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ZTELLIGENCE.AI

HOW TO USE AI / FOR BUSINESS LEADERS

Start with real work.
Keep the judgment human.

Choose one task. Give AI a clear brief. Check the result. These short walkthroughs help you put AI to work without handing over the decision.

Use an organization-approved assistant—such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or Copilot—with approved data. These are reusable prompt patterns, not built-in commands or guarantees of equivalent results. Features and permissions vary by product and plan.

Send me practical AI tips Explore the walkthroughs ↓
  1. 01 · DefineOne business task and a clear output.
  2. 02 · PrepareApproved context, constraints and examples.
  3. 03 · DraftAI proposes; missing facts stay unknown.
  4. 04 · VerifyA person checks evidence and decides.

Your next useful AI task

AI-assisted operating examples, not personally reviewed by Jeff or tested across every AI product. General prompting and response-limitations sources checked 2026-09-25. Review due 2026-10-25.

Owners & CEOs

Turn an update into a decision brief

Give your next leadership meeting a clear decision to make.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Choose an approved, sanitized operating update.
  2. Specify the decision, audience and one-page format.
  3. Trace every material statement back to the update.

Try this prompt

Using only the update below, draft a leadership brief with: decision needed, supporting facts, missing evidence, options and next action. Label assumptions. Do not invent numbers or owners. Context: [paste approved update].

Human checkpoint
Confirm facts and owners before sharing. A polished summary is not proof.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
Operations

Draft an SOP from a real workflow

Capture how work actually happens before trying to automate it.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Describe the current workflow without personal data.
  2. Ask for numbered steps and exception handling.
  3. Have the process owner walk through a test case.

Try this prompt

Turn this workflow into a draft SOP: trigger, inputs, numbered steps, exception path, owner and approval point. Mark missing information as unknown. Workflow: [approved description].

Human checkpoint
The process owner must validate safety and operational steps.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
CFOs & PE leaders

Challenge an AI business case

Separate a promising time-saving estimate from money you can actually realize.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Enter sanitized assumptions, not confidential financial files.
  2. Ask for missing costs and sensitivity questions.
  3. Recalculate the case in the Toolkit.

Try this prompt

Review these AI project assumptions: [inputs]. Separate released capacity, avoided costs and actual cash savings. Identify double counting, adoption assumptions and missing running costs. Return questions, not a valuation or investment recommendation.

Human checkpoint
Validate arithmetic independently; hours saved are not automatically EBITDA.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
Technology & business leaders

Compare vendors against your workflow

Make a shortlist based on evidence, not a persuasive demo.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Write must-have requirements before reading proposals.
  2. Use approved excerpts with dates and source labels.
  3. Ask for evidence gaps instead of a winner.

Try this prompt

Compare these vendor excerpts against [requirements]. Return requirement, evidence quotation, source, date and unknowns. Do not infer a feature from marketing language. List questions to ask each vendor.

Human checkpoint
Confirm capabilities, pricing and security directly before a purchase.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
Leadership teams

Create a meeting follow-up people can verify

Get a usable draft without inventing commitments.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Use approved notes with permission.
  2. Separate decisions from suggestions.
  3. Ask attendees to confirm owners and dates.

Try this prompt

From these sanitized notes, extract confirmed decisions and actions. For each action show owner and deadline only if explicitly stated; otherwise use unassigned or not agreed. Put proposals in a separate section. Notes: [text].

Human checkpoint
Review the draft before sending. Do not let AI assign commitments.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
Sales & service leaders

Find themes in customer feedback

Turn feedback into questions worth investigating.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Remove identifiers and use an authorized sample.
  2. Ask for themes with supporting excerpts.
  3. Compare themes with the full dataset before acting.

Try this prompt

Group this anonymized feedback into themes. For each, show supporting excerpts, counterexamples and unanswered questions. Do not claim the sample represents all customers. Feedback: [text].

Human checkpoint
Check sample bias and preserve critical minority feedback.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
People & operations

Make missing onboarding information visible

Help a coordinator see gaps while keeping employment decisions human.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Use a fictional or approved nonpersonal checklist.
  2. Ask for missing fields and dependencies.
  3. Have the coordinator approve the final checklist.

Try this prompt

Compare this onboarding checklist with these nonpersonal completion statuses. Return missing items, dependencies and questions for the coordinator. Do not infer eligibility or make employment decisions. Checklist: [text]. Status: [text].

Human checkpoint
Keep identity documents and sensitive employee information out of general AI chat.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
Owners & PE leaders

Pressure-test a plan before approving it

Expose weak assumptions while you can still change the plan.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Describe the objective and constraints.
  2. Ask for failure modes and disconfirming evidence.
  3. Assign a human owner to investigate each key risk.

Try this prompt

Challenge this operating plan: [sanitized plan]. Identify five plausible failure modes, evidence that would invalidate assumptions, and a low-cost test for each. Separate facts from hypotheses. Do not invent probabilities.

Human checkpoint
Critique is a starting point for investigation, not a forecast.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
All business leaders

Test two prompts on the same task

Improve a repeatable task by measuring quality, not verbosity.

See the steps + prompt
  1. Choose three fictional cases, including an exception.
  2. Run two prompt versions under comparable conditions.
  3. Score factual accuracy, missing details and review time.

Try this prompt

Draft two different prompts for [bounded task]. Both must use only supplied facts and flag unknowns. Suggest a simple scoring rubric and three fictional test cases. Label all examples as fictional.

Human checkpoint
Retest when the model, instructions or data changes. Do not claim universal superiority.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25
Acquisition-minded leaders

Build an evidence request list

Understand what is documented and what still needs an owner.

See the steps + prompt
  1. List nonconfidential process areas.
  2. Ask what evidence would demonstrate how each works.
  3. Let the relevant advisers refine the request list.

Try this prompt

For these operating areas [list], draft an evidence checklist with document type, purpose, proposed owner and open questions. Mark unknowns. Do not conclude that the business is buyer-ready or give legal, tax or valuation advice.

Human checkpoint
Use qualified advisers for transaction-specific judgments.

Apply it in the Toolkit · Explore Academy

Version 1 · Source check 2026-09-25 · Review due 2026-10-25

TRUST THROUGH TRANSPARENCY

A review process—not an “always current” claim.

Weekly change review

A scheduled AI-assisted review checks primary vendor sources, flags changed guidance and drafts new how-to tips. Jeff approves proposed releases before publication.

Monthly curriculum review

The Academy and Toolkit review task examines lessons, examples and tools. Material changes should include a source, version, review date and explanation. Saved member work and earned records are preserved.

Visible limitations

AI-assisted, source-checked and personally reviewed are different labels. Review dates change only after a real check. Expired how-to tips leave newsletter rotation; a labeled practice reminder appears when no new tip is available.

Current release · September 25, 2026

Added ten practical walkthroughs and newsletter tip rotation. General source guidance checked; no model-by-model performance validation. This release does not represent a new audit of every existing Academy lesson or Toolkit formula. The first full curriculum freshness audit remains pending.

Reference desk

The sources support general prompting and verification principles; the business workflows and prompts are original illustrative applications, not vendor endorsements.

Report an outdated instruction or confusing result →

When the question is specific to your business.

Use the guide to start. Work with Jeff when you need an accountable plan for your operating priorities, data and people. Personal review and implementation are separately scoped.

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