Chart a Career Course with Eight Certificate Programs

Duke Learning & Organization Development offers new Certificates of Excellence in self-leadership, communication

L&OD Graphic

Make 2023 the year your professional development hits a new gear by exploring the updated Certificate of Excellence programs offered by Duke Learning & Organization Development.

These eight certificate programs combine selected offerings from L&OD’s rich list of 97 professional and technical development courses to help employees grow in specific areas.

“We have a whole smorgasbord of classes and people say ‘But what do I take first? What do I take second?’” said Joy Birmingham, associate director for Learning & Organization Development (L&OD). “This is why we have these certificate programs. There are themes to some of these, so if you put them together, the lessons will be even more magnified.”

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For 2023, existing self-paced programs such as Supervisory Excellence, Training Excellence, People Leadership Excellence and Technology Development feature courses that have been updated to address the needs of the changing workplace due to the pandemic.

Employees currently working toward a certificate using the previous requirements have until June 30, 2023, to complete course work to earn a certificate.

After that, certificates will be awarded based on a new list of applicable courses.

Meanwhile, two new Certificate of Excellence programs – Communication Excellence and Self-Leadership Excellence – are being offered for the first time.

The Communication Excellence certificate pathway is designed to strengthen an employees’ ability to work effectively with a team.

Duke Alumni Engagement & Development's Jo Supernaw.

Required courses for that certificate include conflict resolution and tactful communication, which provide foundational information. The Personality & Effective Communication course, give participants a chance to sharpen their individual approach to communicating.

The Self-Leadership Excellence certificate was created for employees who want to build leadership skills but don’t have roles with managerial duties.

Covering topics such as critical thinking, resilience, time management and situational self-leadership, the certificate will help participants learn how to get the most out of the abilities they bring to their role.

Jo Supernaw, director of Academic Engagement with Lifelong Learning for Duke Alumni Engagement & Development, has completed the Training Excellence certificate and is working on the certificate for People Leadership Excellence.

“You can take classes independently and not try to get a certificate, but thinking about this through the lens of the certificate gives everything more purpose,” she said. “You have a better idea for how to utilize the knowledge once you leave the class space.”

Duke Department of Medicine's Beth Lassiter.

L&OD is continuing to offer the Certified Executive Administrative Professional (CEAP) program, part of the Star Achievement Series by Office Dynamics, and the Human Resources Strategic Business Partner Certificate. The Human Resources cohort-based program is designed for professionals who want to gain a better understanding of how their role can fit within the larger organization.

Director of Human Resources for the Department of Medicine Beth Lassiter, who recently completed the HR Strategic Partnership Certificate, said that, among the things the program showed her, was how better to use data and collaborate with recruiters to identify skills gaps and create initiatives which can help her department thrive.

“This program allows me to connect the dots and think about being more of a strategic HR professional,” Lassiter said. “The world is changing fast, so being able to stay on top of things and be innovative and creative is so necessary.”

Review all Certificate of Excellence options here.

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