A Private One Day AI Leadership Experience with 30/60/90 Followups
AI is already changing the work you lead.
Can you see where and decide what to do next?
Spend a working day with 'The CAIO Whisperer', David Mathison, and Topher Wurts identifying where AI can create real value, what may already be happening without your knowledge, and the next responsible move your organization or team should make.
David Mathison
CAIO Club & Summits
Topher Wurts
Management Consultant
Not another AI 'seminar'.
A working session, a decision framework, a blueprint and 30/60/90 followup check-ins, and a curated peer circle for the duration.
1 working day
Direct, applied, facilitated
1 Priority
Selected for responsible action
3 peer sessions
30, 60, and 90 day
followups with David & Topher
$1,250
Complete 90-day program
AI is being adopted from the bottom up. Responsibility for value, strategy, risk, culture, & governance remains at the top.
3x
Leaders may underestimate meaningful employee AI use.
57%
Employees in one global study said they concealed AI use.
40%
Reported clear workplace generative-AI strategy, policy or guidance.
THE LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE
You are accountable for a technology moving so fast it is nearly impossible to follow.
Experienced leaders are being asked to make consequential decisions about technology that changes almost weekly. Many have experimented with ChatGPT, but few have had a practical opportunity to understand the larger picture.
Your people may already be using AI to draft, analyze, summarize, automate, recommend, and make decisions. Some of that experimentation may be valuable. Some may expose confidential information, intellectual property, quality, trust, or reputation.
You do not need to become an AI expert.
You do need to become capable of leading where AI is already at work.
The purpose of this day is not to add to the AI noise. It is to help you make sense of it.
Every week brings another tool, course, consultant, certification, webinar, and supposedly urgent AI solution. Some are useful. Almost all are being presented by someone with something to sell. The challenge is finding informed, current guidance grounded in the decisions leaders actually face.
Vendor-neutral and problem-first
Built around the real work you lead
Focused on decisions, not demonstrations
Designed to reveal opportunities and risks
Structured to help you to
evaluate future offers intelligently
Supported for 90 days after the working session
WHY THIS IS UNIQUE
RARE DIRECT ACCESS
Spend a working day with David Mathison.
Known as “The CAIO Whisperer,” David works at the center of the emerging AI leadership field. He is connected with Chief AI Officers, recruiters, CEOs, and public-sector leaders helping organizations adopt, govern, and derive value from AI.
Inside the field
Hear what Chief AI Officers and other leaders are learning. Where organizations are finding value, why initiatives stall, and what responsible leaders need to understand now.
Applied, not ceremonial
This will not be a keynote followed by David’s departure. He will participate in the working day, respond to participant challenges, and help connect the larger AI landscape to your decisions. David will also join the post-event Zoom sessions at 30, 60, and 90 days.
An early look
Participants will receive an early look at the next major AI leadership initiative David is developing at Innovation Exchange.
WHY TOPHER IS CONVENING THIS
“During 2024, in true Gen-X geek fashion, I dove in.”
I began studying generative AI, testing the tools, building automations and agents, and applying AI to strategy, research, publishing, communication, operations, organizational design, education, community-building, and new ventures. It’s truly the most fun I’ve had since the early days of personal computers and programming in the 1980s. Keeping up is hard.
The deeper I went, the clearer two things became:
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AI is far more consequential than learning to ask ChatGPT better questions.
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No responsible leader can truly keep up with every model, tool, claim, risk, and development.
The leadership challenge is not to know everything. It is to understand enough to ask better questions and know whom to trust, distinguish signal from noise, recognize where value may exist, protect what matters, and make sound decisions about what to do next.
I’ve known David for 35 years, dating back to his work in Reuters’ New Media division. David went on to write the seminal book Be the Media, which may be as relevant today as when it was released. He coined the “Chief Digital Officer” title in the early days of web commerce and digital transformation, then became a central figure in the CDAO field. He has likewise been at the center of the CAIO community since before today’s generative-AI platforms existed. I’ve had the pleasure of speaking at his conferences and have seen firsthand how widely he connects leaders across the CDO, CDAO, and CAIO communities.
— Topher Wurts
WHAT YOU WILL ACCOMPLISH
This is a working day.
You will leave with decisions and tools not just notes.
1
See Clearly
Assess current AI readiness, leadership understanding, employee use, policies, data conditions, and potential exposure.
2
Find the opportunities
Map a real workflow or challenge and identify where AI may assist, augment, analyze, automate, or improve decisions.
3
Separate signal from noise
Evaluate whether an opportunity solves an important problem, can be implemented responsibly, and can produce measurable value.
4
Rank the options
Score potential uses according to value, feasibility, data readiness, adoption, risk, time to value, and measurability.
