Most Frequently Requested Programs
Why Your AI Investment Isn’t Showing Up in Results: From Resistance to Profits
Your organization bought AI licenses, launched pilots, and trained employees. Yet the promised business results remain elusive. Leaders often respond with conventional change-management tactics built to overcome the friction of learning a new system, the inconvenience of changing routines, and the apparent laziness or inertia behind resistance. That approach fails when leaders apply it to AI. A CRM or expense platform changes a process; AI reaches into people’s livelihoods, professional worth, and social standing. Employees fear job loss, feel that AI devalues the writing, analysis, problem-solving, and creative work central to their identity, and feel ashamed to admit that a machine helped them produce something colleagues expect them to create themselves.
These emotions create costly patterns: open resistance, reluctant compliance, careless output, hidden experimentation, and shadow AI. A private AI shortcut may improve one employee’s productivity, but it rarely improves team performance when people conceal prompts, avoid sharing lessons, and never redesign handoffs or workflows together. In this practical, evidence-informed presentation, Dr. Gleb Tsipursky, CEO of Disaster Avoidance Experts and author of the peer-reviewed new book out with Georgetown University Press, The Psychology of AI Adoption at Work: From Resistance to Results, shows leaders how to diagnose anxiety, identity threat, and shame. Then, he shows how to respond with honest job conversations, psychological safety, clear acceptable-use norms, visible champions, and workflow-level measurement. Attendees will leave with a roadmap for converting isolated personal gains into transparent team practices, scalable process improvements, a stronger return on AI spending, and measurable profits.
- Diagnose why conventional change-management methods miss the emotional depth of AI resistance
- Distinguish job-loss anxiety, threats to professional and creative identity, and shame about using AI
- Identify how these barriers produce avoidance, reluctant compliance, weak output, shadow AI, and isolated productivity gains
- Build psychological safety and clear norms that make responsible, transparent AI use professionally legitimate
- Redesign team workflows and select metrics that connect AI adoption to quality, time savings, revenue, cost reduction, and profitability
- This program is usually delivered in a keynote of 60-90 minutes, virtual or in-person, with time built in for audience peer-to-peer interaction and Q&A. It can range from a brief TED-style talk of 20 minutes, to a 60-90 minute keynote, to a half-day or full-day workshop with extensive interactive exercises.
- This program is well-suited for executives, business-unit leaders, HR and L&D leaders, change-management professionals, technology leaders, and anyone responsible for turning AI investment into business results.
Stop Overpaying for AI: Slash Costs While Boosting Employee Engagement and Innovation
Leaders are under immense pressure to adopt AI, but many fall into the trap of purchasing expensive, "black box" software that overpromises and underdelivers. These tools often fail not just because they are generic, but because they trigger "AI anxiety" and resistance among staff who fear being replaced. As a result, these expensive tools often sit unused because employees resist changing their workflows to fit such software. The result is "subscription fatigue" and stalled ROI, while your competitors are building proprietary AI solutions that you cannot buy.
Stop renting generic software and start building your own internal capacity. Join Dr. Gleb Tsipursky, CEO of Disaster Avoidance Experts and author of the upcoming The Psychology of AI Adoption at Work, to discover how to create custom AI solutions using accessible no-code and low-code platforms. If your team can learn how to use Excel, they can learn these skills. You will leave this session with a strategic roadmap to replace costly vendor contracts with proprietary AI solutions built by your own team that fit your specific operations. Just as importantly, you will learn how this approach leverages psychology to transform your employees from passive resistors into active creators—dramatically increasing engagement, reducing anxiety, and building permanent AI development skills within your organization.
- Slash Operational Costs: Learn how to replace $100k/year vendor contracts with custom solutions that cost a fraction of the price.
- Democratize Development: Discover how non-technical staff can use no-code/low-code tools to solve complex business problems without hiring developers.
- Secure Buy-In: Master the psychological strategies to overcome "AI anxiety" and resistance among your workforce.
- This program is usually delivered in a keynote of 60-90 minutes, virtual or in-person, with time built in for audience peer-to-peer interaction and Q&A. It can range from a brief TED-style talk of 20 minutes, to a 60-90 minute keynote, to a half-day or full-day workshop with extensive interactive exercises.
