Social Innovation and Leading Change
Develop your own roadmap for creating real, lasting social change.
Dates TBA | online | 4 TEUs | $6,000
Program meets online Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays from noon to 3:15 p.m. EST.
As our social and business environments converge, it’s become clear that business leaders must focus their efforts on realizing social change. To be effective, however, requires more than just a good idea or the willingness to contribute – it requires a particular skill set. In this four-week online course, leading faculty and experts will work with participants on their own concrete ideas – giving them the tools to take it from concept through elevator pitch and plan, all the way to acquiring the necessary resources and bringing it to market.
While this course will address the core innovation process needed to be successful – highlighting Carnegie Mellon’s proven tools and best practices – it is also applicable to those seeking change within their existing organizations, by leveraging the research of Carnegie Mellon’s Corporate Startup Lab. And while participants may wish to develop ideas related to the current conversations, these skills are equally applicable to all pressing and relevant social issues. With increased understanding of effective skills and established processes, you’ll leave this course with greater understanding and the ability to accomplish real and lasting change.
Key Takeaways
- Master principles, processes, and tools required for social innovation as both standalone efforts and within larger organizations.
- Learn to critically evaluate key ideas early in the project development cycle.
- Hone your pitch to successfully acquire necessary resources.
- Understand how to organize and formulate an effective roadmap, bringing concepts to fruition.
Who should attend?
This program is designed for managers to directors tasked with oversight, management, and implementation of business initiatives. The program is also relevant for professionals across functions who want to rise to the challenges of a rapidly changing social and economic business environment.
Program Topics
Module 1 - First Principles
Content
- Lean innovation thinking
- Thinking big/founder’s vision
- Timing - why now?
- Elevator pitch
- Intro to storytelling: digital applications
- Social justice movements
Takeaways
Deliverables
- Elevator pitch
- Group work
Discussion Objective
- Clarify vision and push to think bigger
Module 2 - Stakeholder Discovery and Other Key Hypotheses
Content
- Customer discovery
- Other key innovation assumptions/hypothesis
- Storytelling part two
Takeaways
Deliverables
- CPS statement
- Interviews
- Updated CPS statement
Discussion Objective
- What did they really validate from interviews?
Module 3 - Thinking Through Business Model
Content
- Business model canvas
- Share nonprofit canvas to synch on vocab
- Corporate startup canvas
Takeaways
Deliverables
- Canvas(es) filled out with what assumptions are validated, need validated next and are still hypothesis
Discussion Objective
- Discuss canvas deliverable
Module 4 - Roadmap and Pitch
Content
- Examples of MAPs
- How to fit MAPs into plan
- Developing financial milestones and projections
- Pitching innovation to C-suite canvas
- Investment pitches
- Storytelling, part three
- Social justice, part two
Takeways
Deliverables
- Roadmap
- Investment pitch
Discussion Objective
- Next steps and critique pitch
Earn the Carnegie Mellon Certificate in Executive Leadership
Participate in three executive education open enrollment programs in five years to earn Carnegie Mellon’s highest certificate designation for executive education.