What is the Certified Innovation Strategist?

The Certified Innovation Strategist is a globally recognised professional certification by the Global Leadership Institute (GLI), designed to equip professionals with advanced competencies in Strategy & Business Development.

How long does this certification take?

The programme is 10 Weeks and can be completed at your own pace through our self-paced online option, or alongside live virtual sessions.

Is this certification globally recognised?

Yes. GLI certifications are internationally recognised and carry CPD credits, making them valuable for career advancement worldwide.

What level is this certification?

This is a Intermediate Level certification, suitable for professionals with relevant experience or background in the field.

You can enrol by emailing info@certifications.ac, contacting us via WhatsApp at +254 722 223 084, or filling the enrolment form below.

Certified Innovation Strategist in Namibia

Course Curriculum

Programme Modules

Click any module to explore the detailed curriculum topics included in this certification.

Foundations and Strategic Context of Certified Innovation Strategist

Certified Innovation Strategist: industry context, trends and professional standards
Theories and models of leadership and management
The manager's roles, responsibilities and mindset
Leadership versus management and when each is needed
Situational and adaptive leadership
Values, purpose and authentic leadership
The organisational context and operating environment
Self-awareness and the leader's identity
Building credibility and executive presence
Ethics and responsible leadership
Personal leadership development planning

The Innovation Discipline

Jobs to be done and customer insight
Prototyping, experimentation and design thinking
Innovation culture, incentives and psychological safety
Correlation, causation and experiment design
Pricing strategy and models
Strategy as a coherent set of choices
Requirements and the specification gap
Where to play and how to win
Sources of competitive advantage
Systems integration and the single source of truth
Strategic positioning versus operational effectiveness
Scenario planning under deep uncertainty
Cybersecurity fundamentals and the human factor
Resource allocation and capital discipline
Corporate portfolio strategy and parenting advantage

Sourcing Ideas Worth Testing

Data protection and privacy by design
Prototyping, experimentation and design thinking
Value innovation and uncontested market space
Cloud, infrastructure and the connectivity constraint
Strategy and performance management systems
Curriculum and programme design
Delivering technology change that people adopt
Setting and communicating strategic direction
Leading through other leaders
Automation and where it genuinely pays
Working with a board and governance
Executive presence and credibility
Artificial intelligence: capability, limits and responsible use
Executive time, attention and decision cadence
Leading across cultures and geographies

Running an Assumption-Led Pipeline

Technical debt and system lifecycle
Minimum viable offer and validated learning
Measuring innovation performance
Building digital capability in an organisation
Strategic alignment across an organisation
Organisational design as a strategic choice
Power, coalitions and organisational politics
Leading under ambiguity and complexity
Strategic learning and the adaptive organisation
Culture as a strategic asset
Leading strategic change
Developing strategic capability in others
Transformation versus incremental change
Designing a transformation programme
Benefits realisation and value tracking

Balancing the Portfolio

Innovation portfolio and the three horizons
Measuring innovation performance
Business model design and unit economics
Operating model redesign
Sustaining transformation and preventing reversion
Succession and the leadership pipeline
Executive ethics and the leader’s shadow
Leading in crisis and under scrutiny
The agricultural sector: systems, actors and global food value chains
Soil formation, classification and physical properties
Climate-smart agriculture: productivity, adaptation, mitigation
Risk management planning
Analytics translation: from data to decision
Experimentation and causal inference in business
Metrics design and the gaming problem

Culture, Incentives and Candour

Innovation culture, incentives and psychological safety
Measuring innovation performance
Innovation portfolio and the three horizons
Localisation and adaptation of the offer
Cross-border trade, tariffs and logistics realities
Growth strategy and expansion sequencing
Product launch and go-to-market sequencing
Scaling a validated model
Intellectual property and defensibility of innovation
Account opening, KYC and customer due diligence
Artificial intelligence and machine learning
Make, buy or ally: boundary decisions
Synergy realisation after combination
Structured problem solving: issue trees and hypotheses
Technology strategy and architecture choices

