Why the Leadership Accelerator Program?

Organizations are moving faster than the leaders being asked to navigate them. AI is reshaping how decisions get made. Global competition is redrawing business models overnight. Complex stakeholder dynamics are demanding a new kind of leadership presence. Yet the pipeline of mid-level managers equipped to operate at an enterprise level remains critically underdeveloped.

Built for Ambition. Designed for Impact.

The business landscape is changing fast — and leadership expectations are rising even faster. LAP is built differently. It gives you the strategic tools, enterprise mindset, and real-world experience to step confidently into your next phase of leadership.

  • Immersive exercises and real-world problem-solving mean you leave with skills you can apply immediately.

  • A focused, applied credential that meets you where you are today. No two-year time commitment or costly investment of a graduate degree. It's not a replacement for an MBA, it's a purpose-built career accelerator.

  • Experiential learning that transfers. The Leadership Lab is a signature 4-day experience where self-awareness becomes strategy and personal insight becomes professional growth.

What You'll Gain

  • Leadership Coaching

    Through immersive group dynamics and individual coaching, participants uncover their core leadership purpose and translate personal insights into confident leadership strategies.

  • Lead Cross-Functional Teams

    Develop the ability to influence without authority across your organization.

  • Develop Emotional and Strategic Agility

    Strengthen the resilience and adaptability to lead through ambiguity and organizational change.

  • Leadership Action Plan

    Create an individualized plan for applying program insights directly to your role, your team, and your next chapter in leadership.

Program Structure

A flexible, high-impact format designed for working professionals. The program unfolds across four phases — in-person kickoff, live virtual sessions, a one-week immersion on the UCI campus, and individual coaching — delivering expert-led instruction without requiring you to step away from your career.

  • Phase 1 — On-Campus Program Opening

    Establish connections and shared purpose. These relationships set the foundation for the learning experience.

  • Phase 2 — Live Virtual Sessions

    A series of live virtual sessions covering Finance & Accounting, AI, Marketing, and Operations.

  • Phase 3 — One-Week On-Campus Immersion

    Apply your learning through intensive workshops and integrated leadership development experiences.

  • Phase 4 - Individual Coaching

    Ensure insights, strategies, and commitments developed throughout LAP continue to gain traction.

Curriculum Calendar

The program includes 16 modules across key areas relevant to the health industry:

    1. Module 1: Leading with Purpose & Self-Awareness

    2. Module 2: Leading and Developing High Performing Teams

    3. Module 3: AI-Powered Insights Meet Strategic Marketing

    4. Module 4: Financial Fluency for Leaders

    1. Module 5: Finance as a Leadership Tool

    2. Module 6: Achieving Operational Excellence

    3. Module 7: Strategy & Competitive Positioning 

    4. Module 8: Marketing Strategy

    5. Module 9: How AI is Changing the Way Leaders Think, Delegate, and Grow

    1. Monday - Networks & Networking | AI & Strategic Planning | Leadership Lab - Introduction & Working Dinner

    2. Tuesday - Leadership Lab: Ropes Course & Video Debrief

    3. Wednesday - Leadership Lab: InterGroup Dialogue | Leadership Lab: Interpersonal Feedback

    4. Thursday - Leadership Lab: Immunity to Change | Leadership Lab: Individual Coaching + Peer Dialogue

    5. Friday - Leadership Lab: Presentations | Communication & Negotiations/Influence without Authority | Program Wrap Up

    1. To maximize the impact of your experience, optional one-on-one coaching session are available following the program. Designed to extend your learning beyond the classroom, this gives you dedicated space to apply leadership insights to real challenges.

LAP

  • Format: In-Person and Live Virtual Sessions
  • Faculty Director: Professor Noah Askin

The Leadership Lab: A Signature Experience

At the heart of the on-campus immersion, the Leadership Lab is an experiential workshop unlike anything in a traditional executive program. What sets it apart is something most leadership programs simply don't offer: a deeply personal group coaching experience focused on group dynamics — where individual development and collective learning happen at the same time.


