The pace of technological advancement—driven by AI, automation, and digital transformation—is accelerating and compounding at an unprecedented rate. How do leaders not only keep up but also turn this uncertainty into a competitive advantage?
Guided by innovation expert Hal Gregersen (and based on a research project with Ed Catmull, co-founder Pixar and Turing Award winner), this course helps participants develop the mindset and skillset required to embrace the unexpected while engaging in creative transformation.
Our future is not a straight-line extension of the past. Compounding technologies are radically reshaping industries in nonlinear, often irreversible ways. Leaders who use the power of AI to detect the implications of these shifts early—and act decisively—build teams and organizations that thrive. Such leaders discern the deep structures of AI-driven change, anticipate the consequences of compounding and combining forces, and make better strategic decisions today that will define their industries tomorrow.
The ability to navigate rapid, unpredictable, and exponential changes, drawn from the lessons of those who saw the future and acted wisely and those who did not, is crucial for success. But embracing the implications of rapid compound growth is more than just a survival strategy—it's a conduit to innovation and growth. This course offers a transformative learning experience that empowers individuals and organizations to keep human agency and creativity first when crafting solutions to significant challenges in the face of uncertainty.
Through a combination of theoretical frameworks, practical case studies, interactive exercises, and hands-on applications, you will gain valuable insights into the mindset and strategies required to navigate exponential change, leverage short-term wins to drive long-term success, build effective truth-seeking mechanisms, and harness creativity as a catalyst for organizational transformation.
In this immersive learning experience, you will gain the tools to consistently anticipate, adapt to, and leverage the forces of rapid change. Using insights from successful companies like DeepMind, Intrinsic Robotics, NVIDIA, Patagonia, and Pixar, we will learn how to translate long-term intent systematically and broadly across the organization to make consistent, compounding, short-term progress.
Key topics covered in the course include:
Seeing the hidden dynamics of rapid exponential change, understanding their implications, and leveraging the opportunities
Developing an AI-enhanced mindset and a skillset for embracing uncertainty—including the duality and paradox that accompany organizational transformation
Building truth-seeking mechanisms to ensure that your organization sees reality clearly, avoids value inversions, and acts before it’s forced to react
Kickstarting virtuous cycles—where collective short-term actions compound into enduring strategic advantage—and avoiding death cycles—where short-term optimization blinds leaders to irreversible industry shifts
Harnessing humans and AI technologies to make progress on creative transformation
Upon completing the course, you will have examined and experimented with the mindsets, frameworks, and tools necessary to embrace the unexpected more effectively, unlock your organization’s creative potential more successfully, and position your team for long-term success in an era of compounding complexity.
Course Topics
Programme Content
Day 1
8:30 AM – 8:45 AM
Welcome and Introductions
8:45 AM – 10:30 AM
Exploring a Mindset and Skillset for Embracing the Uncertainties (w/ break)
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Unraveling the Dynamic Dimensions of Large, Rapid, and Unexpected Change
12:00 PM – 12:45 PM
Lunch
12:45 PM – 2:45 PM
Engaging in Creative Transformation (w/ break)
2:45 PM – 4:15 PM
Story Telling as a Force for Good and Bad
4:15 PM – 5:00 PM
Reflecting on Day 1 Graphic Facilitation Visuals to Deepen Insight
5:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Reception
Day 2
8:30 AM – 9:00 AM
Reflection on Overnight Insights from Day 1
9:00 AM – 10:30 AM
Crafting and Recrafting Believable Frameworks for the Future (w/ break)
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Mastering a Mindset and Skillset for Navigating Duality and Paradox
12:00 PM – 12:45 PM
Lunch
12:45 PM – 2:30 PM
Unlocking Deeper Elements of an Organization’s Creative Potential (w/ break)
2:30 PM – 4:15 PM
Leveraging Creativity as a Catalyst for Organizational Transformation
4:15 PM – 5:00 PM
Strengthening Calls-to-Action Going Forward
Programme Objective
Through a combination of research-backed frameworks, hands-on case studies, and interactive exercises, participants will:
Navigate uncertainty
by crafting a believable framework for the future, with AI-assisted human judgment.
Explore exponential technologies
like generative AI, digital twins, robotics, and automation to identify opportunities for creative transformation.
See sustained compounding growth
in technologies and processes with clarity and understand the strategic implications–even when they might be vague
Master the art of long-term transformation
by using short-term experiments as steppingstones toward sustainable strategic shifts
Build and sustain a truth-seeking culture
, ensuring that leadership decisions are informed by a full-spectrum view of reality and avoiding value inversions.
Leverage AI as a creative collaborator,
using it to enhance strategic insight and decision-making while avoiding common pitfalls of over-reliance and anchoring bias.
Participants will leave with practical strategies to guide their organizations through unpredictable rapid change, not just reacting to disruption, but shaping the future.
“
In a rapidly evolving AI-driven landscape, executives grapple with pursuing large-scale changes to stay ahead of the curve. In this course we leverage insight from dozens of interviews and case studies across the world to master the mindset and skillset required for embracing the unexpected —including the duality and paradox that accompany transformation. We explore how to make a courageous shift in strategic gears and processes by building a believable framework for the future, leveraging exponential technologies to co-create that future, unlocking deeper elements of an organization’s creative potential, and crafting short term results that compound into extraordinary long term gains.
