ISS Leadership Programme

A programme offering knowledge, skills and personal development to increase the impact of your organisation. For more information and to apply, see the ISS website.

Even though global challenges are more widespread than ever before, funding and support for international cooperation is under pressure.

How can you prepare your organization for this challenging future, and how can you integrate the latest (social) scientific advances into your policy and programming?

This executive hybrid course of 8 two-hour sessions, with a maximum group size of 15-20 people, is intended for:

• Managers, leaders, strategists, M&E specialists, business developers of aid agencies, donors, NGOs, consultancies, philanthropies and think tanks
• Those with at least 10 years of experience in development
• Directors, management team, and board members

• Donor agencies
• International NGOs
• International think tanks
• Philanthropic foundations (e.g. company & family foundations)
• Consultancy organizations working on development
• International development banks

You will be trained in knowledge, skills and personal development to increase the impact of your organization:

• Knowledge

You will learn to move your organization from linear thinking to more adaptive programming. You will learn how international development efforts can be made more effective by integrating complexity thinking, accounting for future risk profiles, and maximizing (societal) resilience. You will learn about the best practices in other organizations.

• Skills

You will learn skills to detect your (and your organization’s) blind spots on the drivers (or blockers) to the societal impact of your organization. You will learn to dissent with donors and investors in a productive manner. You will also acquire tools to create a safe working space (in a multicultural setting) for your employees, where they are rewarded for thinking out of the box.

• Personal development

You will increase your courage and creativity in dealing with resistance from your management board to a more open learning culture.

• Networking

You will expand your personal and professional network by joining a select and dynamic community of peers and faculty who will create a conducive and safe space for mutual exchange and learning. You can invite a colleague to join one of the sessions.

For those joining remotely from abroad an extra intervision session online is offered free of charge.

In 8 sessions, you will learn to strategize to increase the international impact of your organization.

The ISS Leadership Programme offers the latest evidence and an appropriate learning environment for senior professionals and policy makers, working on issues as diverse as climate change, migration and humanitarian action.

You will be stimulated to drive change in your organization to make use of these insights. The Hague Humanitarian Studies Centre is closely engaged in the design execution of the programme, to link together questions of relief and resilience, preparation and vulnerability, and development and risk.

• Preparation per session: approximately 2 hours
• Teaching material will be provided as part of the programme
• At the end you will receive a certificate of participation from the International Institute of Social Studies
• Participants get access to the ISS alumni network
• Participants can bring a colleague to one course session