Learning Outcomes:

Characteristics of effective change leaders and agents

• Attitudes, values and behaviour of change agents’ e.g. courageous leadership, recognise growth opportunities; demonstrates flexibility and resilience; explores alternative perspectives

Self-reflection

• This includes reflecting on own attitudes, values and behaviour and identifying areas of change required to be an effective change agent.

Practical application

• Evaluate the effectiveness of a change agent’s knowledge skills and competencies and action plan and developing relevant skills and competencies.

Change theories and strategic management models

Different approaches to organisational change

• This include in depth understanding of principles of change, organisational change processes and the different approaches possible
• Causes of change: Explain external and internal triggers of change and innovation: changes in markets, economic downturns, legislation, demographics, mergers and acquisitions, re-engineering, TQM, organisational constraints e.g. human and financial resources etc. Appraise these triggers of change and innovation 

• Change models: 7-S seven step model, Lewin’s three step change models, Kotter, Kuber-Ross, ADKAR etc.

Tools and techniques for organisational change management

• Pay off matrix, threat/ opportunity matrix, stakeholder analysis/ influence, backwards imaging, attitude charting,  risk management, teambuilding etc.

Stakeholder analysis

• Power/Interest Matrix, Transformations of Freeman’s model and the evaluation of Fassin’s model

Influences on change:

• Impact of external factors such as globalisation, mergers and acquisitions, exchange rate changes etc. on  organisations. Internal factors such as culture,  attitude, resources, etc. also should be considered. 

Measuring progress

• Goal and process-based evaluation, outcome-based evaluation, quality  circles, milestones, benchmarks etc.

Cultural models and organisation change

• Managing major changes: appreciating the change architecture and the strategies for change
• Principles of change: Understand the basic principles of organisational change such as systematic change for the humans, start at the top, involve all the levels, effective communication, create clear responsibilities, consider cultural aspects, prepare for the contingencies, individual focus, etc. 

• Diagnosing change, managing major strategic change for organisational effectiveness and learning from change  
• Strategic convergence: a new model for organisationsal change

Practical application

• Identify and appraise real life examples of the organisational change process 

Indicative Reading list 

Key Reading: 

• Carnall C. & By, R .T. (2014). Managing Change in Organisations, ( 6th ed) Harlow, Pearson 

Other indicative reading: 

• Whittington, R., Regner, P., Angwin, D., Johnson, G., & Scholes, K. (2020) Exploring Strategy: Texts and Cases. (12th ed.) Harlow, Pearson. • Gill R (2011). Theory and Practice of Leadership, 2nd ed. Sage Publications 
• Mullins, L. J. (2013) Management and Organisational Behaviour, (latest edition) FT Prentice Hall 
• Cottrell, S. (2010) Skills for Success: Personal Development and Employability. 2nd Edition. Palgrave Macmillan
• Gold, J., Thorpe, R., and Mumford, A. (2010) Leadership and Management Development. CIPD
• Burnes, B. (2004) Managing Change: A Strategic Approach to Organisational Dynamics. ISBN-13: 978-0273683360

Journals/newspapers 

• Strategic Change; 
• Strategy and Leadership; 
• The Journal of Organisational Transformation & Change 
• The Sloan Management Review 
• Harvard Business Review 
• Journal of Organisational Change Management 
• International Journal of Strategic Change Management 
• Journal of Leadership Studies 
• International Journal of Corporate Strategy and Social Responsibility; 

Websites 

• www.managers.org.uk (Chartered Management Institute)

Entry requirements

To enroll The Doctoral Award, the learner must possess:

• Graduated with a Master’s degree from an accredited university or achieved a Level 7 Diploma according to the European Qualifications
• For a degree from non-global accredited universities; The learner should have followed Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning for Qualifications (APELQ) policy of SIMI and/or University Partners.
• Learners must be over 24 years old.

The SIMI Swiss reserves the highest decision-making power for admission whether to accept or not accept after a specific review of each candidate’s profile to ensure that they can comprehend and gain benefits when participating. For the fake university or diploma mills, University Partners shall not be accepted.