- This program is well-suited for anyone who has or aspires to a leadership role.
Building vs. Buying AI Agents: An Executive Playbook for Owning AI Capability
Generative AI is transforming every industry—but the real strategic question isn’t whether to adopt AI, it’s how. In this session, Dr. Gleb Tsipursky draws on field data from dozens of middle-market organizations to reveal why leaders who build internal AI capability consistently outperform those who buy vendor-built solutions. You’ll learn how to evaluate your organization’s “AI ownership maturity,” design a balanced build–buy portfolio, and structure your teams so AI becomes a lasting competitive advantage rather than a recurring expense. Using real case studies, Dr. Tsipursky will show how firms have cut costs by 70–80%, launched AI-powered services in weeks instead of months, and built cultures where employees innovate with AI instead of fearing it.
- Differentiate between vendor dependency and capability ownership in AI adoption
- Identify when to buy vs. when to build AI agents using a structured decision framework
- Learn how to cultivate internal AI champions who drive innovation and adoption across departments
- Design governance, ROI metrics, and risk controls to support long-term AI scalability
- This program is usually delivered in a keynote of 60-90 minutes, virtual or in-person, with time built in for audience peer-to-peer interaction and Q&A. It can range from a brief TED-style talk of 20 minutes, to a 60-90 minute keynote, to a half-day or full-day workshop with extensive interactive exercises.
- This program is well-suited for anyone who has or aspires to a leadership role.
Mind Over Machine: Overcoming Resistance to Generative AI Integration
In this compelling and thought-provoking presentation, you will delve into the complex challenges of integrating generative AI within organizations, with a focus on overcoming resistance to change. The talk will address the psychological barriers, fears, and biases that often impede AI adoption, such as the status quo bias, empathy gap, and functional fixedness. You will learn how these cognitive biases manifest in organizational settings and discover strategies to address them effectively. By drawing on principles from behavioral science, the presentation will provide you with tools to facilitate a smoother transition to AI, promoting acceptance and integration within teams and organizations. Through a combination of theoretical insights and practical examples, you will learn how to build a supportive environment that encourages openness, learning, and collaboration. Real-world case studies will illustrate how successful organizations have navigated these challenges, providing actionable tactics for fostering AI acceptance. Attendees will leave with a deep understanding of the human factors influencing AI adoption and practical tools to drive positive change and overcome resistance to change within their organizations.
- Understand the psychological barriers and cognitive biases that lead to resistance in implementation of generative AI
- Explore the role of human factors and behavioral science in facilitating the acceptance and integration of Gen AI
- Learn strategies for addressing fears, biases, and uncertainties related to generative AI integration
- Identify best practices for creating a supportive environment that fosters openness, learning, and collaboration around Gen AI
- Examine real-world case studies to gain insights into successful change management and AI adoption
- Develop a comprehensive plan to overcome the resistance caused by human factors and cognitive biases around implementing generative AI in your organization
- This program is usually delivered in a keynote of 60-90 minutes, virtual or in-person, with time built in for audience peer-to-peer interaction and Q&A. It can range from a brief TED-style talk of 20 minutes, to a 60-90 minute keynote, to a half-day or full-day workshop with extensive interactive exercises.
- This program is well-suited for anyone who has or aspires to a leadership role.
From Frustration to Flourishing: Mastering Generative AI Adoption
In this insightful and engaging presentation, you will learn how to transform the frustrations of adopting generative AI into a flourishing, innovative culture by mastering the psychological and cognitive aspects of change. The talk will emphasize the importance of understanding and addressing the psychological discomforts and cognitive biases that employees may face during the transition to generative AI. It will highlight key techniques, including fostering a learning culture that promotes continuous development and adaptation. You will discover methods to gain employee engagement and buy-in by involving them in the AI adoption process and addressing their concerns transparently. The presentation will also cover strategies to enhance autonomy, allowing employees to experiment and innovate using generative AI tools. By leveraging principles from behavioral science and change management, you will learn how to create a supportive environment that encourages openness, adaptability, and collaboration. Through real-world examples and case studies, you will see how leading organizations have successfully navigated these challenges and transformed their work environments. Attendees will leave with actionable insights and tools to foster a culture of flourishing through the effective adoption of generative AI.
