Leading in the AI Era
- Lead when AI shifts where power and influence sit
- Make critical decisions informed by AI, while recognising its limits and biases
- Drive organisation-wide change as culture, power dynamics and workflows transform across functions
- Build the resilience to lead well when ambiguity and cognitive load are the new normal
- Step back from day-to-day pressures to imagine what AI could make possible for your organisation
What you need to know
Overview
AI reshapes what your organisation can do. Your judgement determines if that value actually lands.
AI is now part of everyday organisational life. It's changing how work gets done, how decisions get made and where authority sits. Decision cycles are faster, power is more distributed, and scrutiny from employees, customers and regulators is intense. The hard part isn't implementing the technology. It's leading effectively when uncertainty is constant, influence is shared more widely than the org chart shows, and trust has to hold under pressure.
Most organisations still use AI to cut costs and speed things up. That's real value, but it's not the ceiling. The bigger opportunity is using AI to do things your organisation couldn't do before.
That shift doesn't happen through technology alone. It requires you to rethink how decisions get made, how authority works, and how trust gets built, and to do that thinking alongside people carrying the same weight of decision you are.
This programme develops the judgement and operating disciplines that determine whether AI delivers lasting value in your organisation or merely creates the appearance of productivity.
Why this programme is different
Most AI programmes teach the technology. This one starts from the harder problem: the judgement calls you're already making with incomplete information, under time pressure, with more people watching than you'd like.
The approach draws on leadership disciplines built for high-consequence environments, where decisions are made at speed, on partial information, with real consequences. Our faculty spent careers in British Army Intelligence and Defence Mental Health Services, leading under exactly those conditions and translating those disciplines into the realities of leading an AI-enabled organisation.
You'll be working through this with a small, participative cohort of senior peers, not sitting through a lecture. Henley's participants consistently say that's what makes programmes like this land: not being taught at but working through live problems with people carrying the same weight of decision you are, in a confidential room where you can say what you actually think.
Who is it suitable for?
This programme is designed for senior leaders shaping AI strategy and driving AI-enabled transformation in organisations that have moved beyond experimentation into scaling and integration.
No technical background is required. This is about leadership and decision-making, not technology.
Enrol your team to build a shared strategic language and accelerate impact together. Contact us for group pricing.
Key benefits
Develop the leadership capability needed to navigate uncertainty, align people behind change and realise the potential of AI-enabled transformation.
Participants will learn how to:
- Build leadership capability that keeps pace with AI-driven change
- Improve the quality and speed of leadership decision-making in complex and uncertain environments
- Reduce resistance to AI-enabled change by aligning people, culture, trust and strategy
- Strengthen confidence and trust with employees, customers and stakeholders
- Increase organisational adaptability as roles and expectations evolve
- Create a shared leadership approach to AI-enabled transformation
This is an interactive, senior-level learning experience. You will work with real leadership challenges, exchange perspectives with senior peers and use expert input to test your assumptions, sharpen your judgement and identify practical ways forward.
You will:
- Lead more confidently through uncertainty and change
- Make better decisions when information is incomplete
- Strengthen your influence across functions and stakeholder groups
- Build trust and engagement during transformation
- Develop greater resilience and adaptability
- Turn AI ambition into meaningful organisational impact
Start dates
Course structure
Pre-Programme
Before the programme, you will complete an AI Leadership Readiness Assessment to help you reflect on your current context, identify your priorities and focus your learning on the challenges most relevant to you and your organisation.
Day 1: Recognition, Context and System Leadership
How AI democratisation breaks traditional authority models, and what replaces command-and-control. Why digital transformations typically fail, and what AI changes about that.
You leave Day 1 with a map of the interdependencies, risks and cultural fault lines in your own organisation.
Module 1: Reframing Leadership in the AI Era
Explore how AI is changing leadership, authority, judgement and accountability.
You'll examine:
- How AI is reshaping leadership and organisational performance
- Why leadership must evolve alongside technological change
- How authority and expertise shift when AI becomes embedded across the organisation
- How to keep people, trust and judgement at the centre of AI-enabled transformation
Module 2: Leading Change Across the Organisation
Understand what helps AI-enabled transformation gain traction across an organisation.
You'll explore:
- Why change initiatives succeed or fail
- How culture, systems and organisational structures influence outcomes
- How to build organisational readiness for change across teams and functions
- How to align leadership behaviour with the realities of adoption
Day 2: Adaptation, the AI Crisis Simulation
You'll run a live AI Crisis Simulation: a fast-moving scenario where you're making real decisions with incomplete information, under time pressure, in front of your peers, drawing on military crisis-leadership and resilience protocols. It's followed by work on building trust at speed, making ethical, high-stakes calls where there's no precedent to fall back on, and holding stakeholder confidence while you do it.
You leave Day 2 with decision protocols you've tested under pressure, not discussed in theory.
Module 3: Decision-Making Under Pressure
Strengthen your ability to make sound decisions when evidence is incomplete, risks are unclear and the pressure to act is high.
You'll learn:
- How to make decisions in complex and uncertain environments
- The psychology of leadership under pressure
- How to balance speed, scrutiny and accountability
- Approaches for strengthening judgement and resilience
- Where AI can support decision-making and where human judgement remains essential
- How to create confidence in others when certainty is limited
Module 4: Building Trust Through Change
Develop the skills needed to lead change with confidence and credibility.
You'll explore:
- Ethical decision-making in emerging situations
- How to build trust with employees, customers partners, and regulators
- Communicating clearly when certainty is limited
- Maintaining confidence and credibility during disruption
- Creating a culture that enables responsible AI adoption
Day 3: Integration, Influence and Sustained Advantage
Aligning cross-functional teams through strategic narrative when formal authority isn't enough. Behavioural techniques for cultural adoption.
