Imagine, for a moment, that you're a seasoned engineer at a large manufacturing company, and you've just received some great news.

You've been appointed to lead a new product development team of 15 people. With only eight months to bring your product to market, your success will hinge largely on your ability to successfully manage your team in reaching its objectives.

But here's the catch: You possess virtually no leadership training and minimal leadership experience.

"If you don't manage people effectively, the results could be catastrophic," notes Carl Vieth, an assistant faculty associate in the College of Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

According to Vieth, this scenario is a common one throughout the state.

"In our dealings with businesses and governmental bodies in Wisconsin, we encountered a recurring theme: Technical professionals are not prepared to assume leadership roles, largely because management training is not usually part of their education for their respective fields," he explains.

Addressing the Gap

To meet the needs of technical professionals and their employers in addressing the "technical leadership gap," the UW-Madison College of Engineering and School of Business have partnered to develop an innovative new program: the UW-Madison Technical Leadership Certificate (TL certificate) program. It is one of the few such programs in the entire country.

Scott Converse, a faculty associate in the School of Business, is a co-director of the program along with Vieth. Converse says, "As organizations become more technically driven, professionals in engineering, information technology, research and development and other technical fields are being required to play a bigger role in integrating technology into sound business practices. Our purpose is to equip them with the skills to lead teams, manage people, projects and budgets, and understand the business language of the organizations they support."

The new Technical Leadership Certificate program has been offered jointly by the College of Engineering and the School of Business since May 17. The program bundles existing short course offerings in a flexible format that accommodates the busy schedules of technical professionals. The courses already are available through the College of Engineering's Engineering Professional Development Department and through the School of Business's Executive Education Department.

Two Areas of Focus

The TL certificate course offerings are clustered around two core areas: "Leadership and Strategy" and "Process and Innovation." A minimum of six courses must be completed within three years to earn a Technical Leadership Certificate. Of the six courses, participants must complete at least two courses from each of the core areas. The courses range from two to three days in length.

"The design of the TL certificate program is based largely on input from focus groups of technical professionals," explains Converse. "They indicated that they needed flexibility in choosing courses that met their individual needs, in a self-paced program format. We feel the whole package offers a well-rounded, very deliverable solution."

Everyone Benefits

The TL certificate program offers great benefits not only to technical professionals but also to the businesses and organizations that employ them. The program develops technical leaders who contribute to the bottom line by managing people and projects more efficiently. The program also promises greater retention levels among technical professionals who are better equipped to lead and advance within their respective organizations. And the program's flexible format ensures that employees are not missing from work over extended periods of time as they complete their TL certificate courses.

Both Vieth and Converse point out that UW-Madison's College of Engineering and the School of Business are uniquely qualified to deliver this pioneering program for technical professionals.

"Our continuing education program is one of the largest for technical professionals in the country, with 400 courses taught by nationally renowned professors," Vieth notes. "And of course, the UW College of Engineering is in the top 10 within the entire country."

"The School of Business's Executive Education program is one of the largest in the country and has been recognized by the Financial Times as a top-ranked program," notes Converse. "Within this TL certificate program, technical professionals can learn from the best — in both the College of Engineering and in the School of Business."

For more information about the Technical Leadership Certificate program, contact Vieth at (608) 263-7424 or vieth@epd.engr.wisc.edu, or contact Converse at (608) 441-7342 or sconverse@bus.wisc.edu.

Visit our archives to read articles from previous issues of the UW Business Wire.

For more information about the Technical Leadership Certificate program, contact Carl Vieth via email or (608) 263-7424, or contact Scott Converse via email or (608) 441-7342.