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Darden Chief AI Officer Program

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Program Overview

AI is changing our business landscape at warp speed. From critical competence with emerging technology to drive better decision making, to strategically implementing AI across your organization, the Darden Chief AI Officer Program provides you with the tools and strategies needed to ethically and effectively leverage AI to compete and thrive.

Delivered by the University of Virginia Darden School of Business, the program blends cutting-edge research with applied, executive-level practice. You will engage in rigorous sessions, collaborative strategic exercises, and practitioner-led discussions focused on translating insight into action.

The experience includes a two-day in-person immersion at UVA Darden Sands Family Grounds and 16 live interactive virtual sessions. The program aims to strengthen decision quality, execution discipline, and leadership credibility in complex, high-stakes environments.

Start Date

Jul 3, 2026

Duration

6 months

Fee

5,400 USD

Program Highlights

  • 2 days in-person, on campus at UVA Darden Sands Family Grounds
    2 days in-person, on campus at UVA Darden Sands Family Grounds
  • 16 live interactive virtual sessions
    16 live interactive virtual sessions
  • AI Strategy Canvas: 3 working lab sessions
    AI Strategy Canvas: 3 working lab sessions
  • AI Strategy Canvas final report out and personalized feedback
    AI Strategy Canvas final report out and personalized feedback
  • Peer coaching and assessments
    Peer coaching and assessments
  • Certificate from University of Virginia Darden School of Business
    Certificate from University of Virginia Darden School of Business
  • Program Alumni Benefits
    Program Alumni Benefits

Program Structure

Through three integrated modules, you will build strategic clarity, execution discipline, and responsible judgment, enabling you to lead AI initiatives with confidence, credibility, and scale.

Modules

  • Strategic AI Leadership
    Strengthen enterprise-level strategic judgment to anticipate disruption, set direction, and shape AI-driven advantage.

  • Human Judgment and Responsible AI
    Apply disciplined judgment to balance innovation, risk, and accountability in high-stakes AI decisions.

  • Scaling AI Advantage
    Move from pilots to impact by embedding AI into core operations and delivering measurable value at scale.

2-Day Immersion at UVA Darden Sands Family Grounds

2-Day Immersion at UVA Darden Sands Family Grounds

Breakthrough Strategy, Responsible Leadership, and AI

This focused, in-person immersion centers on applying strategic and leadership judgment to the use of artificial intelligence in enterprise decision-making. Grounded in rigorous research and real-world application, the experience clarifies where AI creates value, where it introduces risk, and how leaders must respond.

Through faculty-led dialogue and applied business cases, participants explore the strategic choices, ethical responsibilities, and governance implications leaders face when navigating the future of business with AI.

Key Learning Outcomes

  • Assess the strategic implications of AI and emerging technologies on competitive advantage and enterprise performance.

  • Filter meaningful business applications from speculative or low-value use cases.

  • Integrate ethical judgment, trust, and governance into AI-related strategic decisions.

  • Evaluate the organizational and execution risks of both action and inaction.

  • Articulate a clear leadership point of view on responsible and value-creating AI adoption

Curriculum

Module Outcomes

Use rigorous strategic and analytical frameworks to exercise leadership judgment in environments shaped by AI-driven uncertainty, accelerating technological change, and data-informed decision-making.

Technology Forecasting and Strategic Foresight

  • Apply technology forecasting frameworks to anticipate AI-driven shifts in industry structure, competitive dynamics, and value creation.

  • Develop informed strategic views on the pace, direction, and implications of AI adoption across markets and ecosystems.

    Reimagining Strategy in an AI-First World

    • Reframe core elements of strategy including positioning, differentiation, and sources of advantage in contexts where AI is embedded by default.

    • Evaluate how AI reshapes strategic choices around scale, scope, and speed of execution.

      Future of AI

      • Interpret emerging AI trajectories and their implications for organizational capability, governance, and leadership accountability.

      • Assess strategic risks associated with both premature adoption and delayed action.

        Strategic Decision Making through Analytics

        • Apply analytical decision frameworks to evaluate AI-enabled options under uncertainty.

        • Strengthen judgment in prioritizing initiatives, managing trade-offs, and communicating decisions to senior stakeholders.

          Module Outcomes

          Use rigorous strategic and analytical frameworks to exercise leadership judgment in environments shaped by AI-driven uncertainty, accelerating technological change, and data-informed decision-making.

            Technology Forecasting and Strategic Foresight

            • Apply technology forecasting frameworks to anticipate AI-driven shifts in industry structure, competitive dynamics, and value creation.

            • Develop informed strategic views on the pace, direction, and implications of AI adoption across markets and ecosystems.

              Reimagining Strategy in an AI-First World

              • Reframe core elements of strategy including positioning, differentiation, and sources of advantage in contexts where AI is embedded by default.

              • Evaluate how AI reshapes strategic choices around scale, scope, and speed of execution.

                Future of AI

                • Interpret emerging AI trajectories and their implications for organizational capability, governance, and leadership accountability.

                • Assess strategic risks associated with both premature adoption and delayed action.

