CLF

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Financial services firms don’t just need more workers or managers: they need leaders ready and able to step up and take charge. With CLF®, you’re prepared to showcase your strengths and advance yourself and your career.

PROGRAM AT A GLANCE

Tuition

$950

Timing

Complete in 20 months

Format

Online synchronous and asynchronous format

Learning Outcomes

Master the fundamental skills of sound leadership strategies through two separate learning tracks, including:

  • Communication techniques intended to influence behavior effectively and accent conflict prevention and resolution
  • Identify risks, manage them, and implement a successful business strategy
  • Evaluate marketing practices and demonstrate superior decision-making techniques
  • Prepare a management proposal drawing on ethical, high-performing principles, processes, and practices
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ABOUT THE CLF®

The Chartered Leadership Fellow® (CLF®) program provides financial services managers with the knowledge and tools they need to achieve key organizational goals, such as recruitment and retention, setting performance standards, and developing business plans. The curriculum features a mix of relevant business courses to prepare you for today's leadership challenges and to help you create a culture of success in your organization.

 

WHO CAN BENEFIT FROM THE CLF®?

The CLF® program is designed for financial services professionals with three years or more of experience in managerial roles who want to expand their knowledge of effective leadership practices, such as:

  • Regional Vice Presidents and Managing Partners 

  • Field Managers and Managing Directors

  • Regional and District Managers

  • Sales and Marketing Managers

 

TWO CONCENTRATION TRACKS

Students graduate with an advanced degree in management and leadership education, with a focus on one of two concentration tracks tailored to their interests and professional goals:

Field Track icon

Field Track— Recruitment and retention, performance improvement, business planning

Office Track icon

Office Track—Leadership development, human resource management, current professional issues

Program Details

Educational Requirements

There are no prerequisite courses required before you can begin the CLF® program, but three years of relevant business experience accumulated up to five years before completion of the program ARE required to use the designation.

To receive the CLF® designation, you must:

  1. Successfully complete program content in the core track and either the field or office track (or both)
  2. Agree to comply with The American College Code of Ethics and Procedures

Continuing Education (CE) credit is required to maintain the CLF® designation. For more information, see our CE CREDIT FAQ PAGE.

The Office of the Registrar determines and certifies that students have completed all designation requirements. Once certified, students are considered to have graduated with all the rights, privileges, and obligations pertaining thereto.

Tuition & Fees

CLF® Individual Course Base Tuition: $950

CLF® Total Program Tuition: $5,700

Your tuition and admission fees include required study materials, access to convenient online learning tools, and all necessary examinations. 

*For existing students in sections of CLF® prior to April of 2021, please call an academic advisor for assistance with your program.

The CLF® is a 6-course program delivered online in a synchronous and asynchronous format starting on a quarterly basis. Course materials may include:

  • Video lectures (live and prerecorded)
  • Faculty-led webinars
  • In-depth case studies
  • Detailed course outlines
  • Real-time discussion forums

Students typically complete the program by taking one course per session over a 20-month period. Online courses are conducted through our course website.

FAQs

Students can enroll through this webpage, or by contacting an Admissions Advisor at 888-263-7265. Enrollment can take place anytime during the year up to one month prior to course start date. Courses start quarterly in January, April, July, and October.

A student can switch tracks by reaching out to an Academic Advisor to help guide the transition.

Students have a total of five years to complete all program courses and receive their designation, in addition we accept transfer of credit courses for up to seven years prior to The College application date. Average completion time is about 20 months, counting the 4-week break between courses.

Courses are currently offered online asynchronously and synchronously, meaning some will meet at the same time each week while others can be completed on your own time. Students have 10 weeks to complete each course. Plan to spend 40-60 hours of study time per 10-week course.

Individual course tuition is $950 per course, for $5,700 total tuition. Students can pay for all courses at once or on an individual basis.

Currently, no courses from other College programs transfer to the CLF®. 

Professional Patterns of Management offered by The Kinder Brothers Program can be accepted by The College as our transfer of credit course, HS 382 – Leadership in a Changing World. If you believe you have transferable credit based on the syllabus containing congruent learning objectives, please send an inquiry to Registrar@TheAmericanCollege.edu for review.

