The Neuroscience of Internal Influence - Intermediate

Leadership & Management
This course is for HR and L&D leaders who want internal influence to be a research-backed discipline rather than guesswork. It teaches you how the brain decides under pressure, how to pre-frame a message before it lands, how to pull the eight levers that move decisions, how to run stakeholder conversations that earn buy-in, handle resistance, and score your own communication against twelve checks.

By the end, you will be able to pre-frame a budget pitch or change announcement, build a seven-step stakeholder conversation, coach line managers on brain-friendly communication, and measure your impact against a published scorecard. Every technique is anchored in the established neuroscience of Kahneman, Cialdini, Rock, Edmondson, and Lieberman, and paired with a real workplace case.

Access

Self-Paced Learning

Lessons

10 Lessons

Certification

Certificate of Completion

Price

€300

Meet Alex

Course Creator & Knowledge Expert

Alex Logan is a seasoned business development and sales leader with deep experience helping people understand how decisions are made and how trust is built. Over a career spanning global sales, channel management, financial services, fintech, SaaS, and consulting, he has led growth initiatives across the U.S. and global markets while developing a strong practical understanding of buyer behavior, persuasion, and consultative communication. He combines real-world commercial experience with a passion for teaching, and is also the author of a Spanish sales training program adopted by two universities. Alex brings an applied, business-focused perspective that helps students connect brain-based principles to communication, influence, and ethical marketing in the real world.
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Learning Objectives
Course Benefits
Modules
By the end of this course, learners will be able to:

  • Interpret the five drivers of fast decision-making (relevance, safety, contrast, reward, and friction) using the neuroscience of Kahneman, Cialdini, Rock, Edmondson, and Lieberman.
  • Pre-frame budget pitches, change announcements, and training launches so the audience arrives ready to listen rather than braced to resist.
  • Apply the eight levers of influence (contrast, social proof, loss aversion, anchoring, reciprocity, scarcity, choice architecture, and friction reduction) to internal HR and L&D communication.
  • Construct stakeholder conversations using the seven-step Problem, Pain, Contrast, Claim, Proof, Gain, Next Step sequence that surfaces real concerns and lowers defensiveness.
  • Coach senior leaders and line managers to communicate in ways that protect, rather than undermine, team performance.
  • Assess any L&D communication, change message, or stakeholder pitch against twelve diagnostic criteria, and measure improvement against a published scorecard.
Benefits for the Organisation

  • Lift training adoption above the 40 percent that sinks most L&D programmes, by framing them so people choose to engage.
  • Win board approval for L&D budgets with pitches built on how decision-makers actually decide.
  • Reduce the resistance and anxiety that change announcements trigger, so initiatives land instead of stalling.
  • Standardise how managers communicate change, run stakeholder conversations, and coach their teams.
  • Equip HR and L&D to coach senior leaders whose communication style is hurting team performance.

Benefits for Learners

  • Pre-frame any high-stakes conversation so your audience is ready to listen before you say a word.
  • Pull the eight levers of influence deliberately, instead of hoping a message lands.
  • Run the seven-step stakeholder conversation that turns sceptics into supporters.
  • Coach line managers and senior leaders on brain-friendly communication with confidence.
  • Measure what your communication actually delivers, and pass the assessment knowing every answer traces to published neuroscience.
Module 1: Welcome to this course.
Why HR and L&D leaders should care about the neuroscience of influence, the five drivers of decision-making the course unpacks, and the ethical line it will not cross.

Module 2: Pre-frame the conversation before it starts.
Shape how your audience interprets a message before it lands. Built on Kahneman's anchoring and Cialdini's pre-suasion, applied to budget pitches, change announcements, and training launches.

Module 3: What the brain notices before it decides.
How the fast, emotional brain filters for relevance, contrast, and safety before conscious thought, drawing on Kahneman, Damasio, and Lieberman, and what that means for every message you send.

Module 4: Eight levers that move decisions.
Use contrast, social proof, loss aversion, anchoring, reciprocity, scarcity, choice architecture, and friction reduction deliberately, instead of hoping a message lands.

Module 5: Stakeholder conversations that earn buy-in.
Run the seven-step Problem, Pain, Contrast, Claim, Proof, Gain, Next Step sequence that surfaces real concerns, lowers defensiveness, and turns sceptics into supporters.

Module 6: How leaders shape what teams hear.
Why a leader's words change team performance, using Rock's SCARF model and Edmondson's psychological safety, and how HR can coach senior leaders to communicate without triggering threat.

Module 7: Score your communication in twelve checks.
Assess any message, pitch, or announcement against a twelve-point diagnostic, and measure your improvement against a published scorecard.

Module 8: Resources: library and further reading.
A working library: the studies, frameworks, and further reading behind every lesson, from Kahneman and Cialdini to Rock, Edmondson, and Lieberman.

Module 9: Final assessment.
Ten scenario-based questions covering the full course, with an 80 percent pass mark and a certificate on completion.

Module 10: Provide feedback and claim certificate.
Share quick feedback on the course, then download your certificate of completion.

CORPORATE TRAINING

We Can Train Your Employees

Every organisation is different - and so are its learning needs.

Request a call back to talk through:


  • Your current onboarding or training challenges
  • Skills gaps across teams or roles
  • Compliance, wellbeing, or development priorities
  • How digital learning can support performance and retention
  • Special pricing options for multiple seats or team-wide access


We’ll help you explore practical, people-first solutions that fit your organisation.

Course FAQ's

Who is this course for?

HR and L&D leaders at SMEs and mid-market employers. It is especially useful for Heads of L&D, HR directors, HR business partners, internal communications and change leads, and owner-managers who carry the people brief themselves.

Where and when can I take this course?

The course is fully online and self-paced. You can take it anywhere, on any device, and return to it as often as you like. There are no fixed dates and no live sessions.

Do I need prior knowledge or experience?

No prior knowledge is required. The course is pitched at Intermediate level, but every framework is built from first principles with worked examples, so managers at any stage get value from it.

Can this course be used for company-wide training?

Yes. The course works well for team-wide or organisation-wide rollout, and managers can be enrolled in groups. Use the Corporate Training section above to arrange team access.

Do I get a discount if I buy multiple seats for this course?

Yes. Special pricing is available for multiple seats and team-wide access. Request a call back through the Corporate Training section above and we will talk through the options.

Will managers be able to track progress and completion?

Yes. Progress, completion, and final-assessment results are tracked, and each learner earns a certificate once they pass the final assessment at 80 percent or above.