most effective relationships. Technology can provide and collate valuable information. But to see results, you must analyse this data, integrate knowledge, and offer good customer service skills.

510 - Managing for Efficiency and Effectiveness - Credits: 4

511 - Managing Projects in the Organisation - Credits: 4

This unit enables you to understand that Project management is the practice of initiating, planning, executing, controlling, and closing the work of a team to achieve specific goals and meet specific success criteria at the specified time. The primary challenge of project management is to achieve all of the project goals within the given constraints.

Project management is the process of planning, budgeting, co-ordinating, and monitoring a series of pre-determined steps that need to be taken in order to achieve a particular goal or objective within an agreed timescale.
Project management is a multi-faceted approach, which incorporates aspects of planning, decision-making, change management, communication, and human resource management.

A successful project depends on a strong project manager who can deliver the desired objectives within an agreed timescale and budget. There are numerous approaches available and an increasing array of technological tools and techniques to assist. Using these to continually monitor progress and adapt plans as the project progresses will improve the chances of success. It is now expected that most middle managers will possess sound project management skills.

512 - Managing Resources - Credits: 4

513 - Managing Information - Credits: 4

514 - Managing Recruitment - Credits: 5

This unit explores the role and relevance of human resource planning. You will develop a deep understanding of succession planning, recruitment and selection as required by a practising or potential first line manager.

Effective recruitment, selection, and induction are fundamental to the successful functioning of your organisation. As a manager, you have an important role to play in implementing or supporting these processes effectively. This unit provides an in-depth investigation of key recruitment, selection, and induction processes and considers some of the challenges facing the managers of today.

515 - Managing Work Analysis - Credits: 3

516 - Analysing and Interpreting Statistics to Inform Management Decisions - Credits: 2

517 - Understanding the Management of Facilities - Credits: 2

This unit provides an overview of Facilities Management and what technical services in a facility entail and how best to manage them.

Facilities Management is an organisational function that integrates people, place, and process within the built environment with the purpose of improving quality of life and the productivity of the core business. The FM industry is growing at a rapid pace and the roles of FMs are broadening to encompass more responsibilities and skillsets. FM budgets and teams are becoming larger and more impactful as the built environment becomes more integral to the ways modern society conducts business, entertainment, and lifestyles. The management of technical services in a building is a critical function of Facilities Management that can impact the business activities, efficiencies, productivity, and well-being of staff. A well thought out operations and maintenance strategy implemented well can prevent business losses, enhance reliability of infrastructure, save on operating costs by enhancing the longevity and hence value of the assets.

518 - Making Professional Presentations - Credits: 2

This unit examines the tools and techniques required to construct and deliver a professional presentation. Much of the success of a presentation is about application of tools and techniques.

Giving a presentation or speech is something that many leaders and managers are required to do. It can, however, strike fear into the heart of even the most confident and seasoned presenter. Whenever you give a presentation, it is important that your message is clear, your ideas are transparent, your delivery is confident, and the overall impression is professional.

Dale Carneigie in his 1945 work 'Public speaking and Influencing [people] in Business' made the now widely accepted assertion that those looking to impress at work and to accelerate their careers should practise public speaking. The simple rationale is that it is an essential skill and that there is no substitute for practice - i.e. just doing it. And through practice it becomes much easier.

The manager's role will invariably involve making presentations. What is for sure is that in organisations, people that speak and present well, do well!

519 - Developing and Leading Teams to Achieve Organisational Goals and Objectives - Credits: 4

This unit provides an overview of what you need to know about this complex subject, from key motivation models and theories to best practice advice for motivating others. We also look at the relationship between motivation and employee engagement and consider how the psychological contract can help leaders to ensure their employees are motivated and engaged.

The role of the management team and the managers employed within an organisation are pivotal to the success or otherwise of the organisation. Within all organisations there are different levels of management, demanding managers possess or acquire different skills sets to be effective in the role, and, crucially, different organisational configurations which reflect either the culture of the organisation or the work being carried out. Understanding the management role and the roles middle managers are typically required to undertake will enable you to develop your capabilities as a manager to meet the demands of today and tomorrow.

520 - Assessing Your Own Leadership Capability and Performance - Credits: 6

521 - Managing Own Continuing Professional Development (Certificate and Diploma only) - Credits: 15

This unit is designed for anyone who is ready to take the necessary steps towards learning and growth. It is also a guide for leaders and managers on how to support the development of their team members.

