Lead with Influence (August 2026)

Original price was: $650.00.Current price is: $599.00.

Apply Now

Lead with Influence (August 2026)

This interactive program teaches informal but influential leaders the skills and strategies to turn workplace challenges into career opportunities. Through weekly sessions, you’ll learn to navigate workplace dynamics, pitch ideas confidently and level up your leadership. 

August 27, 2026– October 1, 2026

Overview

  • Meet online weekly from August 27 - October 1, 2026 (six sessions, 2 hours each).
  • Learn about your dominant tendencies through exercises, brief assessments and discussions.
  • Discover how best to work with people with different tendencies.
  • Learn and practice effective strategies in giving and receiving feedback.
  • Use a pop-up Slack channel to connect with your peers and participate in weekly leadership challenges.
  • All main sessions are recorded and will be available to participants after the program is over.
  • Apply for this program as soon as you know you want to participate. The deadline to apply is July 27, 2026.
Apply Now

Learning Outcomes

In this program, you will:

  • Discover various leadership styles and how you can effectively lead at work.
  • Recognize how your communication impacts organizational success.
  • Practice how to give and receive feedback.
  • Apply empathy, emotional intelligence and resilience to build teams.
  • Navigate work and your wellbeing with clarity and intention.
  • Learn how to advocate for yourself and your work.
Sale

Original price was: $650.00.Current price is: $599.00.

Apply Now

Overview

  • Meet online weekly from August 27 - October 1, 2026 (six sessions, 2 hours each).
  • Learn about your dominant tendencies through exercises, brief assessments and discussions.
  • Discover how best to work with people with different tendencies.
  • Learn and practice effective strategies in giving and receiving feedback.
  • Use a pop-up Slack channel to connect with your peers and participate in weekly leadership challenges.
  • All main sessions are recorded and will be available to participants after the program is over.
  • Apply for this program as soon as you know you want to participate. The deadline to apply is July 27, 2026.

Training 5 or More People?
get consulting & coaching

You want to pitch a new idea to your boss and you want to make sure it gets heard.

You need to give constructive feedback to a colleague and you’re afraid of hurting their feelings.

You have a hard time saying no when someone asks for help, even when you’re overloaded. 

Why?

These are just some of the challenges that Lead With Influence participants will work through in the six-week virtual program, live every Thursday from August 27 to October 1, 2026.

Designed as a career/leadership development 101 course, Lead With Influence guides participants as they learn more about themselves so that they may better work with others. This will not only help them to effectively use the influence they currently have, they will set themselves up for success in the next steps of their careers.

If you have the title of project manager or product manager, or are in the position of being responsible for outcomes without formally supervising anyone (no direct reports), this program is for you. 

You might oversee a big investigation, a rewrite of your organization’s standards and ethics policies, or the launch of a community partnership. You might be in audience development, where you’re building a workflow to accommodate a new product, or training the staff on best practices, yet you have no team of your own. You may be in communications, and have to navigate getting buy-in and collaboration across departments ahead of a launch announcement.

In essence, you’re the driving force behind initiatives that are critical for the success of your organization. Lead With Influence gives informal but influential leaders like you the skills needed to be as effective and successful as possible.

All the main sessions are recorded, so it’s easy to review and catch up if you must miss a session. 

Questions?

If you need assistance, email us at info@poynter.org.

This online group seminar takes place on Thursdays between August 27 and October 1, 2026, with six live sessions taking place from 2 to 4 p.m. Eastern. Participants will need to be available during these time slots or catch up by watching the recorded sessions after they air.

Session 1: Thursday, August 27, 2026

Session 2: Thursday, September 3, 2026

Session 3: Tuesday, September 10, 2026

Session 4: Tuesday, September 17, 2026

Session 5: Tuesday, September 24, 2026

Session 6: Tuesday, October 1, 2026

Sessions take place from 2 to 4 p.m. Eastern on each listed date.

Who should apply

Leaders in journalism or journalism-adjacent organizations who have lots of responsibility but no direct reports. This might include people with such job titles as product manager, project manager, audience engagement editor or specialist, visuals editor, analytics editor, producer, senior reporter, or communications specialist.

If you think you would benefit from learning about demonstrating leadership without formal authority, you should apply now. This course has limited enrollment and will fill up quickly. 

Application process

The process to apply is straightforward and simple. No letter of recommendation or reference is required. Please be prepared to answer questions about your professional experience, areas of interest and basic demographic information. The deadline to apply is July 27, 2026.

Cost

Tuition for this online workshop, which includes four weeks of live instruction, is $599. Payment is due after we process applications and confirm your participation.

Instructors

Lead Faculty

  • Kerwin Speight
    Faculty, Poynter
    Kerwin Speight is an award-winning television journalist, with more than 20 years of journalism and leadership experience, and a strong track record of producing local...
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  • Megan Griffith-Greene
    Faculty
    Megan Griffith-Greene is on the faculty at Poynter. Her work focuses on training and coaching funders interested in supporting local news, and is funded by...
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Contributing Faculty

  • Kristen Hare
    Faculty, Director of Craft and Local News, The Poynter Institute
    Kristen Hare is the Poynter faculty’s director of craft and local news and the author of Local Edition, Poynter’s weekly newsletter for and about local journalists....
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  • Tony Elkins
    Faculty
    Tony Elkins is a faculty member at Poynter. His portfolio includes Poynter’s leadership workshops Essential Skills for Rising Newsroom Leaders and the Leadership Academy for...
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