Program discounts are handled on a case-by-case basis. Applicants should talk to their Admissions Advisor and their employer for more information and company-specific offers. Scholarships are available for certain qualifying applicants.

Program Director & Faculty

Dr. Jim Peterson, Adjunct Professor of Ethics at The American College
Jim Petersen

Adjunct Professor of Ethics

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Marguerite Barta

Adjunct Professor of Organization & Management

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David Rendall

Adjunct Professor of Management

Keynote Speaker and Author

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CLF® CURRICULUM

The CLF® program consists of 6 courses and 18 credits; three core courses (9 credits) along with three more courses (9 credits) in both of the two potential concentration tracks, some of which provide students with a choice between courses.

HS382 - Leadership in a Changing World (Residency)

Presents basic leadership concepts and the essentials that every effective leader practices. Examines core leadership behaviors and the results of applying them. Explores the leader’s role in creating, inspiring and maintaining an ethical climate.

HS383 - Interpersonal Relationships in the Workplace

Helps managers enhance interactions with others by understanding basic concepts of interpersonal relationships, as well as "soft skills" in professional organizational and workplace settings. Discusses topics such as personal development and identity, productivity and career success, quality of life, physical and psychological health, coping with stress, self-actualization, and humanness.

HS384 - Strategic Leadership

One of the primary tasks of a leader is to construct a clear and effective organizational strategy. This course will explore all aspects of strategic planning, beginning with an analysis of the business, its industry, and the wider economy, which then becomes the foundation for creating, executing, and evaluating a dynamic plan for success.

The CLF® office track is designed for non-sales leaders, either in the field or in a corporate environment seeking more in-depth managerial and leadership knowledge and skills. Individuals who pursue the CLF® office track learn theory and best practices for leadership development, interpersonal relationships, problem solving, human resource management, employee recruitment, and current issues within the insurance and financial services profession.

HS387 - Sales and Marketing Leadership (Residency)

This course examines modern marketing principles and key concepts. Common marketing practices such as marketing research, customer management (consumer markets, business markets, and global markets), brand management, marketing offerings, communicating value and marketing responsibility are explored.

HS389 - Human Resource Management

An overview of the field of human resource management including the rewards and challenges of Human Resources Management, job analysis and design, recruitment and employee selection, training and development, performance management, compensation and pay for performance, benefits, safety and health, employee rights, labor relations, and international human resources management.

HS388 - Leading in the Office Environment (Residency)

This capstone course focuses on the critical need to help today's managers become tomorrow's leaders. It integrates tools and techniques from previous CLF® courses to help managers analyze their current leadership practices to promote organizational success and engender a strong corporate social responsibility.

The CLF® field manager program is designed for financial services professionals in managerial roles. The CLF® field track is focused on delivering proven methods and practical applications for field leaders. The program explores the best practices for recruiting and retaining performers, developing effective business plans, setting performance expectations/objectives, and improving firm performance.

HS385 - Organizational Culture and Change

Enduring organizations must establish a culture that is capable of transforming in response to powerful and volatile environmental forces. This course will enable leaders to influence the invisible and implicit, visible and explicit aspects of a company’s culture so they can predict, prepare for, respond to, and create meaningful change.

HS386 - Operations Management*

The success of an advisory practice is dependent on its ability to provide reliable and dependable service to both internal and external stakeholders. This course will equip leaders to analyze, design, manage, and evaluate the many systems and processes that make a practice function.

HS370 - Sales Leadership (Residency)*

The ability to produce consistent and predictable sales is an essential aspect of leading an advisory practice. This course will examine the sales process from prospecting to closing, as well as elements of managing a sales program including goal setting, training, tracking, motivation, and incentives.

HS371 - Practice Leadership (Residency)

Leading an advisory practice requires more than financial knowledge and investment experience. This course explores the organizational issues and leadership challenges related to owning and/or managing a financial services business. Strategic planning and goal-setting is crucial, not just for clients, but for the company itself. The advisor must also move beyond their own performance to influencing the engagement and productivity of their employees. Similarly, effective management includes understanding and control of the practice’s income, profit, and cash flow.

*Courses are offered as potential alternates, with only one (either HS386 or HS370) required to complete the program.

Get Started with the CLF®

Enroll in the CLF Field Track