For CEOs and executive teams

AI strategy your team owns

Agree what AI must achieve, choose the projects worth funding and lead the organization that delivers measurable results.

Columbia Business SchoolOn-campus program available →
AI strategy on a pageIllustrative
Example of an AI strategy on one page: an ambition, three prioritized bets with value and feasibility, a roadmap with three decision points and the expected net value. Sample data.
Why now

From AI use to AI returns

9 in 10

respondents report regular use of AI in at least one business function.

McKinsey, The state of AI in 2026
37%

attribute at least some EBIT impact to their use of AI.

McKinsey, The state of AI in 2026
2.4x

the revenue growth of "future-built" companies compared with laggards. They are 7.5% of companies.

BCG, press release, September 30, 2026

The gap between using AI and earning from it is a question of strategy: the right bets, funded in stages, with results measured against today's figures.

Self-check

Six questions for your team

Each one is a choice only the executive team can make.

  1. 01What must AI achieve for this business, and where do we start?

    Without one shared ambition, every unit starts its own pilots.

  2. 02Where do we really stand on AI, from data to governance?

    Plans built on opinions stall on data, skills or controls nobody checked.

  3. 03Which AI projects deserve investment, and what will they return?

    Only value cases on today's figures survive the CFO's question.

  4. 04Who owns each AI project and its results?

    Projects without a named owner rarely make it past the pilot.

  5. 05How do roles and teams change when AI carries out tasks?

    Agents change who decides and who checks, long before they change headcount.

  6. 06What do we report, to whom, and when?

    A fixed reporting rhythm keeps money flowing to what works and stops what does not.

The full scope

From ambition to measurable results

Nine building blocks, from deciding what AI must achieve to proving what it returns. Our services cover every one.

Decide
Build the engine
Deliver
01Ambition

What AI must achieve, and where to defend, extend or reinvent

What good looks like

One page the whole team agrees on

Covered by
02Value map

Where AI creates and shifts value in your industry

What good looks like

A map of value at stake across the value chain

Covered by
03Portfolio

The bets worth making, scored on value and feasibility

What good looks like

Five to seven bets, and a list of ideas to stop

Covered by
04Investment case

Expected returns, every cost, and funding in stages

What good looks like

Value cases your finance team has checked

Covered by
05Technology

What to build, buy or partner on, and the data you need

What good looks like

Sourcing decisions per bet

Covered by
06Organization

Decision rights, teams, skills and incentives

What good looks like

Named owners and a working AI team

Covered by
07Governance

Risk appetite, oversight and the rules that apply

What good looks like

Clear limits and an approval route

Covered by
08Roadmap

Eighteen months of milestones, owners and KPIs

What good looks like

Money released one stage at a time

Covered by
09Return and first 100 days

Expected impact on the P&L, how it is measured, and the first 100 days

What good looks like

Results tracked against today's figures

Covered by

AI Strategies for Leaders takes your team through all nine in three days. AI strategy framework & plan outline teaches the method for all nine in two days.

Value

Every bet proven in numbers

We score every AI opportunity on value and feasibility, then prove the best ones in numbers your finance team will sign off.

Value × Viability matrixIllustrative
Strategic betsPrepare firstQuick winsFund firstParkRevisit laterBuy, don't buildUse standard tools Viability → Value → Dot size: estimated annual value
How the value adds upIllustrative
TodayCostSpeedQualityRevenueInvestNet
  • Today's figures firstCurrent cost, cycle time or error rate, signed off by finance before work starts
  • Credit agreed up frontHow much of an improvement counts as the result of AI is agreed before results come in
  • Every cost countedBuilding, running, AI usage fees and training people, all in
  • Tracked after launchBenefits reported for a full year, good news or not
All services for executives

Start small, go further

Every step stands on its own and leads to the next.

2Learn and outline
Two to three days

You leave withA strategy in outline, or an investment-ready draft

3Diagnose
Three weeks

You leave withA readiness score and a 90-day plan

4Build
Ten weeks to six months

You leave withA funded start, a full strategy or a strategy already moving

5Transform
Eighteen months

You leave withMeasurable results and an internal team ready to take over

  • Workshop
  • Education
  • Strategy
Recommended first steps

Start in a day

Also for executive teams:Your industry in 2030 → · Also as a joint session with your boardBuild a Value Case →AI agents and your organization → · Also as a joint session with your boardAI risk appetite → · Also as a joint session with your boardResponsible AI policy → · Also as a joint session with your board

Your AI strategy

Three ways to build it

Build it yourselves with our method, build it in three days with faculty and peers, or build it together with us.

AI strategy framework & plan outline
Type
Education
Duration
2 days
Where
At your premises
Who does the work
Your team, with our method
You leave with
Your strategy in outline and a work plan to finish it
Best when
You want to build it yourselves
Learn more →
AI Strategies for Leaders
Type
Education
Duration
3 days
Where
On campus or in-company
Who does the work
Your team, with faculty, coaches and peers
You leave with
An investment-ready draft, an 18-month roadmap and a 100-day plan
Best when
You want a fixed end date and peer challenge
Learn more →
AI strategy & roadmap
Type
Strategy
Duration
14 to 16 weeks
Where
At your premises and online
Who does the work
Your team and ours, together
You leave with
A complete strategy, value cases checked by finance and an 18-month roadmap
Best when
You want the full strategy with us
Learn more →
Execution

From plan to results

Most of the value of AI is created after the strategy is approved. We help you start on one real example, set up the program, or guide the whole roadmap.

Illustrative
Q1Q2Q3Q4Q5Q6
Foundations
Data foundationsCentral AI platform
AI projects
First working solutionScale across business units
Governance
AI register & policiesReporting, every quarter
Decision points
Agree the ambitionFund the first phaseScale what works

Part-time Chief AI Officer →senior AI leadership two to four days a month

Columbia Business School
Executive program

Three days at Columbia

AI Strategies for Leaders is a three-day program in which CEOs and executive teams build their own company's AI strategy, with their own data, guided by faculty sessions, coaching and challenge from peers. You leave with an investment-ready draft, an 18-month roadmap and a plan for the first 100 days. Our founder teaches this program at Columbia Business School. It is also available as an in-company edition for one leadership team.

About the program →
  1. 01Ambition and value
  2. 02Bets and money
  3. 03Organization and results
The nine chapters of your plan
01Your presentation to decision-makers
Ways to take part
Private program on campusYour leadership team at Columbia Business School in New York.
In-company at your premisesThe full program for one leadership team, at your premises.

Questions executives ask

  • Where should we start?

    Most executive teams start with the one-day Executive AI alignment day or the three-week AI Readiness & Value Scan. In the first conversation, we help you choose.

  • Do you also build the solutions?

    Workshops, education and advice never include building. From Vision to Execution includes the Tailored AI Gateway and up to three first AI solutions. Anything beyond that runs as a separate engagement, with a builder you choose.

  • What does our team need to put in?

    Every service works with your own people. Workshops and education need the participants and a short preparation; strategy engagements need a core team that works alongside ours.

  • Do we work with our own data?

    Yes. Every module works with your own data and decisions. Everything you share stays confidential and is used only for your engagement.

  • Can our board be involved?

    Yes, where there is one. Several workshops run as joint sessions, and the For Boards page describes the services for directors.

Start the conversation

Tell us where you are with AI. We help you choose the right first step in the first conversation.

Looking for your board? For Boards →