” - Hal Gregersen
Programme Audience
This course has been developed for senior leaders and professionals who are:
Willing to taking a hard look at how their teams and organizations operate today and are committed to creating a fundamentally different approach in the next decade
Responsible for reshaping the direction of their organizations and interested in leveraging rapidly changing technologies to make that a reality
Curious about rethinking their role as a leader and understanding how to become more challenge-driven
Committed to their own creative transformation as well as that of their teams and organizations
Aware that they have been wrong before and will be wrong again as a path to meaningful progress
The course is also relevant for recent MBA graduates and other high-potential managers as they lay the foundation, in how they think and act, for their futures. Learning how to embrace the unexpected effectively —including the duality and paradox that accompany transformation – is much more than a single course; it’s a lifelong quest that paves a powerful path for creating and recreating meaningful value in companies and communities around the world.
"In a nutshell, learning from MIT's Hal Gregersen and Pixar's Ed Catmull about how to embrace the unexpected in organizational life was beyond amazing. Gregersen makes teaching fun, and Catmull is a true master. What a tremendous privilege indeed!"
"Great marathon of catalytic questioning rounds in which the only answer was basically to generate more questions which allowed to dive deeper in some of the challenges we were facing."
Programme Benefits
Frameworks
Craft a framework for the future that drives transformation—leveraging exponential technologies, unlocking deeper creative potential within and across organizations, and crafting short-term results that compound into extraordinary long-term gains
Leverage AI
Build AI-enhanced truth-seeking mechanisms that enable you to ask deeply, cut through organizational blind spots, reveal emerging challenges before they become existential threats, and reinforce reality-based decisions
Best Practices
Recognize whether your organization is in a virtuous cycle of change or a death cycle of decline by examining industry-defining successes and catastrophic failures—and then exploring how to shift the trajectory before it’s too late
Mens et Manus
Learn through a combination of frameworks built from diverse research interviews and case studies, interactive exercises, and hands-on applications designed to equip leaders with actionable strategies in an age of uncertainty
Certificate
Earn a certificate of course completion from the MIT Sloan School of Management
Testimonials
"Two days well spent at MIT Sloan. Hal Gregersen's Question Burst methodology was one of the most practical innovation frameworks I have encountered in an executive setting rigorous, evidence-based, and immediately applicable. Jeremy Jurgens brought a sharp global perspective on frontier technologies and what navigating disruption actually looks like at scale. The cohort made it even richer. So many talented professionals from different industries, each bringing a unique lens and genuinely engaging in the exchange of ideas. I leave with many takeaways, but one will stay with me above all run towards the hardest problems."
Stela S
"This course had high quality, real time data and content in the technology innovation space. The theory was also solid. The two instructors are not only accomplished but were very articulate and engaging. This course exemplified the quality that I expect from MIT."
Michelle J
"Really enjoyed the combination of question bursts with long term World Economic Forum projections on where they see technology going and the convergence of multiple different technologies together. Feel much better prepared for what is coming in the future and how best to get my team aligned."
Brooks O
"In a nutshell, learning from MIT's Hal Gregersen and Pixar's Ed Catmull about how to embrace the unexpected in organizational life was beyond amazing. Gregersen makes teaching fun, and Catmull is a true master. What a tremendous privilege indeed!"
Harry M
"Great marathon of catalytic questioning rounds in which the only answer was basically to generate more questions which allowed to dive deeper in some of the challenges we were facing."
Tom W
"Attending the Embracing the Unexpected course at MIT was an eye-opening experience that I would highly recommend to anyone looking to challenge their strategic thinking and leadership approach. The course was masterfully designed, bringing together best-in-class facilitators who were not only experts in their fields but also seasoned senior executives. Their extensive real-world experience translated into deep insights and practical examples that resonated with every participant. One of the standout aspects of the course was the facilitators' exceptional attitude toward engaging with the students. Their approach was both inclusive and stimulating, encouraging robust discussions and the free exchange of ideas. This atmosphere fostered a true learning environment where everyone felt valued and inspired to share their perspectives. What truly set this course apart was its wealth of examples and case studies that participants could envision applying to their own professional contexts. The practical nature of these lessons allowed us to walk away with actionable insights, ready to be tested and adapted to our organizations. Each session was a prime opportunity to rethink our current strategies, question our assumptions, and open our minds to new approaches. The learning setup at MIT was exemplary, designed to maximize interaction and creativity. The environment supported focused learning and collaboration, contributing to a well-rounded educational experience. In summary, Embracing the Unexpected was a powerful reminder of the importance of adaptive thinking and strategic flexibility. The combination of elite-level facilitation, a practical and relatable curriculum, and a conducive learning atmosphere made it an unparalleled opportunity for personal and professional growth."
Martin A
"I like that it was concise and a lot was covered in 2 days. Great teaching and wonderfully diverse classmates. Im recommending it to friends and colleagues for next year"
Dan L
"I truly enjoyed both the teachers, content, and focus of this course. It is also highly relevant to the contemporary landscape, and the range of fast moving, cutting edge changes and developments facing leaders, regardless of what industry they may be in. I can't think of any manager or leader who wouldn't benefit from this course, and I know that almost everyone will find it highly enjoyable as well."
