Last modified: 22 Jul 2026 13:42
This course helps students understand the process of change and improvement using a compassionate leadership approach. With a focus on compassion as a strategic element of leadership, we consider key concepts and use case studies to stimulate students critical thinking. Leadership is examined as a catalyst for change and improvement, including consideration of organisational design and responsiveness. Compassion for self and others is explored to understand how this supports empathy-driven diagnosis, co-creative planning and humane implementation of change and improvement.
| Study Type | Postgraduate | Level | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | Second Term | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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We begin the course exploring leadership and the key concept of compassion. Alongside this we consider theory of change and improvement from an ethical leadership perspective, recognising change and improvement can trigger trauma responses, particularly in high-stress sectors. This includes discussion of systems thinking, organisational justice and organisational compassion, supporting students to develop their critical thinking using case studies to enable students to interrogate their own context and reflect on the concepts of a ‘just’ culture to support continuous improvement.
The focus then shifts to the concept of a compassionate leader, where self-compassion and compassion of others through the lenses of authentic and vulnerable leadership, deep listening and ‘holding the space’ for difficult conversations is examined. This helps students to reframe data gathering as an act of listening and planning, that implementation are co-created, before finally considering the barriers to a compassionate approach to change and improvement, drawing on case studies to support the shift in mindset from judgement to learning.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 50 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 40 | Feedback Weeks | 43 | |
| Feedback |
Video presentation- 10 minutes. Written feedback will be provided. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Reflection | Analyse | Discuss the importance of compassion for self and others within a change and improvement process. |
| Reflection | Create | Create and reflect upon a small-scale change initiative to demonstrate a sustainable service improvement for your context. |
| Reflection | Evaluate | Evaluate your development of compassionate leadership approaches within the change and improvement process. |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 50 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 34 | Feedback Weeks | 39 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback will be provided. |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Understand | Articulate an understanding of key concepts, such as compassion, leadership and theories of change and improvement. |
| Reflection | Evaluate | Identify and evaluate systems thinking, organisational justice and organisational compassion in your own context. |
There are no assessments for this course.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 50 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 46 | Feedback Weeks | 49 | |
| Feedback |
Video presentation - 10 minutes. Written feedback will be provided. |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
|
|
||
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 50 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 44 | Feedback Weeks | 47 | |
| Feedback |
Written feedback. |
|||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
|
|
||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Understand | Articulate an understanding of key concepts, such as compassion, leadership and theories of change and improvement. |
| Reflection | Evaluate | Identify and evaluate systems thinking, organisational justice and organisational compassion in your own context. |
| Reflection | Analyse | Discuss the importance of compassion for self and others within a change and improvement process. |
| Reflection | Create | Create and reflect upon a small-scale change initiative to demonstrate a sustainable service improvement for your context. |
| Reflection | Evaluate | Evaluate your development of compassionate leadership approaches within the change and improvement process. |
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