WorkAI Lab
In a world driven by technology, no recent development has been as top of mind as Artificial Intelligence. With so much excitement surrounding these advances in technology, it can be easy to get caught up in the noise of “what’s next” and miss out on “what’s now.” As companies prepare for major shifts in how they operate and how their employees define a productive workday, many are left wondering where to even start.
Employers: Nominate your employees here.
The WorkAI Lab at Roanoke College was intentionally designed to meet the needs of individuals and employers in an ever-evolving technology landscape. Those who participate in this 7-week, cohort-based AI intensive will gain actionable knowledge into how they can leverage AI within their work, while also leaving the intensive equipped to teach AI best practices both up and down their org chart.
Interested individuals can self-register, and employers can nominate their rising stars for participation and sponsor their spot in the cohort, allowing them to invest in the future of both their company and their employees. Those registered will gain access to leading experts in AI adoption and productivity and will also have the chance to perform hands-on exercises to build systems they can quickly implement in their daily work.
Putting you at the forefront of the evolving tech landscape
Completing this cohort-based intensive will earn you the “AI-Forward Leadership” badge, which you can include with your other skills and certifications to demonstrate your ability. Over the course of the seven-week program, you will learn from a variety of experts who currently use AI to lead their companies at levels that far exceed what was traditionally thought to be possible with their current headcount. Topics will span the gap of practical knowledge of tools and their uses, as well as processes that can be used to develop a comprehensive AI strategy for your organization.
As part of this cohort model, participants will be placed in working groups based on the tools they have access to for their daily work. Those who have access to Copilot Studio will be placed together, for example, to allow for knowledge sharing within the group.
In-person participation will be augmented with asynchronous learning modules that participants can perform on their own between sessions to practice what they learned and prepare for the next session.
Foundational topics that build upon one another
Each week of the program, those enrolled will learn about topics that are foundational for implementing AI company-wide.
-
Week 1: AI Foundations
How AI works; GenAI vs. ML; separating hype from reality - Learn the basics of AI so you have a strong foundation to build upon.
-
Week 2: Data, Risk & Ethics
AI bias; privacy; governance; what leaders must know - Learn why AI is only as strong as the data it is provided with, and why privacy concerns and security are important topics related to working with AI.
-
Week 3: AI at Work Today
Real use cases by industry; tools tour (ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude) - Learn the current industry leaders and their practical use cases.
-
Week 4: Prompting & Productivity
Prompt engineering; automating workflows; writing with AI - Learn the power of proper prompting and how it can take your AI skills to the next level.
-
Week 5: Managing AI-Enabled Teams
Leading change; team buy-in; performance with AI tools - Learn to team AI up and down your org chart to get buy-in from both your team and your company’s leadership.
-
Week 6: Building Your AI Strategy
Identifying opportunities; ROI framing; pitching to leadership - Learn how to determine what areas of your business are ripe for an AI-refresh.
-
Week 7: Capstone Presentations
Participants present their AI implementation plan to peers - Demonstrate your mastery of the subject and learn from cohort peers.
Investment in your future
Cohort 1 kicks off in September of 2026 and will run for seven weeks, concluding with an optional hackathon. Those interested in participating or nominating an employee for participation should do so by the registration deadline of August 1st, 2026.
$1700 |
$2000 |
| early bird pricing by 7/15/26 | standard pricing by 8/1/26 |
Join the Cohort
-
If you are an individual interested in positioning yourself at the forefront of the evolving landscape of tech, regardless of your industry, you can nominate yourself to participate in the WorkAI Lab.
-
If you are an employer who sees the value that harnessing the positive power of AI could bring to your organization, you can nominate your rising star employees to participate and sponsor their spot in the cohort.
Stay up-to-date
Want to learn more but not quite ready to sign up yet or would you like to learn more about how your organization could benefit from sending multiple employees to participate? Sign up for updates on the program or schedule a call today.