                  Strategic Decision Making through Analytics

                  • Apply analytical decision frameworks to evaluate AI-enabled options under uncertainty.

                  • Strengthen judgment in prioritizing initiatives, managing trade-offs, and communicating decisions to senior stakeholders.

                    Module Outcomes

                    Apply human judgment and ethical reasoning to the design, deployment, and governance of AI, balancing technological capability with trust, responsibility, and organizational impact.

                      Human-Centered AI

                      • Examine how human judgment, cognition, and bias interact with AI systems in managerial and organizational contexts.

                      • Design AI-enabled workflows that reinforce accountability, trust, and effective human–machine collaboration.

                        AI Technology and Ethics

                        • Apply ethical and governance frameworks to evaluate AI use cases across risk, fairness, transparency, and responsibility.

                        • Navigate regulatory and reputational considerations shaping enterprise AI decisions.

                          AI and Creativity

                          • Assess how AI augments creative work, problem-solving, and innovation while elevating human agency and strategic intent.

                          • Identify appropriate boundaries between automation and human-led creative judgment.

                            AI-Powered Data Analytics

                            • Apply analytical frameworks to interpret AI-driven insights and inform high-stakes decisions.

                            • Evaluate data quality, model limitations, and uncertainty in AI-enabled analysis.

                              Navigating AI Disruption

                              • Anticipate organizational, workforce, and operating model disruptions driven by AI adoption.

                              • Exercise leadership judgment in sequencing change, managing resistance, and sustaining performance during transition.

                                Module Outcomes

                                Translate AI ambition into sustained enterprise value by scaling AI initiatives, leading technology-enabled change, and embedding disciplined execution across the organization.

                                  AI and Technology for New Value

                                  • Identify pathways for creating new sources of value through AI-enabled products, services, and business models.

                                  • Evaluate how organizations move from isolated use cases to repeatable, scalable value creation.

                                    Scaling Generative AI

                                    • Apply frameworks for scaling GenAI across functions, processes, and decision contexts.

                                    • Address operational, governance, and capability challenges that emerge as AI initiatives move from pilots to enterprise deployment.

                                      Project Leadership and Driving Results in Technology

                                      • Lead complex, technology-driven initiatives with clarity of goals, accountability, and execution discipline.

                                      • Translate strategic intent into measurable outcomes through effective project leadership.

                                        Driving Change and an Experimentation Mindset

                                        • Design controlled experimentation approaches that balance speed, learning, and risk.

                                        • Build organizational conditions that support iteration without eroding standards or trust.

                                          Leading Change

                                          • Exercise leadership judgment in mobilizing stakeholders, managing resistance, and sustaining momentum during AI-enabled transformation.

                                          • Align structure, incentives, and culture to support long-term change.

                                            AI and Communication Skills

                                            • Communicate AI-related strategy, risks, and trade-offs clearly to senior leaders and diverse stakeholders.

                                            • Build credibility and alignment through precise, judgment-led narratives around AI adoption and impact.

                                              AI Strategy Model

                                              You will develop an AI Strategy Model that helps frame and stress-test the strategic choices leaders must make as AI reshapes their organization or industry. Rather than a static plan, the AI Strategy Model functions as a decision lens for navigating uncertainty, trade-offs, and sequencing.

                                              The AI Strategy Model will address:

                                              • How AI is likely to reshape sources of advantage, operating assumptions, and risk over the near, medium, and longer term

                                              • Which strategic bets warrant leadership attention now, and which should be deferred or explored through controlled experimentation

                                              • How to sequence initiatives to balance learning, value creation, and organizational readiness

                                              • What leadership structures, governance mechanisms, and capabilities are required to sustain execution at scale

                                              Working Labs

                                              You will refine your AI Strategy Model through a set of structured working labs with industry experts (three small-group sessions of 30 minutes each), focused on sharpening assumptions, surfacing blind spots, and strengthening strategic coherence.

                                              AI Strategy Model Report Out

                                              In the concluding session, you will present your AI Strategy Model to faculty and peers for challenge, feedback, and refinement.

                                              The AI Strategy Model serves as your capstone output, designed to support ongoing executive decision-making and guide enterprise-level action beyond the program

                                              AI Strategy Model

                                              Faculty (Indicative)

                                              Indicative faculty, subject to change based on availability and university guidelines

                                              Industry Experts (Indicative)

                                              Indicative faculty, subject to change based on availability and university guidelines

                                              Certificate

                                              Upon successful completion of the program, participants receive a verified certificate from University of Virginia, Darden School of Business

                                              Certificate

                                              Note: Certificate image is for illustrative purposes only and may be subject to change at the discretion of University of Virginia Darden School of Business.

                                              Who Should Apply

                                              Darden Chief AI Officer Program is designed for emerging and current CXOs, senior leaders and executives, across geographies and industries, who desire to be agile in thinking and strategic in their approach towards building innovative AI solutions to steer business growth.

                                              • 10+ years of work experience and proven success in leading high performing teams / impactful projects

                                              • A minimum of a Bachelor's degree

                                              Apply Now