I. Overview
Today, Critical Thinking is ranked among the top essential skills identified by the World Economic Forum (2021) for developing leadership thinking. It enables managers to make better strategic decisions in today’s VUCA environment — characterized by volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity.
A well-informed strategic decision helps organizations stay aligned with their long-term direction, execute flexibly, and achieve planned objectives while avoiding costly mistakes that waste significant time and resources.
This course is designed by PVD Training to equip participants with structured approaches to analyzing issues from multiple perspectives using accurate, practical, and in-depth thinking. In addition, the course helps participants develop a more positive and effective mindset to improve work performance.
II. Course Objectives
Participants will update their knowledge and strengthen their critical thinking capabilities through the following objectives:
Clearly understand critical thinking and activate daily thinking skills in the workplace
Improve awareness of complex and high-risk decision-making situations
Develop creative and effective problem-solving abilities
Accurately search for and evaluate information
Build strategies to continuously improve critical thinking capacity
III. Course Benefits
Upon completion, participants will be able to:
Solve problems systematically → Improve organizational and structured thinking
Identify root causes of issues → Resolve problems and conflicts effectively
Evaluate trending information critically → Filter unreliable information
Analyze arguments and beliefs logically → Understand the essence of issues
Critically assess and refine their own analyses and conclusions
IV. Target Participants
Board of Directors and Functional Directors
Middle-level managers
Individuals who wish to improve their thinking capability
V. Training Duration
2 Days
VI. Training Methodology
To ensure high practical application and avoid excessive theory, PVD Training will conduct a Training Needs Assessment (TNA) to tailor the program to specific organizational requirements.
VII. Course Content
1. Overview of Critical Thinking
Why critical thinking is essential
Independent and reflective thinking as foundations
Characteristics of critical thinking
Seven common thinking disorders and barriers
The boundary between conservatism, persistence, and indecisiveness
The difference between critical thinking and fallacy
2. Six Levels of Critical Thinking Competency
Knowledge & Systemization – Structuring and organizing information
Comprehension – Structured thinking, speaking, and expression
Application – Basic argumentation and recognizing fallacies
Analysis – Persuasive and effective argumentation
10 standards and 8 elements of effective critical thinking
Synthesis – Integrating knowledge into cohesive new understanding
Wisdom, Confidence & Balance – Value-driven argumentation and authenticity
3. Eight Intellectual Traits
Intellectual humility
Intellectual courage
Intellectual empathy
Intellectual integrity
Intellectual perseverance
Intellectual confidence in reason
Intellectual autonomy
Fair-mindedness
4. Five Barriers to Critical Thinking
Habit
Conservatism
Arrogance
Laziness
Herd mentality
5. Five Skills to Develop Critical Thinking
Observation skill – Reflection exercises
Analytical skill – Learning games
Reasoning skill – Case study exercises
Communication skill – Practical simulations
Problem-solving skill – Scenario discussions
6. Essential Supporting Tools
MBTI personality assessment
8 types of brain thinking styles
Mind Mapping techniques
Six Thinking Hats method
Creative thinking
Positive thinking
Practical wisdom
7. Practical Application
The course includes practical exercises, simulations, learning games, and real-world case discussions to ensure participants can apply the knowledge immediately in their workplace.
