As you progress in your career, you will be expected to take on positions of formal or informal leadership and to demonstrate leadership qualities amongst other professionals. Developing your skills in this area will support you in managing these responsibilities as effectively as possible.
Funders and employers look for evidence of leadership skills and potential, so taking time to understand what is expected of leaders and managers and to put this into practice will enhance your career prospects within and outside of academia.
We offer a range of activities that focus on leadership or leadership-related skills.
Workshops
Our workshops run throughout the year and cover many aspects of leadership, including communication, people management skills, team working, managing up, project management, entrepreneurial mindset, and developing your research vision.
These are typically half-day in-person sessions that introduce existing models and theories and provide a safe learning environment in which to practice some tried and tested tools and approaches.
Explore our upcoming workshops on leadership
Research leadership peer learning sessions
We also run regular virtual research leadership peer learning sessions where you can meet with other postdocs to discuss and share solutions for leadership-related questions and challenges that arise in your day-to-day work. We explore existing leadership models and consider how they fit into the academic research context.
Sessions are co-facilitated by Postdoc Academy staff and a Senior Research Associate with experience in academia and industry, but the content is led by the postdocs who come to the sessions.
Find an upcoming research leadership peer learning session
Intensive leadership training
We periodically offer places on more intensive training opportunities:
- Resilient Leadership in Action - currently accepting applications until 24 September 2025
- RisingWISE for women in STEMM - currently accepting applications until 30 September 2025
To be notified of future training opportunities, please register your interest via this form
Social and experiential leadership development activities
In addition to the training opportunities we offer, you can develop leadership skills through social and experiential activities. Here are some examples.
Social:
- Observe and make note of people demonstrating effective (or not so effective!) leadership attributes and behaviours.
- Attend a discussion panel on leadership.
- Work with a mentor whose leadership qualities you would like to emulate.
- Join the University’s Leaders and Managers Community of Practice to meet aspiring and experienced leaders and managers across all staff groups and to gain a range of perspectives and approaches.
Experiential:
- Supervise students, technicians or other postdocs.
- Lead on a collaborative research project.
- Deputise for your PI/line manager.
- Take up a leadership role on a committee or working group.
Other leadership development resources
Some Learning and Organisational Development workshops on leadership are available to postdocs on a University contract (non-University employed postdocs may be able to book live sessions if capacity allows), and there is a collection of self-taught materials that can be accessed on demand.
The Prosper Portal is a resource developed for and co-created by postdocs from the Universities of Liverpool, Manchester, and Lancaster. If you are struggling to find a workshop that fits your busy schedule, you may want to explore their module on collaboration, leadership and influence.
If you have any questions, please contact development.pda@admin.cam.ac.uk.