Executive programme · Spring 2027

Building a second brain for your organisation

The GBG CTO Programme is an executive programme for leaders who want to take AI from pilots to practice. Over four sessions, we work together to turn your existing initiatives into a second brain your company actually runs on. Designed for companies that want to be at the forefront of the region.

Defined vision and KPIs

An honest map of the gap

A roadmap ready for leadership

Facilitated by Linn Treutiger, CPO at Devies, with guest speaker Christian Hendriksen, Copenhagen Business School

See the programme

The premise

What we mean by a second brain

Most technology leaders are already working on some version of a company brain or company context, whatever name it goes by internally. What is often less clear is what the end result should look like. Defining that is the starting point of this programme.

A second brain is more than agents connected to your intranet. It is a living model of your company that everyone in the organisation can interact with. It holds your data, discussions and decisions, along with the reasoning behind them, captured as work happens rather than pieced together afterwards.

To create real value, it needs a few things in place.

An access layer

so the right people can find the right information at the right time.

An ecosystem

where teams share skills, apps and insights, so the whole organisation improves together.

And clear ownership

so the capability stays with your company.

Owning what you build keeps you AI agnostic and free to change models and vendors as the technology evolves.

These are some of the building blocks, not a finished blueprint. Defining the scope, the investment and the order in which to build is exactly what the four sessions are for.

Whether you are just getting started or already running several pilots, the programme is designed to meet you where you are. We are all learning as this field develops, and the sessions are built around sharing that experience.

What it can look like

Every company has an Anna.

Today

By May

She has been around for twelve years. She knows which customer agreements have exceptions, why the pricing model looks the way it does, and which numbers in the system not to trust. Half the company messages her every week, and she spends more time answering questions than doing the work only she can do.

Anna’s knowledge lives in your second brain. Colleagues ask it directly, in the tools they already use, and get answers with sources. When it gets something wrong, Anna corrects it once, and the correction sticks. Anna gets her time back, and the knowledge stays with the company for the long term.

The GBG CTO networks is built to solve problems together and learn from one another, this programme is a perfect example of that.

John Johansson

Founder, GBG CTO Network

The GBG CTO networks is built to solve problems together and learn from one another, this programme is a perfect example of that.

John Johansson

Founder, GBG CTO Network

The GBG CTO networks is built to solve problems together and learn from one another, this programme is a perfect example of that.

John Johansson

Founder, GBG CTO Network

Programme structure

What you’ll actually do

Four sessions, spaced out, each building on the last, together with peers and your actual problem.

01

Wednesday, January 20

16:00–21:00 incl. dinner

Vision

The programme opens with the big picture: what a second brain could mean for your company.

Guest speaker

Christian Hendriksen

Associate Professor at Copenhagen Business School

Christian researches how organisations adopt, govern and create value with generative AI, with a particular focus on how companies move from individual experimentation to shared practices and measurable value.

Together, we set the vision and lay the conceptual groundwork. What should it accomplish, and how will you know it’s working? We agree on KPIs and success criteria before anyone touches a keyboard.

↳ Brainwork

02

Wednesday, February 17

16:00–21:00 incl. dinner

Current state

With the vision in place, we turn to the starting point: where does your company actually stand today?

Building on the Brainwork from the first session, we map your current situation and the organisational obstacles in the way. What fundamentals are already in place, such as data, tools, processes and ownership? What still needs to be arranged for the second brain to succeed? Working in your peer group, you compare notes with companies at different stages and see your own situation from a new angle.

You leave with a clear picture of the gap between where you are and where you want to be, and a shortlist of what to tackle first.

↳ Brainwork

03

Wednesday, March 17

16:00–21:00 incl. dinner

Roadmap

With a clear vision and an honest view of where you stand, the next question is: how do you get there?