- Understand the psychological discomforts and cognitive biases that employees may face during the transition to generative AI
- Explore key techniques to foster a learning culture that promotes continuous development and adaptation
- Learn methods to gain employee engagement and buy-in by involving them in the AI adoption process and addressing their concerns transparently
- Discover strategies to enhance autonomy, allowing employees to experiment and innovate using generative AI tools
- Leverage principles from behavioral science and change management to create a supportive environment that encourages openness, adaptability, and collaboration
- Examine real-world examples and case studies of successful AI adoption to gain practical insights
Develop actionable plans to transform frustrations into a flourishing, AI-driven culture within your organization
- This program is usually delivered in a keynote of 60-90 minutes, virtual or in-person, with time built in for audience peer-to-peer interaction and Q&A. It can range from a brief TED-style talk of 20 minutes, to a 60-90 minute keynote, to a half-day or full-day workshop with extensive interactive exercises.
- This program is well-suited for anyone who has or aspires to a leadership role.
In-Depth Sample Program for 8-Hour Workshop
Never Go With Your Gut: How Pioneering Leaders Make the Best Decisions and Avoid Business Disasters
This sample program is designed for a whole-day workshop. It can be shortened to a half-day workshop, a 60 to 90-minute keynote, or 20-minute TED-style talk.
In this engaging, interactive, and entertaining presentation, you will dramatically improve your leadership decision-making skills to avoid the disastrous outcomes of wrong decisions. When was the last time you saw a business disaster? Perhaps it was a minor mishap such as unnecessary team conflict that harmed employee engagement and productivity, or more significant troubles such as hiring the wrong key employee or losing a top client, or maybe major calamities that threaten bankruptcy such as failing to foresee rapid market shifts or pursuing the wrong bet-the-company strategy? Cutting-edge research in cognitive neuroscience and behavioral economics show that most of these disasters are preventable and stem from one or more wrong decisions. Studies show that we all suffer from subtle dangerous judgment errors called cognitive biases that cause us to make the wrong decisions, especially in the most important and charged leadership contexts. Fortunately, recent decision science has shown how simple yet effective decision-making strategies can enable you to protect yourself and those you lead from cognitive biases and consequently avoid disastrous decisions. Studies show that the truly effective leaders, consciously or unconsciously, emulate many aspects of these effective decision-making strategies, and innovative leaders have recently begun intentionally integrating such strategies into their leadership judgment processes to help the teams and organizations they lead identify and address such mental blindspots and prevent decision-making disasters. This presentation will offer you case studies and best practices from these innovative leaders, combined with groundbreaking research in decision science, to give you the most critical skills and take-aways that you need to help yourself and those you lead avoid decision-making disasters.
- Identify situations that might cause you or those you lead to make the wrong decisions that result in disasters
- Assess whether you or your followers suffer from subtle dangerous judgment errors (called cognitive biases) that trigger disastrous decisions
- Learn the recently-discovered decision-making strategies that will enable you and your followers to protect yourselves from decision disasters
- Discover how the most effective leaders address these mental blindspots through such strategies, consciously or unconsciously
- Adapt best practices on avoiding disastrous decisions from these leaders into your own leadership toolkit
- Develop processes that empower everyone in your team and organization to avoid decision disasters
- Planned Agenda (480 minutes)
- 60-minute presentation on decision-making
- It will focus on where and how dangerous judgment errors (cognitive biases) pose the biggest risks for leaders and how leaders can most effectively notice and address such dangers.
- 15-minute Q&A
- 15-minute break
- 60-minute assessment exercise
- Training participants will get a free copy of the “Assessment on Dangerous Judgment Errors in the Workplace” and take the assessment. Then, they will discuss the assessment outcomes in groups of 3-4. Each participant will have a chance to get suggestions for addressing these problems from other participants and the presenter. Each participant will also commit to at least two next steps and exchange information with other participants to help support each other and hold each other accountable after the meeting. At the end there will be a reporting out from different groups, to give each a chance to learn from the others. The presenter will also provide a free electronic manual with assessment templates for participants to enable others in their organization members to take the assessment. Out of this exercise, participants will get a pragmatic and specific and practical understanding where such dangerous judgment errors might be posing the biggest risks in their work.
