What You'll Learn
In a fast-changing, competitive marketplace, leaders are often asked to take on highly visible roles and drive digital disruption. But challenges can arise when the definition of digital isn’t consistent, and when there’s a nagging sense of doubt about what you should be doing to move forward. To stay ahead, leaders must understand how disruption impacts them and develop new capabilities that can drive their own digital transformation.
Through this program you will:
- Build your understanding of digital disruption, and the market-driven forces that allow disruptors to succeed today
- Learn how to build temporary and sustainable competitive advantage
- Discover how and when to recreate your business model to support your digital approach
- Understand and exploit your unique customer value proposition
- Build a digital strategy that focuses on the customer
- Link your digital approach to your organization’s capabilities
- Earn a Certificate of Participation from the Harvard University Division of Continuing Education
Considering this program?
This program is designed for those with at least 4-5 years of leadership experience that serve as business and technology leaders, analysts, consultants, product owners and stakeholders at all levels across all industries.
It is particularly helpful for those who are charged with managing teams, clients, business units, or products through their organization’s digital transformation in the wake of disruptive changes.
Program Schedule
Friday, November 6: 12—1 pm EDT
- Technical Check-In and Introductions
Friday, November 13: 12—2 pm EDT: Week 1: Understanding Disruption
- Traditional Innovation Ambition
- Understanding How Disruption Happens
- How Disruption Impacts Your Business
- Surviving Disruption by Using an Extendable Core
Friday, November 20: 12—2 pm EDT Week 2: Framing the Digital Challenge
- Understanding the Age of the Consumer
- Why Traditional Companies Fail
- Jobs to be Done
- Job Drivers
Friday, November 27: 12—2 pm EDT Week 3: The New Competitive Advantage
- Mastering What Matters Now
- Utilizing Transient Advantage
- Exploiting the Power of Your Core Business
- Redefining Your Core
Friday, December 4: 12—2 pm EDT Week 4: Knowing When and How to Reinvent Yourself
- Reinventing Your Business Model
- Picking What You Will Pursue
- Determining Your Customer Value Proposition
- Mapping Your Market
Friday, December 11: 12—2 pm EDT Week 5: Building Your Digital Strategy
- How Digital Changes the Customer Experience
- Building a Digital Strategy That Focuses on the Customer
- Redesigning Your Customer Experience
- Defining Your Organization’s Digital Capabilities
Friday, December 18: 12—2 pm EDT Week 6: Leading Digital Change
- Transforming Your Legacy Ecosystem
- Creating an Operational Backbone
- Exploiting Your Organization’s Digital Capabilities
- Creating and Marketing Your Digital Manifesto
Note: All program content will be delivered live and will not be recorded.
Program Schedule
Friday, January 8: 12—1 pm EDT
- Technical Check-In and Introductions
Friday, January 15: 12—2 pm EDT: Week 1: Understanding Disruption
- Traditional Innovation Ambition
- Understanding How Disruption Happens
- How Disruption Impacts Your Business
- Surviving Disruption by Using an Extendable Core
Friday, January 22: 12—2 pm EDT Week 2: Framing the Digital Challenge
- Understanding the Age of the Consumer
- Why Traditional Companies Fail
- Jobs to be Done
- Job Drivers
Friday, January 29: 12—2 pm EDT Week 3: The New Competitive Advantage
- Mastering What Matters Now
- Utilizing Transient Advantage
- Exploiting the Power of Your Core Business
- Redefining Your Core
Friday, February 5: 12—2 pm EDT Week 4: Knowing When and How to Reinvent Yourself
- Reinventing Your Business Model
- Picking What You Will Pursue
- Determining Your Customer Value Proposition
- Mapping Your Market
Friday, February 12: 12—2 pm EDT Week 5: Building Your Digital Strategy
- How Digital Changes the Customer Experience
- Building a Digital Strategy That Focuses on the Customer
- Redesigning Your Customer Experience
- Defining Your Organization’s Digital Capabilities
Friday, February 19: 12—2 pm EDT Week 6: Leading Digital Change
- Transforming Your Legacy Ecosystem
- Creating an Operational Backbone
- Exploiting Your Organization’s Digital Capabilities
- Creating and Marketing Your Digital Manifesto
Note: All program content will be delivered live and will not be recorded.
Instructor
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John Westman
John Westman is a practitioner and teacher of professional selling and sales management at Harvard Extension School and Boston College. John’s students say he “brings a passion and enthusiasm that pairs with an unparalleled depth of knowledge on world class selling” and “it is extremely rare to find a teacher who has so much hands-on experience, passion and eagerness to go over and above to help others grow, learn and succeed."
Instructor
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Jemalyn Griffin
Jemalyn Griffin, M.A., is an integrated marketing communications industry expert and Advertising and Public Relations Professor of Practice for the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL).
Expand Your Network
With participants from more than 100 different countries and a variety of industries, Harvard Professional Development Programs provide you the opportunity to gain fresh perspectives and unique insights as you learn alongside peers with similar roles who face like business challenges.
