Collaborative Leadership Certificate

Lead and influence across projects and teams

Leading projects across teams is hard, even harder if you don’t directly manage the teams. How do you break through silos and change the way people work together? How do you unite others around a common goal? How do you lead day-in and day-out to tackle complex strategic work or bring a new idea to life?

In this program, learn to become a collaborative leader—one who’s confident, empathetic, and effective at leading diverse teams. You’ll use the principles of human-centered design to make your leadership actionable and tangible when guiding projects and initiatives.

This program is designed to help you become a more influential leader within your company or organization, no matter where you sit.

Certificate Program Outcomes
  • Identify and articulate a common goal that brings diverse stakeholders and team members together.
  • Lead cross-functional teams through moments of ambiguity, creative thinking, and tactical execution.
  • Break through silos and create new ways of working that inspire everyone to be at their best.
  • Present project work in ways that compel stakeholders in your organization to see things differently and buy-in.
  • Learn and practice leadership skills that take you through the life of a project—from early ideation to execution to presentation—and create sustainable conditions for future work.
Skills You’ll Gain
Leadership Collaboration Influencing
Format 4 Online Courses
Duration 6-9 Months
Time 4 Hours/Week
Download Syllabus Download Syllabus
Download Syllabus

Certificate Program Overview

We recommend taking courses in the following order, Cultivating Creative Collaboration, Power of Purpose, Designing for Change, and Impactful Presentations

  1. 1 Cultivating Creative Collaboration

    Tap into diverse perspectives to foster creative thinking
    Cohort Course 5 Weeks
    $799
    $799

  2. 2 Power of Purpose

    Learn to work and lead with purpose
    Self-Paced Course start anytime
    $199
    $199

  3. 3 Designing for Change

    Start small, start with people, start now
    Cohort Course 5 Weeks
    $799
    $799

  4. 4 Impactful Presentations

    Craft human-centered presentations that connect, resonate, and inspire
    Cohort Course 5 Weeks
    $799
    $799

  1. 5 Receive and Share Your Certificate

    After completing the courses, you’ll receive your Collaborative Leadership certificate of completion via email as a downloadable PDF within 1-2 weeks of completing the final required course. Certificates are configured for uploading and sharing on LinkedIn.

    Collaborative Leadership Certificate from IDEO U

Commonly Asked Questions

  • Course Order
    To get a holistic sense of how the courses fit together, we recommend that you take them in the order they’re listed above (Cultivating Creative Collaboration, Power of Purpose, Designing for Change, and Impactful Presentations). That said, if you’ve taken one or more of these courses already or if you’re not able to take them in this order—note that each one is a standalone, discrete experience with its own set of work and assignments. And no matter what order you take the courses in, each will complement and connect with the others.
  • I’M CONSIDERING THE IDEO U “FOUNDATIONS IN CREATIVE LEADERSHIP” CERTIFICATE. WHAT SHOULD I KNOW ABOUT THE DIFFERENCES?
    Foundations in Creative Leadership helps you understand and begin to develop essential leadership styles and capabilities to lead creative work. Collaborative Leadership gives you actionable, tangible ways to lead cross-functional projects, even if you don’t have formal authority with the teams involved. This certificate program is great for people who lead projects across teams or team leaders who must work with others in their organization.
  • Completion Time
    The program typically takes between 6-9 months to complete if courses are taken consecutively. However, there is no deadline for certificate completion.
  • Certificate Requirements
    If you’ve completed any of these courses on its own or as a part of another certificate program, it will count toward your certificate of completion.
Learn more about program details in our FAQs

Certificate Program Requirements

Certificate Program Requirements

Frequently Asked Questions

How do IDEO U certificate programs work?

We offer three types of courses: self-paced courses, cohort courses, and certificate programs. Certificate programs consist of multiple courses and typically take 3-6 months to complete. They are in-depth learning experiences designed to grow your skills and broaden your professional impact. Once you complete all required courses, you will be awarded a certificate of completion.

Does my time zone matter?

All of our certificate programs are fully online and flexible, so you can take them from any time zone, anywhere in the world. For cohort courses, the course teaching team will host scheduled virtual community conversations, which are optional. Times will be announced during the first week of the course and are set to accommodate as many time zones as possible.

Can I take one course now and others later and still receive the full certificate?

If you take all required courses in a certificate, you will receive the certificate. There is no deadline for the completion of the courses, and you do not have to purchase all required courses at the same time to be eligible for a certificate.

Can I take multiple courses at the same time?

