Global Expert Teaching Leadership for Technical Managers

If you are going to study leadership, study with a leader.

Twice each year since 2011, celebrated global management/leadership consultant, educator, and executive coach Jim Bagnola, has taught a two-week course, “Leadership for Technical Managers,” to a large group of our computer science (“ComPro”) graduate students.

This course offers the latest science-based approaches for succeeding as a manager and as a human being. In the course students study time-tested feedback tools, people management tools, coaching tools, leadership laws, relationship building tools, and practice the Transcendental Meditation® technique, which is the most scientifically validated personal technology for unfolding full mental and physical potential.

Computer Science Dean Keith Levi adds, “The students greatly enjoy this course. We are really fortunate to have Jim take time out from his busy schedule for us. He teaches this same material to major corporations and governmental organizations all over the world.”

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For over 32 years, Jim Bagnola has enjoyed his international teaching and consulting activities. He is an expert in the field of leadership and body-mind management, focusing on the influence of thinking patterns on health, happiness, success, and the capacity to lead. (His focus is on Becoming a Professional Human Being, and he wrote a best-selling book on this topic.)

Jim’s clients include: Shell Oil Company, The Kroger Company, U.S. Secret Service, Department of the Air Force, Marriott Hotels, Siemens, Motorola, Scotiabank, P.T. ISPAT (Indonesia), Hella (Romania), Ecolab, Castle & Cooke (Hawaii), Continental Automotive and Hilton Hotels. Click here for details.

Jim is a visiting professor at the University of Bucharest (Romania), Maharishi University of Management (USA), Pontificia Universidad Javierana (Colombia), Kent State University and the Western Management Development Center.

Why teach at MUM?

When asked why he loves teaching here, Jim replies, “I have worked in 101 countries because I love diverse cultures. MUM ComPro courses are United Nations meetings. This course at MUM is with as diverse a group as you can get (199 students in the latest class). The learning is global. Exciting exchanges between 35+ cultures in one class. Students want to learn.”

Why is this course so popular?

Essentially every MSCS student takes this course because it is applicable to their personal lives as well as their professional careers. They are preparing to become technical team members and eventually managers, and they are getting knowledge and tools to assist them. It is interactive. They are contributing to the course a large percentage of the time.

It is fun. Students have team building exercises and they operate in small teams a lot during the course. They contribute and are applauded for their contribution. They get a chance to lead in several different ways. Guest speakers are relevant, and videos are inspiring. Students learn from each other. Students are personally guided by knowledgeable and experienced teaching assistants (TAs) per every 20 students.

As one of the course TAs (Brad Fregger) puts it, “Jim never talks over the students’ heads. He’s more like a favorite uncle helping them, than a lecturing professor. He also continually involves students, valuing their ideas, opinions and personal stories as important. Finally, Jim creates a professional casual class atmosphere, which makes it easy for students to gain critical knowledge, while also having fun.”

Advantages of MUM students in this course

Most ComPro students already have work experience. They can exchange knowledge. They work together despite cultural differences.

Regarding practice of Transcendental Meditation, Jim adds, “This is the only school I am aware of that has a scientifically proven way to expand the capacity of the brain. TM enhances learning ability. This university handles both the software of the brain—added skill and knowledge, while it also attends to the hardware—the coherence and whole brain function which continues allowing for the sculpting of a new and better brain with greater capacity.”

Student comments

Here are a few of the many glowing comments from students when asked to write about, “The leader I’d like to be.”
Romie Zaw (Myanmar)
“The very first and best thing I learned in the U.S. is Transcendental Meditation. When I came here, the key ingredients which I noticed in professors and others was calmness and inner peace. I practice TM regularly and I can say that I find peace and clarity of mind most of the time after my meditation.”

“My main goal in life is to help people who are in need. I worked about seven years in MNC companies and I’ve worked with many managers. Unfortunately, I never had a good inspiring leader in my working life. ‘Great leaders do not desire to lead, but to serve.’ I just wanna be the leader who doesn’t follow the title. This course teaches me how to avoid common flaws and habits in each relationship and how to be an effective leader. I want to write my own history with compassion and kindness with the help of TM.”

Abdelrady Tantawy (from Egypt)
“I have always thought that I don’t want to be a manager, because it means having lots of responsibilities, and I have seen lots of incompetent managers and bad leaders in the past 10 years of my career. But after attending this awesome course about leadership, I have changed my mind and I want to be one of those leaders who inspires their followers and helps them achieve more, and be satisfied with their progress in this life. I believe that this world is in deep need of such leaders.”

Anonymous
“I strongly believe in the principle that says leadership is a partnership between the leader and the followers. It should always be the case that the people will follow a leader according to their own free will.”

“I want to be the kind of person that people can trust, both as a leader, and as a friend. I’ll always encourage them to be the best of themselves according to their personalities and aspirations, because I believe that a strong team requires people with different skills and different perspectives. A good leader should be someone who brings harmony to differences in a team, cares for the team, and bring out the best in each of us. This is the kind of leader I aspire to be.”

Mrudula Mukadam, a computer science faculty member at MUM, was one of 10 teaching assistants for the recent leadership course. When asked about Jim’s course, she smiled and replied, “The course was awesome! Our students are so lucky to take this course!” 

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If you want to be one of the lucky students in Jim Bagnola’s leadership class next year, please apply soon. We look forward to your application.

Many thanks to Jim for teaching his extraordinary course at MUM.

(And thanks to students who sent us personal course photos for this newsletter.)