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Artificial Intelligence for Business

Want to use artificial intelligence to make radical changes to your organisation, products or processes? Learn how to help your business benefit from the technological revolution.

The CAS Artificial Intelligence for Business offers a heavily practice-based introduction to artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) for executives without any prior technical knowledge. It is designed to give specialists and executives from the world of business, administration and non-profit organisations a better appreciation of the potential of AI and to enable them to communicate effectively with data scientists. In the CAS, we show you how to avoid the usual pitfalls when deploying AI in your organisation, enabling you to start and successfully implement data-driven projects.

  • You will appreciate the potential that various AI/ML techniques hold for business process optimisation in different areas of your organisation.
  • You will understand how to create your own AI use case description with «ML Canvas» and initiate an AI project.
  • You will gain a broad understanding of the different roles within an AI team and learn how to form such heterogeneous teams from the fields of business and technology and work with them towards specific goals.
  • You will understand the regulatory and ethical challenges surrounding AI technologies and be able to gauge their relevance to your business.
  • You will be in a position to anticipate future changes that AI technologies will bring about in the business environment and will understand how to react appropriately and use the technologies to your advantage.

Factsheet

  • Degree/Certificate Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS)
  • Duration Please visit the German website for more information
  • Schedule Please visit the German website for more information
  • Application deadline 6 weeks before start, later registration also possible if places are available
  • ECTS credits 12 ECTS-Credits
  • Costs CHF 8,500
  • Teaching language German
  • Location Bern, Schwarztorstrasse 48
  • School Business School
  • Next session Please visit the German website for more information

Contact

Downloads

For further information and registration, please visit the German website. 

Content + structure

Portrait

Artificial intelligence has a reputation for being complicated and technical. As a result, executives who do not have a technical background are often keen to avoid the subject, where possible. We created the CAS Artificial Intelligence for Business with this target group in mind. You will acquire the expertise you need to play an active and systematic role in shaping the AI future of your business. The balanced combination of proven theoretical and applied concepts, systems and tools (frameworks), active, hands-on ML exercises and up-to-date AI case studies will enable you to tackle the data-led challenges that specialists and executives in your organisation or business will face in the future.

Learning outcomes

The CAS Artificial Intelligence for Business is designed to enable you to play an active role in driving your organisation’s AI transformation. You will become fluent in the language of data scientists and AI infrastructure engineers, allowing you to represent and promote the key interests of your business area. We will equip you with the following strategic, tactical and functional skills:

  • You will appreciate the potential that various AI/ML techniques hold for business process optimisation in different areas of your organisation.
  • You will understand how to create your own AI use case description with «ML Canvas» and initiate an AI project.
  • You will gain a broad understanding of the different roles within an AI team and learn how to form such heterogeneous teams from the fields of business and technology and work with them towards specific goals.
  • You will understand the regulatory and ethical challenges surrounding AI technologies and be able to gauge their relevance to your business.
  • You will be in a position to anticipate future changes that AI technologies will bring about in the business environment and will understand how to react appropriately and use the technologies to your advantage.

In this part-time continuing education programme, you will focus intensively on the next developmental evolution of your organisation – the data-supported digital organisation. You will appreciate the potential of this technology and use it to your business’ advantage.

Basic principles of artificial intelligence

  • Concepts, techniques, tools:
    artificial intelligence, machine learning, etc.
  • Application areas and examples:
    decision-making support through AI
  • Strategic implications:
    business models, organisational implications, etc.

Data-driven innovation

  • AI/ML problem framing:
    from basics to ML Canvas
  • First AI project
    SME-relevant, best practices
  • Using no-code ML tools:
    practice-based AI exercises (no-code approach)

AI in operational business and marketing

  • AI applications:
    transition from expert systems to AI applications
  • From traditional marketing to AI-driven marketing:
    data-supported customer acquisition and customer retention
  • Smart process automation:
    deterministic vs probabilistic work processes
  • Calculating ROI of AI applications
    Evaluation of smart process automation (SPA) use cases

