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Executive Education
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DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION LEADERSHIP

Participants of the Digital Transformation Leadership (DTL) program will understand the foundations for digital transformation, develop their innovation mindset and learn how to lead digital transformation projects.

The program has been custom designed in close collaboration with industry and Canada’s Digital Technology Supercluster to empower leaders to innovate using digital technology.

It will benefit professionals with 5+ years of senior management experience, who are leading teams involved in digital transformation projects (e.g. senior managers, directors, operational leaders, etc.).

"Enable your team to be ready for the incredible opportunity to help you evolve. Invest time and energy into the great people you have already to help you realize tomorrow's challenges. This is about digitally enabling Canada." -- Greg Malpass, CEO, Traction On Demand
 

Participants of the Digital Transformation Leadership program will understand the foundations for digital transformation, develop their innovation mindset and learn how to lead digital transformation projects. The program has been custom designed in close collaboration with industry and Canada’s Digital Technology Supercluster to empower leaders to innovate using digital technology.

This 11-week program includes three online synchronous sessions, weekly peer learning sessions, and asynchronous course material. Sessions provide faculty and industry-led content, case studies, discussion boards, and applied activities. The time commitment is approximately 4-6 hours per week.

Your acquired knowledge will be translated into action through active engagement in a distinctive digital change project. This endeavour will be enriched by constructive evaluations from peers, industry experts, and seasoned professors, collectively enhancing the depth and effectiveness of your learning experience.

“Introduction to various business models gave us useful tools to help our future consulting projects. The decision-making matrix was particularly powerful, especially in opening my perspective to the competing forces at the organization."

Upcoming Program Start Dates for 2023/2024

  • The Digital Transformation Leadership program was created in partnership with the Digital Supercluster. With their generous support and matched funding, students can access the program at CAD 2,500 plus GST, which covers the entire program and includes the application fee.
  • For residents of British Columbia aged 19 years or older, SFU Beedie School of Business has agreed to cover the entire program costs in collaboration with the Digital Supercluster.
    • BC residents can access a no-cost program fee option for the cohort starting in November.
    • Please note that this grant option has a non-refundable $75 application fee.

Is your employer sponsoring you in this program?

Your employer may be eligible for support through the Canada Job Grant. Contact sfu_dial@sfu.ca if you need assistance.

Participants will:

  • Understand the current state of digital platform technology and key areas of focus for digital transformation, including new business models, customer experience and operational excellence
  • Expand perspectives in digital opportunities—from products to platforms Increase leadership capabilities, including vision, engagement, governance and inclusion
  • Apply the steps to enable digital transformation in their organization
  • Engage in the design of a digital change project

The program enables participants to improve two capabilities, digital and leadership capabilities.

Digital Capabilities

Gain the strategic insight and skills to become a leader in technology-driven organizations. Develop a digital mindset and understand the new elements of digital capability, including process improvement, employee experience and business model innovation as well as the opportunity of digital platforms. Understand empathetic, people-centred, approaches to service design and the importance of visualizing and communicating solutions. Learn aspects of agile, lean and hybrid approaches to project management and improve skills in managing change in organizations.

Leadership Capabilities

To manage and lead in technology-driven organizations, you need to work collaboratively with multiple stakeholders across the organization and within your ecosystem. Learn how to be successful and create vision, engagement and governance while also valuing inclusion. Recognize opportunities for negotiating change and apply the skills and mindsets for digital innovation. Showcase your effectiveness and efficiency as you contribute to digital transformation in an applied project.

Dr. Blaize Horner Reich

RBC Professor of Technology and Innovation, SFU Beedie, & Board Director

Before obtaining her Ph.D., Dr. Reich worked for 15 years in Canada and Asia as an IT professional and consultant. Her specialties were information management, IT governance and strategic planning. Dr. Reich is the RBC Professor of Technology and Innovation within the Beedie School of Business. She is an internationally recognized expert in IT governance, technology-based organizational transformation, and project management. Her research has been published in leading journals and she speaks regularly at academic and practitioner conferences. Dr. Reich is a founding director of the CIO Association and a board director of ITAC Talent’s Business Technology Management program. She is also a board director of BCAA and Central 1. Dr. Reich was named an Academic Fellow of the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes in 2016 and a Fellow of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants in 2017.

More Information

Dr. Jeffrey Yip

Assistant Professor, Management and Organization Studies, SFU Beedie

Jeffrey Yip is an Assistant Professor of Management at the Beedie School of Business. His research is in the areas of leadership, mentoring, and career development. His professional experience includes work in leadership development at the Center for Creative Leadership, as co-founder of the Halogen Foundation in Singapore, and as a consultant to public and private organizations. Prior to SFU, Jeffrey taught graduate courses in organizational psychology, interpersonal dynamics, and talent management at Claremont Graduate University (CGU) and Boston University. At CGU, he directed the Talent Science Lab and served as an advisor to the Accenture Talent Innovation Lab. He currently directs ListeningWorks - a research initiative on listening and serves as representative-at-large for the Academy of Management Careers Division. His work has been supported by research fellowships and awards, including a Fulbright Scholarship, the Lim Kim San Fellowship from Singapore Management University, a research fellowship from the Learning Innovations Laboratory (LILA) at Harvard University, and the Arnon Reichers Best Paper award from the Academy of Management.

