ILM Level 3 Award and Certificate in Leadership & Management

What will you experience on the programme?

• Our team are practitioners and coaches with experience of working in senior management positions
• Activities are practical, current and relevant to the 21st century organisation
• The courses are highly interactive and informative
• Learning is flexible and does not involve any time ‘off the job’, apart from monthly tutorials
• Our methodology is constantly cross referenced with new concepts and thinking

What’s in the programme?

The Award consists of two units. The Certificate has a further four units lasting 6 months. All are designed around the units of the qualifications

Award (2 months)

Two units, each lasting one month, covering a range of leadership and management issues. Units covered are:

Understanding leadership styles

Successful completion of this unit will enable you to develop the knowledge and understanding of leadership as required by a practising or potential first line manager.

By the end of this unit, you will be able to:

• understand leadership styles
• understand leadership qualities and review your own leadership qualities and potential

During this module you will:

• explore the differences between leadership and management
• consider the definition of ‘leadership’
• understand how authority is conferred upon a leader so that he or she is able to lead teams
• consider that trust is critical to successful team leading
• research various leadership theories
• explore different leadership styles and cultures
• reflect on the effectiveness of your own leadership
• look more broadly at your own leadership development

You will be expected to:-

• ensure that you feel comfortable with the learning approach for this unit
• take part in a tutorial with your coach
• complete the learning allocated to Weeks 1 to 3
• complete a written assignment to be submitted at the end of Week 4

Solving problems and making decisions

Successful completion of this unit will enable you to solve problems and make decisions as required by a practising or potential first line manager.

By the end of this unit, you will know how to:

• describe a problem, its nature, scope and impact
• gather and interpret information to solve a problem
• evaluate options to make a decision
• plan, monitor and review the implementation and communication of decisions

During this module you will:

• learn how to prepare a summary of the options, providing facts and evidence
• apply a simple decision making technique to evaluate options to arrive at the best solution
• plan the implementation and communication of the decision
• describe which monitor and review techniques could be used to evaluate outcomes

You will be expected to:-

• ensure that you feel comfortable with the learning approach for this unit
• take part in a tutorial with your coach
• complete the learning allocated to Weeks 1 to 3
• complete a written assignment to be submitted at the end of Week 4

You will be guided through this process by your coach and your course timetable.

The purpose of the tutorials are to support your learning and your personal and professional growth and development.

You may also wish to use some of this time to talk through your proposed assignment and any issues and challenges facing you in your professional life.

Certificate (6 months)

A further four units, each lasting a month, making the course six months in total. The units covered:

Understand how to establish an effective team

As a first line manager, or aspiring first line manager, one of your key responsibilities is, or will be, the motivation of your team.

Employees that are motivated to perform to required standards lead to success for organisations. Without motivation at some level, nothing really gets started or delivered. This is an important insight that can significantly improve your performance as a manager and that of your team.

Successful completion of this unit will enable you to develop an introductory knowledge and understanding of team building as required by a practising or potential first line manager.

By the end of this unit, you will be able to:

• understand how to develop and maintain effective working relationships
• understand how to build a team

During this module you will:

• understand the behaviours which could develop and maintain trust at work
• explore the role of communication in developing effective team working
• understand the differences between a group and a team
• learn about the stages of an established model of group formation
• understand how a manager could benefit from knowing team members’ preferred roles as defined in an established team role model

You will be expected to:-

• ensure that you feel comfortable with the learning approach for this unit
• take part in a tutorial with your coach
• complete the learning allocated to Weeks 1 to 3
• complete a written assignment to be submitted at the end of Week 4 

Understand how to motivate to improve performance

Motivation can be variable and as a manager you cannot rely on a motivated individual remaining motivated.

Equally when people are motivated, that motivation needs to be directed to making sure that organisational objectives are being attained. Performance therefore needs to be monitored.

Successful completion will enable you to develop your knowledge and understanding of motivation theory and how it can be applied in the workplace to improve performance as required by a practising or potential first line manager.

By the end of this unit, you will be able to:

• understand the factors that influence motivation levels in the workplace
• understand how a theory of motivation can be used to improve performance levels

During this module you will:

• explore the concept of ‘motivation’
• understand the factors that may affect motivation levels in the workplace
• explore how individual differences affect levels of motivation in the workplace
• learn about the potential impact on organisational performance if employee motivation levels are low
• explore a recognised theory of motivation
• understand how knowledge of a theory of motivation can be used to improve performance in the workplace
• learn how to use employee engagement to increase motivation levels

You will be expected to:-

• ensure that you feel comfortable with the learning approach for this unit
• take part in a tutorial with your coach
• complete the learning allocated to Weeks 1 to 3
• complete a written assignment to be submitted at the end of Week 4

Planning and allocating work

Developing techniques to plan for better use of time, to prioritise well and allocate work to the right people with the right skills are fundamental to business and organisational success.

Indeed, effective management of individual and collective workloads is a sure way to improving productivity. As a first-line manager, or aspiring first-line manager, it is essential that you understand how to plan effectively.