Measuring What Early Work Produces

Measuring innovation performance
Discovery-driven planning and assumption testing
Innovation culture, incentives and psychological safety
Market attractiveness and country assessment
Market entry modes and partner selection
Platform and ecosystem strategy
Digital business models and monetisation

Capability Building

Feedback and developmental conversations
Individual development planning
Career and talent development
Building a coaching culture
Peer learning and communities of practice
Motivation and self-directed learning
Measuring coaching and mentoring impact
Learning technology ecosystem
Learning analytics and data
AI and adaptive learning
Data-driven learning design
Marketing and promoting learning
Presenting learning proposals and impact
Leading learning projects and change
Learning transformation and modernisation

Leading Innovation

Team leadership in security operations
Turning analysis into a decision
Presenting recommendations to senior decision-makers
Analytical techniques and bias
Decision rights and accountability
Prioritisation and portfolio value
The two-year horizon: expertise, leadership and professional standing
Management accounts and dashboards
Cost and profitability analysis
Value addition and processing decisions
Turning insight into decisions
Capstone scoping: a real leadership challenge
Rational and intuitive decision-making
Data-informed and evidence-based decisions
Prioritisation and resource allocation

Change and Adoption

Soil chemistry, pH and cation exchange capacity
Emerging agri-tech and innovation adoption
Digital transformation strategy
Measuring digital transformation impact
Incident, problem and change management
Digital transformation roadmaps
Goal setting and behavioural change in coaching
Training and change management
Finance transformation and target operating models
Change management in finance
Measuring transformation impact
Agile and digital transformation projects
Measuring change and project impact
Baseline setting and change control
Sales and marketing transformation

Evidence and Analytics

Forecasting and planning
Data visualisation for finance
Baseline surveys and data collection tools
Yield, productivity and profitability metrics
Data quality, analysis and reporting
Decision support and insight
Communicating financial results
Portfolio of evidence and reflective practice
Farm management information systems and data platforms
Data-driven decision support and analytics
Dashboards and data storytelling
Sales analytics and forecasting tools
Psychodynamic and psychoanalytic approaches
Attachment and developmental theory
Professional roles, boundaries and settings

Stakeholders and Sponsorship

Categories of spend and stakeholders
Stakeholder mapping and liaison
Influencing and security awareness
Pricing tours, events and sponsorships
The project environment and stakeholders
Stakeholder and sponsor management
Stakeholder rights and fair treatment
Delivery, quality and stakeholder plan
Stakeholder identification and analysis
Stakeholder engagement strategy
Managing expectations and influence
Influencing and presenting insights
Managing difficult stakeholders
Stakeholder mapping in banking
Negotiation and influencing

Customer and Market Research

Customer and brand health metrics
Market and customer analysis
Campaign or go-to-market plan
Building strategic customer relationships
Customer success and retention
Customer lifetime value and profitability
Customer data platforms and segmentation
Market research design and methods
Qualitative and quantitative research
Customer experience and journey mapping
Competitive and market intelligence
Social media customer care
Unified customer view
Customer loyalty and advocacy
Customer lifetime value

Teams and Collaboration

Cross-functional collaboration with product and service
Team leadership in sales and marketing
Facilitation, training and public presentation skills
Team leadership in field and project settings
Ethical principles and codes of practice
Group dynamics, facilitation and community mobilisation
Leading service teams
Stakeholder mapping and collaboration
Team leadership in banking operations
Innovation and fintech collaboration
Scaling technology and teams
Team diversity and inclusion
High-performance team rituals and cadence
Productivity, collaboration and workflow tools
Managing distributed and digital teams

Performance Management

Project KPIs and performance metrics
Managing schedule and budget performance
Setting objectives and marketing KPIs
Dashboards and performance reporting
Managing boundaries and dual relationships
Capacity and performance management
Setting objectives, indicators and targets
Linking CX to business performance
Performance management in service
Coaching for performance
Banking KPIs and branch scorecards
Contract performance and exit
Retail performance metrics: sales densities, conversion and basket
Sales performance and pipeline management
Social performance and outreach

