Course Title: Personality and Leadership Styles

Course Overview:

This course explores the relationship between individual personality traits and leadership behaviour. Learners will examine established personality frameworks and leadership style models, then apply this understanding to recognise their own natural tendencies and adapt their approach when working with colleagues, teams, and stakeholders. The course is designed for supervisors, managers, and emerging leaders across industries and regions, with content suitable for global, GCC, and Middle Eastern professional audiences. Through practical examples, self-reflection activities, and scenario-based assessments, learners will build the self-awareness and flexibility needed to lead more effectively across diverse teams and situations.

Learning Outcomes:

By the end of this course, learners will be able to:

1. Identify key personality frameworks (such as the Big Five and DISC) and explain how personality traits influence workplace behaviour.
2. Distinguish between common leadership styles, including autocratic, democratic, transformational, transactional, servant, and laissez-faire approaches.
3. Recognise the connection between specific personality traits and tendencies toward particular leadership styles.
4. Evaluate the strengths and limitations of different leadership styles in varied workplace and cultural contexts.
5. Apply self-assessment techniques to identify their own personality tendencies and default leadership style.
6. Select and adapt leadership approaches appropriately based on team needs, individual personalities, and situational demands.

Part 1: Foundations of Personality in the Workplace
* What personality is and why it matters in professional settings
* Overview of major personality frameworks (Big Five/OCEAN model, DISC, Myers-Briggs at a conceptual level)
* How personality traits show up in communication, decision-making, and teamwork
* Common misconceptions about personality typing
* Self-reflection activity: identifying personal trait tendencies
* Knowledge check on framework terminology and core concepts

Part 2: Leadership Styles and Their Drivers
* Overview of core leadership style models (autocratic, democratic, transformational, transactional, servant, laissez-faire, situational)
* Linking personality traits to natural leadership tendencies
* Strengths and risks associated with each leadership style
* Cultural and organisational factors that shape leadership expression
* Case studies illustrating different leadership styles in action
* Knowledge check on matching styles to traits and scenarios

Part 3: Applying Self-Awareness to Lead Effectively
* Self-assessment: identifying your dominant leadership style and personality profile
* Adapting leadership style to different team members and situations
* Managing blind spots and stretching beyond natural tendencies
* Leading personality-diverse teams effectively
* Action planning: a personal leadership development plan
* Final assessment combining scenario-based questions and reflective application