This unit, and the tasks within it, will introduce you to principles and practices associated with managing personal development and will enable you to confidently and efficiently tackle your own development. The assignment will require you to consider theories and models that align with each topic but, importantly, you will be expected to make parallels with your own experience of personal development in the workplace. Engaging in Continuing Professional Development ensures that both academic and practical qualifications do not become out-dated or obsolete, allowing individuals to continually ‘up skill’ or ‘re-skill’ themselves, regardless of occupation, age, or educational level. Employers are increasingly aware of the importance of investing in their staff and often have structures and processes in place to provide opportunities for the training and development of their employees. Managers also need to take personal responsibility for renewing and updating their skills and knowledge throughout their working lives. Personal development is a continuous lifelong process of nurturing, shaping, and improving skills and knowledge to ensure maximum effectiveness and ongoing employability.

522 - Becoming an Effective Leader - Credits: 5

In this unit you will develop a deep understanding of leadership roles and the need for effective leadership. This unit will provide strong foundations to enable you to develop your capabilities and competence as a leader to meet the demands of today and into the future.

You will research the important concept of followership and consider what makes a good follower, what followers look for in a leader, and how organisations can promote effective followership. The effectiveness of leadership within an organisation is pivotal to the success or otherwise of the organisation. Much of today’s management literature is concerned with the importance of good leadership. Effective leaders appreciate the need to encourage followers to think for themselves, take the initiative, and offer constructive criticism of leadership decisions. In return, leaders should be able to spend less time managing and more time focusing on the bigger picture. This, in essence, is what followership is about.

523 - Preparing to Apply Lean Production and Improvement Methodologies to Operational Problems in Service Delivery - Credits: 8

This unit enables you to research tools used to analyse current and future practice for improvement planning. Lean production may be founded in manufacturing, but it can actually be applied much more broadly.

Lean thinking is about accelerating the velocity of any process by doing only the things that add customer value and eliminating other activities that don’t (waste). Lean production is an approach to management that focuses on cutting out waste, whilst ensuring quality. This approach can be applied to all aspects of a business – from design, through production to distribution to service delivery. Lean production aims to cut costs by making the business more efficient and responsive to market needs. A service improvement project is a plan to change in practice identified in collaboration with service users, colleagues, and key stakeholders. Essentially it puts service users at the centre of improvement activity. A well-written proposal for change will no doubt be accepted in order to continually improve.

524 - Applying Lean Production and Improvement Methodologies to Operational Problems in Service Delivery (Certificate and Diploma only) - Credits: 11

This unit provides you with the knowledge to undertake a service delivery plan to improve a workplace project using lean production and improvement methodologies.

You are then required to implement an appropriate improvement to service delivery using the plan, ensuring that efficient and effective controls and monitoring techniques have been, or are being, used to ensure the continuing implementation of the improvement project. Lean thinking is about accelerating the velocity of any process by doing only the things that add customer value and eliminating other activities that don’t (waste).
Lean production is an approach to management that focuses on cutting out waste, whilst ensuring quality. This approach can be applied to all aspects of a business – from design, through production to distribution. Lean production aims to cut costs by making the business more efficient and responsive to market needs.

525 - Improving and Maintaining the Organisation’s Environmental Performance - Credits: 5

This unit explains environmental sustainability and the effects on organisations. It breaks down strategic processes that will allow you to identify external factors within the environment that could have an impact on your organisation. It explores current legislative requirements and codes of practice that can have an impact on an organisation and its strategic direction.

Organisations today find themselves operating in an environment that is quick changing. The process of analysing the implications of these changes and modifying the way that the organisation reacts to them is known as business strategy. Organisations’ activities and actions can have positive or negative consequences for their stakeholders, society, and the environment. In order to take their ethical reputations seriously, organisations need to acknowledge these impacts, demonstrate their accountability through greater consultation, transparency, and reporting, and put measures in place to enable them to become more socially responsible.

526 - Managing Remote Workers - Credits: 5

The aim of this unit is to develop ability to effectively manage staff who work remotely from their organisation’s usual place of business or for those who have set up a business/enterprise working either from home or a managed facility.

Traditionally, the approach to managing the team focused on those colleagues who are physically located with you, but these days a manager may be responsible for managing people who they see infrequently.

‘Remote Workers’ have always existed, but modern technology has made remote working much more practical. In the team there may be:
• Job-sharers
• People at remote locations
• Home workers
• Staff out on the road
• Night/weekend shift workers
• Virtual teams.

