Students

MQBS1010 – Leadership for Business

2026 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor, Lecturer and Tutor
Deborah Howlett
deborah.howlett@mq.edu.au
Contact via Via email
Building 4EaR Level 6
Tuesdays 1pm - 2pm. Best arranged via email first
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

Successful managers are great leaders. This unit introduces students to the foundations of leadership through self-reflection tools that aid in understanding how to lead effectively. Students will be considering the cultural, political, ethical and organisational contexts of leadership and the implications of leadership ideas. Throughout this unit, students will develop skills to manage teams and better develop their leadership behaviour capabilities.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Identify and analyse the nature and origins of leadership.
  • ULO2: Apply self-reflection to leadership challenges.
  • ULO3: Examine effective practices and strategies to develop sustainable team relationships in a collaborative working environment.
  • ULO4: Analyse ethical leadership issues in a management context.

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Penalty (written assessments):

If you submit your assessment late, 5% of the total possible marks will be deducted for each day (including weekends), up to 7 days. Submissions more than 7 days late will receive a mark of 0.

  • Example 1 (out of 100): If you score 85/100 but submit 20 hours late, you will lose 5 marks and receive 80/100.
  • Example 2 (out of 30): If you score 27/30 but submit 20 hours late, you will lose 1.5 marks and receive 25.5/30.

 

Extensions:

  • Automatic short extension: Some assessments are eligible for automatic short extension. You can only apply for an automatic short extension before the due date.
  • Special Consideration: If you need more time due to serious issues and for any assessments that are not eligible for
  • Short Extension, you must apply for Special Consideration. Need help? Review the Special Consideration page for further details.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due Groupwork/Individual Short Extension AI Approach
Professional practice: Leadership in context 30% No Weeks 6 and 7 in tutorials Group No Observed
Skills development: Leadership frameworks 40% No 06/05/2026 Individual Yes Open AI
Developing leadership capability 30% No 27/05/2026 Individual Yes Open AI

Professional practice: Leadership in context

Assessment Type 1: Presentation task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Weeks 6 and 7 in tutorials
Weighting: 30%
Groupwork/Individual: Group
Short extension 3: No
AI Approach: Observed

The purpose of this assessment is to deepen your ability to critically evaluate leadership practices within organisational contexts, focusing on addressing and understanding leadership challenges.

 

You will work in a team to select an organisation, analyse its leadership dynamics, and explore the challenges faced by leaders within that context using relevant theories and frameworks.

 

 

Skills in focus:

 

  • Collaboration skills 
  • Critical thinking and problem solving

 

Deliverable(s): Oral presentation (max 15 min per group) with accompanying slides.

 

Group assessment
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and analyse the nature and origins of leadership.
  • Examine effective practices and strategies to develop sustainable team relationships in a collaborative working environment.
  • Analyse ethical leadership issues in a management context.

Skills development: Leadership frameworks

Assessment Type 1: Problem-based task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: 06/05/2026
Weighting: 40%
Groupwork/Individual: Individual
Short extension 3: Yes
AI Approach: Open AI

The purpose of this assessment is to develop your ability to critically analyse leadership practices and ethical considerations by evaluating a real-world leader through established theories and frameworks.

You will select a leader of your choice and conduct a comprehensive analysis of their leadership style, behaviours, and ethical decision-making, applying relevant leadership and ethics theories.

 

 

Skills in focus:

 

  • Critical thinking and problem solving
  • Communication skills
  • Global, ethical and environmental citizenship

 

Deliverable(s): Essay [max 1500 words]

 

Individual assessment
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and analyse the nature and origins of leadership.
  • Analyse ethical leadership issues in a management context.

Developing leadership capability

Assessment Type 1: Reflection task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: 27/05/2026
Weighting: 30%
Groupwork/Individual: Individual
Short extension 3: Yes
AI Approach: Open AI

The purpose of this assessment is to help you begin developing key leadership capabilities by building self-awareness, taking responsibility for your learning, and recognising how everyday actions contribute to collective outcomes.

You will analyse your engagement and contributions throughout the unit and during tutorials, evaluating how you participated in discussions, worked with others, and contributed to group activities. You will consider how these behaviours reflect emerging leadership attributes such as commitment, responsibility, and willingness to learn. You will also develop a structured plan for your future learning and development, identifying areas for growth and explaining how you intend to continue developing your leadership capability. Your analysis will be supported by evidence and artefacts from your learning journey.

 

 

Skills in focus:

 

  • Communication Skills
  • Work readiness
  • Discipline knowledge

 

Deliverable(s): Reflective report [max 1500 words], excluding appendices with supporting evidence.

 

Individual assessment
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Identify and analyse the nature and origins of leadership.
  • Apply self-reflection to leadership challenges.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • Academic Success for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation.

3 An automatic short extension is available for some assessments. Apply through the Service Connect Portal.

Delivery and Resources

Prescribed Textbook:

  • The textbook is available in eBook or Print format. Some physical copies may be available in the library. Details on how to access it will be available on the library website. You can also purchase the textbook through Cengage via the link provided on iLearn. 

 

Lectures and Tutorials

  • Lectures (1.5 hours each week) will run from Week 1 to Week 13.
  • Tutorials (1.5 hours per tutorial) start from Week 2 and run until Week 13. Students must only attend their officially registered/enrolled tutorial classes. Some tutorials run simultaneously, so please make sure to refer to the timetable and classes via the MQ Session 1 2026 Timetable to attend the correct tutorial. Class schedule/location may change in case of public holidays*. Please make sure to check Unit Announcements for any updates and changes. 

 

Consultation Hours

  • Weekly consultation hours will run from Week 1 to Week 13 . Students are encouraged to attend consultation hours to raise questions with the Unit Convenor regarding the overall structure, contents and expectations for the unit. 
  • Tutors are students' first point of contact for any other questions. Tutors are the academic members responsible for delivering tutorials, marking all assessments and providing feedback to students. You can contact them:
    1. Before or after tutorials (in-person for face-to-face tutorials and MQ Zoom for online tutorials)
    2. Via email (see iLearn for relevant tutor contact information).

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Academic Success

Academic Success provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Changes from Previous Offering

Change in word count in Essay from 2000 words to 1500 words

Change from Group Report of 2000 words to a Group Presentation of 15 minutes to be presented in tutorials.

Unit information based on version 2026.04 of the Handbook