AI SKILLS COURSE
AI PRODUCTIVITY & AUTOMATION SKILLS WORKSHOP
Move Beyond Basic AI Use and Work Smarter with AI
As AI tools become part of everyday work, the gap between employees who use AI effectively and those who do not is widening quickly. For organisations, this means that AI is no longer just a technology trend — it is becoming an important workplace productivity capability.
ODC’s AI Productivity and Automation Skills Workshop is a practical one-day, face-to-face course designed to help participants move beyond basic AI use. The workshop equips learners with structured prompting techniques, practical productivity applications and an introduction to simple automation, enabling them to produce more consistent, useful and higher-quality outputs from AI tools.
Through hands-on activities and real workplace scenarios, participants will learn how to apply AI to everyday work tasks such as writing, summarising, research, report preparation, meeting notes, idea generation and workflow improvement. By the end of the workshop, participants will have a stronger AI skillset that they can apply immediately across their roles.
Why This Course Matters
Many employees have started experimenting with AI tools, but not all are using them effectively. Without the right prompting techniques, AI outputs may be too generic, inaccurate, incomplete or unsuitable for workplace use.
This course helps participants use AI more purposefully and productively. Participants will learn how to provide clearer instructions, structure better prompts, refine AI responses and evaluate AI-generated outputs more critically.
The workshop also introduces participants to the concept of AI-supported automation. Learners will explore how AI can support simple workflows and reduce repetitive work, while understanding the ethical, security and legal considerations of using AI and automation tools at work.
Target Audience
Who Should Attend
This course is suitable for professionals who want to deepen their AI skills and apply AI more effectively in their daily work.
It is especially useful for:
-
Professionals across departments who want to improve productivity with AI
-
Employees who already have basic AI exposure and want to go further
-
Managers and team leaders who want to introduce AI productivity practices to their teams
-
Learning and Development teams planning to strengthen AI capability across the workforce
-
Organisations looking for a more advanced follow-on course after basic AI literacy training
-
Busy professionals who want to use AI to save time, improve work quality and reduce repetitive tasks
Some prior exposure to AI tools would be helpful, but it is not required.
Learning Outcomes
Upon completing the workshop, learners will be able to :
-
Move beyond basic AI use and apply structured prompting techniques
-
Use prompting frameworks to generate more consistent and higher-quality AI outputs
-
Apply AI to common workplace tasks such as emails, documents, reports and meeting notes
-
Use AI for research, summarisation and information processing
-
Understand the basics of automation and how AI can support simple workflows
-
Explore practical ways to reduce repetitive work through AI-assisted workflows
-
Evaluate AI outputs for accuracy, bias, reliability and workplace suitability
-
Understand ethical, security and legal considerations when using AI and automation at work
-
Build a personal AI productivity system for ongoing workplace application
-
Leave with a ready-to-use prompt library and workflow toolkit
Programme Outline / Workshop Coverage
Module 1: Introduction to Generative AI and Workplace Productivity
Participants will be introduced to Generative AI and how AI tools support workplace productivity. This module helps learners understand how AI works at a practical level and how it can be applied across common business tasks.
Key areas covered:
-
What Generative AI is and how it works
-
How AI tools support workplace productivity
-
Overview of key AI tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot and other productivity platforms
-
Common workplace use cases for AI
-
Capabilities and limitations of AI tools
Module 2: Structured Prompting for Better AI Outputs
This module helps participants move beyond basic AI prompts. Learners will be introduced to structured prompting frameworks that help them give clearer instructions and receive more useful AI-generated responses.
Key areas covered:
-
Why prompt quality affects AI output quality
-
Using role, context, task and constraints in prompts
-
Applying examples to guide AI responses
-
Structuring prompts for clarity, relevance and consistency
-
Refining prompts to improve results
Module 3: Advanced Prompting and Iterative Refinement
Participants will learn how to improve AI outputs through more advanced prompting techniques and iterative refinement. This module focuses on helping learners guide AI more effectively to produce better results.