527 - Partnership Working - Credits: 4

528 - Understanding Governance of Organisations - Credits: 6

529 - Knowledge and Information Management - Credits: 5

531 - Improving Own Leadership Performance Through Action Learning (Diploma only) - Credits: 15

This unit enables candidates to participate in an action learning set and use action learning to develop leadership capability and performance.

The aim of this unit is to enable learners to participate actively in an action learning set to help them develop their leadership capability. Action Learning is a powerful approach for working on difficult problems in professional practice and helps set standards for good practice in organisational learning. This unit is especially geared to learning and personal development at the professional and managerial levels.

533 - Managing Mental Health in the Workplace - Credits: 3

400 - Understanding the Management Role to Improve Management Performance - Credits: 4

The purpose of this unit is to demonstrate understanding of the middle management role and to be able to plan your own development.

The role of the management team and the managers employed within an organisation are pivotal to the success or otherwise of the organisation. Within all organisations there are different levels of management, demanding managers possess or acquire different skills sets to be effective in the role, and, crucially, different organisational configurations which reflect either the culture of the organisation or the work being carried out. Understanding the management role and the roles middle managers are typically required to undertake will enable you to develop your capabilities as a manager to meet the demands of today and tomorrow.

401 - Planning and Leading a Complex Team Activity - Credits: 4

The purpose of this unit is to enable you to plan and lead a complex team activity that will demonstrate leadership skills.

It is vital for efficient and effective planning and leadership for satisfactory completion of complex team activities. One of the most well-worn phrases you will hear in organisations when dealing with complex situations is 'we don't have enough time'- to which the reply (or response) is more than likely to be ‘work harder!' Working harder can lead to diminishing returns, frustration, over-work and stress, and, ultimately, burnout. There is considerable truth in the phrase 'time costs money' and if we are to be effective as managers, we need to have the skills to plan our own use of time and resources and that of our staff especially when dealing with complex team activities. Developing techniques to plan for better use of time, prioritise well, and allocate work to the right people with the right skills will be fundamental to success in planning and leading complex team activities.

In this unit, you will demonstrate how you will plan for and communicate the purpose, aims, and measurable objectives for a complex team activity. You will consider resources necessary, taking any operational constraints into consideration. You will be required to look at the process of producing a correct and appropriate implementation plan for the activity, assessing operational or safety issues that apply.

402 - Managing Equality and Diversity in Own Area - Credits: 4

Today, top organisations recognise that diversity has a key role to play in helping them succeed in a highly competitive and increasingly global marketplace. Inclusive workplaces, where people feel truly valued and able to bring their whole selves to work, create healthy and productive organisations the world over. The Equality Act came into force in October 2010, bringing together nine major pieces of equality and discrimination legislation. It is aimed at harmonising, simplifying, and strengthening existing discrimination legislation in order to support equality generally.

The Act sets out a common definition of unlawful discrimination and it applies that to the protected characteristics and those characteristics are age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage, and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion and belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

Managers and senior leaders must be comfortable that their employees are aware of the effect and the implementation of the policy in their day to day working life and so that may mean that managers and senior leaders have to ensure that there is regular training involved in the workplace so as to raise awareness and to address any questions that might arise out of the policy or questions about procedures within a company that may affect the general equality and diversity implementation in the workplace.

403 - Managing Risk in the Workplace - Credits: 3

This unit instils the importance of a risk management strategy and will help ease some of the tension associated with planning for the unknown. It outlines the various stages of risk management.

As part of managing the health and safety in an organisation, you must control the risks in your workplace. To do this you need to think about what might cause harm to people and decide whether you are taking reasonable steps to prevent that harm. Health and Safety (H&S) is evident in all organisations and has been put in place to help prevent people from being harmed by work activities or becoming ill due to the workplace. Its aim is to aid the organisations in identifying hazards and taking the right precautions which would result in the provision of a satisfactory working environment. This process is known as risk assessment and it is something you are required by law to carry out.

A risk assessment is not about creating huge amounts of paperwork but rather about identifying sensible measures to control the risks in your workplace. You are probably already taking steps to protect your employees, but your risk assessment will help you decide whether you have covered all you need to.

404 - Delegating Authority in the Workplace - Credits: 3

The aim of this unit is to enable managers to delegate work effectively and empower others.

Delegation allows you to share some of your work and responsibilities with your team members, and it is an essential skill for managing, organising, and developing your team. This unit looks at the importance of making effective and efficient use of people’s knowledge and skills to achieve organisational goals. You will explore concepts of delegation and empowerment and ways to monitor the outcomes.

