Handbook

The discharge of effective public leadership depends upon knowledge of defining principles and familiarity with practical insights. In common with all forms of leadership, the practice of public leadership requires certain personal attributes and relies upon specific professional competencies. The attributes of the public leader are both innate and able to be inculcated through education and training. Public leadership draws on acquired expertise as well as accumulated experience of political conversation and public policy. This course begins with a practical assessment of the constitute elements of competent public leadership using a series of contemporary case studies as the basis for developing an inventory of attributes and abilities that the student will use to assess their own learning needs as a public leader. The student will examine contextual differences in the exercise of public leadership and the appeal and application of different leadership styles and strategies to achieve specific outcomes on the way to political renewal and cultural transformation. The course will equip the student to determine the effectiveness of public leadership against a series of criteria related directly to the common good and the public interest.