Developing Leadership Skills: Balancing Data and Ambiguity in Leading Digital Teams (NN2)

Study Board MSc in Business Administration and Information Systems
Course title Innovation in a Digital World 
Course type/sizeMandatory course (approx. 120 students) 
Teaching format Blended

Learning consultants’ refection on NN connection of this activity

This activity aligns with Nordic Nine 2 by challenging students to be analytical with data while embracing ambiguity in the context of digital innovation leadership. Through real-world case studies like LEGO’s Digital Leadership case, students get to examine leadership challenges and critically evaluate data. In this activity, they learn to take into account technical issues, as well as complexities of leading creative and technical teams, developing their sensitivity to both data and team dynamics.

Teaching philosophy

“Developers… think differently. They need the space to create a solution, which requires a different type of leadership. Leadership in this context is very ambiguous—you need to balance creativity with tight time scales, budgets, and resources. Therefore, we were very practical in class. It was about what would happen if we were in a company like LEGO, managing teams of developers… It made sense for the students to apply the theory to actual leadership dilemmas in the digital space.”

(Ben Eaton, Associate Professor at the Department of Digitalization)

Key objective(s) aligned with this activity

  • Ability to identify key challenges of digital innovation in a global economy
  • Ability to analyze and critique cases concerning digital innovation in business and public sector, using appropriate course frameworks
  • Critical evaluation of state-of-the-art theory concerning digital innovation and innovation strategy

Description of the activity

The preparation for and engagement with this activity takes place in the setting of blended learning in a flipped classroom configuration.

Before the workshop activity, in the students’ own study time

They will first prepare for the activity by reading short, selected chapters from the book Wonderful Digital Leadership, which provides theoretical background to Digital Leadership and the activity, which will be held later in class.

They will then watch a series of videos (posted on Canvas) of Christian Vandsø Andersen reflecting on digital leadership in the Danish company LEGO. Each short video is connected to a theoretical aspect of Digital Leadership.

Following this, the activity will then occur in the classroom setting of a workshop

In the classroom, students will watch a short video of Christian presenting the scenario of a particular digital leadership issue that he faced at LEGO.

Students will receive instructions to analyze the issue and develop specific recommendations for actions to address and resolve it, using the Digital Leadership concepts taught in the course.

Students will then be given 45 minutes to work in pre-defined teams of 5 individuals to discuss and carry out the exercise. They will be instructed to summarise their analysis and recommended actions in three slides. During this group work, the class teacher will circulate around groups clarifying, suggesting and providing feedback.

Three groups will then be chosen at random; each will be given ten minutes to present their work.

After the presentations, the rest of the class will be invited to comment and debate for 15 minutes on the presenting teams’ approaches. The discussion will be moderated by the class teacher, and key points captured on a whiteboard. The class teacher will actively engage in the discussion providing feedback and reflection.

Following this, a final short 10-minute video from Christian will be shown, where he gives his debriefing on the issue as well as presenting how he solved the issue.

The class will then be invited to make a final reflection on Christian’s response and on the exercise. The discussion will be moderated by the class teacher, and key points captured on a whiteboard. The class teacher will actively engage in the discussion providing feedback and reflection.

The overall workshop and activity will require 3 CBS hours.