405 - Developing People in the Workplace - Credits: 5

The aim of this unit is to introduce you to principles and practices associated with developing people in the workplace, it will enable you to tackle confidently these elements of your management role. It will require you to consider theories and models that align with each topic but, importantly, you will be expected to make parallels with your own experience in the workplace, which will help in ensuring that you can manage and lead your team(s) effectively.
 
Employers are increasingly aware of the importance of investing in their staff and often have structures and processes in place to provide opportunities for the training and development of their employees. Managers also need to take personal responsibility for renewing and updating their skills and knowledge throughout their working lives. Personal development is a continuous lifelong process of nurturing, shaping, and improving skills and knowledge to ensure maximum effectiveness and ongoing employability.

406 - Developing Your Leadership Styles - Credits: 4

This unit will allow you to understand the outcomes of effective leadership and to evaluate the importance of both performance and engagement with followers in an organisation.

The effectiveness of leadership within an organisation is pivotal to the success or otherwise of the organisation. Developing a deep understanding of your leadership capability will provide a basis for you to develop your capabilities and competence as a leader to meet the demands of today and into the future.

In this unit you are required to use the self-assessment of your own leadership styles to evaluate and draw conclusions on the implications of your own leadership style for both self and own organisation, and to evaluate the impact on the effectiveness of the adopted style of two or more changes in the situation. Continuous improvement is an important aspect of leadership, this unit will include your action plan with priorities and timescales for developing your own leadership style and effectiveness.

407 - Understanding Financial Management - Credits: 3

408 - Management Communication - Credits: 4

Communication is essential in day-to-day life, in order for an organisation to be successful organisations have to understand the importance of using the correct communication channels to pass information on.

This introduces you to the challenges of management communication: key skills are examined that will enable you to confidently tackle this element of your role or future role as a manager. The challenges will require you to consider theories that align with each topic but, importantly, you will be expected to make parallels with your own experience in the workplace, which will help in ensuring that you communicate effectively.

409 - Managing Personal Development (Diploma only) - Credits: 15

This unit is designed for anyone who is ready to take the necessary steps towards learning and growth. It is also a guide for leaders and managers on how to support the development of their team members.

Here we introduce you to principles and practices associated with managing personal development and will enable you to confidently and efficiently tackle your own development.

Employers are increasingly aware of the importance of investing in their staff and often have structures and processes in place to provide opportunities for the training and development of their employees. Managers also need to take personal responsibility for renewing and updating their skills and knowledge throughout their working lives. Personal development is a continuous lifelong process of nurturing, shaping, and improving skills and knowledge to ensure maximum effectiveness and ongoing employability. Personal development does not necessarily imply upward movement; rather, it is about enabling individuals to improve their performance and reach their full potential at each stage of their career.

410 - Managing the Analysis of Secondary Data - Credits: 4

411 - Managing a Healthy and Safe Environment - Credits: 2

This unit examines how Health and Safety (H&S) is evident in all organisations and how it prevents people from being harmed by work activities or becoming ill due to the workplace. Its aim is to aid managers/organisations in identifying hazards and taking the right precautions which would result in the provision of a satisfactory working environment.
A good risk management strategy will help ease some of the tension associated with planning for the unknown. This unit will enable you to outline the various stages of risk management. As part of managing the health and safety in an organisation, you must control the risks in your workplace. To do this you need to think about what might cause harm to people and decide whether you are taking reasonable steps to prevent that harm. This process is known as risk assessment and it is something you are required by law to carry out. A risk assessment is not about creating huge amounts of paperwork but rather about identifying sensible measures to control the risks in your workplace. You are probably already taking steps to protect your employees, but your risk assessment will help you decide whether you have covered all you need to.

412 - Managing Meetings - Credits: 3

This unit will provide you with guidance on effective planning and preparation for a meeting, the importance of visual aids and the value of feedback to improve performance in meetings.

Leading meetings is an important aspect of a manager’s role. Whether your meetings are formal and structured, or informal and flexible. Meetings that lack direction or fail to deliver outcomes are a waste of everyone’s valuable time. It is therefore essential that the meetings you lead are well planned, focused, and result in real action.

Your team will look to you to help them make sense of wider organisational communications, and to understand the implications for the team as a whole. It is important to confirm what has been discussed and agreed, and to make a commitment about what the next steps will be. As with so many things in life and work, the better prepared you are, the more impact you are likely to have in any meeting.

413 - Managing Marketing Activities - Credits: 3

The aim of this unit is for you to develop knowledge and understanding of marketing management as required by a practising or potential middle manager.

