Managing Innovation for Impact Adaptive Leadership Programme

We are looking for applicants who meet as many of the following criteria as possible:

• You are currently in a senior leadership role with responsibility for either:

  (a) managing part or all of an innovation portfolio or initiative;

  (b) developing new tools, innovative ways of working and/or investment strategies for greater impact.

• You have experience and/or knowledge of the barriers, challenges and bottlenecks that currently impact the management of innovation within your organisation

• You have influence over how resources for innovation are allocated, designed and evaluated, and opportunity to contribute to the innovation strategy and approach of your broader team / organisation

• You have a network of relationships and partnerships both within and outside your organisation that enable you to share your learning and influence others

• You have an open mindset, are prepared to engage in new ways of working and be challenged to critically analyse your own

• You have the capacity to dedicate time and effort to complete pre- and post-training work and be fully present during the week of training

Participants will be required to complete the online Application Form in full, and be able to answer in detail questions relating to:

• Their professional responsibilities regarding innovation management

• Their recent employment history prior to their current role

• Their self-perceived strengths and weaknesses in their current role

• Examples of challenging situations they have experienced in an innovation context

• Their network of professional relationships

Most importantly, all participants will need to provide a Letter of Recommendation from their immediate manager or sponsor explaining why they are a good fit for the programme, as well as a copy of their up to date CV / Resume.

The fee for the 2026 IDIA Academy Adaptive Leadership Programme is USD $2,495 which covers the cost of facilitation, food and accommodation expenses for the full week. If you are unable to cover the Programme cost, a limited number of fully-subsidized IDIA scholarships are available for individuals from the Global South.

This course is designed and delivered by some of the world's leading innovation thinkers, managers and practitioners from diverse institutional and geographic contexts (see the IDIA Academy Faculty page). To supplement core faculty members, other experts are selected once the final cohort of participants for each course has been agreed in order to further identify faculty who best match the particular needs and learning interests of each cohort.

A maximum of 24 participants will be selected for the 2026 IDIA Academy Adaptive Leadership Programme. While small, this size group will ensure meaningful interaction and participation levels, and is aligned with the intimate environment and setting of the training centres selected.

To maximise the benefit of the IDIA Academy Adaptive Leadership Programme for participants, it is important that participants with the right mix of competencies and needs are selected. Following closure of the application process, a diverse selection committee will rate each applicant against a competency-based assessment tool that will help identify participants who have the most to gain from the course in terms of their individual and institutional learning potential.

In the interests of creating a diverse and dynamic Programme cohort, the selection committee will also look to ensure the following:

• An equitable gender split

• A geographic spread between the Global North and South, both in terms of a participant's home country and their regional focus

• A diversity of agencies supporting innovation in different ways

We recognise you all have busy professional and personal lives! However, the Programme covers a lot of material in just a week, so to give participants the best experience we provide some preparatory reading and exercises to complete before prior to arrival. This is circulated to participants with ample time to allow them to work through the materials at their own pace. Participants will also be able to join an Introductory Webinar to meet their facilitators and fellow cohort members ahead of the Programme start date.

This course is convened through a collaboration between IDIA, the Gates Foundation and GIZ. While it is not part of a recognized training accreditation scheme, participants will receive a branded certificate upon completion of the course reflecting the organizations associated with IDIA who have been the architects of making this course a reality.

Participants from different countries may require a visa. We advise applicants to check this BEFORE applying for the Programme, not because needing a visa will in any disadvantage your application, but to ensure that we can provide you with the documentation support you need to secure your visa should you be selected.

While the Adaptive Leadership Programme itself is only 4 days in duration, a key objective is to ensure participants make strong connections with others in their training cohort to allow for continued support and interaction after the course has concluded. The IDIA Academy Faculty will also be in touch with participants at various intervals after the training to explore how they are applying their learning within their own institutional contexts.

The IDIA Academy Adaptive Leadership Programme, including all sessions and materials, will be delivered in English.

If you have a question that is not answered by any of the above, you may contact the IDIA Academy Faculty directly by emailing idia.academy@r4d.org and we will aim to respond to your request as soon as possible.