Class 1-Reflection

Course Name	DYNAMICS OF LEADERSHIP
Course Code	UHPS6013-51
Lecturer and Faculty	Dr. Roslizam bin Hassan, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Technology
Student Name	Sharina binti Hashim
Student Matric Number	MHL254004

Summary & Reflection for: ODL Synchronous Class 1 (16 October 2025)

INTRODUCTION TO CLASS & LEADERSHIP CONCEPTS

From the time I signed up for this university course in the first semester of my Master journey, I was excited. Being a human resource practitioner as well as a human resource consultant focusing on talent management, this is one of the topics that is close to my heart. What makes an individual effective as a leader? If one is a manager, would that automatically make them a leader? Are people born with the traits to lead or are these traits acquired and built over time as one goes through their life journey and milestones? Are these traits also impacted by the different role models that a person looks up to? While in the human resource capacity during my corporate career days, have I demonstrated leadership qualities as I carry out my role and responsibilities? What type of leader am I? As I navigate the joys of bringing up and nurturing my daughters, have I instilled in them values and skills that can bring forth leadership qualities as they navigate their own adult life now?

With all this in mind, I entered the first online class by Dr. Roslizam with anticipation. And I came out of the first class looking forward for more. This being the first class, Dr. Roslizam devoted the first half of the class to the course information as well as articulating his own expectations in terms of student conduct. This being an online distance learning class for post-graduate students, there is the expectation for the students to take full responsibility for managing their time and course load, noting that most of the students are probably working adults juggling numerous life hats.

One of the messages that struck me the most was how Dr. Roslizam emphasised the importance of attendance. Coming from a military family background where discipline in day-to-day life was practiced and enforced, this struck a chord in me as I am also firm believer that being punctual (if not coming in earlier) is one of the key life values. To me it is a sign of respect to always ensure we are on time for whatever activities we have committed ourselves to. And, if due to any reason one is unable to make it to class on time or is unable to attend, then have the courtesy to inform your lecturer accordingly. Therein to me is the first nugget of leadership life lesson that Dr. Roslizam imparted even before we got into the topic of this first class; respect others and respect time before you expect to be respected.

Another equally powerful leadership nugget that was imparted is on the importance of reading. As Dr. Roslizam pointed out, “In order for you to write, you need to read a lot.” Even something that sounds common sense like “…print the assignment before you start doing the assignment” is key. We now live in a social media and artificial intelligence-enhanced world where quick and easy seems to be the norm. Taking that time to read the instructions for each assignment can make a world of difference in the quality of delivery in both in our personal and professional space. I would add on to that and remind myself to not just read, but to read with the objective to understand.

This being the first class, Dr. Roslizam shared that the key to leadership is the ability to influence others. As Dr. Roslizam shared further, below are my key learnings:

An individual leads when they have the ability to influence and inspire others towards certain values or vision. On this, I note an online article in Forbes titled “Influence, Not Authority, Shows Solid Leadership” (2018) that highlighted how the ability to influence is “…a skill that one applies regardless of position and authority.” It also postulates that an effective leader positively influences their team as well as those around them.
For a leader, shared objectives are critical. If the leader and his/her followers do not subscribe to the same vision, eventually the follower will be disengaged from the leader. As an example, Dr. Roslizam mentioned how Steve Jobs had a clear vision and how he would fire anyone who did not believe in the same vision as him. On this, in an article (Sandu, B, 2025) discussing Steve Jobs’s authoritative leadership style during the early years of developing the Macintosh computer and later the Apple computer and phone, I note how one of the engineers at the Apple corporate headquarters recalled that while the work environment was extremely high pressure, “We did it because we believed in the vision” (Sandu, B. 2025).
Dr. Roslizam stressed that communication is very important for a leader. An individual might already be in a leadership position but without the requisite ability to engage their followers through effective communication, followership might diminish. Examples of leaders with the capability to communicate effectively includes Malaysian Prime Ministers such as YAB Dato’ Seri Anwar Ibrahim, YAB Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamed and YAB Dato’ Sri Najib Razak.
Effective leaders tend to be visionary. On this I note that Dr. Roslizam shared this as being one of the key differences between a leader and a follower. The late Honourable Lee Kuan Yew, the Prime Minister of Singapore, is considered the Father of Singapore in how he envisioned the Singapore of the future would look like and how these inspired citizens of the island state to collectively move to accomplish this vision.
Effective leaders must also have the ability to make decisions promptly. The much-documented Nokia case study is an example of how the refusal of the company leadership to decisively adapt their business strategy made them lose their prime spot in the then emerging telecommunication industry.

This being our first class, Dr. Roslizam ended the session with a cute group photo😊