- 15-minute break
- 60-minute technique implementation exercise:
- This segment will focus on the “Failure-Proofing” technique, a highly effective tool to address dangerous judgment errors. Participants will get into groups of 3-4. Each participant will choose a current project or process in their organization. Then, they will be asked to imagine that the project or process suffered a disaster. They will then brainstorm all the plausible threats that could cause this failure. Next, they will evaluate numerically the likelihood of each threat occurring, as well as the significance of the threat if it does come about. Then, they will brainstorm ways of addressing the threats. Finally, they will check for gut reactions and cognitive biases. Each participant will have a chance to get suggestions at each step of the process from other participants and the presenter. Each participant will also commit to at least two next steps and exchange information with other participants to help support each other and hold each other accountable after the meeting. At the end there will be a reporting out from different groups, to give each a chance to learn from the others. The presenter will also provide a free electronic manual that they can use to educate those in their organization about this strategy. Out of this exercise, participants will get not only a clear set of pragmatic fixes to potential threats to the projects and processes they oversee, but also a thorough understanding of how to apply this strategy in their day-to-day activities.
- 60-minute lunch break
- 60-minute technique implementation exercise:
- This segment will focus on the “Avoiding Disastrous Decisions” technique, a highly effective tool to minimize risks in making decisions. Participants will get into groups of 3-4. Each participant will choose a potential upcoming major decision, and then decide on the criteria for decision-making. Next, they will weigh the relative importance of these criteria. Then, they will rank the options. Next, they will multiply the weighted criteria by the rankings to get initial numbers. Finally, they will check for gut reactions and cognitive biases. Each participant will have a chance to get suggestions at each step of the process from other members and the presenter. Each participant will also commit to at least two next steps and exchange information with other participants to help support each other and hold each other accountable after the meeting. At the end there will be a reporting out from different groups, to give each a chance to learn from the others. The presenter will also provide a free electronic manual that they can use to educate those in their organization about this strategy. Out of this exercise, members will get not only a solid answer to whatever decision they chose, but also a thorough understanding of how to apply this strategy in their professional activities.
- 15-minute break
- 60-minute technique implementation exercise:
- This segment will focus on the “Addressing Threats and Seizing Opportunities” technique, a highly effective tool for making a long-term plan that incorporates addressing typical judgment errors. Participants will get into groups of 3-4. Each participant will choose a broad area of their professional activity. Then, they will evaluate the kind of resources required to address this area if everything goes according to plan. Next, they will address potential internal and external threats and opportunities that might arise in this area, the probability that such threats will occur, the ways such threats might be addressed, and the additional resources that might be required. They will also check for gut reactions and cognitive biases. Each participant will have a chance to get suggestions at each step of the process from other members and the presenter. Each participant will also commit to at least two next steps and exchange information with other participants to help support each other and hold each other accountable after the meeting. At the end there will be a reporting out from different groups, to give each a chance to learn from the others. The presenter will also provide a free electronic manual that they can use to educate those in their organization about this strategy. Out of this exercise, participants will not only get a clear vision of the future plan and resource requirements for the specific broad area of their professional activities that they chose, but also a thorough understanding of how to apply this strategy to other areas.
- 15-minute break
- 30-minute plan development interactive exercise:
- Training participants will get into pairs with a partner. They will develop a specific plan for integrating all the information presented in the program into their professional context, including how to teach these techniques to others in their organization. They will discuss this plan with their partner, address any issues, and exchange contact information to have the partner support them and hold them accountable. Out of this exercise, members will get a thorough plan for specific next steps in integrating all the information from the training into their daily professional lives.
- 15-minute conclusion presentation, summarizing and integrating all the points brought up earlier
If you’re interested in having one of these programs customized to your audience, or if you would like us to create a special program to meet your needs by using his expertise in decision-making and emotional and social intelligence, get in touch today!