Key areas covered:
-
Advanced prompting techniques for complex workplace tasks
-
Breaking down tasks into clearer steps
-
Iterative refinement to improve AI responses
-
Asking AI to compare, critique and improve outputs
-
Developing reusable prompt templates for common tasks
Module 4: AI for Workplace Productivity
This module focuses on practical applications of AI across everyday work tasks. Participants will learn how to use AI to save time, improve clarity and enhance the quality of work outputs.
Key areas covered:
-
Drafting and improving emails
-
Preparing documents, reports and summaries
-
Generating meeting agendas, notes and follow-up actions
-
Supporting brainstorming and idea development
-
Enhancing business writing and communication
-
Applying AI to real workplace scenarios
Module 5: AI for Research, Summarisation and Information Processing
Participants will explore how AI can help them process information more quickly and accurately. This module focuses on using AI to summarise, organise and make sense of information.
Key areas covered:
-
Summarising lengthy information into key points
-
Extracting action items, decisions and recommendations
-
Comparing information across different sources
-
Using AI to support research and sense-making
-
Checking outputs for accuracy, relevance and reliability
Module 6: Introduction to AI and Automation
This module introduces participants to the concept of automation and how AI can fit into simple workplace workflows. Learners will explore how repetitive tasks may be simplified or supported through AI-assisted processes.
Key areas covered:
-
What automation is and why it matters
-
How AI supports simple workflow automation
-
Examples of repetitive workplace tasks that can be streamlined
-
Connecting AI thinking to workflow improvement
-
Practical automation examples for everyday work
Module 7: Responsible AI Use, Security and Legal Considerations
Participants will learn how to use AI and automation tools responsibly in the workplace. This module highlights the importance of human judgement, data protection and accountability when using AI-generated outputs.
Key areas covered:
-
Ethical use of AI in the workplace
-
Accuracy, bias and reliability checks
-
Responsible and transparent use of AI outputs
-
Protecting sensitive company data
-
Security considerations when using AI and automation tools
-
Legal considerations relating to compliance, data handling and accountability
Module 8: Building a Personal AI and Automation Workflow
In the final module, participants will consolidate their learning by building a practical AI productivity workflow that can be applied to their role. This capstone activity helps learners translate AI concepts into workplace application.
Key areas covered:
-
Identifying productivity opportunities in individual roles
-
Creating a personal prompt library
-
Designing a simple AI-assisted workflow
-
Applying AI to reduce repetitive work
-
Peer and trainer feedback on workflow ideas
-
Personal action planning for workplace application
KEY BENEFITS
-
Practical Expertise: Hands-on learning approach ensures participants can apply skills immediately.
-
AI-Focused Learning: Tailored content that prioritizes essential AI integration techniques within Excel.
-
Industry-Relevant Tools: Learn cutting-edge methods to stay competitive in an evolving digital landscape.
-
Expert Guidance: Benefit from instructors with extensive experience and practical insights.
-
Future-Proof Skills: Equip yourself with tools and techniques to boost productivity and stay ahead in a data-driven world.
TRAINING METHODOLOGY
This workshop adopts a practical and hands-on learning approach to help participants apply AI tools confidently and responsibly at work.
The programme combines concept-focused lectures, live tool demonstrations, facilitated discussions, individual exercises, group activities, guided prompt-writing practice and workflow-building activities. Participants will use their own laptops to practise applying AI to realistic workplace tasks.
Throughout the workshop, learners will work on real work scenarios such as drafting emails, summarising information, preparing reports, generating meeting notes, refining prompts and exploring simple automation ideas. Participants will receive peer and trainer feedback to help them improve the quality, relevance and usefulness of their AI outputs.
The session will conclude with a capstone activity where participants build a personal AI and automation workflow for their role. This helps them leave the workshop with practical tools, prompt templates and workflow ideas that can be applied immediately at work.