Executive education for new managers

By: Shelby Campbell, Edited by: Valerie Black

Published: April 18, 2025

Rising through the ranks in your industry is an exciting step forward in your career. However, many people promoted to management positions have more experience completing field-specific tasks than making strategic leadership decisions. Executive education programs can provide these management skills to help you become a more impactful leader.

Explore edX executive education programs for new managers in this guide.

Why should you consider executive education if you're a new manager?

As a new manager, you likely have highly specialized industry skills, but your career may not have yet provided opportunities to learn how to lead a team to success. Executive education courses can provide these necessary skills to help you qualify for leadership positions or help you thrive as you step into your new role.

Executive education programs are four- to eight-week courses that focus on providing common executive skills throughout industries. In an executive education course, you can explore real-world case studies that demonstrate the various managerial styles that can lead you to success.

These expert-led programs allow new managers to gain experience and explore data-backed leadership techniques. You may also get the opportunity to network with your cohort as you build your managerial skills.

What are some hard and soft skills new managers should learn?

Your technical industry skills are important, but managers need additional soft and hard skills to lead a team successfully. You may need to develop the following skills through executive education programs when preparing for a new management role:

What are some new manager training options on edX?

Many executive education program options are offered on edX for new managers to explore. With courses that discuss management solutions like change management, negotiation strategy, employee development and engagement, and strategic internal communications, you can gain the necessary skills to thrive as a leader.

Explore our library of management executive education programs to decide which will fill the gaps in your managerial skill set. These edX executive education programs for managers may include:

• Exercising Leadership: Foundational Principles: Managers create success by building trust and authority among employees. Learn the best ways to create excellent relationships while tackling problems and achieving goals with this Harvard executive education program.
• Managing People and Teams: This certificate from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) can help you better understand how to keep your teams on-task to improve performance and accomplish organizational goals.
• Leveraging Your Leadership Self: Personal Identity and Behavioral Empathy: Embracing your identity can help you build deeper relationships with your teammates. This course from the University of Toronto teaches you to use empathy to foster a positive, impactful workplace.
• Business Strategy from Wharton: Competitive Advantage: Managers are often responsible for coordinating with other team leaders to create business strategies that accomplish short- and long-term goals and position you for success among competitors. Learn how to strategize to create a competitive advantage with this Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania course.
• Data Analytics for Business: Analyzing data can take the guesswork out of business decision-making and goalsetting. This Georgia Tech course explores how data can tell a story — and how you can use that information to grow your business.
• Introduction to Negotiation Strategy: Negotiation is a significant aspect of managing a team. This UC Davis Graduate School of Management course explores negotiation tactics, common negotiating mistakes, and how and when to compromise for a win-win outcome.
• Intercultural Communications in the Workplace: Diversity in the workplace can offer new perspectives on your day-to-day tasks and overarching goals. Explore how to communicate across cultures and encourage new outlooks with this LSE executive education course.
• Strategic Change Management: Change management techniques can drive economic growth in your organization. This Northwestern University course explores change management techniques and how they can benefit your teams during organizational transitions.
• Empathy and Emotional Intelligence at Work: This executive education course from UC Berkeley explores how to support your teams through empathy and emotional intelligence. It also teaches you how to help your teams collaborate and resolve conflicts through active listening and compassion.
• People analytics and reporting: Human resources representatives and managers can quantify their employees' productivity and determine the best ways to improve it. In this Stellenbosch University course, learn to use statistics to determine how you can further motivate employees and improve their performance.
• Human Resources: Acquiring and Managing Talent in the 21st Century: Hiring the right people for your needs is one of the most important aspects of being a manager. This UC Riverside program can help you gain human resources skills to build highly competent teams and retain them as they develop their talents.
• Persuasion and Presence for Program and Project Managers: When you're tasked with managing a team as they complete a project, you can use persuasion techniques to keep them motivated about each step in the process. This University of Maryland course helps new managers project short- and long-term success.
• Creating and Sustaining an Innovation Culture: Creating a culture of innovation can continuously spur organizational growth and development for increased profit and influence. Discover ways to help your employees cultivate innovation, from entry-level workers to directors, with this University of Queensland executive education program.

Find the right executive education programs for you