MANAGE LIKE A PRO.
You’re already doing the work. Let’s level up so you can
No degree required.
(hooray!)
What’s New In The Lab:
April is all about Strategic Communication.
This month, we're getting into an unsung hero of the world of work: strategic communication. Not to be confused with "how to give a presentation" or "how to write a professional email," we’re digging deep into the art of narrative, finding the sweet spot where your distinct point of view generates buy-in instead of eye rolls, and knowing which influence style to reach for depending on who's in the room.
Inside, you'll find a framework for reading organizational subtext, plus a research-driven, practical tool for managing stakeholder perceptions. And as always, bring your real communication challenges to our monthly live call!
Tired of advice that starts with “just go get another credential”?
The scene: You’re ready to move up, but you’re already juggling people, programs, and budgets — and there’s no time in the day for another degree.
The strategy: Use a practical system that turns today’s work into tomorrow’s career wins.
The tactic: The Manager’s Lab is an immediately-actionable membership: think bite-size lessons, plug-and-play templates, and a proprietary framework you can put to work the very same day.
The shared win: You see (and feel!) sharper results fast, and your team sees measurable ROI before the next performance review.
We have some awesome news for you:
The most impactful thing you can do right now to level up your management skills is to turn a laser-sharp focus to the job you already have and develop an authentic, competency-based, values-driven approach to managing people, programs, projects, systems, and strategies.
And some even better news?
We’ve tailor-made a monthly membership to help you do just that.
Buying in bulk for your team? Reach out to us at hello@createboundlessimpact.com for bulk pricing and streamlined logistics.
You get structure and practical guidance to put everything you’re learning into practice in the role you’re currently in.
Your boss, stakeholders, and communities get an incredible professional who can only be described as “overdelivering”.
We call that a win/win upskill. And we love to see it.
At Boundless Impact, everything we do is about the win/win upskill. Here’s how it’s looked in our three co-founders (and the Manager’s Lab’s fearless leaders!)
Alli worked in Orientation and First-Year programs and transitioned to instructional design, organizational effectiveness, & program management.
Caroline worked in Student Activities and transitioned to project management, marketing & brand strategy, and entrepreneurship.
Kyle worked in FSL and Leadership Programs and transitioned to impact consulting, corporate training, and executive coaching.
Now, we run an agency supporting businesses across operations, from marketing to curriculum design. We use management principles every single day.
And most importantly, we’re pulling back the curtain to show you exactly how we use management principles that build on what we learned working in higher ed to make impact (and get paid).
After a career built on leadership and human development, you’re more ready than anyone.
Let’s go.
“I’d call you my secret weapon… except gatekeeping is the antithesis of everything you stand for.”
— one of our all-time favorite additions to our “Kind Words” folder… and the spirit behind developing The Manager’s Lab.
The Manager’s Lab is a holistic, affordable monthly membership for professionals in higher education and non-profit settings who are ready to level up and hone their management skills without expensive bootcamps or certifications.
You’ll learn how to…
Develop your own management theory of change… so you can stop imposter syndrome in its tracks
Create opportunities to apply and practice management skills in your current role… so you can bloom where you’re planted and look toward what’s next
Build a “take it anywhere” approach to management… so you can use these skills in any role, with any partner, any time
Jumpstart your career development with tailored-to-you learning paths… so you can stop relying on supervisors and chance connections for the development you need
You’ll get…
Immediate access to a Notion portal with all program content released at the time of your sign-up. (That’s right — no matter when you sign up, you’ll get everything we’ve ever done, and keep access as long as you’re a member.)
Monthly content drops of new material centered around our three learning lenses: strategic thinking, creative thinking, and critical thinking. (Plus lots of fun email bonuses along the way!)
Live coaching from our founders via monthly Zoom content calls.
Psst… what we don’t do?
❌ This isn’t another credentialing course, and it isn’t an endless series of videos. Because you know what? You don’t need another lecture. You need practice, tangible exercises, and feedback.
And we’ve priced it affordably because you and I both know our higher-ed/non-profit folks love their credentials. If your future holds a SHRM, a PMP, or something else… we’ll leave some pro-devo coins left over for you to go get it. (Honestly, we’ve probably got a referral for you. Not kidding — if that’s what you’re after, reach out.)
What You’ll Master
The heart of the Manager’s Lab is a set of interactive modules to help you build skills that are foundational to leveling up as a leader. Throughout your time in the lab, we’re dropping content that covers off on (and helps you practice):
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Learn how to confidently manage timelines, resources, and outcomes — all without losing sight of your team’s needs or your organization’s mission. Manager’s Lab teaches you to apply the core tools of project and program management in real-world settings, with practical guidance on everything from software to stakeholder alignment. We focus on getting things done well: on time, on budget, and with purpose.
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Managing people is more than giving feedback or assigning tasks: it’s about building trust, coaching others, and creating environments where everyone can thrive. Manager’s Lab helps you develop a management style that’s both effective and human, using scripts, frameworks, and real-time practice to help you lead with confidence and clarity, even when things get hard.
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Strategy isn’t just for senior leaders. It’s for anyone managing complexity, change, or growth. In Manager’s Lab, you’ll learn to zoom out, prioritize what matters most, and connect daily decisions to long-term outcomes. We’ll guide you through frameworks for identifying root causes, surfacing creative solutions, and thinking like a strategist… all without needing a business degree.