5
Establish guardrails
Clarify ownership, information boundaries, human review, verification, accountability, and stop conditions.
6
Build the blueprint
Select one practical priority and create a focused 90-day plan to validate, test, measure, and decide.
YOUR WORKING MATERIALS
You will leave with an actionable executive decision package.
AI Opportunity & Readiness Snapshot
A concise picture of your current position, strengths, gaps, and exposure.
Ranked AI Opportunity Portfolio
Several possible uses, scored and sorted by value, feasibility, risk, and readiness.
90-Day AI Action Blueprint
A practical sequence for validating, testing, measuring, and deciding what comes next.
Workflow Opportunity Map
A structured view of one meaningful process, challenge, or organizational priority.
AI Guardrails Starter Charter
Initial principles for ownership, information use, human judgment, verification, and oversight.
AI Offer Evaluation Framework
A way to assess the next tool, consultant, course, proposal, or partnership that reaches you.
HOW THE WORKING DAY UNFOLDS
Diagnose. Decide. Test. Review.
Bring one organization, institution, department, program, or team as the focus of your work for this day.
Afterwards, you'll be able to apply the same framework to other areas, teams, or organizations.
Before the Day
Prepare
Complete a concise diagnostic covering priorities, current AI activity, meaningful workflows, concerns, and the decision you most need to make.
Morning
See Clearly
Hear David’s executive briefing, define your leadership challenge, and establish the scope of your assessment.
Midday
Find the real opportunities
Map important work, uncover possible shadow AI, and develop several practical use cases.
Afternoon
Decide what to do
Rank your opportunities, establish initial guardrails, select one priority, and build your 90-day blueprint.
At the close
Commit
Present your plan to your table peer group and state what you will validate, test, measure, and decide next.
After the day
Make real progress 30/60/90
Check-in with your table peers and David and Topher on Zoom at 30/60/90 days post event.
THE PEER ADVANTAGE
Your working group from the day stays with you for 90 days.
You will work throughout the day in a carefully assembled group of six leaders. That same circle will reconvene for facilitated Zoom sessions at 30, 60, and 90 days.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Designed for experienced leaders across all sectors.
This is for you if...
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You lead people, resources, programs, services, strategy, or organizational outcomes.
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You know AI will affect your work but do not yet have a clear plan.
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Your people are experimenting faster than organizational guidance is developing.
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You want practical opportunities without a premature technology commitment.
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You must explain AI opportunities and risks to a board, leadership team, or stakeholders.
This is probably not for you if...
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You are seeking advanced technical training for engineers or data scientists.
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You want a day devoted mainly to prompt engineering.
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You expect a complete legal, cybersecurity, or enterprise architecture review.
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You want a platform for selling AI services to other participants.
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You are looking for a guarantee that AI is the answer to your challenge.
THE COMPLETE PROGRAM
One working day.
Three months of follow-through.
Participation is limited to just 36 or six table groups of 6 so the day can remain interactive and each table peer circle can be thoughtfully assembled.
Wednesday, October 28, 2026
8:30 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
The Historic Flowing Springs Inn
4000 Pottstown Pike (PA Route 100)
Spring City, PA 19475
INAUGURAL SESSION PRICE
$1,250
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Pre-program AI leadership diagnostic
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Full-day AI Decision Lab
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Direct access to David Mathison and Topher Wurts
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Assessment, mapping, scoring, and planning materials
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Personal 90-Day AI Action Blueprint
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Permanent peer circle of six leaders
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Facilitated sessions at 30, 60, and 90 days
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Breakfast, lunch, refreshments, and reception
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to be experienced with AI?
No. The program is designed for leaders, not technical specialists. Familiarity with ChatGPT or another AI tool is helpful but not required.
Is this only for corporate leaders?
No. The framework applies to organizations, institutions, departments, programs, and teams across private, nonprofit, education, healthcare, public, professional, and community sectors.
Will I have to disclose confidential information?
No. Participants should not bring restricted data or disclose information they are not authorized to share. Generalized or sanitized examples are sufficient.
Is this an AI consulting sales pitch event?
No. The day is designed to stand on its own. No predetermined technology, consulting engagement, or vendor solution will be promoted.
Will particular AI tools be recommended?
Tools may be discussed when they help illustrate a use case, but the program is vendor-neutral and begins with the problem rather than the product.
What happens after I request a place?
Topher will respond personally, confirm fit and availability, and provide the registration link. Submitting a request does not obligate you to register.
A PERSONAL INVITATION
Make the AI noise easier to understand and your next decision easier to defend.
David and Topher are inviting a small group of local leaders to spend a serious working day identifying what matters, what does not, and what responsible action should come next.
The AI Decision Lab
Innovation Exchange + David Mathison
Topher Wurts and Associates
Topher Wurts & Associates
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