MGMT Fundamentals: AI-Powered Leadership Skills for New Managers
Dave Kline
Executive Coach to Systematic Leaders
Marsden Kline
Entrepreneur, Leader, Coach, Mom
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AI won't make a bad manager good. But it can make a good manager great.
60% of new managers fail in their first 18 months.
It doesn't have to be you.
That number isn't an opinion. It's McKinsey. Gartner. Korn Ferry. Harvard. They keep running the study. The number keeps coming back the same.
Why? Because only 15% of new managers ever get any training before they're handed a team. Your company took a great individual contributor, gave them a new title, and assumed you'd figure it out. They asked you to learn by trial and error. Usually your error. Usually at the team's expense.
And now you're being asked to do all of that and figure out where AI fits before your competitors do.
That's the trap. Most "AI for managers" content treats AI like a shortcut around the fundamentals. It isn't. AI without judgment just produces wrong answers faster. The leaders who will own the next decade are the ones who master the fundamentals first, then use AI to build on top of them faster.
That's what we teach.
What you’ll learn
The timeless principles of management, powered by AI.
Run the MAPS diagnostic (Mindset / Abilities / Preferences / Skills) and walk away with a Personal User Manual you can share with your team
Master the delegation calls that actually free your time, not the ones that just look like "delegation" on a slide
Build Claire the Coach — your AI specialist for self-reflection between sessions — using the GUIDE prompting framework
Build a People Picture for every direct report so you know what they want, what they fear, and what they can actually do
Run the Goal Alignment conversation that turns "do your job" into "own this outcome" — without sounding like a corporate poster
Walk away with an Employee Heatmap for your whole team and a motivation read on every person on it
Set expectations using the Expectations Grid so nothing important between you and your team is left implicit
Handle a low performer the right way: early, fairly, without flinching, and without cruelty
Build Casey the Chief of Staff, your second AI specialist, and run a 1:1 check-in your direct report would actually pay for
Build the two trusts (Dependable + Emotional) and stop confusing one for the other on your team
Encourage more conflict to drive innovation, and learn to use the Alignment Pyramid for getting everyone back on the same page
Run the hard conversation you've been avoiding using the SAFE framework (Success / Archetype / Finesse / Empathy)
Pick metrics that move behavior on your team, not metrics that fill a dashboard nobody reads
Make decisions you can defend the next day using the 5-Step Diagnostic (Goal → Problem → Diagnosis → Design → Execute)
Pressure-test your hardest calls with Sam the Strategist, your third AI specialist, before you ship them to the team
Identify your boss's archetype so you can stop guessing what they want and start delivering it
Build the clear command dynamic that makes you the easiest person on your boss's team to support
Walk away with a 1:1 Dashboard you'll use to start proactively managing your boss
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Who this course is for
New managers (0–3 years in) who've started to suspect "winging it" isn't a strategy and want a system they can run on Monday morning
Operators at 50–500-person companies with no in-house L&D — nobody is going to train you but you, and we're here to help
Curious, self-aware leaders who want to get ahead of the AI curve without becoming dependent on the tools or losing their judgment
Prerequisites
This is NOT a Fortune 500 VP course
If you're managing managers, this is not for you. Look at MGMT Accelerator instead.
This is NOT for AI-native engineers
If you're already running Claude Code and want to talk agents and tool use, this isn't it. We teach AI as a multiplier, not a replacement.
This is NOT for anyone whose company is forcing them in
The students who win here chose to be here. If your manager is making you take it, save your seat for next cohort and come back when ready.
What's included
Live sessions
Learn directly from Dave Kline & Marsden Kline in a real-time, interactive format.
Optional 30-minute Q&A and live coaching after every class
Get your problems solved while learning from other leaders' challenges.
Access to recordings
Miss a session, watch it back. But the live sessions are where the value is. We coach you and your peers in real time on actual problems from your actual team.
6 management templates you'll use every week
Personal User Manual · Employee Heatmap · Expectations Grid · 7-Question Cascade · 10-Minute Diagnostic · 1:1 Dashboard.
The GUIDE prompting framework + 3 AI specialists
A roster of named characters from Dave's upcoming book that you'll customize and rely on for self-coaching, decision pressure-testing, 1:1 prep, and more.
Learn side-by-side with other leaders
Stay accountable and share insights with like-minded professionals.
Certificate of completion
Share your new skills with your employer or on LinkedIn.
A small private cohort
Capped so Dave and Marsden can coach everyone live.
Maven Guarantee
Your purchase is backed by the Maven Guarantee.
Course syllabus
15 live sessions • 7 lessons
Week 1
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Yourself
Jun
9
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Yourself
Jun
9
Group Coaching + Q&A
AI Specialist #1: Build Claire the Coach
Jun
10
AI Specialist #1: Build Claire the Coach
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Potential
Jun
11
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Potential
Jun
11
Group Coaching + Q&A
Week 2
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Performance
Jun
16
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Performance
Jun
16
Group Coaching + Q&A
AI Specialist #2: Build Casey the Chief of Staff
Jun
17
AI Specialist #2: Build Casey the Chief of Staff
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Conflict
Jun
18
MGMT Fundamentals - Manage Conflict
Jun
18
Group Coaching + Q&A
Free resources
Schedule
Live sessions
4 hrs / week
2 core modules followed by optional group coaching + 1 AI specialist build session each week.
Tue, Jun 9
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Tue, Jun 9
5:00 PM—5:30 PM (UTC)
Wed, Jun 10
4:00 PM—5:00 PM (UTC)
Projects
1 hr / week
We know managers are overworked. These short practical exercises are designed to jumpstart your application and steal back your time.
Async content
1 hr / week
These are 100% optional. Short readings and videos that let you deep dive into foundational topics.
Testimonials
The MGMT Fundamentals course on Maven is incredibly comprehensive, covering every crucial aspect of team leadership. It stands out as one of the most effective management courses available, adhering to the 80/20 principle to maximize impact. This course is an absolute must for every first-time manager. I can't recommend it enough and wish I had taken it sooner.
Dilip
AI Product Lead - UberGreat, practical management 101 tips and war stories. The blueprint laid out was easy to follow and put into practice quickly.
Emma
Senior Director, People & Culture - CapitolisDave and Mar are exceptional leadership coaches who offer practical, actionable tactics and frameworks. Their positive energy makes the learning experience enjoyable. When applied with your team, these frameworks provide an immediate ROI. Participating in this course has also reinforced my own leadership style, boosting my confidence and energy in how I lead.
Jeet
Sr Manager, Solutions Architect - DatabricksThe value from this course comes from two sources: 1) The content, which excellently distills down all of management theory into an applicable framework that feels like it's really giving you the 80/20, and 2) access to the instructors, who can answer very specific questions from the students and speak from experience, not theory. Highly recommended!
Adam
Data Science Manager · WhataburgerThis course was practical, well-structured, and immediately useful. Dave and Mar delivered clear frameworks and tools I could apply right away!
Laura
Manager, Data Insights and Analytics - HealthVerityI loved the concrete and practical advice that Dave and Mar offer! This is the training I wish I had gotten earlier in my career as a manager!
Sam
Project Lead, Growth - BMNT, Inc
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$950
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