OTTAWA — After an election defeat that reduced his party’s seats from 95 to 44, NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair has been ordered to take online courses in leadership, management and organizational change through distance education at Athabasca University.
“Tom is a great leader, but we feel that these courses will help improve his performance,” said NDP President Rebecca Blaikie. “When an employee doesn’t have the proper training to do a job, we don’t fire them; we encourage them to do better through employer funded retraining, which is all part of his personal learning plan.”
After a performance review with the party faithful, Mulcair has registered himself in three online courses including Leadership in a Dynamic Workforce, Budgeting for Small Business and How to Deal with Difficult Situations.
“Canadians just didn’t realize what a great prime minister he could have been in 2015,” explained National Director Anne McGrath. “And that’s why he will be taking a self-guided communications course that he can complete at this own pace.”
The NDP leader will also have the opportunity to share his experience on a community comments board with middle managers in the private and nonprofit sectors from around the world who are also seeking self-improvement.
His first assignment for this week will be to describe three examples of how he has demonstrated leadership during his career in no more than 150 words.
By earning a certificate in leadership, party members hope Mulcair has a chance at winning the next election, or at the very least, some credits towards finishing his online MBA at the University of Phoenix.
