Beyond Excel: Shift to High-Value AI for Finance and Operations

Ariana Smetana, AccelIQDigital

Business Advisor | AI Product Strategy

Uma Welingkar, Excelinsight.io

AI Product Leader | Technologist

AIQ - Lead the Business Growth

Stop Drowning in Spreadsheets. -> Start Driving Real Insights.

Are you an operations or finance leader spending 40-60% of your team's time on manual work, have margin slipping, or worrying about compliance issues?

This intensive, 2-week cohort-based course is for mid-market leaders ready to move beyond data wrangling to AI-powered business growth.

Week 1: Diagnosing the Current State and Building the Business Case

Current State: Quantify business case + conduct a Process Audit.
Learn:
- AI Fundamentals: Essential for auditable, trustworthy results and understanding why pure Gen AI fails.
- ROI Framework: Learn "The Three Types of AI ROI" and utilize the AI ROI Calculator.
- AI Use Cases: Prioritization framework to select the right priority.
Key Deliverables: A business case for leadership and an AI Business Evaluation Scorecard.

Week 2 Focus: Securing a Quick Win and Charting the Future State

Future State: Establish a measurable success roadmap and a strategic expansion plan.
Plan:
- 30-Day Quick Win: Select your highest-impact pilot case and run hands-on experiments.
- Map an AI Implementation

Key Course Deliverables: Business clarity beyond Excel, leading value-driven AI projects in your organization.

What you’ll learn

By the end of this course, you'll have a business plan for your AI use case and be ready to pilot.

Pick the right use-case and assess AI ROI
Know how to deliver the pilot project in your organization

Gain confidence in testing your high-value use cases
Map an AI project implementation plan

Learn directly from Ariana & Uma

Ariana Smetana, AccelIQDigital

Contact

Led executives to turn AI experiments into enterprise value.

Corporate Finance + AI product leader

Uma Welingkar, Excelinsight.io

Contact

Experienced in helping organizations turn complexity into clarity

Top 50 Women in Tech | Products That Count

See all products from AIQ Business Growth Accelerator

Who this course is for

Finance Director: You are Small to Mid-market finance leader struggling with manual processes and executive pressure for faster insights
Operations Leaders: You lack insight into where SKUs and margins are slipping across data silos.
Project Leaders: Who aim to lead AI projects more effectively, ensuring high-value use cases enable improved processes.

Prerequisites

Mid-Level and Upper Management Leaders
For department leaders responsible for delivering business results with AI implementation

What's included

Live sessions

Learn directly from Ariana Smetana, AccelIQDigital & Uma Welingkar, Excelinsight.io in a real-time, interactive format.

Lifetime access

Go back to course content and recordings whenever you need to.

Community of peers

Stay accountable and share insights with like-minded professionals.

Certificate of completion

Share your new skills with your employer or on LinkedIn.

Maven Guarantee

Your purchase is backed by the Maven Guarantee.

Course syllabus

Week 1

May 5—May 10

Expanding from a single finance use case to a scalable platform approach.

1 item

Week 2

May 11—May 16

Strategies for bridging gap between finance and operations

1 item

Schedule

Live sessions

1 hr / week

Live Sessions delivered as Class 1 and Class 2

Projects

1-2 hrs / week

Pre-work prior to live sessions

Testimonials

"The workshop was incredibly insightful, providing practical strategies for navigating the complexities of digital transformation. The interactive sessions and emphasis on identifying tailored action plans made it a valuable and enriching experience. Looking forward to the next workshop. Thank you Ariana!"
Kate Melnikova, MBA
Finance Manager, The Dinerstein Companies
I found the AccelIQ workshops to be very profound, bringing practical strategies that helped me to better understand the intricate landscape of digital transformation. I loved that Ariana's approach allowed for interactive sessions, which enabled me to focus on crafting a personalized action plan for my company. It made learning very valuable.
Cheryl L. Thompson
Owner / Managing Partner, Made in the Shade Houston
“The Accel workshop is an excellent enabler for kickstarting the AI journey, providing a framework for planning and implementation.” I truly enjoyed the previous workshop and hope to have another opportunity to join such a group".
Evgeny Makarov
Interim CEO, TKM
I worked with Ariana on AI-related projects, in the past, and the dedication and knowledge she brings are invaluable. Learning from a seasoned leader of her caliber is vital for successful business transformation.
Guilherme Rocha
CEO, Digital 1