Is it the Real World, or is it AI? An Entrepreneur’s “101” Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
As a small business owner, manager, or employee, there’s so much you need to keep up on – so when do you have time to learn how to use AI? Today is the day!
You’ve heard plenty about Artificial Intelligence being a “game changer” across industries – but what does that mean for your day-to-day work? How does that look when helping small businesses level the playing field? We asked ourselves these questions – and more! – and did some investigating.
In this beginner-friendly session, join an SBDC “AI Explorer” – who specializes in working with entrepreneurs and small businesses – to discover practical ways AI can support your business – without the jargon or hype. Instead of focusing on specific tools, we’ll discover how to approach solving problems using AI in a small-business context. The frameworks we’ll cover are designed to grow with you – whether you’re writing a simple prompt or coding a much more complex AI super-agent.
In this “AI 101” session, we will:
- Demystify the AI landscape– from Large Language Models (LLMs) and AI chatbots to agents and super agents – and share what to watch for if “the tool is free.”
- Teach simple, repeatable frameworks for deciding when, how, and if you should use AI in your business.
- Explore prompt engineering basics so you can get better results from AI tools (and suggestions for improving prompts when something goes wonky!)
- Demonstrate a “human-in-the-loop” workflow to understand how to best use AI as a collaborator – and how to choose the best “player” for different tasks!
You can leave this session with sample prompts to try, tools and resources to explore, and the confidence to embrace being an AI Explorer – starting today!
Registration Information
Date: 9/22/2026
Schedule: 9:00 am – 10:00 am CST
Location: Live Virtual
Registration Fall 2026
Date: September 22, 2026
Schedule: 9:00 am – 10:00 am CST
Location: Online (link will be sent to participants shortly before the session date)
There are seats available for operating, for-profit businesses under 500 employees. Register below:
We have a limited number of seats available for nonprofits, pre-venture (not yet started) businesses, and those participants from a company of over 500 employees. Register below:
Cancellation Policy: Due to program costs and space limitations for these programs, participants are expected to cancel their registration at least 24 hours ahead of the program. Cancellations that occur less than 24 hours prior to the start of the program will be considered no-shows and may be removed from future programming and/or charged a course fee.
Disability Statement: Reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities will be made if requested at least two weeks in advance. Contact the UW-Madison SBDC office at sbdc@bus.wisc.edu to request accommodations.
Heather Ferguson
Instructor
Heather Ferguson is a dedicated learning and development professional with a proven track record of empowering entrepreneurs and busy professionals to transition into new roles, develop critical skills, and navigate complex topics with confidence. She excels at creating engaging and actionable learning experiences tailored to meet diverse learner needs. As Program Manager at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Small Business Development Center (SBDC), Heather works to design, deliver, and refine educational programs that address the evolving needs of adult learners.
Heather became an “AI Explorer” in spring 2023, seeking to develop a foundational understanding of game-changing artificial intelligence technology to help resource-strapped entrepreneurs work more efficiently. Focused on approachable, practical uses of the tools, she has since presented more than 15 AI 101 sessions for entrepreneurs and SBDC colleagues locally, statewide and nationally. She also received ASBDC AI U Certification, a program supported by Google.org for SBDC consultants, and has been part of the national ASBDC AI Interest Group to help set the course for SBDC AI consultant training.
Heather also received an inaugural national ASBDC 40 Under 40 award in 2022, and was nominated for Wisconsin SBDC State Star in 2021 and 2024. She has a B.A. in English and Journalism from Northern Illinois University and an M.S.Ed. in Higher Education from Western Illinois University.
[I liked seeing] real-world examples with prompts, and how they were used in actual business examples. I appreciated the acknowledgement that AI isn’t perfect and showing real-world examples with what worked AND what didn’t work. Sometimes AI trainings have been so “pro-AI” it feels out of touch with the actuality of using these tools as a small business. Yours made it feel much more genuine and gave me more confidence to trust the information.
“Engaging and interesting while being informative. One of the better webinars I’ve attended.”
[I appreciated the] handouts that provide prompts for practicing using AI platforms and how to draft effective prompts.
“All the information is cutting edge and great for the small business owners.”