Leading with AI: Strategy and Product Design
Transform strategy into impact with AI-powered product design
Benefit From Up to 14% Off on This Integrated Learning Journey
The Leading with AI: Strategy and Product Design program brings together two highly acclaimed online courses from Stanford Online, offering a powerful blend of AI leadership frameworks and human-centered product design. This integrated curriculum equips professionals with the tools to lead organizational AI transformation while designing ethical, intuitive AI-powered solutions.
Lead with Confidence at the Intersection of Strategy, Design, and AI
The Leading with AI: Strategy and Product Design program from Stanford Online empowers professionals to move beyond AI adoption toward transformation. Over 12 weeks, this integrated learning journey brings together two sought-after courses, AI-Driven Leadership Strategies for the Future and UI/UX Design for AI Products, to help you build the strategic mindset and design capabilities needed to lead in the AI era.
Led by renowned Stanford faculty, Professor Melissa Valentine and Professor Michael Bernstein, you’ll learn how to identify high-impact AI opportunities, manage change at scale, and create AI-powered solutions that are intuitive, ethical, and human-centered. You’ll explore how to align business strategy with emerging technologies, redesign workflows for efficiency, and build trust through explainable AI design.
$407 billion
projected global AI spending by 2027
Source: IDC
65%
of product teams use AI for UX design
Source: Adobe Report
91%
of high-performing companies invest in AI for decision-making
Source: Deloitte
What Will You Learn?
Lead with AI-Driven Strategy Learn how to align AI tools like ChatGPT and generative agents with business goals to drive innovation and competitive advantage.
Design User-Centered AI Experiences Master the principles of responsible AI design, including trust, explainability, and ethical impact, using real-world case studies and prototyping techniques.
Apply Practical AI Tools at Work Use cutting-edge tools like large language models (LLMs), Wizard-of-Oz prototyping, and workflow design frameworks to solve real business problems.
Build Scalable, Ethical AI Solutions Develop strategic plans, evaluate data readiness, and design workflows that are built for adoption, automation, and long-term organizational value.
Who Is This Program For?
Team Leaders and Managers who are responsible for implementing AI solutions across departments or processes.
Product Managers and UX Managers looking to incorporate AI into their product strategies and user experience frameworks.
Innovation and Strategy Executives aiming to develop organizational readiness and lead digital transformation initiatives.
Leaders and Managers of Technology and Data Teams seeking to bridge the gap between AI development and business impact.
Consultants and Change Agents interested in aligning AI-driven strategies with ethical, user-centered design practices.
No prior technical expertise in AI is required, but a foundational understanding of digital technologies and organizational operations is recommended.
Program Outline
How Leaders Create Conditions for the Adoption of Machine Learning (ML) Enable effective ML adoption through leadership practices. Evaluate current structures and propose new frameworks for implementation and measurement.
How Leaders Create Conditions for Effective Integration of Generative AI and Agentic AI Understand the strategic differences of GenAI. Design leadership approaches for framing, structuring, and evaluating GenAI initiatives.
Creating a Culture of Data Excellence Assess data quality, governance, and AI readiness. Build a framework for sustainable, integrated data practices.
Configuring Workflows and Decisions for Machine Learning Design scalable ML workflows. Anticipate resistance and plan for change across teams and systems.
Configuring Workflows for Generative AI and Agentic AI Explore real-world GenAI use cases and evaluation strategies. Design a GenAI workflow that fits your context.
How the Work of Managers Will Change in the Age of AI Examine how AI is reshaping managerial roles. Conceptualize supportive tools for algorithmic decision-making and coordination.
Live Webinars with the Faculty: Participate in two interactive, faculty-led live webinars designed to enhance your understanding, address real-world challenges, and connect leadership concepts to practical AI implementation.
Capstone Project: Implementing Generative AI in High-Value Workflows - Identify a high-impact workflow, evaluate tool fit, build an implementation roadmap, and reflect on key outcomes.
Duration: 60 Minutes (Live Session) Bridge the gap between strategy and design. Explore how AI readiness influences product development and why human-centered design is essential for successful adoption. Get a preview of topics like trust, explainability, and ethical risk.
