Red Bear AI Academy · For Chief AI Officers
CAIO Leadership of AI Certificate
From senior technology or data leader to the executive who delivers AI value across the enterprise and leads AI transformation.
Delivered by Red Bear AI in partnership with Durham University- 8weeks online, optimised for busy professionals
- 16live sessions: two 90-minute sessions a week
- 24hself-paced learning: 3 hours a week
- 1applied leadership project and certification interview
Learning objectives
The leadership outcomes we teach
By the end of the programme you will be able to:
Lead
- Define your CAIO mandate
- Influence boards and investors
- Lead leaders under pressure
Govern
- Link AI work to business outcomes
- Prioritise and fund a use-case portfolio
- Govern AI and report honest ROI
Deliver
- Take AI from pilot to production
- Build data and platform foundations
- Manage AI regulation, security and incidents
Transform
- Understand what AI and agents can and can't do
- Lead enterprise AI transformation
- Pitch and defend your leadership plan
Who it is for
AI fails without a leader. This programme makes one.
Aspiring CAIOs
Senior technology, data and transformation leaders ready to take enterprise accountability for AI.
Newly appointed CAIOs
Leaders recently given the role who need the governance, value and board skills to make it work.
CTOs, CIOs and CDOs
Executives who have had AI added to their remit and now answer for it across the business.
Your outcomes
What you will be able to do
Deliver AI value across the enterprise
Choose the right use cases, fund them and take them from pilot to production with a measurable return.
Lead AI transformation
Build the case, win the board and lead the organisation-wide change that makes AI deliver real value.
Curriculum
Eight weeks. Sixteen live sessions.
Weeks 1–2The CAIO role & influence
- Week 1 · Session 1The CAIO Role
Mandate, decision rights and boundaries with the CTO, CIO, CDO and executive team.
- Week 1 · Session 2The First 90 Days
Inventory AI use, uncover shadow AI, agree decision rights and publish a first policy.
- Week 2 · Session 3Influencing the Board & Investors
How boards decide, what investors probe, and how to present technology as value.
- Week 2 · Session 4Leadership & Communication
Leading leaders, executive presence and communicating under pressure.
Weeks 3–4Strategy, governance & value
- Week 3 · Session 5Objective Setting
OKRs and measures that link technology work to business outcomes.
- Week 3 · Session 6Use-Case Portfolio
Prioritise by benefit and risk, fund what matters, and stop or scale on evidence.
- Week 4 · Session 7AI Governance
Steering committee, policies, risk register and review gates that let teams move safely.
- Week 4 · Session 8AI Investment & Economics
Investment cases, model and usage costs, and honest reporting of ROI.
Weeks 5–6Leading delivery
- Week 5 · Session 9Product Thinking for AI
Treat use cases as products: discovery, outcomes, adoption and the CAIO–CPO partnership.
- Week 5 · Session 10From Pilot to Production
Build, buy or partner; vendor and model choice; evaluation and go-live gates.
- Week 6 · Session 11Data & Platform Foundations
Data readiness, shared platforms, sovereignty and the partnership with the CIO and CDO.
- Week 6 · Session 12AI Regulation, Security & Incidents
AI regulation and standards, AI-specific threats, incident response and assurance.
Weeks 7–8AI & transformation
- Week 7 · Session 13AI Fundamentals & Machine Learning
How modern AI and ML work, what they can and can't do, and what they cost.
- Week 7 · Session 14Agentic AI
Agents, tools and orchestration: designing and governing autonomous systems.
- Week 8 · Session 15Leading Enterprise AI Transformation
The operating model, AI champions, reskilling and the partnership with HR.
- Week 8 · Session 16Applied Project Pitches
Present your CAIO leadership project to a panel for feedback.
How it works
Learn it live, then apply it to your own organisation
Three hours live
Two 90-minute sessions a week, with your instructors and cohort.
Three hours self-paced
Case studies, reflective exercises and practical templates: AI policies, risk registers, board reports.
Your applied project
From week 3 you build an enterprise AI portfolio and governance plan for your own organisation or a case company, pitch it in week 8 and defend it in a certification interview.
What you receive
Two certificates, one from a university and one from industry
Awarded on successful completion. Sample designs shown; final designs may vary.
Delegate pack: two framed certificates, leather laptop bag, two textbooks, pen set, black polo shirt and A5 binder. Illustrative; items may vary.
Your instructors
Proven, experienced C-suite instructors
You learn from people who hold these roles today and have built AI solutions themselves.
Cindy Haast
Chief Executive Officer, Red Bear AI. Formerly Capgemini.
- Solution Director for AI and business automation at Capgemini
- Founded her own marketing consultancy
- Began in product sales and marketing
Vinay Kumar
Chief Product Officer, Red Bear AI. Formerly EY and BT.
- Product leadership roles at EY and BT
- Worked with unicorn start-ups at EY
- Focus: scaling fast without losing control of how the business decides
Dr Dan Oliver
Chief Technology Officer, Red Bear AI. Formerly Microsoft, IBM and EY.
- Cloud and AI CTO at IBM, Director of AI at EY
- Technology leader at Microsoft
- PhD in computer science
- Co-developed Durham University's CTO and Chief AI Officer courses
Programme fee
£3,999
Early-bird price: £3,199.20 (20% off) if you enrol by 31 December 2026.
8-week online programme. Next cohort starts online in the week of 11 January 2027. Limited places. Fee includes both certificates and the delegate pack.