Assertiveness and professional presence in projects
Intermediate – designed for project and change professionals who want to strengthen their confidence, communication effectiveness, personal impact, and professional presence when working with stakeholders, sponsors, customers, and delivery teams.
Suitable for Project Managers, Programme Managers, Change Managers, PMO professionals, Business Analysts, Team Leaders, Project Support Staff, Subject Matter Experts, and anyone seeking to communicate more confidently and build stronger professional relationships.
Two days – Delivered as an engaging classroom, virtual classroom, or blended learning experience, combining practical exercises, reflection, facilitated discussion, coaching techniques, and workplace application.
Modern project environments demand far more than technical competence. Successful professionals must be able to express ideas clearly, challenge constructively, influence respectfully, and contribute confidently within complex and often demanding organisational settings. This course explores the relationship between assertiveness, confidence, communication, credibility, and leadership, helping participants understand how professional presence affects stakeholder perceptions and project outcomes.
Participants will examine their own communication style, behaviours, and responses to pressure while developing practical strategies for increasing confidence, improving self-awareness, and strengthening interpersonal effectiveness. The programme explores how individuals can communicate their views clearly and respectfully, navigate difficult discussions, and maintain positive working relationships even when faced with conflict, uncertainty, or competing priorities.
Drawing upon CITI’s Beyond Method® approach, the course moves beyond communication techniques alone and focuses on the human dimensions of delivery. Delegates learn how to build trust, establish credibility, demonstrate confidence under pressure, and engage with others in a way that creates commitment, collaboration, and positive influence throughout the project lifecycle.
Beyond Method is learning constructed using our own best practice created from our inception as a specialist university institute in 1983; fusing the expertise of Cranfield University with the interests of six major users of change management: British Aerospace, British Gas, British Petroleum, British Telecom, Cable & Wireless and Longman.
A significant amount of research and investment was made into Cranfield Information Technology Institute (shortened to CITI in 1988) to take change professionals beyond methodologies – and learn how to successfully implement change!
The programme begins by exploring the foundations of professional presence and assertive communication. Participants develop an understanding of common communication behaviours, the differences between passive, aggressive, and assertive approaches, and the factors that influence confidence and professional credibility. Delegates learn how to communicate clearly, set appropriate boundaries, and express views with confidence while maintaining positive professional relationships.
Participants will develop practical skills for handling challenging situations, delivering messages with impact, managing difficult conversations, responding positively to feedback, and influencing outcomes in a professional manner. The course examines communication styles, emotional intelligence, stakeholder interactions, active listening, questioning techniques, and approaches for communicating effectively across different organisational cultures and personalities.
Additional topics include managing conflict constructively, increasing self-confidence, speaking with authority, building personal credibility, handling pressure and scrutiny, presenting ideas persuasively, and developing a professional presence that supports successful leadership. Throughout the programme, delegates apply techniques to realistic project situations, enabling immediate workplace relevance and application.
CITI’s Beyond Method® philosophy recognises that projects succeed through people. While methodologies provide structure, it is human behaviour, confidence, communication, and relationships that often determine whether projects thrive or struggle. The programme therefore focuses on developing practical behavioural capabilities that support successful project leadership and stakeholder engagement in real-world environments.
Learning is highly interactive and experiential, encouraging participants to explore their own communication preferences, strengths, and development opportunities. Through facilitated discussions, practical workshops, coached exercises, role-play activities, peer learning, and reflective practice, delegates build confidence while applying concepts to their own workplace challenges and project experiences.
Throughout the course, participants are encouraged to develop their own authentic professional presence rather than adopting prescribed communication styles. By combining self-awareness, communication effectiveness, confidence-building techniques, and Beyond Method® leadership thinking, delegates leave equipped to engage more effectively with stakeholders, communicate with greater authority, and make a positive impact within projects, programmes, and organisational change initiatives.
Ready strengthen your professional prescence?
Discover how CITI’s Assertiveness and Professional Presence in Projects course can help individuals communicate with confidence, build credibility, manage challenging situations, and create greater impact across project and change environments.
Contact us today to discuss your learning requirements or arrange a course consultation.
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