You leave Day 3 with a personalised 90-day plan that turns three days of learning into everyday leadership practice.
Module 5: Influencing Across the Organisation
Learn how to influence people, not just manage them.
You'll explore:
- How to lead through influence rather than hierarchy
- How to build support for change across diverse stakeholder groups
- How to create a compelling narrative for AI-driven change
- How to build commitment when priorities, expectations and concerns differ
Module 6: Building an Organisation Ready for the Future
Put your learning into practice and identify what needs to change in your own leadership context.
You'll focus on:
- Embedding new leadership habits and behaviours
- Building adaptability across teams and organisations
- Identifying practical next steps for your team, function or organisation
- Turning AI-era leadership into sustainable competitive advantage
Post-Programme
Sustaining momentum and impact
Following the programme, you'll join a facilitated online follow-up session to reflect on progress, explore challenges and test what's held and what's moved once you're back in the organisation. Together, you'll refine priorities, tackle emerging obstacles and reinforce the leadership approaches developed during the programme, ensuring your learning translates into lasting impact.
What you leave with:
- A leadership readiness profile.
- A map of where AI is likely to create risk, resistance or disruption in your organisation.
- Decision protocols tested against a live crisis, not a hypothetical one.
- A framework for judging when to move fast and when to hold, without losing trust or governance.
- A board-ready narrative you can use to bring your top team with you.
- A 90-day plan that turns three days into everyday practice.
Teaching staff
The programme brings together expertise in leadership, organisational transformation, behavioural influence, strategic communication and decision-making under uncertainty.
Drawing on Henley's strengths in leadership development and contemporary AI practice, faculty help participants understand not only how AI is changing organisations, but how leaders must evolve in response.
Meet the Programme Directors
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a technical background to join?
No. This programme is designed for senior leaders who make strategic decisions, shape culture and govern organisational risk, regardless of their technical background. The focus is on leadership, judgement and organisational change not coding.
What makes this programme different from other AI courses?
Most AI programmes focus on technology, tools or implementation. This programme focuses on leadership. It explores how AI is changing organisational performance, decision-making, culture and strategy, and how leaders can respond effectively.
Will I be able to apply what I learn immediately?
Yes. Throughout the programme, you'll work with real organisational challenges and opportunities. You'll leave with practical frameworks, leadership approaches and ways of thinking that can be applied immediately.
Who is this programme designed for?
The programme is designed for senior leaders responsible for shaping organisational strategy, transformation and performance. This includes C-suite executives, senior functional leaders, transformation directors and advisers supporting AI-enabled change at an organisational level.
What is the learning experience like at Henley?
The programme combines expert faculty input, peer learning, practical application and reflective leadership development. Participants learn alongside experienced leaders facing similar strategic challenges, creating valuable opportunities for discussion and insight. Small learning groups allow for individual attention, confidential discussion and a learning experience shaped by the people in the room.
Where does the programme take place?
The programme takes place at Henley Business School's Greenlands campus, on the banks of the River Thames in Oxfordshire. Greenlands provides a dedicated environment for focused learning, strategic thinking and leadership development.
What will I leave the programme with?
By the end of the programme, you will have a stronger understanding of how AI is reshaping leadership and organisational performance, greater confidence in making decisions under uncertainty, and practical frameworks building trust, strengthening influence and for leading AI-enabled transformation. You will also leave with a clearer view of the opportunities, risks and leadership capabilities required to build long-term organisational advantage in the AI era.
Location & facilities
Greenlands campus
Set on the banks of the River Thames and surrounded by countryside, our Greenlands campus in Henley-on-Thames provides an inspiring and reflective learning environment.
Fitness and wellbeing
Dining, refreshments and accommodation
Why Henley?
6th
in the UK overall for executive education open programmes (Financial Times 2026)
(Financial Times Executive Education 2026)Henley Business School brings together deep expertise in leadership, organisational transformation, behavioural change and strategy with practical insight into the opportunities and challenges created by AI.
Our leadership-first approach helps senior decision-makers understand not only the implications of AI, but how to adapt their leadership, culture and strategy in response. As organisations move beyond experimentation and seek to embed AI at scale, we equip leaders with the frameworks, mindset and judgement needed to lead transformation confidently, responsibly and effectively.
Our Executive Education is built on four pillars:
- Practical – We combine academic rigour with a strong practical focus, providing frameworks, tools and insights that can be applied immediately within your organisation.
- Relevant – Our faculty are experienced practitioners who bring real-world expertise and can help you address the opportunities and challenges facing your organisation.
- Collaborative – Through highly interactive, discussion-led learning and engagement with experienced senior peers, you will gain fresh perspectives, challenge assumptions and expand your professional network.
- Personal – Small learning groups provide individual attention, a confidential environment for open discussion, and dedicated time to reflect on your leadership approach, strengths and development priorities.
For more than 80 years, Henley has developed leaders capable of navigating complexity, uncertainty and change. This programme extends that tradition into the AI era.
Leadership Futures: Redefining Leadership in the Age of AI
AI is reshaping the world of work. Leadership determines whether that change becomes progress.
Drawing on insight from senior leaders and Henley experts, our latest report, Redefining Leadership in the Age of AI, offers practical guidance on navigating uncertainty and AI-driven change.
Discover:
- Why AI efficiency gains rarely create lasting value
- How to build AI literacy and close the gap between AI ambition and organisational readiness
- Why human strengths like empathy, critical thinking and emotional intelligence are more important than ever
- The skills, capabilities and mindsets needed to lead effectively in this new era
Contact us
Open Programmes
If you have any questions or would like to learn more about the programme, please contact our programme advisors.
Email: exec@henley.ac.ukTelephone: 01491 418767
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