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Leadership Learning Portfolio
Skills Lab 1: Instructions
This week you begin your Leadership Skills Labs in Cadmus, where you will complete activities and your draft 300-word reflection.
Skills Lab 1: Activities
1. Watch two TedX talks
Simon Sinek is a bestselling author and motivational speaker focused on business leadership and organisational culture, best known for his ‘Start with Why' philosophy that encourages leaders to inspire others by leading with their core purpose rather than just their products.
Talk 1 (18 mins): How Great Leaders Inspire Action
Talk 2 (12 mins): Why Good Leaders Make You Feel Safe
Both talks are provided below in Skills Lab 1 Resources.
2. Take structured notes in Cadmus
As you watch, record your notes in Cadmus under these four headings. Use dot points - you are not writing an essay.
(i) Key ideas
Briefly explain, in your own words (aim for 2-4 dot points per idea):
Golden Circle (Why-How-What): What does "starting with why" actually mean for leaders (not brands)?
Circle of Safety: What makes people feel safe at work, and why does that matter?
(ii) One quote or moment that stuck
Choose one moment, example, or short quote from either talk
In 1-2 lines, explain why it stood out to you
(iii) Leadership behaviours
List 3-5 specific things leaders do that:
Help people understand purpose ("why we're doing this"), and/or
Help people feel safe, trusted, and supported
Think actions and language, not personality traits.
(iv) Tourism, hospitality and/or events connection
In a short paragraph or dot points:
Where have you seen these ideas work well in service settings?
Or where have you seen them fail (e.g. stress, blame, high turnover)?
This can be from work, placements, volunteering, or as a customer.
Structure your responses in Cadmus with clear headings and subheadings.
3. Draft your 300-word reflection (personal + theory + literature)
Use the prompts below to draft a 300-word reflection. This is a working draft, not a polished submission. The goal is to think on the page, make connections between experience and theory, and identify what you might refine before submitting your final portfolio.
Reflection Prompts
Purpose of prompts: You do not need to answer each prompt separately. Instead, use them to shape one short, connected reflection that links experience, leadership theory, and your future practice.
What moment or idea in this Lab challenged you, surprised you, or resonated with your own experience (work, study, volunteering or life)?
How does this personal experience connect with one leadership theory from the course?
How does a scholarly source help you interpret or question your reaction, assumptions or behaviour?
What does this mean for how you want to lead in future?
Note: You will have time later to revise and polish this reflection for final submission - focus first on clarity of thinking rather than perfect writing.
Reflection Starters
Purpose of starters: Some sentence starters to help you connect Sinek's ideas to personal experience + leadership theory + emerging identity.
"A moment from Sinek's talk that stayed with me was..."
"This challenged an assumption I have about leadership because..."
"A real situation where I've seen (or not seen) a ‘circle of safety' was..."
"When I look at this through [insert theory], I now understand that..."
"One scholarly idea that helps me interpret this experience differently is..."
"What this means for how I want to lead in pressure or uncertainty is..."
Skills Lab 2: Instructions
This week you analyse leadership skills, industry expectations, and your readiness for roles in tourism, hospitality and events (THE).
Open the Cadmus Workspace via Assignments
Create a new section and complete the Skills Lab 2 activities
Draft your 300-word reflection on Skills Lab 2
Submit your Week 3 work in Cadmus by Sunday 11:59 pm
Time guide: 3 - 3.5 hours
Skills Lab 2: Activities
1. Analyse leadership skills expectations in THE industries
In this Skills Lab you'll examine how defined and valued in real industry roles, and what those expectations mean for your own development as a future leader. You'll will analyse senior leadership job advertisements from the THE industries, and use this analysis to reflect on your current strengths, skill gaps and assumptions about leadership.
2. Take structured notes in Cadmus
Record your work directly in Cadmus, using the four sections below. Use clear headings, subheadings and dot points.
(i) Define soft, transferable and hard skills
Using credible sources (academic literature, industry reports, professional bodies), briefly define:
Soft skills (e.g. communication, emotional intelligence, relationship-building)
Transferable skills (skills that apply across roles and sectors, such as problem-solving or teamwork)
Hard skills (technical, role-specific, or operational skills)
Keep this concise. Dot points are fine. This is about shared understanding, not exhaustive definitions.
(ii) Job advertisement analysis
From the pre-selected set of jobs provided in the Skills Lab Resources, below, choose two roles. For each role, briefly document:
the core responsibilities of the position, and
the skills required, categorised as: soft skills, transferable skills, hard skills
Focus on patterns and priorities rather than listing everything.
(iii) Personal skills audit
Based on your job ad analysis, reflect on your own experience (work, volunteering, placements, group projects). Briefly note:
skills you already demonstrate with confidence,
skills that feel underdeveloped, confronting, or aspirational, and
any assumptions you held about leadership that were challenged.
