Data and AI for Leaders

Build confidence in your understanding of data and artificial intelligence (AI) and use new technologies to your advantage.

Course topics

With no coding or programming experience required, by joining this course you will begin building a high-level of data literacy knowledge. You will also learn to weigh technologies and their potential impact and discover a confidence in numbers you didn’t realise existed.

Whichever industry you work in, data and AI literacy is fast becoming a fundamental and sought-after skill, and it’s increasingly important for decision-makers to have the ability to integrate this knowledge into the strategic choices they make.

Develop the skills needed to make impactful, data-driven decisions within your business, and build your conceptual understanding of AI and how it can be applied within your organisation.

This practical four-day course will touch on three main themes – the different tools available to analyse and derive predictions, the transparency of models and understanding human bias in data models.

Day one: 

• Understand the importance of visual analytics and storytelling

• Explore the uses and misuses of statistics

• Interact with pre-designed data visualisations, AI models and dashboards

• Discover the principles of unsupervised learning and cluster analysis

• Explore Alliance Manchester Business School’s Data Visualisation Observatory 

Day two:

• An introduction to supervised and deep learning in practice

• Understand the difference between Classification vs Regression

• Critically evaluate and compare pre-designed models to assess predictions and interpretability

Day three: 

• Explore reinforcement learning and optimisation

• Understand simulation, including modelling of uncertainty

• An introduction to fairness and model boundaries

Day four: 

• Explore multi-criterion decision-making within group settings

• Understand the difference between augmentation vs automation of decision making

• Deliver a presentation critically analysing a data set of your choice and discuss at least one AI application with the data

During the course, you will have a range of opportunities to get to know your class, including a course dinner which offers the chance to come together with a wider cohort of short-course learners to help expand your network.

How you learn

Built with the aim of connecting theory to practice, this course will help you gain valuable industry insights from world-leading experts through a variety of interactive teaching and learning methods.

Delivered face-to-face at Alliance Manchester Business School’s Executive Education Centre, you will take part in collaborative workshops, group discussions and activities, and hear from a selection of inspiring guest speakers including Vlad Jiman, Director of Data at N Brown, and Aleksandra Kulawska, Solutions Engineer at Peak.

You will also have the opportunity to explore Alliance Manchester Business School’s state of the art Data Visualisation Laboratory and experiment with your own data sets.

Designed to break down access barriers and reduce complex language surrounding data and AI, this course uses case studies, prepared models, and dashboards to emphasise the practicality of AI models and business applications.

We aim for several stand-out learning experiences, including:

Applied Learning - A learning environment created by the course facilitator that draws on the experience and input of your course peers.

Knowledge Transfer - A steady stream of feedback from participating peers with diverse business backgrounds on, for instance, how they have implemented data and AI within their organisation.

Reflection - A rare time-out to contemplate your own opportunities and challenges while engaging with our world-class faculty. 

Network Expansion - An expanding professional network drawn from your peers.

Personal Growth - An expanding self-awareness of your own competencies and how they can be honed.

Behavioural Change - An adoption of new rationales and mindsets that improve decision making.

Facilitated Challenge - A regular raising of difficult questions by the course facilitator designed to take you away from your work environment into new work-territory.

As part of this course, you will gain access to our comprehensive virtual learning environment before, during and after your time with us. Here, you will find course materials, including pre-work, slides, case studies, and recommended readings, all conveniently available to aid your learning.

At the end of the course, you continue to have access to this online learning area and the University of Manchester online library for up to one year, supporting you to embed your new toolkit of skills and knowledge back into your workplace.

How you benefit

• Strengthen your decision-making capabilities with data and AI models and outputs

• Understand the ethical, legal and social responsibility issues around the use of AI

• Develop data literacy and data storytelling capabilities

• Discover the technical terms and key questions to ask about AI models

• Gain expert insights through real-world case studies and industry speakers

• Become a member of the AMBS Executive Education Network and benefit from top-class speaker events, regular updates, and networking opportunities with like-minded professionals

• Take time out to reflect on your own skill set and engage with AMBS’s world-class faculty

How your organisation benefits

• Strengthen your ability to spot risks and opportunities for your organisation through data interpretation skills

• Streamline your organisation’s decision-making and discussions surrounding data and AI when working with and managing technical teams

• Exceed organisational objectives by improving productivity and performance through data and analytics

• Confront key issues your organisation may be facing around the deployment of data and AI models and understand how to resolve them

Who should attend

This course would suit general or technical managers and leaders from a wide range of industries with a basic understanding of data. You should be looking to improve your ability to interpret and critically analyse business data and AI models to meet the needs of your organisation.

No coding or programming experience is required to take part in this course.

Award

Upon successful completion of this short business course, participants will be awarded the Manchester Professional Certificate in Data and AI for Leaders.

You will also receive a digital Manchester Professional Certificate in Data and AI for Leaders from Accredible, an online certificate and badge which can be displayed on LinkedIn profiles.

You can choose to curate your own curriculum by attending any four courses from our extensive portfolio. On completion of the four courses of your choice, you will be awarded the Manchester Professional Diploma in Leadership.

As part of the professional diploma, you will receive three executive coaching sessions.

These sessions will help you to apply your continued learning directly into your organisation, identify the specific skills needed to enhance your leadership capabilities, and align your professional development goals with the wider goals of your organisation.

If you are successfully accepted on to the Global MBA within five years of completion of the course, you will receive exemption from one elective. Your attendance on the course must be mentioned at the time of application.