Kozhikode, November 3, 2026: The Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIM Kozhikode) has introduced a seven-month online Professional Certificate Programme in Data Science and AI for Business, aimed at helping professionals bridge the gap between analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and business decision-making.
The programme is designed in response to a growing need among Indian enterprises to move AI from pilot projects to wider deployment, with a focus on measurable business outcomes and responsible adoption. According to EY’s “The AIdea of India: Outlook 2026,” 47% of surveyed Indian enterprises have multiple generative AI use cases in production, while 23% remain at an early stage or in pilots. The World Economic Forum’s “Future of Jobs Report 2025” found that 63% of surveyed employers identified skills gaps as a major barrier to business transformation.
Curriculum covers analytics, GenAI, and governance
The curriculum spans nine pillars and 25 modules, covering data science, business analytics, machine learning, generative AI, and agentic AI. It addresses analytical foundations, business applications, implementation, and governance, with emphasis on evaluating opportunities and translating technical capabilities into organisational value.
Key learning areas include data preparation, visualisation, dashboards, forecasting, predictive and prescriptive analytics, model performance, explainability, enterprise AI applications, workflow design, agent planning, and process automation. The programme also explores cross-industry use cases in banking, financial services, healthcare, human resources, marketing, customer experience, and product management. Enterprise adoption topics include AI operating models, talent planning, data platforms, workflow integration, change management, and responsible AI.
Focus on practical application and integration
Applied learning is delivered through two mini projects: the Analytics-Business Dashboard Challenge and a GenAI Workflow Automation and Agentic AI Prototype. Participants will also complete a Strategy & Integration Capstone, requiring them to develop an enterprise AI integration plan covering opportunity assessment, adoption planning, governance, talent requirements, and leadership communication.
The curriculum covers business-oriented model evaluation, human oversight, escalation mechanisms, audit trails, governance frameworks, accountability, intellectual property, data leakage, and regulatory considerations, including India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act and the EU AI Act, from a managerial perspective.
Programme structure and eligibility
The programme includes five live masterclasses led by industry experts, covering analytics for decision-making, applied Python, Power BI and Tableau, deploying machine learning applications with low-code tools, and building AI agents. These sessions supplement pre-recorded modules delivered by IIM Kozhikode faculty and live doubt-clearing sessions with industry experts. Masterclass topics may change.
Targeted at mid-to-senior-level managers, business leaders, data, AI and analytics professionals, technology and transformation professionals, consultants, and entrepreneurs, the programme requires a bachelor’s degree in any discipline, with no mandatory work experience. The course fee is INR 1,89,000 plus GST (AED 8,416), and participants who meet programme requirements will receive a certificate of completion from IIM Kozhikode.
Programme directors and institutional rankings
The programme directors are M. P. Sebastian, Professor of Information Systems, and Vidushi Pandey, Associate Professor of Information Systems, at IIM Kozhikode. The institution was ranked third in the Management category of the NIRF India Rankings 2025 and 76th globally in the Financial Times Open-Enrolment Executive Education Rankings 2025. Programme directors may change.
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