AI Training 2026
FAST-09

AI for Managers and Leaders

9 hours · 3 live sessions × 3h · Wadood Chaudhary
Resources · Labs, projects and reading · Lesson 22 of 25

Reading list

TEXT · 5 MIN

FAST-09 Reading List: AI for Managers and Leaders: Leading Teams, Choosing Use Cases, and Managing Risk

Provider: 7formations | Course: FAST-09 | Instructor: Wadood Chaudhary | Links verified by fetch or search as of Oct 2026

Readings are short and practical: evidence on what AI does and does not deliver at work, the data rules managers carry in Massachusetts, worker sentiment, and change-management basics. Required items take about 90 minutes in total across the course. This list is training material, not legal advice; confirm rules with your HR or compliance lead.

How to use. Required readings take 20 to 45 minutes per session and are done before (or right after) the session they support. Optional readings go deeper. 'Living page' means the publisher updates it continuously; read the current version. Reading times are estimates for the parts that matter to this course, not the whole document.

Session 1: Using AI as a manager

Required

  • Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier (Dell'Acqua et al.), HBS Working Paper 24-013
    Publisher: Harvard Business School | Date: September 2023 | Reading time: about 20 min
    URL: https://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=64700
    Why read: The 'jagged frontier' study: consultants using AI did better on some tasks and worse on others. The reason managers must check AI-assisted work task by task.

  • 201 CMR 17.00: Standards for the Protection of Personal Information of MA Residents
    Publisher: Mass.gov, Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation | Date: Regulation page dated 10/19/2017 (in force since 2010) | Reading time: about 15 min
    URL: https://www.mass.gov/regulations/201-CMR-1700-standards-for-the-protection-of-personal-information-of-ma-residents
    Why read: 201 CMR 17.00. Read the definition of personal information (17.02) and the duty to train and discipline employees under a written program (17.03).

Optional

  • General Laws Chapter 149, Section 52C: Personnel records; review by employee; corrections
    Publisher: Massachusetts Legislature | Date: Current text | Reading time: about 8 min
    URL: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXXI/Chapter149/section52c
    Why read: Massachusetts personnel records law. A reminder that reviews, discipline notes, and attendance records are regulated employee records, not prompt material.

  • General Laws Chapter 272, Section 99: Interception of wire and oral communications
    Publisher: The General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts | Date: Current statute text | Reading time: about 8 min
    URL: https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIV/TitleI/Chapter272/Section99
    Why read: Massachusetts wiretap statute: recording a conversation without everyone's consent is a crime. Relevant before using AI meeting recorders or note takers for one-on-ones.

  • Artificial Intelligence Risk Management Framework: Generative Artificial Intelligence Profile, NIST AI 600-1
    Publisher: NIST | Date: July 2024 | Reading time: about 20 min
    URL: https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/ai/NIST.AI.600-1.pdf
    Why read: NIST's Generative AI Profile. Skim the risk list (confabulation, harmful bias, information integrity) for what to check in AI drafts.

Session 2: Choosing and justifying use cases

Required

  • The state of AI in 2026: On the road to ROI
    Publisher: McKinsey & Company (QuantumBlack) | Date: August 25, 2026 | Reading time: about 15 min
    URL: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/quantumblack/our-insights/the-state-of-ai
    Why read: McKinsey's August 2026 survey: most organizations report individual productivity gains, but far fewer report enterprise financial impact. Why ROI must be measured, not assumed.

  • Generative AI at Work (Brynjolfsson, Li, and Raymond), NBER Working Paper 31161
    Publisher: National Bureau of Economic Research | Date: April 2023 (revised) | Reading time: about 20 min
    URL: https://www.nber.org/papers/w31161
    Why read: A field study of AI assistance for customer-support agents with measured productivity gains, largest for less-experienced workers. A model for a measurable pilot.

  • Employer Costs for Employee Compensation (news release)
    Publisher: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics | Date: June 2026 data, released September 9, 2026 | Reading time: about 5 min
    URL: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.htm
    Why read: The BLS employer-cost release. Use it for a loaded hourly cost when you do not have your own payroll figure (private industry: $46.89 per hour worked in June 2026).

Optional

  • Bulletin 2024-10: The Use of Artificial Intelligence Systems in Insurance
    Publisher: Massachusetts Division of Insurance | Date: December 9, 2024 | Reading time: about 15 min
    URL: https://www.mass.gov/doc/bulletin-2024-10-the-use-of-artificial-intelligence-systems-in-insurance-issued-december-9-2024/download
    Why read: Insurance managers: Massachusetts Division of Insurance Bulletin 2024-10. Why consumer-facing decisions score high risk on the matrix.

  • SB26-189 Automated Decision-Making Technology
    Publisher: Colorado General Assembly | Date: Signed May 14, 2026; applies to decisions on or after January 1, 2027 | Reading time: about 10 min
    URL: https://www.leg.colorado.gov/bills/sb26-189
    Why read: Colorado's 2026 automated decision-making law (SB26-189), replacing its 2024 AI Act. An example of where state rules for hiring and lending decisions are heading.

  • The 2025 AI Index Report
    Publisher: Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI (HAI) | Date: April 2025 | Reading time: about 20 min
    URL: https://hai.stanford.edu/ai-index/2025-ai-index-report
    Why read: Stanford HAI AI Index: skim the economy chapter for adoption and cost trends.

Session 3: Leading the change

Required

  • U.S. Workers Are More Worried Than Hopeful About Future AI Use in the Workplace
    Publisher: Pew Research Center | Date: February 25, 2025 | Reading time: about 10 min
    URL: https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2025/02/25/u-s-workers-are-more-worried-than-hopeful-about-future-ai-use-in-the-workplace/
    Why read: Pew Research Center: U.S. workers are more worried than hopeful about AI at work. Read before the worried-employee role-play.

  • The Prosci ADKAR Model
    Publisher: Prosci | Date: Living page | Reading time: about 10 min
    URL: https://www.prosci.com/methodology/adkar
    Why read: The ADKAR model (Awareness, Desire, Knowledge, Ability, Reinforcement). A simple structure for the training and communication parts of your 90-day plan.

  • Attorney General Advisory on the Application of the Commonwealth's Consumer Protection, Civil Rights, and Data Privacy Laws to Artificial Intelligence
    Publisher: Massachusetts Attorney General's Office | Date: April 16, 2024 | Reading time: about 15 min
    URL: https://www.mass.gov/doc/ago-ai-advisory-41624/download
    Why read: Massachusetts Attorney General advisory (April 2024): existing consumer-protection, anti-discrimination, and data-security laws apply to AI. Your guideline must fit them.

Optional

Link verification

Links verified by fetch or search as of Oct 2026. Links that could not be confirmed were dropped and are not listed. The instructor re-checks links before each cohort.

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