This dual approach — group dynamics paired with individual coaching — is what makes the Leadership Lab a true differentiator. Most executive programs can give you frameworks. Very few can give you this level of personal insight, professional challenge, and coached transformation in a single experience.

  • Discover Your Leadership Purpose
    Explore how your unique background, values, and ambitions shape the way you lead and the impact you're capable of making.

  • Real Feedback. Real Growth.
    Receive honest, structured feedback from peers and professional coaches to identify blind spots, sharpen your strengths, and accelerate your development.

  • Build Emotional & Strategic Agility
    Develop the resilience and adaptability required to lead through uncertainty — and the strategic clarity to act decisively when it matters most.

Program Benefits

  • Cross-Industry Relevance

    Every module is designed around the real leadership challenges that professionals face across industries — not adapted from sector-specific content.

  • Flexible Format

    Four learning phases — virtual, in-person, immersive, and coaching — delivering graduate level instruction without requiring a career pause.

  • A Network That Lasts

    Build lasting relationships with a cohort of ambitious professionals at a similar stage in their careers.

  • UCI Paul Merage School of Business Certificate

    Official recognition from a recognized business school, enhancing your professional credibility.

  • MBA-Level Impact

    Gain the strategic tools and leadership confidence — without the time and financial commitment of a degree.

  • UCI Paul Merage School of Business Alumni Status

    Join a global network of Merage School alumni and access lifelong learning opportunities.

Who Should Attend

Developed specifically for senior leaders, LAP gives you the strategic tools and real-world experience to step into your next phase of leadership — without the time and financial commitment of an MBA.

  • Directors & High-Potential Leaders
    Leaders identified for senior level succession who need to accelerate strategic agility, executive presence, and enterprise leadership.

  • Senior Functional Experts
    Specialists in engineering, finance, technology or any other discipline whose success now depends on cross-functional influence, strategic thinking, and enterprise-level decision-making.

  • Cross Functional Team Leaders
    Leaders at the intersection of multiple business functions - aligning diverse stakeholders across organizations to drive strategic initiatives, and cross-departmental priorities.

  • Mid-to-Senior Level Industry Professionals
    Individuals with 8–20 years of professional experience — ready to lead at a broader organizational level.

Faculty Spotlight

Faculty Director

Noah Askin, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Organization and Management, UCI

"I help create better organizations for better people — and better people for better organizations."​ — Noah Askin

Noah Askin is an Associate Professor of Organization and Management at UCI Paul Merage School of Business, where he serves as Faculty Director of the Leadership Development Institute. Prior to joining UCI, he was an Associate Professor of Organizational Behavior at INSEAD, where he directed and taught multiple Executive Education programs, including INSEAD's Product Leadership Program. A computational social scientist and sociologist by training, Noah's research and teaching focus on leadership, organizational design, social networks, creativity, and managing change. His work has been recognized on the Thinkers50 Radar list and published in Administrative Science Quarterly, American Sociological Review, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). His research has been covered in The Economist, Forbes, Rolling Stone, and The Times of London.
Noah holds a joint PhD in Business Administration and Sociology from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Faculty & Instructors


Hope Schau
Professor
Marketing

John Joseph
Professor
Strategy & Organization

Ken Murphy
Assistant Professor
Operations and Decision Technologies

Maritza Salazar Campo
Associate Professor
Organization & Management

Michael Imerman
Associate Professor, Finance
Faculty Director, Master of Finance

Sasha Strauss
Brand Strategy Expert
Adjunct Professor USC & UCI

Take the Next Step

  • Bring the Accelerator to Your Organization

    LAP is offered as a custom engagement for organizations investing in their leadership pipeline. We'll work with you to scope a cohort tailored to your leaders, your timeline, and your business priorities.

  • Schedule a Conversation

    Talk through cohort size, timing, and fit before committing to an engagement.


    Contact:
    Jennifer Risner
    Director of Strategic Partnerships
    [email protected]