Risk and Governance

Risk assessment and judgement
Sustaining ethical, effective practice
Contract types and risk allocation
Contract governance and compliance
Environmental, social and governance (ESG)
Security governance and management systems
Presenting risk and recommendations
Likelihood, impact and risk rating
Risk treatment and countermeasures
Intelligence-led risk assessment
Risk registers and reporting
Project governance and assurance
Project governance frameworks
Leading project governance
Financial risk in projects

Financial Discipline

Flexible budgets and rolling forecasts
Responsibility accounting and cost centres
Cost reduction and efficiency programmes
Capital budgeting: NPV, IRR and payback
Cost of capital and WACC
Capital structure and financing decisions
Real options and strategic investment
Financial modelling and scenario analysis
Continuous improvement of finance processes
Options appraisal and cost-benefit
Cost of accidents and prevention value
Preparing financial statements
Financial reporting frameworks (IFRS/GAAP)
Interpreting financial statements
Budget vs actual and variance

Technology Enablement

The finance function and digital transformation
Digital finance and automation roadmaps
Duty of care and risk management
Digital permits and inspections
Automation and safety technology
Record-keeping and data protection
Leading technology adoption and change
Innovation platforms and experimentation
Technology strategy and investment
Digital transformation and IT strategy
Digital procurement and the future of the profession
Complaints, accountability and fitness to practise
Automation in project delivery
Emerging project technologies
Digital disruption and modern go-to-market

Quality and Process

Continuous improvement and lean banking
Driving measurable banking improvement
Designing a banking solution or process
Principles of credit and the lending process
Automation, RPA and straight-through processing
Continual service improvement
Process and control documentation
Quality assurance of audit
Competitive bidding processes
Continuous improvement of delivery
Business process mapping
Driving measurable delivery improvement
Quality planning and assurance
Quality control and continuous improvement
Continuous improvement and optimisation

Communicating the Case

Professional report writing
Managing sensitive communications
Proposal development and donor reporting
The media and telecommunications landscape
Client feedback and satisfaction
Integrated and sustainability reporting
Reporting quality and governance
Professional case study and presentation
Communicating with families and carers
Professional writing and reports
Psychoeducation and public communication
Project data, reporting and analytics
Integrated marketing communications
Professional presentation and pitching
Reporting to leadership

Operating Model and Capacity

The HR function: roles, operating models and value creation
Resource efficiency and circular practice
Productivity and efficiency improvement
Managing budgets and resources
The procurement cycle and operating models
Fundraising diversification and local resource mobilisation
Reinsurance and capacity management
Capacity planning and line balancing
Evidence-based improvement
Geology, exploration and resource estimation
Managing risk and difficult cases
Lessons learned and development
Conflict resolution over land, water and resources
Land rights, tenure and equitable resource use
Customer-centric operating models

Positioning and Proposition

Listing, marketing and selling property
Real estate marketing channels and property portals
The automotive market: segments, brands and buyers
Automotive marketing and lead generation
The consulting mindset and trusted advisor positioning
Value proposition design and messaging
Marketing planning and budgeting
Marketing and sales: scope, roles and value
The marketing concept and customer orientation
The marketing mix and the 7 Ps
Aligning marketing and sales (smarketing)
Marketing and sales KPIs and dashboards
Capstone scoping: a real growth or brand challenge
Designing a marketing or sales strategy
Marketing strategy and the mix

Advisory and Problem Solving

Advisory service design and delivery
Problem loans, restructuring and recovery
Advisory and needs-based selling
Root-cause analysis and problem solving
Structured problem-solving and root-cause analysis
Innovation management and creative problem-solving
Peer support and consultation
Psychoeducation and workshops
Leading groups and workshops
Diagnosing client problems before prescribing solutions
Root cause analysis frameworks in advisory work
Designing and facilitating groups
Digital advisory, e-extension and mobile services
Writing advisory reports that drive decisions
Ethics and independence in advisory relationships

