AI TRAINING
AI Investment Prioritization for Leadership Teams
Leave with a repeatable scoring framework to select, sequence, and fund AI initiatives confidently.
What it covers
This programme equips executive sponsors and steering committees with structured methods to evaluate AI initiatives against business value and technical feasibility. Participants work through real portfolio scenarios using value-vs-feasibility matrices, stage-gate criteria, and portfolio balance techniques. Sessions blend short lectures with hands-on scoring exercises using the organisation's own candidate initiatives. By the end, leaders can run an AI investment review meeting without external facilitation.
What you'll be able to do
- Design and apply a weighted scoring rubric to rank a portfolio of AI initiatives by value, feasibility, and strategic fit
- Construct a value-vs-feasibility matrix using your organisation's own candidate initiatives and reach a defensible sequencing decision
- Define stage-gate criteria that prevent premature scaling of unproven AI pilots
- Identify portfolio imbalances (e.g. too many moonshots, no quick wins) and rebalance allocation accordingly
- Facilitate an executive AI investment review meeting using a structured agenda and decision log
Topics covered
- AI opportunity landscape: hype vs. proven value patterns
- Value-vs-feasibility matrix construction and calibration
- Scoring frameworks: weighted criteria, risk-adjusted ROI, and strategic fit
- Stage-gate design for AI initiatives (discovery → pilot → scale)
- Portfolio balancing: quick wins vs. transformational bets
- Build-buy-partner decision logic for AI capabilities
- Governance checkpoints and executive accountability models
- Communicating AI investment decisions to the board
Delivery
Typically delivered as two full-day in-person sessions or three half-day virtual workshops spread over two to three weeks, allowing participants to complete between-session scoring exercises on live initiatives. Materials include scoring templates (Excel/Notion), a stage-gate playbook, and a portfolio dashboard starter. Hands-on exercises account for roughly 60% of contact time. Remote delivery uses Miro for collaborative matrix work. An optional pre-work survey collects the organisation's candidate initiatives to personalise case studies.
What makes it work
- Anchoring the scoring criteria to stated business strategy before the first workshop session
- Including both business and technology voices in the scoring panel to avoid blind spots on either side
- Embedding the stage-gate model into existing PMO or board reporting cadences so it is used after the training
- Nominating a single owner for each initiative in the portfolio to maintain accountability through gate reviews
Common mistakes
- Evaluating AI initiatives purely on cost savings while ignoring strategic optionality and learning value
- Letting vocal champions push high-complexity initiatives to the top without a structured feasibility check
- Treating the scoring framework as a one-time exercise rather than a recurring governance ritual tied to budget cycles
- Confusing a successful proof-of-concept with readiness to scale, leading to premature large-scale commitment
When NOT to take this
This training is not the right fit when an organisation has not yet identified even a handful of AI use-case candidates — in that situation, an AI opportunity discovery workshop should come first to build the raw material that prioritisation frameworks require.
Providers to consider
- MIT Sloan Executive Educationexecutive.mit.edu/course/artificial-intelligence-implications-for-business-strategy/ →
- INSEAD Executive Educationwww.insead.edu/executive-education/digital-transformation-innovation/leading-ai →
- McKinsey Academywww.mckinsey.com/capabilities/mckinsey-digital/how-we-help-clients/mckinsey-academy →
- HEC Paris Executive Educationexecutive.hec.edu/program/artificial-intelligence-for-business/ →
Sources
This training is part of a Data & AI catalog built for leaders serious about execution. Take the free diagnostic to see which trainings your team needs.