Sample course outline — adapted after a planning conversation.

AI as a Thought Partner

Use questions, drafts and challenges to work through a business decision. Practice separating evidence from assumptions and recording what still needs checking.

SAMPLE DURATION120 minutes

one 120-minute workshop, including a 10-minute break.

TOOLS FOR THIS EXAMPLE

a laptop and a team-approved text AI tool. Tool and access requirements agreed during planning; practice uses pasted fictional text.

We agree on timing, tools, and deliverables with your team before booking.

Plan this workshop →

Your starting point.

Owners and team members who already use AI occasionally and want a repeatable way to develop ideas.

Able to start an AI conversation and revise a prompt.
Comfort reading a short business scenario.

What you can leave with.

An interview → draft → challenge → refine prompt pattern.
A one-page sample decision note with assumptions and unanswered questions.
A source-check and human-review checklist.

Skills you will practice

Use a short AI interview to identify missing decision criteria.
Compare options against supplied evidence without treating guesses as facts.
Revise a decision note after a focused challenge.

ILLUSTRATIVE EXERCISE · NOT A CUSTOMER RESULT

Compare two delivery services

Example output

Route A fits both required days and is $10 below the weekly budget. Route B is $30 below budget but does not cover Tuesday. Route A is the better fit on the supplied criteria, subject to verification. Before deciding: What reliability evidence is available? What contract terms apply? Are there cancellation fees?

Review: The comparison preserves the missing Tuesday service, shows correct budget differences and treats the recommendation as conditional.

See the input and try the exercise

Fictional practice material

Fictional Oak Street Bakery needs Tuesday and Friday deliveries. Weekly delivery budget: $100. Route A quotes $90 per week and serves Tuesday and Friday. Route B quotes $70 per week and serves Friday only. Reliability, contract terms and cancellation fees are unknown.

Example prompt

Compare Route A and Route B for Oak Street Bakery using only the supplied facts. Requirements: Tuesday and Friday delivery; weekly budget $100. A: $90/week, both days. B: $70/week, Friday only. Reliability, terms and cancellation fees are unknown. Give a conditional recommendation and three questions to verify before deciding. Do not assume missing facts.

SAMPLE AGENDA / 120 MINUTES

What you will work on.

Interview before drafting

25 min

List criteria and questions that would change the decision.

Take home: A short decision brief.

Practice and review details

Practice: For the fictional delivery-service choice below, write the goal and constraints, then request three questions. Mark answers unavailable in the brief as unknown.

Example: Ask AI for three clarifying questions before suggesting an answer.

Check: Criteria come from the source or are labeled proposed; missing answers stay unknown.

Before this exercise: Basic AI prompting.

Compare the evidence

30 min

Build an option comparison and a conditional recommendation.

Take home: A comparison table and draft decision note.

Practice and review details

Practice: Compare the two fictional services against the weekly budget and delivery requirement. Draft a note that explains the tradeoff.

Example: Separate quoted facts, arithmetic and assumptions in a comparison.

Check: Costs and service coverage match the brief; reliability is not assumed.

Before this exercise: Decision brief from section 1.

Break10 min

Challenge the draft

30 min

Identify one unsupported assumption and one question worth verifying.

Take home: An objection list with a response to each item.

Practice and review details

Practice: Ask the reviewer to challenge the recommendation. Accept or reject each objection using the source. If no unsupported assumption appears, review this seeded claim: “The more expensive vendor is more reliable.” No reliability evidence was supplied; identify what to verify.

Example: Give a separate conversation a customer-service reviewer role and only the relevant brief and draft; explain that the role supplies a perspective, not expertise.

Check: At least one review point is grounded in the supplied facts; the reviewer invents no evidence.

Before this exercise: Draft and source brief.

Refine and hand off

25 min

Produce a revised note with a conditional choice and unresolved checks.

Take home: A reviewed one-page decision note and reusable prompt pattern.

Practice and review details

Practice: Revise the note and name a human role responsible for checking missing information.

Example: Show a short note with decision, reasons, assumptions and next questions.

Check: A reader can identify the proposed choice, its conditions and what remains unverified.

Before this exercise: Comparison and reviewed objections.

What to bring and how we can adapt the session

What your team provides.

Choose a decision or document type the team commonly works on.
Identify who owns the final decision and which constraints matter.
Confirm approved tool access; use fictional or approved anonymized material.

Use anonymized examples or our fictional material. Keep confidential records and credentials out of your inquiry.

Choose a useful focus.

Replace the delivery comparison with a hiring brief, procedure or proposal draft.
Practice two reviewer perspectives when participants already revise AI drafts confidently.
Split the workshop into two shorter sessions with the draft saved between them.