Authentic & Deliberate Leadership: The West Point Way

Course Length: 60 hrs. Student Contact

Certificate of Completion: Included

Course Overview

Originally designed by General Howard Prince and the staff of the Behavioral Sciences and Leadership Department at the United States Military Academy at West Point, this course has been redesigned by General Prince, Dr. Mitch Javidi, Dr. Dave Mather, and the faculty at the National Command and Staff College. “Authentic & Deliberate Leadership: The West Point Way” is now offered in multiple versions to meet agency and/or personnel needs (self-paced online, instructor led online, blended, and a comprehensive 3 week residency).  The course challenges participants to bring their artful experience leading others at any level of the organization and combine it with behavioral science theories which will improve the participant’s ability to enhance the motivation, satisfaction, and performance of their people.  This course is not intended to be theoretical; it is designed to be deliberately applied in the real world with real people using contemporary challenges in need of creative solutions. The foundation of the course is about understanding human behavior, including your own, and learning to lead people more effectively in a dynamic environment.

“When approaching online leadership training, two questions immediately come to mind. First, is there anything here I can’t get somewhere else, preferably in-person? Second, can the content be delivered in an engaging and accountable way? This course delivers a yes, to both. Having read just about every common resource on leadership, and attending many available courses, I can say there’s a lot in the course I’ve never seen before. More importantly, the delivery is not only inspiring, but the interface holds you accountable to attentive completion. This course is a high-value proposition.”  — Chief John P. Clair, Town of Marion (Va.) Police Department

“The 60-hour course Authentic and Deliberate Leadership: The West Point Way was an excellent course.  Dr. David Mather did an excellent job also.  I especially liked how he combined theory and practice.  He would lecture about theory and then give examples about how what he had just mentioned (theory) could be applied in the field (practice).  I also enjoyed the format of the class.  The asynchronous nature of the class made it convenient.  I was able to attend the class mostly after office hours.  Dr. Mather being present in every module also made it more interesting and easier to follow.  The five areas of the course (Understanding Individuals, Leading Individuals, Leading Teams, The Leader in the Leadership System, and Leading Organizations) covered the basic and most important areas in leadership.  I was familiar with many of the topics covered and it refreshed my memory on the various leadership theories and models discussed.  I especially found the lessons on Motivational Theories and Leadership Theories helpful and thought-provoking.  In short, this course reinforced and confirmed my understanding of what it takes to be a leader.  I highly recommend this course to all leaders and aspiring leaders.” — Chief Esteban Soto III, Campus Safety and Security, University of Lynchburg

“I recently completed the “Authentic & Deliberate Leadership: The West Point Way” online course. I found the format to be very user-friendly and easy to navigate. The class is self-paced and tracks your progress so you can stop anytime and are able to pick back up where you left off or go back and revisit sections as needed. I have taken several leadership courses over the span of my 25 years in law enforcement and I am pleased to say I learned several new things in this training. Some particularly good takeaways related to dealing with under-performing and/or disgruntled employees. I believe this training holds benefit for both experienced leaders as well as those new to leadership. Recommended.”  — Katrina Goodman, Deputy Inspector General – Chief of Investigations, Virginia Office of the State Inspector General

“I would have never been able to take this class due to the size of my agency and the staffing issues we are all facing now.  The costs associated with a class this long was nullified due to it being online and I was also able to take it at my own pace.  I enjoyed how the modules were broken down.  It made it easier to go back and review when something wasn’t totally clear.  As a road supervisor, I could work on it while on duty and if I got pulled away I was able to quickly pick it back up.” — Sgt. M. T. Bryant, Patrol Division, Prince George County Police Department