Welcome to the Professional Development Award (PDA) in Leadership and Change at SCQF Level 8, which offers you the opportunity to develop knowledge and skills that you will need to plan for change and develop strategies to lead others through a period of change. Once you have completed the PDA, you should be in a position to not only tackle change in a positive manner but also be able to avoid the pitfalls which can derail change programmes - even well intentioned ones.

The target group for this award is managers, especially team leaders, with responsibility for leading or managing change. Typical job roles could include: middle management positions; Change facilitators; programme managers; team leaders in change situations.

The PDA in Leadership and Change at SCQF Level 8 is made up of two mandatory units:

1. Management: Leadership at Work

2. Management: Plan, lead and Implement Change

These two units compliment each other, and between them, enable you to plan for change and develop approaches and strategies to lead others through a period of change.

Change is an important part of modern organisations and it is something which every manager has to deal with. Overall, the PDA helps you to extend and develop your skills as a manager/leader and become more effective in managing change and in meeting the challenges which this involves.

If you have not yet started on your managerial career, this PDA can help to give you the confidence to successfully tackle change when you meet it as a manager. It may also help you contribute to the successful management of change in a non-managerial capacity.

The assessments related to these units are likely to be covered using a combination of methods including reports; plans and strategies. You will be encouraged to make use of information from organisations with which you are familiar, such as one you work for or one you have worked for in the past. You may also encounter some case-studies - on particular aspects of change or team-building for example.

The PDA is a qualification in its own right but it will also help you to progress to further management awards such as HNC Management.

The PDA is jointly certificated by SQA and The Chartered Management Institute (CMI).