Together, we build the roadmap: the concrete steps and infrastructure needed to close the gap between today and your vision. What does it actually take, technically and organisationally, to get the rest of your company on board? We look at priorities, sequencing and resources, so you know what to build first and what can wait.

In your peer group, you test your roadmap against how other companies are approaching the same challenge. You leave with a plan you can present to your leadership team, and a clear set of next steps for the Brainwork ahead.

↳ Brainwork

04

Wednesday, May 12

16:00–21:00 incl. dinner

Outcome

The final session brings everything together: what did we actually build?

Every participating company presents how far they got and what they learned along the way, wins and misfires both. Hearing how others tackled the same challenge, often in very different ways, is one of the most valuable parts of the programme.

We close by setting new targets for where your second brain goes next. You leave with a clear view of what you have achieved, a direction for the next phase, and a network of peers to continue the journey with.

Between sessions

Brainwork: building alongside your peers

Building a second brain is not something you need to figure out on your own. Throughout the programme, you work alongside technology leaders from other companies who are facing the same questions and making the same decisions.

Between sessions, you continue building within your own company. We call this the Brainwork. Participants are divided into smaller groups that meet regularly to share progress, discuss challenges and help each other move forward. Your group is also available between meetings, so when a question comes up in the middle of a busy week, support is never far away.

You leave the programme with more than a plan for your company. You leave with a network of peers you can continue to learn from long after the final session.

Why a room of peers

You’ve heard the success stories. This is where you hear the rest.

Most of what you read about AI comes from the companies that made it work. The pilots that stalled, the vendor bets that didn’t pay off and the tools nobody ended up using rarely get a case study.

That’s survivorship bias, and it makes every roadmap look easier than it is.

In this programme you hear both. Every participating company presents how far they got and what they learned along the way, wins and misfires both. Expect an honest exchange on common pitfalls, and the trial and error.

Every mark is a mistake a company survived and talked about.

“

Everyone tells the story of the planes that came back.
In this room, you hear about the ones that didn’t.

What you usually get

A polished case study from the one that made it

A vendor’s view of what to buy

A one-off talk you forget by Monday

Figuring it out alone

What you get here

Ten companies’ wins and misfires, side by side

An AI-agnostic plan you own, free to change models and vendors

Four sessions and Brainwork that keep you building

A peer group at a similar company size, between every session

What you usually get

A polished case study from the one that made it

A vendor’s view of what to buy

A one-off talk you forget by Monday

Figuring it out alone

What you leave with

Four sessions. Four things you take back to your company.

After session 01

Defined vision and KPIs

What your second brain should accomplish, and how you’ll know it’s working, agreed before anyone touches a keyboard.

After session 02

An honest map of the gap

A clear picture of the gap between where you are and where you want to be, and a shortlist of what to tackle first.

After session 03

A roadmap ready for leadership

A prioritised plan you can present to your leadership team, showing what to build first, what it takes and what can wait.

After session 04

Proof that your second brain works

What you achieved and learned along the way, a clear direction for the next phase, and a network of peers to continue the journey with.

Nobody has AI fully figured out. Here, we stop pretending and start sharing. That’s how we move faster.

Linn Treutiger

Programme facilitator

Nobody has AI fully figured out. Here, we stop pretending and start sharing. That’s how we move faster.

Linn Treutiger

Programme facilitator

Who this is for

For CTOs who are past the first pilot.

You’ve stopped asking “should we do this”. Now the question is what you’re actually building, and how.

Two seats per company

You, and the person who’ll build it with you.

Grouped by company size

It matters more than industry.

Bring a real problem

No laptop needed for session one.

Not a tool demo

Or a quick fix. We don’t sell either.

Sounds like you?

1 / 3

You have pilots, but no plan.

A few things work. Nobody can say yet what they add up to, or what to stop.

Or this?

2 / 3

Leadership expects an answer from you.

Vision, budget and the order of work. Ideally before summer, and defensible in the board room.

Or this?

3 / 3

You have an Anna.

