Full course description
Date: 28-29 April, 2026
Modality: In-person
Duration: 9am – 4pm
Price: $2,409 (incl GST)
Effective leaders know that authority alone doesn’t inspire commitment or change - influence does. This practical, highly interactive course is designed for professionals who lead through collaboration, connection, and credibility. You’ll explore the key principles and behaviours that enable leaders to guide others toward shared goals, even when formal authority is limited.
Across two engaging days, you’ll discover proven frameworks that underpin effective influence and ethical persuasion, including Aristotle’s Three Proofs, Carnegie’s Six Elements, Cialdini’s Principles of Ethical Influence, and Kolbe’s Four Action Modes. Through experiential activities, you’ll learn to build trust, strengthen rapport, and communicate with confidence - equipping you to bring out the best in others and move people to action.
Short course structure and topics covered:
Day One focuses on essential theories leaders need to know in the discipline of influencing and persuading. These include the:
- Three proofs of Aristotle
- Six Elements of Carnegie
- Six Principles of Ethical Influence from Cialdini
- Four Action Modes of Kolbe.
Day Two is about the practical application of skills and techniques covering:
- Building and maintaining rapport
- Examining key steps in the process of building trust in relationships
- Being able to assert your voice
- Listening for currencies in order to set up win/win negotiations
- Coaching team members in how to be more influential.
Short course benefits and learning outcomes:
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Lead with influence: Apply proven frameworks and communication strategies to motivate and inspire others, even without formal authority.
- Build trust and alignment: Strengthen relationships by listening with intent, framing ideas effectively, and creating shared commitment to goals.
- Empower others to influence: Coach and develop team members to use ethical persuasion and confident communication in their own leadership interactions.
Organisational benefits:
Your organisation will gain more effective leaders who can inspire collaboration, foster engagement, and drive results through influence rather than authority.
Who should attend? / any entry requirements?
- Leaders and managers who want to strengthen their ability to influence, motivate, and guide others without relying on formal authority.
- Team leaders and supervisors looking to build trust, foster collaboration, and communicate with greater impact.
- Project leads, coordinators, and professionals who work across teams or functions and need to gain buy-in from diverse stakeholders.
- Experienced professionals who want to refine their persuasive communication and coaching skills to elevate their leadership presence and impact.
Previous participant reviews:
Fantastic course!! It exceeded my expectations; I felt engaged for the full 2 days and I learnt a lot of practical things to implement at work (and home - bonus!). Big thank you to the facilitator - you can tell she is passionate and very knowledgeable.
Hannah Franklin
Realestate.co.nz
Engaging, energetic presenter; good balance of theory and practice, lots of immediately useful takeaways and tools.
Evelyn Michael
Fresh Minds
The course translated research into simple and effective strategies we could recall and use immediately every day at work. Also, it was great to meet others from different industries and sectors and hear about their work.
Joanna Delaney
BNZ
This course gave me a practical and solid theoretical understanding of how to identify ways to tailor our communication and deepen our understanding of how those around us receive and process information. This course prepares you to immediately action improvements in the way you can communicate, listen and understand the people you work with.
Sam Binks
Starship Foundation
Payment for short courses is normally by credit card. If you need to pay by invoice or require assistance, please email shortcourses@auckland.ac.nz. Please note the University does not issue individual invoices for amounts less than $500 New Zealand dollars.
By enrolling in a Short Course at the University of Auckland you agree to the Short Course Terms and Conditions