Shaping Leaders for Tomorrow’s Challenges

Social service leaders perform some of the most complex, emotionally demanding work there is. Yet, most leadership programmes are not designed with the social service’s context in mind. The Social Service Institute (SSI) partnered with Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) to change that.

SSI and NYP worked together to build leadership programmes to empower social service leaders.

Designed for the Realities of Social Service

SSI brought deep knowledge of the sector; NYP brought academic rigour and experience in social service education. Together, they built programmes grounded in real scenarios, shaped by the values of social service work.

"NYP's partnership with SSI is highly valued, as it ensures that the programmes, Leading Self and Leading People are strategically aligned with the sector's leadership competency framework,” says Dr Bryan Chua, Director, School of Health & Social Sciences, Nanyang Polytechnic.

Leading Self, Leading Others

The foundational programme, "Leading Self in Organisations," equips practitioners with the self-awareness, resilience and steadiness needed to lead effectively in demanding environments. Building on this, "Leading People in Organisations" gives first-time managers the skills to lead social service teams.

One participant, Mr Douglas Tan, Head of CareLibrary, Care Community Services Society, shares what the programme meant for him: “The “Leading People in Organisations” course gave me a new lens and allowed me to function better as a leader in my organisation. It has shaped my thinking and propelled me to adopt a strategic approach in my management work.”

For Dr Chua, this partnership “significantly enhances the training's rigour, credibility, and outreach through our co-development and co-certification”. The strong response from the sector reflects a real hunger for leadership development that speaks to lived experience on the ground.