Sigma Chi Leadership Institute (SCLI), the learning service provider for Sigma Chi International Fraternity, has received a 2021 Brandon Hall Group Bronze Award for excellence in the Best Unique or Innovative Leadership Program category for its Distance Leadership: Connecting Community certificate course.
The certificate course, which is taught online and includes 40 hours of learning instruction, aims to help students gain the knowledge and skills that are necessary for navigating industries reliant on remote work and digital leadership across blended platforms. Students learn how to manage virtual teams, make the most of virtual communication tools and motivate team members from a distance by creating an environment of mutual respect and strong team dynamics, among other skills.
The Brandon Hall Award is the second honor bestowed upon the program during the summer of 2021. The program also earned the Fraternity a 2021 Laurel Wreath Award from the North American Interfraternity Conference.
“Being a Transformational Leader means leading from anywhere, any place at any time – not just in the chapter house, or in a boardroom, but also in a digital environment,” says SCLI Executive Director Jim Cogdal, BRADLEY 2003. “The Distance Leadership certificate channels the important components of team dynamics – communication styles, the advantages of diversity and the keys to maximizing productivity – and packages them with Sigma Chi values to truly prepare all Sigma Chis for the virtual landscape that is now upon us. Kudos to Sigma Chi leadership for making the development of this critical leadership forum a priority.”
Since the program’s pilot during the spring 2021 academic term, early program data points to participants reporting an increased understanding of the rewards and challenges associated with leading a remote team, the importance of advocating for diversity and change and how to maximize productivity in remote team members.
“Brandon Hall Group Excellence Awards in 2021 provide much-needed and well-deserved recognition to organizations that went above and beyond to support their stakeholders during the unprecedented disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic,” says Brandon Hall Group COO and leader of the HCM Excellence Awards Program Rachel Cooke. “The awards provide validation of best practices in all areas of HCM at a time when they have never been more important to employers, employees and customers.”
The Distance Leadership: Connecting Community certificate course is part of Sigma Chi’s Transformational Leader program that was unveiled in June 2021 at the 83rd Grand Chapter in Scottsdale, Arizona. It is the International Fraternity’s over-arching leadership development program for all undergraduate and alumni members.
“Preparing our members for success in life is our No. 1 priority. The pandemic taught us many lessons in that regard – most notably that leading with and through technology is a tool that every leader needs in their toolbox. The SCLI team went above and beyond to fast-track the development and rollout of this curriculum and this outcome just demonstrates, once again, how Sigma Chi sets itself apart with how serious we take the contributions we make to the lives of our men,” says International Fraternity Executive Director Michael Church, ILLINOIS 2005.
For more information about the Distance Leadership: Connecting Community certificate course and the Transformational Leader program, visit sigmachi.org/transformational-leader/.
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Sigma Chi is one of the largest collegiate fraternities with undergraduate chapters at 235 universities and colleges and more than 355,000 all-time members. Sigma Chi provides a welcoming environment for young men of different temperaments, talents and convictions to enjoy a unique lifelong bond that extends far beyond college. Through world-class leadership training, extensive mentoring programs, and a strong focus on academic achievement, Sigma Chi sets itself apart as the preeminent collegiate leadership development organization, challenging its members to live by its core values and exemplify character-in-action™ in every aspect of their lives, and the lives of others.
