Course Syllabus
Welcome to BUS401: Management Leadership
Specific information about this course and its requirements can be found below. For more general information about taking Saylor Academy courses, including information about Community and Academic Codes of Conduct, please read the Student Handbook.
Course Description
Learn effective management and leadership techniques, with topics including leadership theory, change management, decision making, and the distinction between leadership and management.
Course Introduction
All managers are leaders. All leaders are managers. Which of these statements is true? Neither. The words are often confused, even in academic settings, because we think that both leaders and managers are in charge of a specific task or group of people. However, there are many differences between the two. One such distinction is that a manager may not be in charge of people at all. For example, a manager may be responsible for data acquisition, analysis, and dissemination. Or consider the fact that a leader may have no formal power; many of history's most outstanding leaders only had power "earned" from their peers instead of power granted by another individual or group. Think of our country's founding fathers, like Thomas Jefferson, who went against the British government to draft the Declaration of Independence – the situation created the "team", and from that, the recognized leaders emerged. All of these distinctions will be explored in this course.
This course will distinguish between managers and leaders and provide you with some of the resources to be both a competent manager and a good leader. Whether you want to run a doctor's office or a company with thousands of employees, management and leadership skills are the keys that open those doors. Many believe that the highest positions are given to those who know the most about the business, but in reality, those positions are reserved for leaders whose leadership skills transcend business acumen. These skills are difficult to teach in any setting, so it is important to study them carefully and look for real-world situations to practice them.
The structure of this course focuses mainly on leadership because a good portion of management skills are reserved for technical knowledge in a position. This course will begin with an introduction that will help further the distinction between leadership and management. Then, you will be introduced to major theories and models of leadership and leadership development from various perspectives. Next, you will be introduced to the decision-making process in various leadership settings. You will then study the processes of leading independently, or without direct authority. The final unit will focus on managing groups and teams. After concluding this course, you may not be a leader, but you certainly will better understand leadership qualities. Perhaps you will discover there is a leader right at your fingertips.
This course includes the following units:
- Unit 1: Introduction
- Unit 2: Leadership Theory
- Unit 3: Change Management and Decision-Making
- Unit 4: Leading Without Formal Authority
- Unit 5: Managing Groups and Teams
Course Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:
- Distinguish the concept of leadership from the concept of management;
- Compare and contrast the major theories of leadership;
- Analyze the decision-making process and change management;
- Assess the skills necessary to exert power and influence in a non-authoritative leadership role; and
- Evaluate the qualities necessary to effectively manage or lead in a team/group environment.
Throughout this course, you will also see learning outcomes in each unit. You can use those learning outcomes to help organize your studies and gauge your progress.
Course Materials
This course's primary learning materials are articles, lectures, and videos.
All course materials are free to access and can be found in each unit of the course. Pay close attention to the notes that accompany these course materials, as they will tell you what to focus on in each resource and will help you understand how the learning materials fit into the course as a whole. You can also see a list of all the learning materials in this course at this link.
Some parts of this course may have been created or reviewed with the support of artificial intelligence (AI). To make sure you receive accurate, high-quality, and academically sound learning materials, all AI-assisted content is carefully checked and approved by Saylor Academy's faculty and subject matter experts.
Evaluation and Minimum Passing Score
Only the final exam is considered when awarding you a grade for this course. To pass this course, you will need to earn a grade of 70% or higher on the final exam.
Your score on the exam will be calculated as soon as you complete it. Be sure to study in between each attempt! If you do not pass the exam, you will not complete this course or receive a certificate of completion. You can attempt the exam as many times as you want.
There are end-of-unit assessments in this course that are designed to help you study and do not factor into your final course grade. You can take them as many times as you want until you understand the concepts they cover.
You can see all of these assessments at this link.
Continuing Education Credits
The certificate earned by passing this self-paced course displays the program hours you completed and continuing education credits (CEUs). CEUs document successful completion of courses that are designed to improve the knowledge and skills of working adults. Many industries value CEUs, and now your certificate reflects them clearly, and they may be used to support career advancement or to meet professional licensing standards. This course contains 3.7 CEUs.
Tips for Success
BUS401: Management Leadership is a self-paced course, meaning you can decide when to start and complete the course. We estimate the "average" student will take 37 hours to complete. We recommend studying at a comfortable pace and scheduling your study time in advance.
Learning new material can be challenging, so here are a few study strategies to help you succeed:
- Take notes on terms, practices, and theories. This helps you understand each concept in context and provides a refresher for later study.
- Test yourself on what you remember and how well you understand the concepts. Reflecting on what you've learned improves long-term memory retention.
Technical Requirements
This course is delivered entirely online. You will need access to a computer or web-capable mobile device and consistent internet access to view or download resources and complete auto-graded assessments and the final exam.
To access the full course, including assessments and the final exam, log into your Saylor Academy account and enroll in the course. If you don't have an account, you can create one for free here. Note that tracking progress and taking assessments require you to log in.
For more details and guidance, please review our complete Technical Requirements and our student Help Center.
Optional Saylor Academy Mobile App
You can access all course features directly from your mobile browser, but if you have limited internet connectivity, the Saylor Academy mobile app provides an option to download course content for offline use. The app is available for iOS and Android devices.
Fees
This course is entirely free to enroll in and access. All course materials, including textbooks, videos, webpages, and activities, are available at no charge. This course also contains a free final exam and a free course completion certificate.