Marketing put simply is about putting the right product in the right place, at the right price, at the right time. Sounds simple, no? Well, not always. There are so many factors you need to consider when marketing a product or service. And, if you get just one element wrong, it can be a disaster for your whole campaign. While you will learn the underpinning theories and frameworks, you will also be able to relate these to real-world examples, including products/services that you encounter in their own daily lives.

To establish a marketing strategy, it is necessary to get closer to the customers and listen in order to and out what their needs are. It is a marketing department task, to plan the necessary means for receiving customer feedback. Analysing feedback and the market in which you operate will allow you to put together an achievable marketing plan.

414 - Data Collection and Analysis to Justify Management Decision Making - Credits: 2

415 - Motivating People in the Workplace - Credits: 2

The aim of this unit is for you to be able to examine how levels of motivation can be improved to increase performance in the workplace.

Leaders and Managers have a crucial role to play in motivating others to perform to the best of their abilities. Here we provide an overview of what you need to know about this complex subject, from key motivation models and theories to best practice advice for motivating others. We also look at the relationship between motivation and employee engagement and consider how the psychological contract can help leaders to ensure their employees are motivated and engaged.

416 - Solving Problems by Making Effective Decisions in the Workplace - Credits: 3

417 - Managing and Implementing Change in the Workplace - Credits: 6

This unit introduces you to the concept of change and explores how to implement change within the workplace taking into account the 'human factor'; that is, how to take the people who are affected by the change with you.

Understanding the business environment, how change will impact all aspects of it and what will be required to reach the new state is one side. Understanding people, how they react to change and how to coach them successfully through the transition process is the other. A strong awareness of the external environment and understanding the driving forces that affect your organisation is essential for effective short- and long-term planning. Successfully leading and managing change is not one single skill; it is a range of skills – all of which can be learned. It is in applying this mix of skills that leaders bring about lasting, transformational change. Change is often necessary and important so that a company remains relevant and continues to deliver viable solutions to a growing customer base.

418 - Understanding the Organisational Culture and Context: Credits: 6

419 - Understanding Work in Contemporary Society: Credits: 3

This unit will break down strategic processes that will allow you to identify internal and external factors within the environment that could have an impact on your organisation.

It will also provide you with the knowledge to form an assessment on the organisation, the functions of an organisation, and the wider business environments in which organisations operate.

Organisations today find themselves operating in an environment that is quick changing. The contemporary society right now features great technological advances and innovations, longer average life spans in people, higher levels of literacy, and diversification. The process of analysing these changes and modifying the way that the organisation reacts to them is known as business strategy. Finally, understanding how the strengths and weaknesses of the different types of organisations, their structure, and how they operate can provide a competitive advantage.

420 - Budgetary Planning and Control: Credits: 3

421 - Interpreting Financial Statements to Assess Organisational Performance Using Financial Ratios - Credits: 3

422 - Understanding the Importance of Marketing for an Organisation - Credits: 4

The aim of this unit is to enable you to see the importance of marketing for an organisation.

Marketing put simply is about putting the right product in the right place, at the right price, at the right time. Sounds simple, no? Well, not always. There are so many factors you need to consider when marketing a product or service. And, if you get just one element wrong, it can be a disaster for your whole campaign. While you will learn the underpinning theories and frameworks, you will also be able to relate these to real-world examples, including products/services that you encounter in their own daily lives.

423 - Using Quantitative Methods to Solve Management Problems - Credits: 6

424 - Understanding the Economics of the Marketplace - Credits: 6

425 - Developing Individual Mental Toughness - Credits: 2

426 - Understanding the Macro Economic Environment (Diploma only) - Credits: 7

427 - Developing a Culture to Support Innovation and Improvement - Credits: 3

The aim of this unit is to develop knowledge and understanding of culture to support innovation and improvement as required by a practising or potential first line manager.

Culture is a term we generally use to group together or sum up a set of social factors we can’t quite put our finger on, such as traditions, behaviour patterns, attitudes, beliefs, and commonalities. We usually think of culture in terms of nations or communities. However, the concept has more recently been applied to organisations as a way of understanding how social processes impact performance. An understanding of how culture is created and reinforced in organisations can help managers predict the human impacts of change and the consequences for strategy.

Innovation and change are often necessary and important so that a company remains relevant and continues to deliver viable solutions to a growing customer base. But, while a company and its executives may recognise the need for change management, employees may be resistant since change can be hard and uncomfortable.

601 - Managing Operations Research - Credits: 3