BMGT45580

Learning Outcomes:

By the end of this module, you will be able to:
1. Understand key theories and perspectives of leadership and evaluate their assumptions, relevance, and limitations.
2. Apply leadership theories and concepts to complex organisational situations, considering challenges related to power, influence, decision-making, crisis, organisational change, ethical leadership, and cross-cultural contexts.
3. Recognise leadership as a dynamic, relational, and context-dependent process.
4. Analyse how organisational, relational, cultural, and situational factors shape leadership practice and outcomes.
5. Develop greater self-awareness as a leader by reflecting on your own leadership strengths, behaviours, and values, and identifying ways to develop your leadership approach in future professional contexts.

Indicative Module Content:

The module will cover the following topics:
1. Introduction to leadership: This topic introduces the key theories that have shaped how we understand leadership. We will explore a range of perspectives from early trait and behavioural approaches to more contemporary frameworks such as transformational, servant, and authentic leadership.
2. Leading through power, influence & persuasion: This topic explores how leaders use power, influence, and persuasion to shape decisions, gain support, and motivate others. It examines different sources of power and influence strategies for achieving organisational goals. It also considers storytelling as a powerful leadership tool for creating meaning, inspiring others, and supporting change.
3. Crisis leadership: This topic explores how leaders respond to crises, uncertainty, and rapidly changing circumstances. It examines how leaders make decisions under pressure, communicate during disruption, and support individuals and organisations through challenging situations.
4. Leading change: This topic examines how leaders initiate and manage organisational change. It explores the challenges of leading transformation, gaining support for change, overcoming resistance, and developing the skills needed to lead effectively in changing environments.
5. Ethical leadership: This topic explores the role of ethics in leadership. It examines how leaders influence ethical behaviour, create a culture of integrity, and navigate ethical dilemmas and the challenges that can lead to unethical leadership.
6. Cross-cultural leadership: This topic explores how cultural differences shape leadership, communication, and workplace relationships. It examines how leaders can adapt their approach across cultural contexts and work effectively with diverse teams.
7. Leaders and decision-making: This topic examines how leaders make decisions in complex and rapidly changing environments. It explores different approaches to decision-making, including analytical, intuitive, and context-dependent approaches.
8. Leadership and dyadic relationships: This topic explores leadership as a relational process, focusing on the relationships that leaders develop with individual followers. It examines leader–member exchange and the importance of trust, communication, support, and mutual influence in shaping effective leader–follower relationships.
9. Leadership traits and skills: This topic examines the characteristics and capabilities that contribute to effective leadership. It considers how leadership traits, interpersonal skills, and behaviours influence how leaders are perceived and how effectively they work with others.
10. Leadership and psychological capital: This topic covers how leaders can develop psychological capital, including hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism, to improve individual and organisational outcomes.
11. Adaptive leadership: This topic explores how situational factors can influence leadership effectiveness and how leaders need to continuously assess situations and adapt their behaviours accordingly.

UNESCO highlights a set of key competencies that support individuals in their development and support society in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UCD has adapted these competencies and is combining them with others to form a general framework of learning competencies. This module will help you develop the competencies below to the levels specified. 

The United Nations identified seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as core to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and UCD contributes in general to SDG 4 Quality Education. Further SDGs explored within this module if relevant are listed below. A scale of 1 - 5 indicates the extent to which the SDG is covered.


 

Student Effort Hours:

Approaches to Teaching and Learning:

This module is designed around an interactive, practical, and reflective learning experience. Leadership is not something that can be fully understood through reading about theories alone, so you will have opportunities to discuss, practise, question, and apply ideas throughout the module. You are expected to play an active role in your learning by preparing for sessions, engaging with the assigned materials, and participating in classroom activities.
We will combine lectures with case studies, leadership scenarios, role plays, and individual and group activities. These different approaches will allow you to examine leadership from multiple perspectives and consider how theories and concepts can be used when dealing with real-world organisational situations and leadership challenges. Activities will also provide opportunities to practise skills such as communication and collaboration.
Your contribution to class discussions is an important part of the learning process. You do not need to have a perfect answer. Sharing an observation, asking a question, offering a different viewpoint, or respectfully challenging an idea can all contribute to meaningful learning. Engaging with perspectives that differ from your own is particularly important when exploring leadership.
A key feature of the module is connecting leadership learning to yourself. You will be encouraged to reflect on your experiences of leading and being led, your values, behaviours, strengths, and areas for development. By connecting theory with experience and reflection, the module aims to help you develop a more informed and adaptable approach to leadership that you can carry into your future professional roles.
Students may use AI tools for limited support in this module (e.g. idea generation, practice questions or as a study aid). Students remain fully responsible for the accuracy and reliability of their work. Any use of AI must be cited appropriately.

Requirements, Exclusions and Recommendations

Not applicable to this module.

Module Requisites and Incompatibles

Not applicable to this module.
 

Assessment Strategy

As part of UCD's student support, under the Additional Consideration policy, extensions may be available for the following assessments in the module: Assignment (including essay/poster), Portfolio, Reflective Assignment, Report(s), and Individual Project.

 

Please see Student Jargon Buster for more information about remediation types and timing. 

Feedback Strategy/Strategies

• Group/class feedback, post-assessment

How will my Feedback be Delivered?

Individual activities: I will provide summary feedback to the whole class. Group presentations: I will provide written feedback after the module ends. Group leadership consulting project: I will provide written feedback after the module ends.

This is the core and required textbook for the module:

o Yukl, G. A., & Gardner, W. L. (2020). Leadership in Organizations. 9th edition, Pearson.

In addition to the core textbook, each class will draw on a range of supplementary readings, mostly academic journal articles, as well as relevant case studies. These materials are a required part of the module and will form the basis for discussions and class activities in most sessions. Students are expected to complete all assigned readings before the relevant class to ensure they are prepared to engage in discussions and activities. All required readings will be provided in the weekly module outline and shared with students at the start of the semester.

Timetabling information is displayed only for guidance purposes, relates to the current Academic Year only and is subject to change.