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Sarah Cannard, Dr (ILF2014)

Institution: Melbourne Business School
Course: Accelerated Dev. for Managers

The ILF online application process was very thorough but quite straight forward. The staged process involved an online application for Stage 1 followed by a more detailed application for Stage 2, and then if successful this was followed by an interview with an ILF panel. I found the application process prompted me to investigate courses and professional development programs that I would not normally have attended, but are pivotal in developing my leadership and managerial qualities.

The Mt Eliza Business School Executive Education programs were recommended to me by several people and after completing the Emerging Managers Course it was easy to see why. The 5 day residential course focused on core management skills, negotiation skills, motivation techniques, decision making processes and most importantly how to be an effective leader. During the course we had the opportunity to review feedback from a 360 degree survey as well as personality profiling. This has lead to a much greater understanding and self awareness of my own strengths and weaknesses allowing me to use these to my advantage. Above all, my confidence as a leader has increased. I now understand that I already had the core technical skills to manage but had lacked the confidence to step up and take on a higher level leadership position. The Course also created a number of professional relationships and networks with similar minded professionals which have been a great source of support.

Although I’ve been on leave (maternity leave) since completing the course I have had several discussions with my Operations Manager regarding my desire to take on a leadership or managerial role. Once I return to work, in mid 2016, I plan to take a more active role in our Training sector and will apply for a management position. The Course and the leadership skills learned will allow me to contribute to the Nova management team and to start to push my own boundaries as a leader.