Planning and allocating work is an important aspect of a manager’s role. Managers have responsibilities to address issues relating directly to performance such as economy, efficiency and effectiveness in the workplace.

Under-performance along with sub-optimal use of resources can cost organisations a great deal of money. Proactive action to avoid its consequences will reap multiple dividends in the workplace.

Successful completion will enable you to develop the knowledge and understanding of how to plan and allocate work as required by a practising or potential first line manager.

By the end of this unit, you will be able to:

• know how to plan work in the workplace
• know how to allocate work to team members
• understand how to improve the performance of a team in delivering to plan

During this module you will:

• identify organisational targets relevant to the team
• set SMART objectives for the team to achieve the targets
• use a technique to plan to achieve the objectives
• identify resources required to complete a planned activity
• identify resources required to complete a planned activity
• learn techniques to explain how to allocate work to team members
• learn how to assess and support team performance in achieving objectives
• identify a possible cause of variance from a planned activity
• learn how to identify actions to overcome causes of variance
• learn about techniques and tips on how to involve team members in identifying ways to improve performance to meet objectives

You will be expected to:-

• ensure that you feel comfortable with the learning approach for this unit
• take part in a tutorial with your coach
• complete the learning allocated to Weeks 1 to 3
• complete a written assignment to be submitted at the end of Week 4

Management communication

The management role involves a requirement to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing. Managers that communicate well, tend do well in their careers!

As a first line manager it is essential that you develop the understanding and ability to communicate effectively.

It is important that you understand that effective communication – when the message is received as the sender intended – can only be achieved through thinking critically about what information we wish to transmit to another person or other people.

Preparation, as in many other things that we do as team leaders, is crucial. Again, these are important insights that can significantly improve your performance as a manager.

Successful completion will enable you to develop the understanding and ability to communicate effectively, as required by a practising or potential middle manager.

By the end of this unit, you will be able to:

• understand the importance of effective communication in management
• be able to develop effective communication skills as a reflective manager

During this module you will:

• learn about the relevance of the communication cycle for effective communication in management
• learn how to explain, with examples, the importance of selecting an appropriate tone, language, and level of formality in management communications
• assess the effectiveness of a range of verbal and written communication methods within your area of the organisation
• develop appropriate criteria to evaluate own ability to communicate effectively
• collect and analyse feedback on own verbal and written communication skills
• evaluate your own communication skills as a manager, identifying strengths and areas for improvement

You will be expected to:-

• ensure that you feel comfortable with the learning approach for this unit
• take part in a tutorial with your coach
• complete the learning allocated to Weeks 1 to 3
• complete a written assignment to be submitted at the end of Week 4

Unit Details

To achieve the L3 Award, the learner must complete a minimum of 2 units, consisting of a minimum of 6 credits. When you have achieved 6-9 credits, you will be asked if you wish to claim your Award, or if you wish to continue studying further units to progress onto the Level 3 Certificate.

To achieve the L3 Certificate you need to complete a minimum of 13 credits. After you have achieved 13-16 credits, you will then be asked if you wish to claim your Certificate.

Programme Duration and Costs

The Level 3 Award in Leadership & Management can normally be completed within 2 months, although timescales can be adjusted to suit individual needs. Course fees are £720 (£600 exc.VAT).

The Level 3 Certificate in Leadership & Management can normally be completed within 6 months, again timescales can be adjusted to suit individual needs. Course fees are £1,650 (£1,375 exc.VAT).

What’s next?

The Level 3 Award and Certificate are prestigious qualifications in their own right. They can provide students with up to 13 credits at Level 3, which equates to A Level study.

They can be used as a steppingstone into an ILM Level 5 qualification, and through this to advanced entry to undergraduate degrees at a number of UK universities.

Successful completion of these qualifications also provides eligibility for membership of the Institute of Leadership & Management.

Optional learning journey

ILM L3 L&M with emphasis on early Project Management

This programme is an accredited ILM programme worth 13 credits and leading to an ILM Leadership and Management Certificate, as well as a bespoke ALM Project Management certificate.

The programme comprises 5 taught units as set out below:

• Problem Solving & Decision Making
• Managing Projects
• Conflict Management, Negotiation and Communication
• Understanding How To Develop An Effective Tea,
• Customer Service

All five units are taught and delivered very much through the lens of the emerging project manager.

In addition to the units above, learners on this programme will be required to deliver a work-based project that is of real benefit to the organisation, and which will allow the learner to apply their new learning in a real environment.

At the end of the programme, the learner will be required to provide a presentation to leaders within their organisation, exploring the skills and knowledge they have developed and applied whilst on the programme and whilst implementing their work-based project.

These two additional tasks generate excellent evidence for two additional ILM leadership and management units, meaning that the ILM certificate can be awarded in a way that is labour saving for both the learner and the organisation.

This programme is ideally suited to an employee or early career line manager/team leader who is new to the world of project management and who is keen to develop some of the basic principles and tools of effective project management.

Learners who enjoy and excel on this programme may then choose to go on to study on the ILM Level Project Management programme that will take their initial learning into much greater depth, building on the solid foundation that has been achieved through the successful completion of the Level 3 programme.