Organisation, working environment and HR analytics

  • Establishing and developing AI teams:
    roles, skills, processes, recruitment of AI talent
  • HR analytics:
    HR analytics as part of the HR strategy, value chain, tools, predictive and prescriptive HR analytics issues

Regulatory and ethical aspects of AI

  • Disinformation, bias & fairness:
    from deepfakes to biased ML algorithms
  • Data protection and dataveillance:
    regulatory guidelines and their consequences
  • Ethical principles and data protection & fairness tools:
    ethical framework, practical application of data protection

You will benefit from effective teaching approaches that will advance your professional and personal development:

  • Lectures, tutorials, exchange of experience
  • Use of MS Teams as a learning platform
  • Active use of select «no-code» AI/ML tools and predictive applications
  • Presentations and technical discussions
  • Group work and action learning
  • Study of examples with reflection, case studies
  • Networking and exchange with lecturers and participants
  • Transfer report, AI project
  • Presentation

Qualification + title

Certificate of Advanced Studies (CAS) of Bern University of Applied Sciences in Artificial Intelligence for Business

Lecturers

Our lecturers are proven experts with extensive practical and theoretical knowledge in their subject areas. They have at least a university degree plus many years of experience in higher education. 

Requirements + admission

Are you the head of a division or department, a project manager, product owner, innovation manager or specialist? Do you work in Marketing, Operations, Production, Finance, Risk Management, HR or Legal & Compliance? In this continuing education programme, you will learn how to make optimal use of AI technologies in your organisation – in strategic, tactical and operational terms.

University degree

You will be admitted to the programme with a degree from a university, university of applied sciences, university of teacher education, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, or an equivalent foreign university and at least two years of professional experience.

Higher vocational training

If you have a qualification from a higher vocational education institution (Diploma Höhere Fachschule HF, Federal Diploma, Federal Certificate of Proficiency) and several years of professional experience, you will also be admitted to the programme. However, you will be required to attend our Introduction to Academic Study before starting the CAS. Completion of this module is a prerequisite for admission to the CAS.

Exceptions

In exceptional circumstances applicants may still  be admitted. The head of the degree programme will make a decision based upon your application and extenuating circumstances. Please contact us. If you are admitted, you will in any case attend the course «Introduction to Academic Writing» (in German) before the first CAS.

A working knowledge of English
Some of the course materials and most of the tools we use in the CAS are in English.

For all students of our CAS programmes we offer a half-day course Effective Learning. Attendance is recommended and is free of charge for CAS students. At this event, you will learn about the practice-oriented learning style used at universities of applied science.

Organisation + Registration

The duration of the programme is 21 study days and it takes place on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

For further information and registration, please visit the German website. 

Documents required for registration

You can register online via registration form. For registration we require following documents (in PDF format, max. 1 MB per document): 

  • Diplomas 

  • Curriculum Vitae 

  • Passport-sized photo (in JPG format) 

Please upload these documents even if you have already submitted them for another application. 

Organisational aspects of the CAS

18 study days on Friday and Saturday.

The registration deadline for the programme is six weeks before the start. If places are still available, later registration is possible.

CHF 8,500

All required literature, course materials and the costs of the certificates of competence are included in the CAS fee.

The continuing education regulations of the Bern University of Applied Sciences and the implementation regulations for the continuing education regulations apply. The right to make changes is reserved. In case of doubt, the wording of the legal provisions and regulations shall prevail.

Continuing Education Regulations of Bern University of Applied Sciences (WBR) (PDF, 133 KB)
Implementation Provisions for the Continuing Education Regulations WBR in the Business School (PDF, 81 KB)
Implementation Provisions for the Continuing Education Regulations (PDF, 77 KB)
Framework Study Regulations at Bern University of Applied Sciences (PDF, 127 KB)
Regulations on Scientific Integrity at Bern University of Applied Sciences (WissIR) (PDF, 140 KB)
Legal foundations

Advice

Study Counselling

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Head of degree programme

Administration

Information events

In addition to the information events we offer you our personal advice. By telephone or directly online via MS Teams.

Please contact us!

E-mail: weiterbildung.wirtschaft@bfh.ch 
Phone: 031 848 34 02

Location + facilities