How Generative AI Works Build a practical foundation in how generative AI and large language models work, and how they are applied across real-world product and design workflows.
The Spork Problem and Prompt-Based Design Examine why prompt-based interfaces often fail users and learn how successful products embed AI into task-specific, user-centered interactions.
Prototyping AI Experiences Learn how to prototype AI-powered designs using techniques like LLM prototyping and Wizard of Oz methods to test ideas quickly and reduce risk.
AI-Augmented Design Tools Explore how AI-powered design tools fit into modern UX workflows, where they add value, and where human judgment remains critical.
User Control vs. Automation Understand the trade-offs between user control and AI automation by analyzing design patterns and real-world product case studies.
Trust and Explainability in AI Systems Learn how to design AI systems that foster user trust through explainability, balance overreliance and skepticism, and support effective human–AI collaboration.
Live Webinars with the Faculty: Participate in two interactive, faculty-led live webinars designed to enhance your understanding, address real-world challenges, and connect leadership concepts to practical AI implementation.
Capstone Project: Implementing Generative AI in High-Value Workflows - Refine your AI plan by evaluating usability, human-AI interaction, and ethical impact. No technical tools or interviews required.
Conclude the program by synthesizing both leadership and design perspectives. Demonstrate how aligning organizational strategy with user-centered AI design can drive stronger outcomes, greater adoption, and long-term success.
Program Walkthrough
Five live sessions with Stanford faculty on AI strategy and product design
Two applied capstone projects and an integrated reflection activity
Practical use of Gen AI tools like ChatGPT and LLMs
Industry case studies including Stitchfix and others
Three digital credentials from Stanford Online with CEU credits
Instructors
Melissa Valentine
Associate Professor of Management Science and Engineering, Stanford University
Melissa Valentine is an Associate Professor at Stanford University in the Department of Management Science & Engineering. Professor Valentine studies how technology is transfo...
Michael Bernstein
Professor of Computer Science, Stanford University
Michael Bernstein is a Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University, where he is a Bass University Fellow and STMicroelectronics Faculty Scholar. His research in human...
Certificate of Achievement from Stanford Online
All learners who successfully complete this integrated learning journey will earn three Stanford Online credentials: one each for completing AI-Driven Leadership Strategies for the Future and UI/UX Design for AI Products (delivered as digital badges) and one for completing the Leading with AI: Strategy and Product Design Program (delivered as a digital certificate). In addition, they will earn 8.5 Continuing Education Units (CEUs)* for completing the program.
*To obtain CEUs, complete the accreditation confirmation, which is available at the end of the course. CEUs are calculated for each course based on the number of learning hours.
Note: All certificate images are for illustrative purposes only and may be subject to change at the discretion of Stanford Online.
Learner Testimonials
I'm excited to be leading at a time when AI is reshaping our world. The focus on human-centered leadership during this technological shift was invaluable, and I'm confident the insights I gained in th...
Frank Lieber
CEO, Co-founder, AIvolve Leadership Dynamics GmbH
AI-Driven Leadership
This course gave me an opportunity to systematically learn how to apply ML/AI at work as a leader. The academic approach of teaching by showing evidence with almost unfiltered and very recent real wor...
Weijuan Davis
Sr. Manager/GenAI Architect, Capgemini
AI-Driven Leadership
The course offered a deep dive into designing interfaces for AI-powered systems, with a strong emphasis on responsible design, transparency, and user trust. What stood out most was the balance between...
Sarah Mondet
Head of Design, COTO Collective
UI/UX Design for AI Products
*Participant testimonials from learners who have completed the online courses.
Frequently Asked Questions
Studying with Stanford Online goes beyond self-paced modules. You’ll engage in live sessions, participate in expert-led discussions, and collaborate with global peers. The experience combines academic rigor with real-time interaction and practical application.
Upon successful completion of this program, you will earn three Stanford credentials: one each for completing AI-Driven Leadership Strategies for the Future and UI/UX Design for AI Products (delivered as digital badges) and one for completing the Leading with AI: Strategy and Product Design Program (delivered as a digital certificate). These credentials validate your expertise and can be added to your resume or LinkedIn profile. Courses may enable you to become eligible to earn CEU credit based on a standard number of hours of instruction.
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