Inside the Accelerator MBA Leadership module
The Leadership Accelerator module on our blended, part-time Accelerator MBA delivered at The Shard, London offers students a practical, immersive experience in navigating real-world leadership challenges. This blog reflects on key insights and personal growth gained through the module, highlighting its value for aspiring leaders.
Ross Flew
Before joining the Accelerator MBA at Warwick Business School (WBS), I often saw leadership as something to be “mastered” and that all great leaders shared similar understanding and traits. The Leadership Accelerator module challenged that idea entirely and showed me that leadership is far more diverse, contextual, and situational than I had previously understood.
One goal, many styles
The CIP (Charismatic, Ideological, Pragmatic) framework was a breakthrough moment for me. It theorises that there are multiple valid pathways to outstanding leadership, shaped by a combination of individual values, formative life events, and contextual demands.
Overlaying that with the BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Nonlinear, Incomprehensible) framework, where modern leaders must navigate brittle systems, anxious teams, non-linear outcomes, and incomprehensible complexity, I saw just how much leadership today demands adaptability, not uniformity.
From reflection to realisation
A big part of the module was self-awareness. Through feedback exercises, group work, and journaling, I started to understand both my strengths and developmental edges. The practice-based approach of the module gave me opportunities to experiment with these behaviours.
No leader without followers
One of the most overlooked concepts we explored was that leadership cannot exist without followership. That might sound obvious, but it reframed my thinking.
It also made me reflect on how we judge leadership. The module challenged the idea that leadership is judged in real time. In reality, leadership is often evaluated retrospectively, based on outcomes. This creates a paradox where we associate great leadership with success, but that success can be influenced by external factors. We need to be careful not to confuse charisma or decisiveness with effectiveness.
Leading in a complex world
As a result of this module, I’ve moved away from chasing an archetype of leadership and toward cultivating the style that’s authentic, situationally aware, and grounded in outcomes. I’ve become more comfortable embracing adaptive leadership and guiding through uncertainty, inviting diverse perspectives, and seeing experimentation as a strength, not a weakness.
Final Thought
This module reinforced that there is no universal formula for great leadership. Different people bring different strengths to different moments, and that’s exactly how it should be. The job isn’t to become someone else’s version of a leader. It’s to grow into a version of leadership that works for you, your values, and your context, while staying flexible enough to evolve as those things change.
Simon Souaid
The most important aspect of the Leadership Accelerator module for me was its practice-based nature, with case study, reflective activity, and group work being part of the learning process. Bringing theory together with practice assisted in the comprehension of leadership issues, particularly in change leadership.
Gaining personal awareness and developing self-leadership proved to be especially valuable, as it encouraged a thoughtful examination of one's leadership style and identified areas for growth.
The module gave me the opportunity to explore a wide range of leadership models such as Kotter's 8-Step Model, McKinsey's 7-S Framework, BANI and Force Field Analysis, each offering a structured approach to assessing, planning, and implementing leadership initiatives in complex environments.
Applying learnings to work
One of my most significant learnings on the module was adaptive leadership, especially how to handle uncertainty and complexity. This will be particularly useful in working with organisational change, where stakeholder management and transformational leadership must be resilient and adaptive.
My second key learning was leadership without formal authority, leveraging factors such as expertise, social intelligence, and connectedness to influence decision-making in complex environments. I’ve already found myself using this in the leadership of cross-functional teams and in securing buy-in from senior leadership.
Supporting my professional and personal growth
On a personal level, the module encouraged deeper self-reflection through journal-based learning exercises, leading to more intentional leadership behaviours, especially in complex and ambiguous situations.
Professionally, the module equipped me with change leadership competencies, particularly in digital transformation and sustainability transitions in business.
A global perspective
The varied professional backgrounds and industries represented in the cohort, ranging from healthcare and finance to construction and technology, greatly enriched the learning experience. This diversity fostered critical reflection on the necessity of adapting leadership approaches to fit different environments, highlighting the significance of context-driven leadership strategies.
Engaging in cross-cultural discussions about various leadership styles, such as collaborative, adaptive, and responsible leadership, along with expectations of followership, offered a global perspective on how leadership dynamics can change depending on organisational and cultural contexts.
Engaging learning experience
The Leadership Accelerator module offered a highly interactive and engaging learning experience, that effectively combined academic research with real-world leadership challenges. Indeed, the structured assessments, both individual and group-based, ensured a deep understanding of leadership concepts, reinforcing the practical application of different.
The interactive teaching style, along with guest speakers and case-study sessions, enriched our discussions by providing valuable industry insights. The module’s structure and content was greatly influenced by the professor’s expertise, and they also actively incorporated cohort feedback, showing adaptive leadership principles to ensure the module remained dynamic, responsive and impactful.
The module’s emphasis on self-awareness, strategic leadership, as well as change management has already begun to influenc my leadership approach, arming me with practical tools and strategic insights to navigate leadership challenges effectively with confidence.