Understanding the Brain: Using Neuroscience to Deliver Better Business Results
Apply Neuroscience for Leadership and Organizational Success
In today’s business environment, where human behavior, emotions, and cognitive processes influence outcomes as much as strategy, leaders must better understand how the brain shapes judgment, decision making, team dynamics, and consumer behavior. The Understanding the Brain: Using Neuroscience to Deliver Better Business Results program from Wharton Executive Education is designed to help professionals and business leaders apply core neuroscience principles to strengthen leadership effectiveness, improve decision making, and enhance organizational performance.
Led by renowned Wharton faculty, this six-week online program blends neuroscience frameworks, live webinars, applied research, and real-world case studies to help participants translate brain science into practical impact across leadership, marketing, innovation, and organizational strategy.
Faculty Insights
Watch the video to learn how this program can help you deliver better business outcomes.
Key Takeaways
Wharton’s Understanding the Brain: Using Neuroscience to Deliver Better Business Results program offers a pathway to understanding the brain and its functions through the study of neuroscience, a discipline integral to organizational success, leadership abilities, and personal growth.
Understand the basic anatomy and physiology of the brain and master techniques for leveraging cognitive insights
Leverage facets of the social brain to increase social capital, establish culture, and manage organizational change
Synthesize implications for business decisions using concepts such as normalization, the basis of choice overload and decoy effects, and evidence accumulation
Learn how to use neuroscience tools and insights to improve marketing efficiency and effectiveness
Examine the brain processes underlying exploration to enhance individual creativity and boost organizational innovation
Who Is This Program For?
Covering a wide variety of applications in neuroscience, this program helps anyone who wants to improve social connections, team effectiveness, make less emotion-driven decisions, and unlock the creative powers of the brain to achieve better, more creative innovation and results.
What you will learn in the Wharton Understanding the Brain program
The Understanding the Brain: Using Neuroscience to Deliver Better Business Results program helps professionals and business leaders apply neuroscience and brain science to real-world business challenges. Through video lectures, live webinars, case studies, and faculty-led discussions, the six-week online program delivers practical insights that strengthen decision making, deepen understanding of human behavior, and support more effective leadership, marketing, and innovation.
The brain is a complex organ, a hub for vital functions, such as perception, emotion, and thinking, just to name a few. In this module, you will learn about basic brain structure, the foundational practices of neuroscience in business; and how the makeup of the brain drives leadership, team building; and creativity. This module will help you:
Examine the anatomical structure of the brain, including the main lobes and their functions
Discover how the brain changes over time
Learn the function of neurons, their structure, and how they communicate
Explore the temporal and spatial scale of neurobiological measurement and manipulation techniques and how they work Assess the advantages and limitations of wearable technology and brain manipulation
Activities:
Assignment: Case study on wearable technology
The social brain plays a powerful role in building relationships. Explore how you can leverage this brain network to increase social capital, establish culture, manage organizational change, and foster personal and professional growth.
Understand how neuroscience can improve professional relationships and communication
Learn methods of exercising the social brain network to enhance relationships
Examine the implications of synchrony for team building and cultivating engagement, and see how synchrony can be leveraged to foster remote social connections
Leverage neuroscience insights to help your organization understand the importance of change management
Activities:
Assignment: Create a strategy to increase synchrony and social ties within your organization
Decision making varies from person to person. Dive deeply into how people make decisions, examining concepts such as normalization, the basis of choice overload and decoy effects, and evidence accumulation. This module will help you:
Learn how the brain assimilates information to make decisions
Examine how bias in the accumulation process can impact business decisions
Explore the process of divisive normalization in the brain and how it drives choice fatigue and decoy effects
Understand the relationship between emotions and risk in decision making and how to avoid regret
Activities:
Assignment: Provide an analysis of an article written by Professor Michael Platt and Ben Hayden discussing counterfactuals
Marketing is one of the most widely used business applications of neuroscience. Learn how neuroscience tools and insights can be used to improve marketing efficiency and effectiveness by examining relevant case studies and research. This module will help you:
See how neuroscience can reveal hidden thoughts and feelings that drive consumer behavior
Evaluate the use of brain signals to predict consumer choice and market-level behavior
Understand the relationship between the brain’s emotional and logical responses to build brand empathy and increase brand loyalty
Learn how brand empathy can be leveraged to develop compelling marketing ideas Discover tools used in neuromarketing
Activities:
Guest Interview: Sorin Patilinet, global director of Mars Marketing Communications Lab Assignment: Analyze the marketing approach of a selected brand
Innovation and creativity are critical to individual and collective success. Take an in-depth look at the brain processes behind exploration and how they can be leveraged to enhance individual creativity and organizational innovation.
