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Course Description

Most strategic failures happen not because leaders choose the wrong solution but because they design strategies that ignore how complex systems actually work. This course shifts you from diagnosing problems to designing comprehensive strategies that account for system complexity, multiple stakeholders, and unintended consequences. Maritime security serves as your strategic laboratory, in which you will practice balancing competing interests, managing escalation risks, coordinating diverse institutions, and building adaptive strategies that strengthen rather than fragment the systems you're trying to protect.

Professor Isaiah Wilson introduces you to integrated campaign design, where diplomatic, defense, development, and commercial instruments work in concert rather than isolation. Through proprietary strategic frameworks, you will design polycentric governance architectures that coordinate multiple institutions and create adaptive strategies that evolve with changing conditions. Your work progresses through defining desired end states, building campaign architectures, and institutionalizing resilience, culminating in an integrated plan.

You are required to have completed the following courses or have equivalent experience before taking this course:

  • Seeing Beyond Symptoms: Identifying System Drivers
  • Mapping Feedback Loops and Cascading Risks
  • Reframing Strategic Dilemmas in Complex Systems

Faculty Author

Isaiah Wilson

Benefits to the Learner

  • Define strategic end states and assess critical transition points in complex security environments
  • Design integrated campaign architectures
  • Build polycentric governance systems to coordinate diverse stakeholders and institutions

Target Audience

  • Senior executives and C-suite leaders managing complexity across industries
  • Program managers and mid-level leaders overseeing large-scale initiatives
  • Strategy, risk, and transformation leaders driving organizational change
  • Public sector professionals working in national security and public affairs
  • Leaders navigating significant disruption, systemic change, or organizational uncertainty
  • Consultants and strategy advisors guiding organizations through complex challenges

Applies Towards the Following Certificates

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Enroll Now - Select a section to enroll in

Type
2 week
Dates
Nov 25, 2026 to Dec 08, 2026
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Nov 25, 2026 to Dec 08, 2026
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Dec 23, 2026 to Jan 05, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Jan 20, 2027 to Feb 02, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Feb 17, 2027 to Mar 02, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Jul 07, 2027 to Jul 20, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Aug 04, 2027 to Aug 17, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Sep 01, 2027 to Sep 14, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Sep 29, 2027 to Oct 12, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Oct 27, 2027 to Nov 09, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Nov 24, 2027 to Dec 07, 2027
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

Type
2 week
Dates
Dec 22, 2027 to Jan 04, 2028
Total Number of Hours
12.0
Course Fee(s)
Regular Price $999.00

Section Notes

IMPORTANT COURSE INFORMATION:

This certificate includes two years of free access to Symposium! These events feature live, highly participatory virtual Zoom sessions with Cornell faculty and experts to explore today’s most pressing topics. Throughout the year, you may participate in as many sessions as you wish. Attending a Symposium is not required to successfully complete the certificate program.

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