management

ACAP launches human-centred MBA program

Madeline Neeson
By Madeline Neeson Content & Public Relations Adviser
Image of a woman sitting at an empty office.

ACAP launches innovative human-centred MBA program for leaders of tomorrow

Driven by growing demand for well-rounded business leaders who are fully equipped with technical and soft skills, the Australian College of Applied Professions (ACAP) is launching an innovative online MBA program with one-to-one coaching and leadership profiling tools to help students from diverse backgrounds transform into leaders.

Starting in February 2022, as the first new course under the expanded Australian College of Applied Professions brand (previously ‘The Australian College of Applied Psychology’), the flexible entry-level MBA program will be delivered fully online with three student intakes per year. With full-time, part-time and accelerated study options,[1] the self-paced program is geared towards professionals looking to upskill or pivot into new careers.

The program will emphasise human insight, industry-relevant soft skills, and deep personal transformation – while still incorporating technical management skills expected of an MBA. Developed and overseen by highly experienced corporate leadership experts and academics, the program draws on career tools, teaching paradigms and applied expertise from ACAP’s 40-year history in psychology and human services education.

Uniquely human-centred in its approach, the program will feature an innovative Leadership Coaching Program with one-to-one mentoring, tailored career guidance and professional networking. The Coaching component is designed to facilitate individualised learning and genuine transformation, enabling students to develop confidence, connections, and real-world insights to achieve professional growth and success.

The program will also offer leadership profiling tools and assessments to help students identify their strengths, weaknesses, traits, and values so they can more effectively grow their career, influence and impact.

“Just like getting a personal trainer to achieve real physical change, ACAP’s MBA students will receive one-to-one coaching and a leadership profiling tools to increase self-awareness and to equip them with the full range of skills they’ll need to effectively lead in the new age of business,” said Australian College of Applied Professions CEO, George Garrop.

“In addition to being technically skilled, business leaders of today and tomorrow will increasingly require advanced soft and humanistic skills such as adaptability, flexibility, emotional intelligence, self-awareness, resilience, and advanced communication, to make their mark. They will need to call on tools like insight, empathy and a range of other human-centred practices to understand what makes people tick so that they can get the best out of themselves and others,” Mr Garrop added.

“For many years, traditional MBA programs have focused on delivering technical skills and competencies in areas such as accounting, finance, operations management and more. While these skills remain essential, they don’t make up the full toolbox when it comes to effective leadership in today’s increasingly disrupting and complex world.”

Indeed, growth in global industry demand for non-technical skills appears certain, with a large body of research suggesting that higher order soft and humanistic skills will increasingly define outstanding leaders and businesses.

The World Economic Forum forecasts that demand for soft skills will equal if not exceed demand for technical skills in many professions by as early as 2025,[1] while Deloitte predicts that the number of jobs in soft-skill intensive occupations will grow at 2.5 times the rate of jobs in other occupations to comprise two-thirds of all jobs by 2030.[2] Similarly, LinkedIn’s 2021 Future of Talent Report identified that companies are increasingly hiring based on soft skills rather than paper certifications[3] – reaffirming findings from its Global Talent Trends Report which revealed that 92% of hiring and talent professionals thought soft skills mattered as much or more than hard skills.[4]

“The Australian College of Applied Professions is thrilled to be launching an innovative MBA program that responds to the increasingly human-centric needs of business and leadership, and that supports genuine transformation through individualised teaching and learning,” Mr Garrop said.

 “Extending beyond the norms of a traditional MBA and harnessing deep expertise from the fields of psychology and human services, ACAP looks forward to empowering students with a fully rounded mix of technical and human-centred soft skills they’ll need to take their place among the world’s most effective leaders,” he concluded.

At a time when COVID-19 is impacting countless organisations, particularly in higher education, ACAP has continued to grow. Forming part of global education provider Navitas, ACAP is one of the largest providers of psychology and human services programs in Australia, delivering higher education and vocational training to more than 4,000 students at campuses in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, and Byron Bay – as well as online.

Attracting diverse cohorts seeking new careers or opportunities, ACAP outperforms the sector in providing access to education for students who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, mature age, first-in-family to attend university or having a disability.

Applications for the Australian College of Applied Professions’ February 2022 MBA are now open.

[1] Students who take on a normal full-time workload will complete the program in two years. Students who take the fast-track option will complete the program in 15 months.
[2] World Economic Forum, 2020, Future of Jobs Report
[3] Deloitte Access Economics, 2017, Soft Skills for Business Success Report
[4] LinkedIn, 2021, Future of Talent Report
[5] LinkedIn, 2019, Global Talent Trends Report

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