What Executives Need Future Leaders to Know About AI: A Practitioner’s Guide for Business Education

Artificial intelligence is reshaping organizational decision making, customer experience, operational efficiency, and strategic planning. Yet undergraduate business students often receive exposure only to technical concepts or broad assumptions about disruption rather than a grounded, practitioner-informed understanding of what AI means inside complex organizations. This presentation offers an applied, executive-level perspective designed specifically for business school classrooms. Drawing on twenty-five years of experience as a CIO, energy-sector executive, and consulting Partner, I present an accessible framework that synthesizes the practical realities of AI adoption with the strategic, ethical, and leadership challenges associated with it.

The session is organized into two modules. Part One outlines how AI is used in real organizations, common implementation hurdles, and why ethical considerations are inseparable from technical deployment. Part Two focuses on leadership and career readiness. It explains the emerging human–AI collaboration model, the skills students will need to succeed in AI-enabled work environments, and how leaders can navigate the risks and opportunities associated with intelligent systems. The talk emphasizes clear examples drawn from the energy and utilities sectors, but the lessons generalize across industries.

This applied session is ideal for courses in management, strategy, MIS, analytics, and leadership. It gives faculty a way to strengthen curriculum relevance and provides students with a realistic understanding of the future of work in AI-enabled organizations.