Someone everyone asks. When she’s on vacation, the work slows down. Her knowledge should outlive her calendar.

Not sure where you stand?

Second brain readiness check. 10 questions, 3 minutes.

Who you’ll work with

Facilitated by people who build this, not just talk about it

Co-founder and CTO of Devies, and the person who started GBGCTO. As a fractional CTO, board member and angel investor, he spends his days turning technology into revenue and better margins. He built the network because he believes the region wins together.

Founder, GBG CTO Network

John Johansson

Co-founder & CTO, Devies

CPO at Devies and the architect of this programme. Linn shaped the four sessions and leads every one of them, from the first vision of your second brain to the plan you present to your leadership team.

Programme facilitator

Linn Treutiger

CPO, Devies

Researches how organisations adopt, govern and create value with generative AI. Christian opens the programme in session one and brings the research perspective to the questions you will work on in your own company.

Guest speaker · Session 01

Christian Hendriksen

Associate Professor, Copenhagen Business School

Fullstack engineer at Devies and co-founder of the game studio Mistwave Interactive. He builds software every day and curates the programme, so what you hear in the room stays close to what actually works in practice.

Programme curator

Rikard Nordahl

Fullstack engineer, Devies

Event manager at Devies and the engine behind GBGCTO's meetups, member lunches and newsletter. She is your contact for everything practical, from dates and venue to dinners and your seats, so you can focus on the work.

Event manager

Mikaela Jörhag

Devies

Admission

The practical bits

Format

4 in-person sessions, spaced across the programme

Seats

20, two per company

Investment

15.000 kr per company, excl. VAT

Where

Vallgatan 14, Göteborg

When

First session January 20th

Included

Dinner at every session

Open to

Everyone in the GBGCTO network

Investment

15.000

kr

per company, excl. VAT · two seats

Four in-person sessions

Brainwork peer group between sessions

Guest speaker from Copenhagen Business School

Dinner at every session

Apply now

Apply by 10 January 202773 days left

Seats are limited and go fast within the network.

Questions

Before you apply

Admission

Seats are limited and go fast within the network.

20 seats, two per company. Apply by 10 January 2027 and we’ll get back to you to confirm your seats.

Questions first?

hello@gbgcto.se

Visit us at:

Vallgatan 14, 411 16 Gothenburg

Apply for your company

We only use this to confirm your seats. No newsletter sign-up, nothing shared. We reply within a few days.

After you apply:Save the dates Share with your second participant

Building a second brain for your organisation

What we mean by a second brain

An access layer

An ecosystem

And clear ownership

Owning what you build keeps you AI agnostic and free to change models and vendors as the technology evolves.

Owning what you build keeps you AI agnostic and free to change models and vendors as the technology evolves.

Every company has an Anna.

What you’ll actually do

01

01

Wednesday, January 20

Vision

Christian Hendriksen

02

02

Wednesday, February 17

Current state

03

03

Wednesday, March 17

Roadmap

04

04

Wednesday, May 12

Outcome

Brainwork: building alongside your peers

You’ve heard the success stories. This is where you hear the rest.

“

Four sessions. Four things you take back to your company.

Defined vision and KPIs

An honest map of the gap

A roadmap ready for leadership

A roadmap ready for leadership

Proof that your second brain works

For CTOs who are past the first pilot.

You have pilots, but no plan.

Leadership expects an answer from you.

You have an Anna.

Facilitated by people who build this, not just talk about it

John Johansson

Linn Treutiger

Christian Hendriksen

Rikard Nordahl

Mikaela Jörhag

The practical bits

15.000

kr

Before you apply

How much time does it take?

Do I need to be technical, or bring a laptop?

We’re locked into Microsoft 365 Copilot. Is this still for us?

Who should take the second seat?

Is what we share kept confidential?

Do I have to be a member of GBGCTO?

Seats are limited and go fast within the network.

Apply for your company