Leadership and Research Management Online Course

Leadership and management are necessary for any research initiative. Leaders must be able to recognize their responsibilities and the key resources they need in order to build a successful research program for impact. Recognizing the importance of developing the leadership and project management skills in research management, IRRI Education, in close coordination with IRRI’s research leaders, designed the Leadership and Research Management Course – a holistic training program that will help IRRI’s students and trainees take on leadership and managerial roles when they go back to their respective institutions or engage with new organizations.

The program is oriented towards gaining an understanding of a range of skills relevant to global agricultural development and the challenges facing sustainable development. The goal is to help all participants—through discussions, practical activities, and interactions—increase their personal effectiveness and interpersonal skills, understand organizational dynamics and the best practices in research management, and acquire essential project management skills. This online training is running from 23-27 May 2022.

Twenty-nine participants have taken the challenge and are now currently participating in the course. In the 5-day training sessions, participants are expected to assess effective interpersonal skills to develop oneself, examine different leadership styles to understand how to effectively lead others, evaluate how to apply the systems thinking mindset to improve organizational effectiveness, identify the components of project management and research leadership, and enumerate action points and improvements to their leadership skills.