Programme Overview

Dates: July to October 2026 (Four months)
Format: Block courses, blended teaching (in-person and online)
Cost: $9,500
Optional add-on: AI Leadership Immersion in San Francisco

Lead the AI shift with confidence, clarity, and commercial impact

Leading with AI: The Strategy Roadmap is Waikato Management School’s executive-level programme for leaders who want to navigate the impact of AI with confidence, without needing to become technical experts.

It blends global best practice with the realities of Aotearoa New Zealand’s business environment, equipping leaders with the strategic tools, governance frameworks, and applied capability to lead AI transformation with credibility.

What you will gain:

  • A board-ready AI strategy: A practical, tailored strategy that connects your organisational priorities with AI opportunities, backed by case studies, a commercial value case, and governance guardrails.
  • Executive-level AI confidence: The frameworks, language, and decision-making tools expected by boards, investors, and regulators to cut through hype and evaluate AI investments with credibility.
  • Productivity uplift through the AI Fluency Lab: Hands-on capability with generative AI tools that deliver measurable improvements in communication quality, analytical depth, decision-speed, and cross-team productivity. This is
    New Zealand’s most practical executive-level AI capability accelerator.
  • A strategic ‘AI in action’ project: A real initiative designed for your organisation, backed by a quantified ROI case, implementation roadmap, and risk-governance assessment - ready to progress on completion.
  • Confident change leadership: The skills to lead AI transformation, communicate clearly, reshape workflows, and build a future-ready organisational culture.
  • Blended delivery: Online modules, live virtual sessions, and in-person intensives ensure flexibility while maintaining depth, rigour, and high-touch support.
  • One-to-one executive coaching: To ensure your AI strategy, leadership narrative, and organisational project land with board-level credibility.
  • Responsible AI adoption focus: To make thoughtful choices about how the technology is used and the impact it can have. It also means understanding how data is collected, shared, and protected. In Aotearoa, this includes the responsibilities to Māori data sovereignty.
  • Ongoing AI leadership currency: Following completion, participants will continue to receive curated insights, including recommended podcasts, webinars, reading, and invitations to guest lectures. This ensures leaders remain informed, connected, and current as the AI landscape continues to evolve.

Who will benefit from this programme?

Senior leaders and managers responsible for shaping strategy, leading transformation, overseeing risk, productivity, customer capability, digital enablement, or innovation portfolios. 

This includes: CEOs, GMs, directors, heads of function, public sector executives, iwi enterprise leaders, and board-ready senior managers. Secure your place, build your strategy, and lead with impact.

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Why this programme?

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Stay ahead of the curve

AI is advancing faster than most organisations can respond. Within the next 12–24 months, AI fluency will become a defining factor in organisational competitiveness, productivity, and board confidence.

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Seize the AI advantage

Productivity expectations are rising. Organisations want transformation that translates directly into cost savings, performance gains, and strategic advantage - not ungoverned experimentation.

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Get real results

This is far more than a short course. It is a four-month, action-focused, leadership development experience designed to deliver organisational value, accelerate productivity, and build enduring competitive advantage.

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Optional : AI Leadership Immersion in San Francisco

Take your learning to the next level with this exclusive immersion experience in San Francisco. Enjoy direct access to leading AI companies, cutting-edge innovation labs, and policy thinkers shaping the global AI landscape. Additional costs apply.

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Enquiries

Scott Gemmill

Business Development Manager - Waikato Management School