Leading with Diplomacy, Data, and Drive - February 2027
- Registration Closed
Course Description
Leading an online and professional education enterprise demands strategic thinking, political awareness, data-informed decision-making, and the ability to influence others across complex institutional environments. This course explores the leadership competencies needed to successfully navigate higher education while advancing organizational priorities and fostering innovation.
Participants will examine leadership through the lenses of organizational strategy, data-informed decision-making, diplomacy, emotional intelligence, and organizational change. Through case studies, reflection, and collaborative discussion, learners will develop practical approaches for building influence, communicating with stakeholders, leading through complexity, and creating the conditions for organizational success.
Designed for current and aspiring enterprise leaders, this course provides the tools and perspectives needed to lead with confidence, build trust, and drive meaningful organizational impact.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Evaluate organizational structures, culture, and strategic priorities to inform effective leadership decisions within online and professional education enterprises.
- Apply data-informed leadership practices to communicate insights, support decision-making, and foster a culture of continuous improvement.
- Demonstrate diplomacy, emotional intelligence, and political awareness when navigating complex institutional relationships and leading organizational change.
- Develop strategies for leading innovation while balancing institutional priorities, operational effectiveness, and organizational performance.
- Create a personal leadership approach that aligns mission, vision, data, and stakeholder engagement to advance enterprise success.
Course Structure and Expectations
This instructor-supported course is delivered over four weeks. Each week combines asynchronous coursework with a one-hour live Zoom session that provides opportunities for discussion, reflection, peer exchange, and application of course concepts.
Asynchronous Coursework
Complete readings, videos, case studies, reflections, discussions, and applied assignments on your own schedule within each weekly module.
Weekly Live Session
Participate in a one-hour Zoom session each week for faculty guidance, collaborative discussion, leadership reflection, and peer learning.
Weekly Commitment
Plan to spend approximately 5–7 hours each week completing course materials, activities, assignments, and the live session.
Yakut Gazi
Vice-Provost, Teaching and Learning
University of Calgary
Yakut Gazi is Vice-Provost for Teaching and Learning and Professor at the Werklund School of Education at the University of Calgary, where she is responsible for the Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning, institutional strategy in teaching excellence, curriculum innovation, and student experience.
Previously, she served as Vice Provost for Learning Innovation and Digital Education at Duke University, where she founded the Office of Learning Innovation and Lifetime Education (LILE), overseeing pedagogical innovation, digital education strategy, youth academic enrichment, and continuing and lifelong learning. Before Duke, Dr. Gazi held senior leadership roles at Georgia Institute of Technology and Texas A&M University's Dwight Look College of Engineering, and faculty and staff positions at Texas A&M-Central Texas, Texas A&M at Qatar, the University of Barcelona, and Boğaziçi University.
With more than 33 years of experience across five countries, Dr. Gazi has been a sustained voice in shaping the future of higher education. She has served on the Coursera Open Content Council, the Grammarly Customer Advisory Board, and the Academic Advisory Council for Quality Matters, and held elected leadership positions with the International Association for Engineering Continuing Education (IACEE) and the University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA).
Dr. Gazi holds a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Texas A&M University, an M.A. in Educational Sciences, and a B.S. in Teaching Chemistry, both from Boğaziçi University in Istanbul, where she was born and raised. She lives in Calgary with her husband and daughter.