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Dr. Andrew Gemino

Professor, Management Information Systems & Associate Dean, Graduate Programs, SFU Beedie

Dr. Andrew Gemino is an award-winning teacher whose distinctions include two TD Canada Trust Distinguished Teaching Awards from the Beedie School of Business and the Teaching Excellence Award from SFU. His primary research interests include information technology project management and business analysis techniques. Andrew has also co-authored an award-winning textbook and is past President of the AIS Special Interest Group on Systems Analysis and Design.

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Dr. Sarah Lubik

Director of Entrepreneurship, SFU Co-Champion, Technology Entrepreneurship@SFU Lecturer, Innovation & Entrepreneurship, SFU Beedie

Sarah Lubik is a lecturer in Entrepreneurship & Innovation at Beedie, Co-Champion of the Technology Entrepreneurship@SFU Program and was appointed SFU's first Director of Entrepreneurship, aligning, supporting and accelerating entrepreneurship education and early stage incubation at SFU. She is also a mentor at SFU's Venture Connection incubator.

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Dr. Andrew Harries

Tom Foord Associate Professor of Practice in Innovation and Entrepreneurship, SFU Beedie

Andrew Harries is the Tom Foord Professor of Practice in Entrepreneurship and Innovation at SFU’s Beedie School of Business and is a business advisor and corporate director. At SFU Beedie he blends the latest in entrepreneurial theory and practice in his courses on entrepreneurship and innovation, product management and resourcing new ventures. In his advisory practice, Andrew works closely with pre-revenue and growth stage companies on business strategy, financing, leadership and governance and how to create viable, high-growth business models. Andrew also chairs the board of directors at Bsquare Corporation (NASDAQ: BSQR) and was a co-founder of Sierra Wireless Inc. (SQ.TO, SWIR).

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Dr. Ian McCarthy

W.J. VanDusen Professor of Innovation and Operations Management, SFU Beedie

Ian McCarthy is the W.J. VanDusen Professor of Innovation and Operations Management. He came to SFU from the University of Warwick, England where he was a Reader and Head of the Organizational Systems Strategy Unit. He worked for several years as a manufacturing engineer before earning his Ph.D. in operations strategy from the University of Sheffield.

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Dr. Joseph Peppard

Professor, Director of Executive Education, University College Dublin​

Joe researches, teaches and consults in the domains of IT leadership, digital strategy and innovation, digital transformation and the creation of value from IT investments. Findings from his studies have been published in leading journals including California Management Review, Harvard Business Review, MIS Quarterly Executive, and the MIT Sloan Management Review. He had held academic roles in Germany (ESMT Berlin), the UK (Cranfield School of Management, Loughborough University, Trinity College Dublin), the Netherlands (Groningen University) Italy (Politecnico di Milano) and Australia (University of Sydney).

Program Brochure

Download DIAL Brochure

Meet Our Alumni

Check out our Alumni Stories and discover how leaders across different industries are turning up the dial on digital transformation and driving digital change by transforming ideas into innovative solutions.

This program was a turning point in my career. One of the first things I learned is that digital transformation has no finish line. The technology we adopt today will quickly become obsolete, so we should always be looking ahead, learning, and adapting.

Olya Ollila

Project Manager

Esri Canada

Through the DTL program, my approach to projects has changed. Initially, due to my technical background, I used to focus narrowly on technology. This program helped me to look beyond my own area of expertise and consider the bigger picture.

Amarjit Manku

IT Senior Project Manager

City of Surrey

I was impressed by the wide range of industries represented in our program cohort. I learned that large organizations all face the same challenges, depending on which Digital Transformation pathway they’re on. They all have one thing in common; shifting their focus on transforming how they do business to meet changing customer needs, both internally and externally.

Christo Carstens-Jansen van Vuuren

Senior Manager, National Operations

PwC Canada

The content of the program, the lecturers, the guest speakers involved were all incredibly knowledgeable. I hope I get to meet all the lecturers and students in my cohort one day as each of them made an impact.

Jason Williams

Manager, Innovative Travel Solutions

Vancouver Airport Authority (YVR)

What you put into the course is what you get out of the course, so take your time and mine as many nuggets as you can

Suzanne Fuller Blamey

Program Director, Outpatient Services & Holy Family Rehab

Providence Health Care

DTL: Olya

DTL: Amarjit

DTL: Christo

DTL: Jason

DTL: Suzanne