Bridge to Leadership Program

Background

Bridge to Leadership is a professional development and leadership training program that Maryland
Smith has implemented since 2018. The program can be delivered in an in-person environment, a
100% virtual environment, and a combination of in-person and virtual (one or the other, not
hybrid) sessions. It currently includes a collection of seven full day and one two-day session, along
with group coaching.

The academic and program director work closely with the faculty to develop creative and lively
learning sessions. Maryland Smith faculty are skilled at adapting to varying audiences and
instituting changes within a session based on learner awareness, engagement and preparedness.
Each session is built around multiple learning modes including warm up exercises for groups and
individuals, table-based feedback and brainstorming activities, cohort discussion, theory lecture,
personal reflection exercises, introduction of frameworks and accompanying role plays and
scenario-based activities.   

Group Coaching

Maryland Smith has incorporated professional coaching elements into executive level programs for
over fifteen years. It is a mainstay in the Maryland Smith Executive MBA program, and is an integral
part of the B2L program – with practical applications in each session throughout the year,
culminating in a Group Coaching session in the final session of the program.

Maryland Smith has an unparalleled mastery of where and when to incorporate coaching into a
program for maximum participant benefits. Smith’s cadre of ICF-credentialed coaches will not only
help program participants create and stay focused on a Leadership Development Plan, but will also:
1) prompt new self-awareness through thought-provoking questions & astute observations,
2) give support for dropping unhelpful habits & developing productive, new behaviors,
3) provide safe and confidential space for participants to share challenges, hopes and fears,
4) enable fresh insights when issues feel overwhelming and individuals feel stuck
5) encourage individuals to stretch themselves, be open to new possibilities, and to
experiment with new behaviors.

Course Outline

Session 1: Empowered Decision Making

Making decisions in an atmosphere of increasing time pressure, uncertainty, and conflicting advice
creates challenges. Making sound leadership decisions in crisis situations is even more demanding.
This session will focus on how to frame complex issues appropriately the first time. It presents a
roadmap for making effective decisions under uncertainty, by alerting participants to common
thinking traps and by offering practical remedies to empower them to find collaborative solutions.

Learning Objectives:
● To explore the power of understanding the decision process
● Understand one’s role in the decision making process at varied levels of an
organization
● Practice brief role plays that highlight the complexity of decision making
● Develop skills to find simple solutions to making decisions as an individual
contributor

Session 2: CEO of Me  

This mastery session is focused on Personal Leadership, and will help you think and be the CEO of
Me, Inc. This class will help you foster you–an enterprising, purposeful individual with limitless
potential. The session is designed to help you discover your “why” by thinking through the
fundamental values and principles which define your purpose. It will also help you explore your
“how” by leveraging your core skills and capabilities to effectively work with others and create
productive and innovative solutions to problems in the world that you care deeply about. Together,
your answers to the “why” and the “how” questions, through application of tools and concepts
discussed in the session, will enable you to purposefully design a life and a career which leverages
your aspirations and your abilities for enduring and fulfilling success.

Learning Objectives:
● Learn to use the four-question approach to define your purpose, success, value
proposition and value network
● Develop answers to the questions to determine what solutions to world problems
you want to create and why these problems are important to you.
● Apply the “trader principle” to create collaborative relationships among individuals
who have complementary capabilities and are aligned on a common objective.
● Understand how individuals and organizations can leverage the power of markets
through purposeful leadership.
Pre-Work:
● Fostering Enterprise: Be the CEO of ME, Inc.

Session 3: Strength in Differences

While it may be tempting to state that in today’s diverse society a diverse workplace is a norm,
research evidence suggests that this conclusion would be premature. Many people experience
significant challenges in organizations on a daily basis. The facilitator will explore the nature of
those hidden biases and exclusions and allow participants to develop a greater appreciation for and
awareness of diversity related issues. The participants will also discuss practical tools allowing
them to increase inclusion and participation of diverse groups in their workplace settings, with
particular focus on generational diversity. The session will emphasize the value of a growth mindset
for both new and seasoned employees, and practice the behaviors necessary to achieve this
mindset.