This is not a deficit exercise. It's about awareness and direction.
3. Draft your 300-word reflection (personal + theory + literature)
Use the prompts below to draft a 300-word reflection. This is a working draft, not a polished submission. The goal is to think on the page, make connections between experience and theory, and identify what you might refine before submitting your final portfolio.
You do not need to answer each prompt separately. Instead, use them to shape one short, connected reflection that links experience, leadership theory, and your future practice.
Reflection Prompts
When comparing industry job ads with your own experiences (work, volunteering, group projects), what did you notice about your strengths, gaps, or assumptions?
Which leadership theory or concept helps you make sense of why certain skills felt familiar, confronting, or aspirational?
How does academic literature support or challenge your interpretation of your leadership readiness?
What personal insight will guide your next stage of leadership development?
Skills Lab 2: Resources
Job Advertisements for Analysis
The job title links to a PDF Job Description. Select and analyse (at least) two roles that interest you:
Director of Events, Sheraton Hotels and Resorts (advertised on LinkedIn, 1/8/2025)
Events and Partnerships Lead, Ready Tech (advertised on LinkedIn, 5/8/2025)
Head of Community, Partnerships and Events, Salt and Shein (advertised on LinkedIn, 6/8/2025)
Director of Food and Beverage, Hilton (advertised on LinkedIn, 27/7/2025)
Head of Marketing, Blinq (advertised on eeger, 8/8/2025)
Associate Director of Conferences and Events, Sofitel (advertised on eeger, 1/8/2025)
Head of Business Development, Velocity Partnerships (advertised on eeger, 2/8/2025)
Market Insights Manager, Contiki (advertised on eeger, 6/8/2025)
Head of Global Philanthropy, Fred Hollows Foundation (advertised on eeger, 23/7/2025)
Skills Lab 3: Instructions
This week focuses on understanding your own leadership style and how it shapes behaviour across different tourism, hospitality and events contexts.
Open the Cadmus Workspace via Assignments
Create a new section and complete the Skills Lab 3 activities
Draft your 300-word reflection on Skills Lab 3
Submit your Week 4 work in Cadmus by Sunday 11:59 pm
Time guide: 2.5 - 3 hours
Skills Lab 3: Activities
1. Develop self-insight using a leadership style tool
In this Skills Lab, you'll use a leadership style tool to better understand how you tend to lead, communicate and make decisions, especially under pressure or uncertainty. The focus here is behavioural awareness, not performance evaluation. You are exploring how you lead, not how good you are at leading. This Lab helps you:
Recognise patterns in your leadership behaviour,
Connect those patterns to leadership theory, and
Consider how your style may play out across different industry contexts.
2. Take structured notes in Cadmus
Record your work in Cadmus, using the four sections below. Use headings, subheadings and dot points.
(i) DISC self-assessment results
Complete the DISC self assessment (link in Resources, below) and briefly record:
Your dominant DISC profile
A short description of what this profile suggests about communication style, decision making, approach to leadership and teamwork.
Keep this descriptive - at this stage you are not analysing the result.
(ii) Strengths, challenges and possible blind spots
Based on your DISC profile, briefly note:
Leadership behaviours that may come naturally to you,
Behaviours that may be more challenging or effortful, and
Any possible blind spots suggested by your profile (e.g. over-directiveness, avoidance of conflict, over-analysis, people-pleasing).
Focus on tendencies and patterns - not skill gaps or development plans (that comes later).
(iii) Apply your leadership style to an industry scenario
Choose at least one of the scenarios below. Select one that stretches you beyond routine operational leadership.
Hospitality: You're managing a hotel team during peak holiday season with unexpected understaffing and high guest demands. How would your leadership style support team morale and service delivery?
Events: You're the operations lead for a large music festival when a major storm threatens to cancel the event. How would your leadership style influence how you handle crisis communication and stakeholder coordination?
Tour Guiding: You're leading a multi-day tour group in a remote region when a guest is injured. How might your leadership traits guide your decision-making, group reassurance and logistical management? Get authentic, AI-free assignment help online from top tutors.
Destination Marketing: You're leading a regional tourism board campaign to reposition a destination after reputational damage (e.g., overtourism, bushfire recovery or a cultural controversy). How might your leadership style influence the way you engage with stakeholders and the public?
Policy Advisory: You're part of a state-level tourism and events advisory council tasked with developing a new policy for sustainable visitor growth. How would your leadership style affect how you work within the group, manage conflict, or advocate for particular priorities?
For your chosen scenario, briefly consider:
How your DISC style would shape your response
How you might communicate with others
What risks or limitations your style might introduce in this context
3. Draft your 300-word reflection (personal + theory + literature)
Use the prompts below to draft a 300-word reflection. This is a working draft, not a polished submission. The goal is to think on the page, make connections between experience and theory, and identify what you might refine before submitting your final portfolio.
