Postgraduate Course: Responsible applications of AI in organisations (CMSE11707)
Course Outline
| School | Business School |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course is designed to provide students with a comprehensive review of the different types of AI tools and technologies applied in an organisational context, clarifying their strategic and operational business outcomes, and the pragmatic and normative challenges associated with their deployment across different areas of organisational applications.
By taking this course, students will gain a deep understanding of (1) the different types of AI and how organisations can leverage them to realise the desired business outcomes by transforming existing processes and structures, and by delivering new products/services and business models; (2) the challenges and risks involved in using AI across different areas of organisational application, and (3) what responsible and ethical deployment of AI means in practice. |
| Course description |
AI is transforming how organisations function, and how they create and deliver value to their stakeholders. Compared with other forms of digital technologies, AI technologies have greater autonomy, deeper learning capacity and are more inscrutable. These unique characteristics create exceptional opportunities for organisations to leverage AI to transform current organisational processes, business practices and models, while at the same time delivering new kinds of products and services to their customers. These unique characteristics also mean that AI use raises significant challenges for businesses, ranging from concerns about AI hallucinations and lack of trust in the capabilities of AI to wider ethical, regulatory and cultural implications about how society functions. Such pragmatic and normative challenges also have potentially destructive effects on both organisational performance and reputation.
This course focuses on examining the specific business outcomes that different types of AI technologies can generate for organisations across different areas of application, and the strategies that organisations can take to mitigate the challenges associated with their use.
By taking this course, students will gain the skills and knowledge to understand opportunities for value creation with AI, to assess the risks and challenges associated with AI use across different types of applications, and the practices associated with responsible AI deployment.
Outline content:
The course will cover the following broad topics:
(1.) the different AI technologies, characteristics and uses of AI;
(2.) the business outcomes associated with using AI across a range of organisational applications, ranging from marketing to supply chain, and from human resources to new product development
(3.) the challenges that the use of AI raises across different areas of organisational applications and the associated practices for deploying AI responsibly
Student learning experience:
The course will be delivered over 10 weeks, 2-hour sessions involving a combination of lectures, case study discussions, and practical exercises where students will work in groups to examine the impact, challenges and responsible practices within different areas of business applications. The workshops will offer students the opportunity to discuss and present their individual analyses of the selected case studies to receive formative feedback on their approach and to match with others to create the groups for the evaluation of responsible practice.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | Students MUST also take:
Planning AI Transformation in Organisations (CMSE11709)
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| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | This course is only available to students on MSc AI for Business. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2026/27, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 1 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 20,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 6,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
170 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
50 %,
Practical Exam
50 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
50% Case study analysis (Individual) - 2,000 words - Assesses course Learning Outcomes 2 and 3
50% Presentation (Group) - 15 minutes - Assesses course Learning Outcomes 1 and 2 |
| Feedback |
Formative: Feedback will be given during the workshops, where students will be asked to briefly present their analysis of a particular AI application (outcomes & challenges within a case study organisation), and based on this consider the core challenges and appropriate responsible practice (that informs their individual assignment). Formative feedback will also be received during the case study discussions in class and the lecturer will also have a dedicated session to advise the groups before the group presentation.
Summative: Feedback will be provided on assessment within agreed deadlines. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Recognise and critically evaluate the potential business outcomes of different kinds of AI applications within organisations
- Reflect upon and critically evaluate the risks and challenges associated with using AI in organisations across different areas of applications
- Develop a critical understanding of the practice of using AI responsibly and ethically within organisations
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Cognitive Skills
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Be self-motivated; curious; show initiative; set, achieve and surpass goals; as well as demonstrating adaptability, capable of handling complexity and ambiguity, with a willingness to learn; as well as being able to demonstrate the use digital and other tools to carry out tasks effectively, productively, and with attention to quality.
Understand how to manage and sustain successful individual and group relationships in order to achieve positive and responsible outcomes, in a range of virtual and face-to-face environments.
Practice: Applied Knowledge, Skills and Understanding
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Work with a variety of organisations, their stakeholders, and the communities they serve - learning from them, and aiding them to achieve responsible, sustainable and enterprising solutions to complex problems.
Communication, ICT, and Numeracy Skills
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Convey meaning and message through a wide range of communication tools, including digital technology and social media; to understand how to use these tools to communicate in ways that sustain positive and responsible relationships.
Critically evaluate and present digital and other sources, research methods, data and information; discern their limitations, accuracy, validity, reliability and suitability; and apply responsibly in a wide variety of organisational contexts.
Knowledge and Understanding
After completing this course, students should be able to:
Demonstrate a thorough knowledge and understanding of contemporary organisational disciplines; comprehend the role of business within the contemporary world; and critically evaluate and synthesise primary and secondary research and sources of evidence in order to make, and present, well informed and transparent organisation-related decisions, which have a positive global impact. |
| Keywords | AI management,business outcomes,responsibility |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Raluca Bunduchi
Tel: (0131 6)51 5544
Email: Raluca.Bunduchi@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | |
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