Responsible Innovation

Embedding responsible business
Ethics, confidentiality and professional conduct in HR
Data ethics, privacy and responsible analytics
Ethics and duty of care
Professional ethics and duty of care
Legal and regulatory responsibility
Ethical decision-making under pressure
Sustainability and climate responsibility
Professional standards and ethics (CIPS)
Sustainability and responsible sourcing
Fair trade and responsible supply
Ethical frameworks and codes of practice
Legal responsibilities and professional bodies
Driving effective, ethical outcomes
Ethical, risk and feasibility considerations

Entrepreneurial Practice

Growth strategy and demand generation
Data-driven growth
Working with organisations on wellbeing
Designing an intervention or programme
Managing growth, risk and resilience
Growth strategy: organic, M&A and partnerships
Entrepreneurship and start-ups in agriculture
Scaling and growth strategies
Growth, lactation and productivity
Mergers, funding and growth strategy
Growth mindset and continuous learning
Evidence-based practice
Risk assessment and safety planning

Sustainable Innovation

Corporate social responsibility and community impact
Monitoring, evaluation and sustainability plan
Sustainability certification and standards
Responsible and sustainable banking
Sustainable and green banking
Control environment and risk assessment
Emerging assurance areas (ESG)
Corporate social responsibility communications
Sustainability, ESG and integrated value
Goal setting and contracting
The regulatory and legal environment
Social media management: platforms, communities and algorithms
Measurement and analytics for media and social campaigns
Sustainability and social impact in projects
Market analysis and environmental scanning

Delivery and Execution

HACCP principles and prerequisite programmes
Innovation in service delivery
Designing voice-of-customer programmes
Governance of the CX programme
Voice of the customer programmes
Loyalty programmes and rewards
Leading service projects and change
Banking products, services and delivery channels
Leading banking projects and change
Development banking and project finance
IT project and portfolio management
Project management principles and lifecycle
Leading governance projects and change
Compliance frameworks and programmes
Onboarding and induction programme design

Scaling Beyond the Home Market

Traceability, certification and export requirements
Key global frameworks: FAO, GlobalG.A.P., SDGs and national strategies
Transfer pricing and international tax
Cross-cultural and global inclusion
Global and comparative HR contexts
Global sourcing and international trade
International and cross-border tax
Treatment planning and review
Agribusiness marketing, branding and export readiness
Grades, standards and export certification (GlobalG.A.P.)
Export readiness and standards
Global sourcing and trade
Expanding into regional and export markets

Legal and Regulatory

Grading, standards and food safety compliance
Regulatory compliance and biosafety
Regulatory compliance and market requirements
Regulatory and fair-treatment obligations
Relationship management and retention
The regulatory landscape and central banking
Regulatory duty and accountability
Risk, compliance and feasibility analysis
Regulatory compliance and central-bank rules
Regulatory reporting and audits
Building a culture of compliance
Legal and other requirements
Compliance monitoring and enforcement
Strategic leadership at scale
Working with law enforcement and regulators

Partners and Supply

Procurement and contract management
Vendor selection and management
Partnering and co-creation with customers
Negotiation with clients and partners
Market access, buyers and contract farming
Input supply, agro-dealers and last-mile distribution
Contract farming, aggregation and out-grower schemes
Contract farming and out-grower schemes
Vendor, contract and asset management
Supply market analysis
Contract law and formation
Water supply systems: sources, treatment and distribution
Managing complexity and comorbidity
Workplace and organisational contexts
Subcontractor and supplier management

Certified Innovation Strategist

Certified Innovation Strategist

Certification at a Glance

Who Should Enrol?

Everything Included in Your Enrolment

Why This Certification Matters for Your Career

Core Competencies You Will Develop

Programme Modules

What You Will Achieve

How to Get Certified

Common Questions

What Our Alumni Say

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