Learning Objectives:
● To identify the psychological, social, and emotional factors contributing to lack of
diversity and social exclusion in today’s organizations.
● To appreciate the relationship between diversity, inequality, and social, economic,
and political power in the workplace.
● To explore the benefits and challenges of diversity in organizations (stemming from
gender, race, culture, and generational differences).
● To consider the perspectives of diverse groups when making decisions.
● Define unconscious bias and use a framework to increase diversity awareness
● To demonstrate the value of learning from each other, valuing and respecting each
other, and having a growth mindset

Session 4: Leveraging Emotions at Work

The facilitator will help participants to effectively manage their own and others’ feelings and
emotions, by enhancing their understanding of emotional intelligence. The purpose of this session
is (1) to introduce to participants the concept of emotional intelligence and its key elements, (2) to
help them reflect upon their own emotional intelligence and apply it to their business practices, and
(3) to provide useful strategies to practice and improve their emotional intelligence at work. In
addition to an introduction to the general principles of emotional intelligence, the workshop will
provide opportunities for self-analysis, self-reflection, peer feedback and practice of new responses
and behaviors. The workshop will specifically focus on the following learning outcomes:

Learning Objectives:
● Understand the concept and the importance of emotional intelligence and its four
core elements.
● Discuss how to apply the core concepts of emotional intelligence to leadership,
management, and (internal and external) customer service practices.
Review emotional intelligence assessment data and help participants understand
their own emotional intelligence (strengths and weaknesses) and understand
strategies to improve it.
Pre-work:
● Assessments: Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) and the
Multi-Rater Survey

Session 5: Managing Up

Whether you’re good friends with your boss or have trouble coexisting in the same office, managing
your boss is an essential skill. The facilitator will lead participants through a series of discussions
and small group activities to help them more critically think through their relationships and
interactions with their superiors. You will learn how to manage your boss with integrity and
political savvy. The session will include several role play exercises to help attendees connect to the
learning.

Learning Objectives:
● Discuss strategies to constructively influence up the hierarchy
● Understand exchange currencies in interactions with managers
● Use self-reflection to identify your personalities and career stages
● Recognize what your managers need from you
● Select principles for difficult conversations with managers

Session 6: Networking for Success

Networking has become an essential professional skill for most employees at every level. In this
highly interactive workshop, participants will explore the value of professional networks for career
development, problem-solving, innovation and enhancing individual and organizational
collaborations. What are the steps by which one establishes trust and sustains useful connections?
How can a network be managed strategically and with integrity? What value do you get and give in a
networked organization? Together we will practice ways of anticipating, appreciating and meeting
the needs of others; and explore ways to share our own needs, leveraging the skills and connections
of those around us.

Learning Objectives:
● Consider the value of networks, hubs and connectors in organizations
● Learn how networking supports building more productive working relationships
● Identify what it takes to network with integrity, and why this is important
● Consider how to contribute to and leverage existing networks and build new ones
● Learn tips and techniques to make communications more memorable
● Assess ways to “make the ask” and “pay it forward” in networks”
Learn how understanding the structure of networks can improve your
organizational effectiveness.
● Create an individual networking plan in support of your professional and
organizational goals

Session 7: Constructive Conflict and Collaboration

In this highly interactive, workshop participants will learn specific techniques to build trust,
enhance communication, and turn conflict into progress up, down and sideways. The facilitator will
explore the tricky dynamic of how to build a network of trusted peers within and across
departments, and expectation setting and communication techniques that can be used to tackle
even the most sensitive conflicts.
Participants will complete a brief, online assessment evaluating their own-relationship with their
supervisor and peers, which will be used to guide individual and collective action planning.

Learning Objectives:
● To explore the sensitive nature of the supervisor-subordinate relationship.
● To learn and practice how to set and communicate clear expectations up, down, and
sideways.
● To learn and practice specific communication techniques for working more
effectively with your supervisor and peers.
● To learn and practice reframing tough problems so that they are easy to talk about.
● To learn and practice specific techniques for building trust and credibility with the
people you work with.
Pre-work:
● Self-assessment: Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI)

Session 8: Communicating with Diplomacy and Tact

How well you communicate can make or break your professional image, influencing how others
view your performance and your prospects for career mobility. In this interactive, collaborative
communication skills seminar, the facilitator will show participants how to build constructive and
beneficial work relationships by learning how to analyze situations and consciously choose and use
the most appropriate words and emotional tone for workplace interactions. Attendees will gain
insights into their own communication style and the styles of others, while building skills to clearly
and effectively receive and transmit information, ideas, thoughts, feelings and needs.

Learning Objectives:
● Understand personal communication style and tendencies.
● Apply diplomacy and tact to be a credible and effective communicator.
Understand the components of great communication and develop the skills to model
it.
● Develop and demonstrate better listening skills.
● Understand how perception and image can affect others’ perception of you and your
performance.
● Develop the skills to constructively interact with people with whom you disagree.

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Registration

Candidates can choose to register for the course by via any of the below methods:

• Email: Sales@phoenixts.com
• Phone: 301-582-8200 Option 4
• Website: www.phoenixts.com

Schedule

Program Level

All Levels

Training Delivery Methods

Group Live In-person & Group Live Virtual

Duration

Over the course of 9 months