IABC Master Class: AI for Thought Leadership 2.0: From Idea Harvesting to Scalable Thought Leadership

You’re already using AI. The question is whether it’s helping you think better—or just helping you publish faster.

In this advanced masterclass, journalist and thought-leadership expert Rhea Wessel shows communication professionals how to use AI as a strategic partner in thought leadership—helping them identify stronger ideas, sharpen their positioning, and build repeatable systems for high-quality content.

This 2.0 masterclass focuses on how to use AI to analyze thought-leadership landscapes, identify gaps in the conversation, research audience pain points, and develop counterintuitive story angles that differentiate true thought leadership from marketing content.

Participants will learn how to work with AI while maintaining strong editorial judgment, ethical guardrails, and a distinctly human point of view—so their ideas gain credibility, not just visibility.

This masterclass is ideal for communication professionals who already use AI for writing or ideation and now want to use it more intentionally, strategically, and responsibly.

You’ll learn how to:

• Identify gaps in a thought-leadership landscape (what’s being said—and what isn’t)
• Define and sharpen a personal or organizational thought-leadership niche
• Research the deepest internal and external pain points of your audience
• Generate strong, counterintuitive story ideas using AI
• Build a scalable thought-leadership engine without diluting voice or credibility