Responsible Leadership - (B-M) - Q3

Course Content

The environmental, economic, and social crises of recent times revealed the threat of so-called societal grand challenges, such as climate change, to our economic and social well-being. At the same time, the breadth and depth of these crises raised people’s expectations about the role of business in solving societal grand challenges, resulting in a call for responsible leadership. It is thus important for future leaders to understand societal grand challenges, to know how to tackle them, and to do so with passion and confidence – jointly with others.

Responsible leaders are aware of and understand societal grand challenges and their root causes. They constantly strive to address these grand challenges, using their resources to tackle them through innovation, collaboration, and entrepreneurial thinking. Furthermore, responsible leaders obtain specific leadership skills. These include systems thinking, stakeholder relations, change and innovation, self-awareness, ethics, and values.

In this course, you will explore key leadership skills through three integrative assignments. Working in a team, you will begin by analyzing a grand societal challenge and presenting a conceptual model that maps out its root causes and systemic effects. Building on this foundation, you will then develop an individual case example that showcases practical responses to the challenge, drawing on academic literature or real-world practices. To bring it all together, you will step into the role of a decision-maker in a business simulation. Your task is to transform a traditional business into a sustainable operation while balancing competing interests, navigating complexity, and putting your leadership skills into action.

Please note that the number of participants is limited to 30 students. Places will be distributed on a first-come-first-served basis. In case more than 30 students sign up, we will inform those who are over the limit and therefore cannot participate.

Intended Learning Outcomes and Competencies

Content-wise, students will learn to:

• Grasp the scope and complexity of societal grand challenges 

• Analyze the root causes and stakeholder dynamics underlying these challenges 

• Apply theoretical frameworks to develop solution-oriented approaches 

• Identify effective leadership practices for managing sustainable transformation 

• Reflect on their own role and responsibility as future leaders 

Methodology-wise, students will learn to:

• Conduct targeted literature reviews to build research-based arguments 

• Analyze real-world examples to inform case-solutions

• Derive actionable managerial implications from research and simulation outcomes 

Instruction Type

For each deliverable, students will be taught – step-by-step – what is expected and how to accomplish the given targets. Thereby, we prepare students conceptually, but also help them manage the process. For this aim, we provide:

1. A precise definition of expectations for grading the respective deliverables so that students know exactly what to do. 
2. Checklists to help students manage the respective deliverables and deadlines. 
3. Hands-on practical advice to support you regarding deliverables.

In addition, during the entire class, students will also be mentored by the teaching assistants. We will thus smoothly guide you through the learning process and enable you to perform in class.

This is an in-person course. Attendance is mandatory, as the course is interactive and requires teamwork.

Form of Examination

Literature

Scientific Introductory Literature

• Siegel, D. S. (2014). Responsible leadership [Editorial]. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 28(3), 221–223.https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2014.0081
• Waldman, D. A., Siegel, D. S., & Stahl, G. K. (2020). Defining the Socially Responsible Leader: Revisiting Issues in Responsible Leadership.Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies,27(1), 5 20. https://doi.org/10.1177/154805181987220 

Practitioner Introductory Literature 

• Shaping the Sustainable Organization Report by Accenture in Collaboration with the World Economic Forum
• Responsible Leadership for a Sustainable and Equitable World Report by the Global Shapers Community and the Forum of Young Global Leaders in Collaboration with Accenture