CSL — Certified Strategic Leader
For leaders who set, not execute, the strategic framework for a whole organisation or major institutional unit, answerable to a governing body.
Who this level is for
Leaders who set or materially shape organisational direction and take major decisions on strategy, governance, resources, risk and change, with consequences that play out over the long term.
This level fits if your leadership looks like
- Setting or materially reshaping organisational strategy
- Leading organisation-wide transformation
- Responding to a major governance, resourcing or existential risk
- Building the senior leadership pipeline
- Accounting to a board or governing body
It may not fit yet if
- Below this level, you execute a strategic framework set by others. That is COL.
- Above this level, your accountability extends beyond your own organisation to an enterprise, sector or system. That is CXL. A large single organisation is still CSL.
Common misunderstanding: “A big title means CSL.” Job title alone is never evidence of level. The test is whether you set the framework others execute.
The scope you lead: Strategy
A whole organisation or major institutional unit, setting the strategic framework within which operational leaders deliver.
The question that decides it: Do you set, rather than execute, the strategic framework for a whole organisation or major unit?
What you would need to demonstrate
Direction
Setting organisational purpose and the strategic framework.
People
Shaping leadership culture and organisation-wide capability.
Change
Leading organisation-wide change and building capacity for strategic transformation.
Accountability
Stewarding the organisation: its governance, resources and long-term risk.
Stakeholders
Shaping the organisation's relationship with its environment and strategic stakeholders.
Evidence that might support it
For example:
- Strategy documents you authored
- Board papers and approval minutes
- Directions to senior leaders
- Stakeholder consultations
- Organisation-level outcome data
- Succession frameworks
You identify and evidence leadership you have actually demonstrated. You are not expected to create leadership experiences for the certification.
How it works
- Enquire or applyTell LII about your leadership.
- Eligibility and levelLII confirms your eligibility and the certification that fits.
- Build your evidenceYou build and submit evidence from your own work.
- Independent decisionIndependent assessors review it and a decision is confirmed.
What happens next
Talk to LII about whether CSL fits your leadership. If your evidence fits an adjacent certification better, LII will tell you.