You do not need to answer each prompt separately. Instead, use them to shape one short, connected reflection that links experience, leadership theory, and your future practice.
Reflection Prompts
How did your DISC results align or misalign with how you experience yourself in real interactions (teamwork, conflict, leadership situations)?
Which leadership theory or concept from the course helps you make sense of a behaviour, preference, or blind spot that emerged?
How does academic literature help you interpret, question, or reframe your leadership tendencies?
What does this insight mean for how you want to show up as a leader in future situations?
You will have time later to revise and polish this reflection for final submission. Focus first on clarity of thinking rather than perfect writing.
Skills Lab 3: Resources
Online DISC Assessment
Your DISC profile helps you understand your behavioural preferences and personality style to learn more about yourself and those around you. The DISC model categorises individuals into four primary personality traits: Dominance, Influence, Steadiness and Conscientious. Each trait provides insights into how you lead, communicate and make decisions. Complete your free DISC assessment via the link in Course Readings.
Skills Lab 4: Instructions
This week focuses on clarifying your leadership value proposition through a strategic self-assessment and connecting it to how you present yourself professionally in tourism, hospitality and events contexts.
Open the Cadmus Workspace via Assignments
Create a new section and complete the Skills Lab 4 activities
Draft your 300-word reflection on Skills Lab 4
Submit your Week 5 work in Cadmus by Sunday 11:59 pm
Time guide: 3 - 3.5 hours
Skills Lab 4: Activities
1. Clarify your leadership value proposition
In this Skills Lab, you move from behavioural awareness (Lab 3) to strategic positioning. You will:
Reflect on how you present yourself professionally
Conduct a personal SWOT analysis
Begin clarifying your leadership value proposition
Leadership is not only how you behave - it is also how you position and communicate your capability within industry contexts.
2. Engage with self-marketing concepts
Before completing your SWOT, access the resources below to:
Watch the short self-marketing lecture
Read journal articles on self-marketing
These resources introduce key ideas about professional positioning, visibility, and communicating value in leadership contexts. You are not summarising these materials. You are using them to inform how you analyse yourself.
3. Take structured notes in Cadmus
Record your work in Cadmus using the four sections below. Use headings and dot points.
(i) Personal Leadership SWOT
Complete your SWOT using the template. This is strategic analysis - not self-criticism. Use the prompts below to shape your thinking.
Strengths
What behaviours do others thank you for?
What do you do well under pressure?
Where have you consistently added value?
Weaknesses
Where do you over- or under-do a behaviour?
What feedback is recurring?
What leadership tendencies may limit your effectiveness?
Opportunities
What roles, projects or networks could you step into this term?
Where could your style or strengths be strategically positioned?
Threats
What habits, constraints or contexts could hold you back?
What industry realities may challenge your development?
(ii) Pattern recognition
This step moves you from listing to analysing. Briefly identify:
One or two patterns emerging across your SWOT
Tensions or contradictions you notice
Areas where strengths and threats intersect
(iii) Three one-sentence leadership commitments
Write three clear "I will..." statements that you intend to bring into team work for the next assessment. For example: "I will actively create space for quieter team members to contribute", "I will speak up early when expectations are unclear". These commitments are not separately assessed. They prepare you for Lab 5 and your final portfolio.
4. Draft your 300-word reflection (personal + theory + literature)
Use the prompts below to draft a 300-word reflection. This is a working draft, not a polished submission. The goal is to interpret your SWOT strategically using leadership theory and academic literature.
You do not need to answer each prompt separately. Use them to shape one connected reflection.
Reflection Prompts
Which part of your SWOT connected most strongly to a real moment in your personal or professional experience (a success, mistake, feedback moment, confidence or doubt)?
How can one leadership theory help you interpret this experience differently?
How does academic literature help you understand your emerging leadership identity and how you communicate it?
What does this reveal about how you want to position yourself as a leader in tourism, hospitality and events industries?
You will have time later to refine this reflection. Focus first on clarity of thinking rather than perfect writing.
Skills Lab 4: Resources
Self-Marketing Resources
Self-Marketing Lecture: In this short lecture, key concepts and strategies are introduced that will guide your SWOT analysis and self-marketing. Access the 20-minute lecture via the link in Course Resources.
Online Readings: Two online articles - The Art of Self Marketing and The Strategy of Self-Marketing - will help you gain a deeper understanding of how you present yourself effectively in professional settings.
Personal SWOT Template: Use this template to explore your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
Additional Resource: For more information, including key questions to ask yourself for your SWOT, have a look at the MindTools Resource link in Course Resources.
