Creative Leadership

Program Overview

The Creative Leadership program teaches leadership that enables creativity, learning and collaboration. A crucial approach in times of turbulence – and when in need of innovation. The unique learning approach focuses on building a mindset, a set of personal skills and a new understanding of the leadership task.

The creative leadership mindset is defined by a belief that challenges can be turned into opportunities and that paths to outcomes must be co-created with the team. The most important personal skills of the creative leader are authenticity, the ability to lead a space, listening, questioning, bringing people on board, seizing the moment for breakthroughs and forming creative relationships within the team.

The format of the learning space is highly practical, full of action, experiments and reflection. The theoretical part of the program is focusing on frameworks that support the development of a personal day-to-day practice. As a result, learning outcomes are highly transferable because the program is designed to build hands-on experience already in the classroom.

Content

The content of the Creative Leadership program is structured in three inspiring modules:

Module 1 has the title “It starts with you”. The module introduces the general mindset and set of skills of the creative leader. And it focuses on giving you an understanding of how you lead yourself and others in an open, flexible, and learning based approach to co-creation.

Module 2 has the title “From me to we”. The module focuses on transforming a group of individuals into a team with qualities like trust, commitment, alignment on direction and the ability to learn and to adapt. The module also introduces frameworks for building strong cultures based on an individual and collective growth mindset.

Module 3 has the title “Getting to action”. The module focuses on leading work processes through the uncertainties of innovation and creating breakthroughs characterized by surprising solutions carried forward by a shared ownership in the team.

All the modules are built around practical explorations of creative challenges that the participants identify in their businesses. This means that the program produces learning outcomes on many levels: personal, professional, and organizational.

Is This For Me?

Kaospilot Creative Leadership is for everyone who wants to increase the creative potential of their teams and organisations. The participants in this program represent a wide range of industries and positions that share a mutual desire to learn and practice in a strong community of creative leaders.

This course is for you, if you:

• Want to learn how to create teams with motivated and self-directed people who work towards shared goals.
• Want to learn how to increase the innovation capacity in your team or organisation.
• Are looking for new ways to navigate complexity and unpredictability.
• Want to learn how to nurture a strong culture for learning and creativity in a team or organisation.

Learning Outcomes

MODULE 1 – It starts with you:

• Developing the mindset of a creative leader
• Leading a space for creative collaboration
• Listening and asking questions that open up for exploration

MODULE 2 – From me to we:

• Bringing people on board
• Creating trust, commitment and alignment in the team
• Building a culture of creativity and learning

MODULE 3 – Getting to action:

• Leading creative processes from uncertainty to breakthrough
• Having the courage to challenge, inspire and disrupt a team to go beyond obvious outcomes
• Building shared ownership and commitment to new solution

Testimonials

“Taking part in this course has made me face the world I work in and inhabit – with all its impossibilities and constraints – as a creative challenge full of potential. I value how the course has opened my eyes to see the people right next to me, our shared dreams and ideas. But also to see the given circumstances and the fact that ‘the clock is ticking’ as vital resources needed to make the everyday changes that are required from me and my team. In this way, Creative Leadership has made my work more meaningful and my life in general more fun and hopeful.”

Søren Jørgensen, Teamlead Futures Lab, ITK, City of Aarhus, Denmark

To become a creative leader à la Kaospilot can be a hurtful journey at times. The classes derailed many of the certainties I had about myself as a leader and exposed my weaknesses while practicing the craft of leading space instead of particles. I am very grateful to Paul and David for always creating a safe space and the outstanding examples by which they led all our sessions. I came home not only with a black belt but with a calmness about my own cluelessness and a new, clear voice that makes me a better leader in uncertain times. Now I keep on practicing with my fellow classmates who became a group of friends – what a great gift!

Astrid Csuraji, CEO, tactile.news GMBH, Lüneburg, Germany

The Creative Leadership journey was an amazing and transformative learning experience. It balances interesting concepts, theories and energizing hands-on exercises that allow us to actually be immersed and absorb everything that is shared with us. Also, David’s and Paul’s generosity when leading the course makes the whole journey unique and memorable. Many of the ideas I’ve learned still resonate with me and always help me to unframe situations and find other perspectives.

Tatiana Tsukamoto – Creative Director at Creative Works, Google Brazil

Approach

Kaospilot is a design school in Denmark known for its innovative approach to learning focusing on personal leadership, creativity and collaboration. The school has a unique history of growing out of a grass root movement in a moment of significant societal change. And the training builds on that heritage by practising an informal kind of leadership that supports a culture of experimentation and co-creation. The trainers have a “practise-what-you-preach” attitude, which allows participants to become part of an immersive learning experience where new mindset and skills are not only taught but lived.

Frequently asked questions

What is creative leadership?

Creative leadership is a practical exploration into how to lead teams in a way that fosters a culture for collaboration, learning, and creativity.

How do I increase the creative potential of my team?

If you want to learn how to empower your team or organization to be more curious, courageous, and learningful, you may benefit from participating in the KAOSPILOT Creative Leadership course.

What characterize the leader of the future?

The leader of the future is a leader who can inspire teams to co-create, learn along the way, and grow with the challenge.