In an ever-changing world, the workforce is increasingly being built of people from all aspects of life. This creates the need for people to be educated on concepts of inclusivity. As a result, the Stevens School of Business has decided to launch the Inclusive Leadership certification program. It is open to all undergraduate business majors and the class of 2026 was the first group of students to ever participate in this initiative. Students who successfully complete this program will be certified in practices of inclusive leadership and will be able to add it as an accredited skill on their resumes and CVs.
The origins of this program can be attributed to the university’s trustees, including President Nariman Farvardin and the School of Business Dean, Dr. Gregory Prastacos. Additionally, Professor Wei Zheng and Professor Peter Dominick were some of the people involved in developing the curriculum of the program. Professor Zheng defines inclusive leadership as “practices of fostering a sense of belongingness and authenticity for all people in a group, organization, or a larger collective.” This serves as the main idea for what the program hopes to teach. Professor Zheng also explained that the curriculum is meant to be very experimental and interactive. She noted that the first part of the program is broken down into three parts: “(1) students’ creative expressions of diversity, equity, and inclusion, (2) students’ social identity exploration where individuals reflect on their social identities that shape their viewpoints and form potential blind spots, and (3) case studies where a problem is outlined and student groups develop an exclusive and an inclusive response.” An example of an exercise that was done during the first session includes explaining the meaning behind one’s name. This activity allowed students to not only get to know each other but also share aspects of their identity and learn about identity-based differences.
While this program is geared towards a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiative and educating business students on this matter, its other component is to obtain a certification in inclusive leadership. This is crucial for the current job market because employers are not only seeking technical skills but soft skills such as the ability to work in and foster an inclusive culture. Being able to put an Inclusive Leadership certification on one’s resume allows one to become a more well-rounded candidate during the job hunting process. It also allows for heightened awareness of identity-based differences which they can note when trying to work or lead in a more diverse environment. The way for business students to complete the certification program is divided into three categories: 25 hours of training over 3-5 semesters, portfolio development (which serves as a reflection), and relevant projects related to real-world applications. Once students complete these requirements, they will be certified in inclusive leadership.
Learning and practicing inclusive leadership has many benefits and can be applied to numerous amounts of workplaces and environments, which is why the Stevens School of Business has opted to start this program. While the business school is the pioneer for this program, Professor Zheng noted that there are plans to expand it towards all majors, graduate and undergraduate, in the future. Lastly, she explained that interest has also been expressed by faculty and staff at Stevens, to create a similar program dedicated to teaching Inclusive Leadership for the faculty.
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