For those of you who have been reading our blogs for awhile, you'll remember when we wrote about our clients' most requested attribute of candidates: leadership. We suggested ways to gain leadership skills, but there is a new one that we have been testing out before we recommended it. LinkedIn now offers courses, both paid and free.
Who doesn't love free stuff? Joining LinkedIn's Course Club will open up new classes each quarter, and all of it is free. Each course is usually half an hour long plus quizzes and is led by an expert on the subject. A digital notebook is available for your use. Training for your team is also available, but we have not yet tested that out. From now until January 2019, the follow courses are available for free:
Coaching Skills for Leaders and Managers - Sara Canaday, Leadership Keynote Speaker, Author, Executive Coach. "Leaders who provide targeted, ongoing coaching to their employees can strengthen their team and add value to their organization. In this course, leadership expert Sara Canaday shares the differences between managing, training, and coaching, and provides managers with coaching models and skills to support the development and growth of their employees. Sara presents the business case for coaching, explores common coaching challenges, and explains how to provide feedback and set goals."
Course Details: 35min. Intermediate course. 3 chapter quizzes.
Delegating Tasks - Dorie Clark, Harvard Business Review Contributor; Keynote Speaker; Duke University Fuqua School of Business Adjunct Prof; Author. "These days, we're all overwhelmed. We can't make more time, and our professional obligations aren't going away. The only answer is delegation. Delegation is key for managers as you ascend in your organization. But even if you're just starting out and don't have any direct reports, there will be times you'll need to delegate to colleagues-which can be awkward. Learn the right way to get help and still maintain your high-quality standards. Dorie Clark explains how to build the right mindset to delegate work without micromanaging it. She then reviews three methods for delegating: hiring a dedicated resource, delegating to a direct report, or using someone outside the chain of command. She shows how to follow up on tasks you've delegated, and take appropriate action when someone makes a mistake. Plus, learn how delegation can help scale your impact and achieve more in years to come."
Course Details: 35min. General course. 3 chapter quizzes.
Leading with Vision - Bonnie Hagemann, CEO, published author, TEDx Speaker. "The world needs leaders who can create a compelling vision and engage others around it. Visionary leaders are able to communicate what lies beyond the horizon and inspire confidence. They attract talent to the organization and motivate team members to make more effective decisions. In this course, CEO Bonnie Hagemann shows corporate and community leaders how to lead with vision, breaking visionary leadership down into steps that anyone can follow. Discover why it's needed, why it's lacking, and how you can fill the gap. Then find out how to build your personal vision and gain the skills and tools to build a vision for your organization, division, department, team, community cause, or nonprofit.
Learning Objectives: Why we need visionary leadership - Leading with hope - Engaging others - The four Cs of compelling vision - Building a personal vision for yourself - Using the Lift6 leadership model - A review of real corporate vision statements - Making visions work in the real world
Course details: 1h 17min. Advanced course. 6 chapter quizzes.
Servant Leadership - Ken Blanchard, SVP Global Business Development. "Self-serving leaders can be both destructive and highly ineffective. By making leadership all about them, they create a negative working environment where employees often lack the motivation to produce their best work. In this concise course, Ken Blanchard—a pioneer in the leadership space—shares his insights on servant leadership. Ken discusses practical ways for leaders to implement this approach in their organization, covering habits of servant leaders, how to create a servant leader culture, and how to manage effectively. Upon completing this course, you'll have a greater understanding of how to operate as a servant leader, and shift your focus from yourself to your employees and what you're ultimately trying to accomplish."
Course details: 27min. General course.
If you like the free ones, you can choose to pursue other courses, earning badges that display on your LinkedIn profile. Paid topics include: Digital Transformation, Leadership and Management, Soft Skills, Project Management, Human Resources, Customer Service, Performance Management, Professional Development, Sales, Career Development, and more.
If you try them out, be sure to let us know your thoughts at contact@primefr.com. Follow us on LinkedIn for more tips from us.