# AI for Business Workflows Canonical URL: ## Overview This interactive course is designed to establish a shared baseline of AI understanding across your team, regardless of current experience level. Grounded in a lean manufacturing mindset, the training reframes AI not as a threat, but as a force multiplier that eliminates repetitive, time-consuming tasks so your people can focus on the analysis, strategy, and decision-making that only they can provide. Delivered in one 4-hour session or two 2-hour sessions, this hands-on course covers everything from AI fundamentals and prompt engineering to live tool demos and practical safety guardrails , all using the AI platforms your team already has access to. Participants leave with a repeatable framework, hands-on experience, and at least one real workflow they've tested with AI on their own work. ## What you'll learn - Understand how AI works at a practical level and build the confidence to use it. - Write prompts using the RACE Framework (Role, Action, Context, Expectations) to get consistently relevant output. - Apply AI to everyday tasks, including drafting documents, summarizing meetings, and generating data insights. - Use AI for specialized work such as financial modeling, data analysis, complex formulas, and multi-step reasoning. - Know when and when not to use AI, including data privacy basics, PII awareness, and safe prompting practices. - Identify specific tasks in your own role where AI can save time and shift your focus to higher-value work. ## Curriculum ### Section 1 #### Welcome, Level-Set & Establishing Baseline - Team introductions and expectations - Experience-level poll - Common examples of AI already used in everyday work - What generative AI is - How AI learns patterns from data #### The Lean Tool Mindset - AI as a force multiplier - The modern workload challenge - Everyday tasks AI can support - Identifying strong candidate tasks for AI - The lean parallel: reducing waste in knowledge work #### Prompt Engineering: How to Talk to AI - The RACE Framework: Role, Action, Context, Expectations - Building a prompt step by step - Using your team’s primary AI tool - Continuing a conversation vs. starting fresh - Why verification always matters #### Hands-On Practice & Session 1 Wrap-Up - Write a RACE prompt for a real work task - Test prompts in your AI tool - Group debrief and discussion - Review key takeaways - Preview Session 2 ### Section 2 #### Quick Refresh & Tool Overview - Recap Session 1 concepts - Check in on AI use between sessions - Overview of your organization’s AI toolkit - Strengths and differences between tools - When to use each tool #### Live Demos: Your Primary AI Tool in Action - Drafting emails and adjusting tone - Simplifying language for different audiences - Summarizing meetings and documents - Extracting decisions, action items, and deadlines - Generating data insights from a dataset #### Live Demos: Specialized AI Applications - Financial modeling and analytical work - Data analysis and formula building - Debugging complex models or analysis - Handling what-if scenarios and multi-step logic - Using transparent reasoning to verify results #### Safety, Ethics & Practical Guardrails - Data privacy essentials - What not to share in AI tools - Understanding personally identifiable information (PII) - Safe prompting practices - Practical dos and don’ts for your organization #### Application Exercise & Wrap-Up - Use AI to solve a real work problem - Identify a task that fits the lean criteria - Group share on outcomes and surprises - Course summary and key takeaways - Next steps for continued skill building ## Instructors ### Dan Rodney — School Director, Instructor, & Senior Course Developer Dan Rodney has been a designer and web developer for over 20 years, creating coursework and leading innovative training initiatives at Noble Desktop. He teaches courses covering Figma, HTML & CSS, Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, and Power BI. Dan has also been at the forefront of integrating AI into design and business workflows, spearheading Noble Desktop’s latest AI course offerings. In addition to teaching and curriculum development, he writes custom scripts for InDesign (Make Book Jacket, Proper Fraction Pro, and more) and works with automation and AI-driven tools in his free time. You can find Dan on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, Facebook, and at danrodney.com. Learn more about [Dan Rodney's](/dan-rodney) background and expertise. ### Garfield Stinvil — Senior Instructor Garfield is an experienced software trainer with over 16 years of real-world professional experience. He started as a data analyst with a Wall Street real estate investment company & continued working in the professional development department at New York Road Runners Organization before working at Noble. He enjoys bringing humor to whatever he teaches and loves conveying ideas in novel ways that help others learn more efficiently. Since starting his professional training career in 2016, he has worked with several corporate clients including Adobe, HBO, Amazon, Yelp, Mitsubishi, WeWork, Michael Kors, Christian Dior, and Hermès. Outside of work, his hobbies include rescuing & archiving at-risk artistic online media using his database management skills. ### Mourad Kattan — Program Director & Instructor Mourad Kattan is an instructor and Program Director of Business, Finance, & Excel at Noble Desktop, teaching classes and designing courses in Excel, finance, accounting, and financial modeling. Before Noble Desktop, Mourad worked as a financial analyst at Credit Suisse and H/2 Capital Partners. In those positions, he used advanced analytical and financial skills to evaluate a variety of investments. Mourad graduated from the University of Pennsylvania summa cum laude and is part of the Beta Gamma Sigma honor society. Learn more about [Mourad Kattan's](/mourad-kattan) background and expertise. ### Christophe Drayton — Instructor Christophe is the instructor for the UX & UI Design Certificate, Figma Advanced, and Generative AI courses at Noble Desktop, and the founder and Chief Design Officer of Kaaiind, which specializes in Applied Artificial Intelligence in the Creative field. With over 20 years in Branding, UX Design, and Accessibility across Europe and the US, Christophe has positively impacted the digital experience of a large spectrum of companies, ranging from big data to startups, government entities to nonprofits, both in the private and public sectors. As an Educator, Christophe has led transformative and award-winning UX programs at Thinkful, the City University of New York (CUNY), and the Brooklyn Public Library, which have opened doors for underrepresented groups in tech who have secured roles at top companies like Google, Uber, Citi, and IBM. Most recently, he has developed innovative curricula about AI in the workplace for the University of Phoenix, LinkedIn Learning, and Coursera. Today, he focuses on developing Allie, one of the first AI-powered, patent-pending color-blind safe and WCAG-compliant design system generator, while concluding his 5-year fundamental research on color vision deficiencies in digital environments. Christophe believes in hands-on, practical application of human-centered strategy and ethical and inclusive design. He is passionate about sharing his knowledge to inspire and empower the next generation of designers, especially those entering the field through nontraditional paths. ## FAQ ### What do I need to participate in this course? You'll need a laptop or desktop with a web browser and a reliable internet connection, plus access to your organization's AI tools on your device. Tool access must be confirmed with your organization ahead of the training. ## Pricing **Tuition:** $0