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Your ideas are only as powerful as your ability to communicate them. Manager’s Lab helps you sharpen your messaging, tailor your communication to different stakeholders, and advocate for what matters with clarity and confidence. Whether you're leading a meeting, pitching a new idea, or navigating tricky power dynamics, we’ll show you how to make your voice heard.
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Great managers don’t have all the answers, but they know how to ask the right questions. Manager’s Lab gives you tools to slow down, analyze situations clearly, and make decisions that are thoughtful, values-aligned, and impactful. You'll learn how to think critically without getting stuck in analysis paralysis, and how to move forward when the path isn't obvious.
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Creativity isn’t just for designers — it’s a leadership skill. Whether you’re building a new process, reimagining a team structure, or finding workarounds with limited resources, you’ll need creative thinking to make it happen. In Manager’s Lab, we teach practical creativity that helps you innovate from within, push past assumptions, and bring bold, effective ideas to life.
We decided to call this a “lab” as a special shoutout to all our higher-ed pros. The Manager’s Lab stands as a counterpart to the six million tabs you have open right now on “project management” and the eight library books you have checked out currently on “developing people” written by folks in corporate spaces. All that reading is the lecture.
The Lab is now in session. 🤓🧪
Why the Lab Works
This is not another course with hours of content and no action. In fact, we believe the most important thing you can do with management knowledge is to put it into practice.
The Boundless Impact Growth Framework gives you a system and a structure to do just that. Here’s the four-step loop you’ll run every month inside the Lab:
Gain knowledge through our monthly content drops
Develop your point of view and your theory of change through structured exercises
Engage in practice & testing to refine your skills
No more drinking from a firehose. Just targeted, actionable insights that lead to actual practice that lends itself easily to feedback, coaching, and practice.
And speaking of practice…
Since the main thrust of the Manager’s Lab is action, we’re providing you with everything you need to get started applying what you learn right away. We’re talking:
Notion templates you can use now to start leading your teams like a project manager
Checklists and guides to make sure you’re representing your professional skills appropriately. (Hint: maybe you don’t need a PMP as much as you need some “magic resume words”.)
A workshop on using projects from your own job to practice using these skills
A workbook that forms the foundation of developing your management theory of change
“I talked to Caroline for 20 minutes and had a clearer vision than I’ve ever had about where to take my career next, and how to get there.”
(Heads up: this person now works as a project manager at a Fortune 500 company – in their first role outside a non-profit setting.)
“Girl. Come on. You all should be charging a million dollars for this.”
(Heads up: charging a million dollars is not in the plan 😂)
“The way you think about management is so different than anything I’ve seen before. Thank you for keeping HUMANS centered.”
(Heads up: it is possible!)
Let’s talk $$$
Investment in this program starts at $39/month (or $429/year — that’s one month free!)
Here’s the deal: I said for years (years!) I was never going to offer a paid course. And then… slowly… as people started paying me for ad-hoc coaching, I heard more and more:
“You have got to package this up.”
Rule #1 of ethical project management? We listen to our stakeholders. ❤️
So here’s the guarantee we need to offer so everyone sleeps well at night:
If you sign up for the Manager’s Lab and you give it your all – I mean reading the modules, trying the activities, attending the calls, and reaching out to us – and you don’t feel like you got what you paid for, just get in touch with us. We will offer you a full refund, no questions asked.
And while we’re talking money…
We’ve structured this as a monthly membership because different people will benefit from different amounts of time in the program, and we’ve tailored this experience around exactly what you need. Two implications here:
Cancel anytime.
If you need to pay yearly instead of monthly because you’re using professional development funding/a p-card, get in touch with us – we’ve got you covered.
Psst! Pro-d beneficiaries:
I’ve been educating around project management for five years now, and one of the things I always say to higher ed and nonprofit pros is: you’re probably already doing project management.
Honestly, the chances are that you don’t need more “book learning”. You need a supportive environment with a community of mentors who will help you grow based on what you’re already doing.
Please, please, please don’t stay stuck! Join us over in The Manager’s Lab and take the next step toward leveling up as a leader in management.
FAQs
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We genuinely believe you’ll start seeing shifts to the way you approach management and leadership within your first month of the program (which is why we’ve structured it this way!).
That said, we’ve kept the monthly price low because we also know that as non-profit and higher-ed professionals, our lives ebb and flow! Some months you might have time to go “all in”. Other months you might be doing the “bare minimum”.
The program doesn’t have requirements – even being able to devote 1-2 hours per month will show results.
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The Aspiring Project Manager is an appetizer for the Manager’s Lab. We cover way more ground in the Manager’s Lab, and it’s also the first time Caroline’s been around in an interactive fashion to work with these learners –asynchronously and synchronously.
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NO! This is NOT a prep course and will NOT count toward the hour requirement for a PMP or any other credential. It will also not focus on jargon, test concepts, or any other critical pieces of a credentialing course. Once more: THIS IS NOT A PREP COURSE.
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Yes. Many, many of the people I’ve worked with have come back to tell me that getting a PMP was measurably easier because of what they learned from me.
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Absolutely not – this is meant to light whatever fire you’ve already got inside and amplify it.
For example — if your dream is to be a manager whose superpower is how much you love transformational leadership, the Manager’s Lab will help you fan that flame.
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We have a Slack group that the program leaders check daily. No question is too big or too small!
We also host monthly events – and we’re open to ad-hoc hosting as needed!
“I wish I’d reached out to you all sooner. Like two jobs ago.”
We hear you — really. But you know what they say about “the best time to plant a tree”, right?
(The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, and the second best time is today.)
Let’s plant that tree, my friend. Because let’s be honest: you’re ready to level up.