English requirements

If a learner is not from a predominantly English-speaking country, proof of English language proficiency must be provided.

• Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) level B2 or equivalent
• Or A minimum TOEFL score of 101 or IELTS 6.5; Reading and Writing must be at 6.5 or equivalent

After graduating with Doctoral Award, students receive all certified documents from the SIMI Swiss.

Certified Documents:

• e-Certificate from the Swiss Information and Management Institute (SIMI Swiss).
• Hard copy certificate from the Swiss Information and Management Institute (SIMI Swiss) – Optional.
•  Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning for Qualifications (APEL.Q) certified from University Partners for credit and tuition fee transfer.

Because the program is accredited and recognized, students can easily use certified in the working environment and have many opportunities for career advancement. In addition, in case if you want to study for a SIMI degree or university partner degree, students can convert all credits and the full paid tuition fee when participating in the program University Partners.

The SIMI Swiss’ Doctoral Award means:

SIMI Swiss Doctoral Award is the award at the doctoral level and is equivalent to:

• Level 8 certificate of Regulated Qualification Framework (RQF) of UK
• Level 11 certificate of Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF)
• Level 8 certificate of Credit and Qualifications Framework (CQFW)
• Level 8 certificate of European Qualifications Framework (EQF)
• Level 10 certificates of the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF)
• Level 8 certificate of ASEAN Qualifications Reference Framework (AQRF)
• Level 10 certificate of the African Continental Qualifications Framework (ACQF)

Students can convert all credits and the full tuition fee when participating in the SIMI Swiss and/or University Partners academic programs if they want to study for an academic degree.

Credits transfer:

Learners can accumulate 20 credits from the Doctoral Learners can accumulate 20 credits from the Doctoral Award program when participating in the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) or PhD. Please see the credit transfer policy HERE

Tuition fee transfer:

When participating in the DBA/PhD program, students who have graduated 1 Doctoral Award will receive a discount of full tuition fee which you paid. Please see the tuition fee transfer HERE

The SIMI Swiss micro-credential program allows for the transfer of credits and tuition fees into full degree programs from SIMI Swiss and/or its university partners. SIMI Swiss reserves the right to limit admissions once the number of students exceeds the quotas.

Apply Policy:

• To participate in the SIMI Swiss micro-credential program, students need to meet the entry criteria corresponding to each level. Please see the “Entry” tab for more details.
• SIMI Swiss will not accept applicants if their entry qualifications are from diploma mill universities or schools/universities that are not accredited.
• For Doctoral Award programs, if an entry master is unavailable, students must demonstrate a minimum of 5 years of work experience in the relevant field. Please note that a master’s degree is required for the Doctoral program at SIMI Swiss and University Partners so that you could study Doctoral Award but could not move to the Doctoral program of SIMI and University Partners.
• English is not a mandatory entry requirement for short course programs, but candidates need to ensure that English is used in reading documents, listening to lectures, and doing assignments. Candidates should note that English is a mandatory requirement when switching to an academic program at SIMI Swiss and University Partners.

Apply Process:

1. Choose the program that suits your requirements. Note that applicants without a university degree will not be able to participate in the program at Master’s level, and applicants without a Master’s degree will not be able to participate in the program at the Doctoral level.
2. Email your application to support@simiswiss.ch with all the required documents. You could download the application form here.
3. Our admission department will contact you and guide you through further processes if the registration documents need to be supplemented.
4. SIMI Swiss will issue the Letter of Acceptant (LOA). You will proceed to the next steps according to the instructions and pay tuition fee.
5. SIMI Swiss will issue a student confirmation letter, login account to the e-learning system and related documents.
6. You have become an official SIMI Swiss student and enjoy your study journey.

The SIMI Swiss micro-credential program is fully online, allowing you to study anytime, anywhere. You have the option to attend live classes with SIMI Swiss. The final exam will be uploaded to the system and evaluated by the academic panel of SIMI Swiss. Students must submit assignments on time; failure to do so will result in the student being considered to have discontinued the program.