While you can enroll in multiple courses at the same time, we strongly advise that you do so only if you are able to commit to a minimum of 5 hours per week for each course (for example, 10 hours per week for 2 courses) to ensure the most valuable learning experience. If that does not feel feasible, we recommend taking the courses separately and reviewing upcoming course dates on our course calendar.

What order of courses should I follow?

While courses can be taken in any order, we recommend you take them in the order that they are listed above in the Certificate Program Overview.

Do you offer discounts?

We offer a discount when you enroll in multiple courses at the same time through some of our certificate programs, including Foundations in Design Thinking, Business Innovation, Human-Centered Strategy, and Communicating for Impact. 

You can also enter your email address at the bottom of this page in order to receive updates on future offers or possible discounts. 

Can I take the course with my team?

Absolutely! We have had many teams go through our courses together. For those taking our courses as a team, we provide a number of additional benefits:

1. A Team Learning Guide, developed to provide your team with resources to facilitate offline discussions that complement the in-course experience.

2. A Manage Learners function, which provides visibility into your team's progress within the course.

3. The ability to create a private Learning Circle, which is a closed space for discussion on the learning platform specifically for your team.

For more information, visit our Team Learning page.

How do I purchase a certificate?

You can purchase a certificate by enrolling in all the courses associated with that certificate. Required courses are listed in the Certificate Program Overview section above. When you click enroll in each cohort course, you will proceed to our checkout page, where you can select your desired cohort date for each course.

Payment options include credit card, PayPal, or Shop Pay. For US customers, we also offer installment plans at checkout if you use the Shop Pay method of payment.We typically are not able to accommodate bank transfer or invoicing. However, if your order includes 10 seats or more, please contact hello@ideou.com and our team will be happy to review your request.

Loved by Learners Across the Globe

Jani Tuominen
Jani Director, Data & Analytics Fiskars Group
Tammy Gretz
Tammy Agile Coach Insight
Nazmina Mohammed
Nazmina Senior Talent Development Solutions Consultant Financial Services Company
Judie Le
Judie Product Designer Facebook
Collaborative Leadership Certificate
Certificate Program

“Staying on top of the leadership game has always required several core capabilities—ranging from the ability to influence and inspire others, break through silos, and knowing how to act decisively. Thank you IDEO U for the inspiring 6-month ride towards collaborative leadership!”

Jani Madison, WI
Collaborative Leadership Certificate
Certificate Program

"The content, the platform, and the coaches and teaching leads are all so excellent. They truly allow room for discovery, experimentation, and finding your own voice and style.”

Tammy Columbus, OH
Collaborative Leadership Certificate
Certificate Program

“I'm proud of my first certification through IDEO U! An honor to learn from a world-class design company. I gained so much from each course and had the opportunity to collaborate with learners across the globe.”

Nazmina Seattle, WA
Collaborative Leadership Certificate
Certificate Program

“This is my 6th course, and I love it. I joke that this has been my COVID college. The skills and material are very practical, and I've been able to combine assignments with actual work.”

Judie Austin, TX

The IDEO U Learning Experience

HOW OUR COURSES WORK

See

Our courses engage you through stories, expertise, and humor. Each lesson has a series of 3-5 minute videos that explain the why, what, and how of a specific topic. Plus we bring everything to life through case studies from around the globe.

Reflect

Our learning experiences have a variety of reflective activities to help you make the connections to your specific work challenges. Reflection is one of the most effective ways to deepen your professional impact.

See
Try
Reflect
Share

Try

In order to develop new skills, you need to try them out through repeated practice and exposure to new contexts. Our courses provide opportunities to try out new behaviors online and through real-world projects.

Share

Knowledge is constructed through interaction with others—which is the foundation of our cohort experience. It’s through sharing and discussing with qualified teaching leads and a global peer network that you build greater understanding.

See

Our courses engage you through stories, expertise, and humor. Each lesson has a series of 3-5 minute videos that explain the why, what, and how of a specific topic. Plus we bring everything to life through case studies from around the globe.

Try

In order to develop new skills, you need to try them out through repeated practice and exposure to new contexts. Our courses provide opportunities to try out new behaviors online and through real-world projects.

Reflect

Our learning experiences have a variety of reflective activities to help you make the connections to your specific work challenges. Reflection is one of the most effective ways to deepen your professional impact.

Share

Knowledge is constructed through interaction with others—which is the foundation of our cohort experience. It’s through sharing and discussing with qualified teaching leads and a global peer network that you build greater understanding.

Learn More