Manager Certificate Series: Track 1

First Time Manager:
Understanding a Manager’s Role

Most new managers don’t realize how much their new role differs from that of an individual contributor. Often, they have misconceptions about what managing entails, and they may be surprised to learn that the skills and methods required for success as an individual contributor and those needed for success as a manager are very different. This course describes some of the myths about management and their corresponding truths in order to clarify what managers really do. It also points to the typical demands and constraints of a manager’s job. Finally, it describes strategies for dealing with common mistakes of first-time managers.

Duration: 60

Workplace Management:
Employment Laws and Regulations

Managers must continuously maintain a working level of knowledge regarding laws and regulatory standards that impact the organization’s relationship with its employees and that serve to protect the interests of both parties. Organizational noncompliance may lead to financial penalties and other indirect costs, such as reputational impacts. In this course, you’ll learn about a number of federal laws and standards and their amendments, covering areas of compensation, employment, health and safety, employee relations, and employee protection.

Duration: 109

Workplace Harassment Prevention for Managers

Harassment can have a very negative impact on an organization’s work environment. Managers and supervisors have a responsibility to both their employees and their company to know their role in preventing and responding to all forms of workplace harassment, including sexual harassment. This two-hour course is intended to help develop a set of values in managerial and supervisory employees that will assist them in preventing and effectively responding to incidents of workplace harassment.

Duration: 120

Interpersonal Communication:
Listening Essentials

Sir Winston Churchill said ‘Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.’ Effective listening takes more than just courage; it also takes constant learning and practice. To prepare for effective listening, you need to identify and overcome the barriers that stand in the way of effective listening. You also need to be an attentive, empathetic, and active listener. When you engage in the technique of active listening, you focus your attention completely on the speaker, listen carefully for meaning, and then use feedback to verify that you’ve correctly understood the communication. This course explores the benefits and challenges of effective listening and demonstrates how active listening techniques enhance the effectiveness of your listening skills. It takes you through the various levels of listening and outlines behaviors and thought patterns that demonstrate active listening techniques. Finally, it highlights the important skill of providing listener feedback to demonstrate or clarify understanding of the speaker’s communication.

Duration: 60

Interpersonal Communication:
Listening Essentials

Communicating effectively across cultures can be very difficult. Not only must you pay attention to the cultural distinctions of your audience and adjust your style to them, but you also need to adjust your style to different forms of communication. This course offers guidelines and best practices for speaking and writing across cultures. The course also highlights the importance of keeping your audience’s cultural expectations in mind when creating presentations and how to make your presentations effective in a variety of cross-cultural settings. Finally, the course provides a chance to practice communicating effectively through scenarios involving high- and low-context cultures.

Duration: 60