Recommended Readings
To assist with positioning yourself as a leader, communicating value, articulating strengths, leadership identity, a selection of recommended readings for this Skills Lab is provided in Course Readings to support your reflection and use of theory. This list is not exhaustive - you can engage with other literature provided in Course Readings and carry out your own research.
Skills Lab 5: Instructions
This week focuses on articulating your leadership identity and presenting yourself professionally in preparation for collaborative leadership contexts.
Open the Cadmus Workspace via Assignments
Create a new section and complete the Skills Lab 5 activities
Draft your 300-word reflection on Skills Lab 5
Submit your Week 6 work in Cadmus by Sunday 11:59 pm
Time guide: 2.5 - 3 hours
Skills Lab 5: Activities
1. Synthesise your leadership identity
In this Skills Lab, you move from analysis (Labs 1-4) to articulation. You will synthesise your learning into a clear leadership identity and professional presence that will support your contribution in collaborative teams within tourism, hospitality and events contexts. This is about clarity and confidence, not perfection.
2. Update your professional presence
(i) Create or update your LinkedIn profile
Create or refine your LinkedIn profile so it reflects your emerging leadership identity.
Ensure your profile highlights:
Your leadership strengths
Relevant experiences
Skills aligned with THE industries
Clear positioning and professional tone
These resources support professional profile development (links available in Course Resources):
Tips for Building the Perfect LinkedIn Profile for Students
12 Ways to make your LinkedIn Profile Stand Out
Take a screenshot of your profile and include this in your Learning Portfolio.
(ii) Begin building your professional network
Connect with the unit coordinator on LinkedIn to begin building your professional network and stay connected to industry insights and opportunities beyond this course. Make sure you select ‘connect' not simply ‘follow'.
(iii) Draft your 30-second leadership pitch
Using the scaffold below, draft a concise leadership pitch:
"The kind of leader I strive to be is..."
"I create value by..."
"This matters in THE contexts because..."
"How I add value to a team is..."
This can be written as:
A short paragraph
Dot points
A scripted 30-second introduction
Your pitch should reflect clarity, purpose and professional confidence. These resources include tips for creating a personal vision statement (links available in Course Resources):
Creating a Personal Vision Statement
Top 10 Answers to Interview Questions
(iv) Create a Leadership Superhero artefact
Create a concise, visual representation of your leadership identity. This artefact is about clarity and confidence - not artistic talent or AI expertise. This artefact is not separately marked, but it is required. It supports your identity work and transition into collaborative leadership teams.
You may choose any format:
A simple image (AI-generated or Canva)
A Canva graphic
A hand-drawn sketch (photographed and uploaded)
A text-only "Superhero Identity Card"
A professional-style leadership identity card combining your photo + pitch
Your artefact must include:
A superhero name or title
2-3 defining strengths ("superpowers")
A short mission or tagline
One growth area or vulnerability
If you use AI, you might try a prompt such as: "Create a superhero character that reflects a leader who values [insert your key values]. Their strengths include [insert 2-3 strengths]. Their mission is to [insert impact or purpose]. Include one realistic vulnerability". You can refine the output to better reflect you and your voice.
If not using AI, you can create a simple Leadership Identity Card that includes:
Your name + professional photo
Your 30-second leadership pitch
A bold "Leader Name" (e.g. "The Calm Strategist", "The Inclusive Connector", "The Ethical Navigator")
Three strengths
One growth area
Take a screenshot of your Leadership Superhero and paste it into your Learning Portfolio.
3. Draft your 300-word reflection (personal + theory + literature)
Use the prompts below to draft a 300-word reflection. This is a working draft, not a polished submission. The goal is to think on the page, make connections between experience and theory, and identify what you might refine before submitting your final portfolio.
The goal here is to interpret how your leadership identity has become clearer through articulation and professional positioning.
You do not need to answer each prompt separately. Instead, use them to shape one short, connected reflection that links experience, leadership theory, and your future practice.
Reflection Prompts
Looking across all five Skills Labs, which personal experiences were turning points in understanding who you are becoming as a leader?
Which leadership theory best aligns with the leader you are growing into, and why does it resonate with your lived experiences?
How does academic literature enrich, complicate or validate your evolving leadership identity?
What commitments or intentions will you carry into your future leadership practice? (You may refer to your Lab 4 commitments.)
Skills Lab 5: Resources
I've included two AI-generated images of my own professional personas as examples - one capturing my teaching leadership identity ("The Doctor"), and another representing my research leadership character. To create these, I used ChatGPT and a prompt similar to the above, and I included my photograph for more accurate representation.
These are simply illustrations of how identity can be expressed visually. Your artefact can be simple. What matters is clarity of thought, not graphic design skill.
Recommended Readings
A selection of recommended readings for this Skills Lab is provided in Course Readings to support your reflection and use of theory. This list is not exhaustive - you can engage with other literature provided in Course Readings and carry out your own research.