Online MBA Coaching Mentoring and Leadership

The York Business School MBA in Coaching, Mentoring and Leadership is designed to enable you to develop critically reflective coaching, mentoring and leadership skills that can be applied in a variety of settings. You will engage in and evaluate practical coaching and mentoring activities, explore and evaluate the potential impact of coaching and mentoring on individual and organisational performance and engage with the complex moral dimensions in coaching, mentoring and leadership.

Both coaching and mentoring activity are strongly associated with management and leadership. There are tensions between the concepts of leadership and management, which are again explored throughout the programme. In some instances both coaching and mentoring may be employed to contribute to the development of leaders and managers. In others, coaching and mentoring may be employed as part of the leadership or management function.

This programme will create opportunities for you to develop through practice a range of coaching and mentoring skills and techniques, and enable the development of a critical understanding of issues related to the design and implementation of coaching and mentoring schemes.

The programme is delivered in such a way that you are encouraged to utilise your professional and work based context as a resource in which to practice and develop your skills in coaching and mentoring. You will be supported throughout the programme to develop appropriate ‘ground rules’, both in the learning context and the professional / work based context and to explore ethical issues.

Much of the learning is developed through the establishment of collaborative learning communities of programme participants and tutors – and you will become part of that community of learning. Your understanding is developed around the key skills, processes and practices of coaching, mentoring and leadership. Solutions to real problems are suggested, discussed and analysed within the learning community with the support of tutors and fellow learners.

The programme is international in its design and engages with themes on an international basis. Many different cultural contexts are utilised to help provide the setting for discussions. This programme provides opportunities to grow global networks both virtually and also through the residential activity that creates an environment for cross cultural peer to peer learning.

On completion of the programme, you will be able to critically evaluate a range of theories and models relating to organisations, coaching, mentoring and leadership and apply these to real life situations in order to inform your decision making. The network that you will develop over the duration of the programme often continues to be a supportive and strong community of practice post-graduation.

Most of the programme is delivered online, but you must attend a 5 day residential in either York or Zürich as part of the Capstone Project module. This is an excellent opportunity to network with fellow professionals, share learning and understanding, and build global relationships, alongside learning about how to conduct academic research to support you in the completion of your capstone project.

Aims and Outcomes

The overall aim of the programme is to develop your critical understanding and self-awareness of the issues relating to leading innovation and change, so that you may develop your own leadership skills and knowledge, and develop both your individual and organisational potential. You will be supported as you:

• develop critical awareness and understanding of the key concepts of leadership, innovation and change, organisational strategy, and national and organisational culture;
• develop the ability to connect theory with practice in creative and innovative ways and reflect upon the learning involved as well as the outcomes;
• develop critical awareness and understanding of the impact that leadership, strategy and culture can have on innovation and change processes within organisations;
• develop and enhance life-long learning skills and personal development in order to work with self-direction and originality.

Visit the Online MBA Coaching Mentoring and Leadership page on the Robert Kennedy College website for more details!