Analyze focus and divergent thinking and understand how their underlying neural circuits can impact innovation
Understand the similarities between the ancestral role of foraging in exploration and innovation
Discover the biomarkers that are associated with an innovative brain state
Learn about the biomarkers of creative personalities
Activities:
Assignment: Synthesize Professor Platt's Monkey Island research and correlate it to human behavior and what we can learn from the research
Journey forward to discover how trends in neuroscience might impact business and life in general, and explore the future of neuroscience technology. This module will help you:
Explore recent trends in neuroscience
Examine future trends in fields such as neurotechnology, neuroeconomics, and neurodiversity
Understand the ethical repercussions of neuroscience applications in business
Activities:
Final project: Develop a mission and values that codifies a new application for neuroscience in business using best practices and create a pitch for the application.
Program Experience
Participate in an immersive session with Wharton faculty and classmates.
Research and discuss applications of neuroscience using real-world examples that span a variety of industries.
Deepen your understanding of the content, exchange ideas, and interact with peers through regular discussions.
Test your comprehension of fundamental concepts through self-study activities.
Gain insight into peer perspectives and approaches and reflect on your organization’s business practices.
Final Project - Create a Pitch
You will get a chance to pitch a startup that develops and commercializes a novel application of brain science to business or pitch an application of brain science relevant to your current organization.
Industry Examples
Research and discuss real-world applications of neuroscience to deepen your understanding of what drives creativity, leadership, and team building.
SAMSUNG/APPLE
Examine customer loyalty for well-known mobile phone brands through the lens of neuroscience.
COGWEAR
Learn how neuroscience can be used in organizations through this example of wearable technology — one of the staple applications of neuroscience.
COCA-COLA/PEPSI
See how researchers were able to assess and predict consumer preferences for soft drinks by measuring the impact of branding and marketing using the brain’s value network.
MARS
Discover how Mars integrated neuroscience into the marketing strategy for some of its well-known brands.
NEURALINK
Learn how Elon Musk’s Neuralink aims to provide a breakthrough human–internet AI interface in the brain measurement segment of neuroscience applications.
Participant testimonials from Understanding the Brain program
Hear from past participants who have applied neuroscience principles and brain science to real-world business challenges. Their experiences highlight how the program strengthens decision making, supports leadership effectiveness, and enables more informed marketing strategies, innovation, and organizational performance by deepening understanding of human behavior and consumer behavior.
Program Faculty
Director, Wharton Neuroscience Initiative; James S. Riepe University Professor; Professor of Marketing, The Wharton School; Professor of Psychology; Professor of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania
Scientist Michael Platt is known for asking some of the most challenging neuroscience questions in the 21st century — and formulating innovative ways to answer them. He focuse...
Guest Contributors
Global Director, Mars Marketing Communications Lab
A self-proclaimed marketing engineer, Sorin Patilinet leads the Mars Marketing Communications Lab, where he spearheads the creation of future marketing capabilities using a co...
Certificate
Upon successful completion of the program, you will earn a digital certificate of completion from the Wharton School.
Mastering Executive Influence: Neuroscience-Driven Leadership Strategies
FAQs
What is the Understanding the Brain: Using Neuroscience to Deliver Better Business Results program from Wharton?
The Understanding the Brain: Using Neuroscience to Deliver Better Business Results program from Wharton Executive Education is designed for professionals and business leaders who want to understand how neuroscience principles, brain science, and psychology influence decision making, leadership, and organizational outcomes. The program offers a structured course that explores how the human brain, brain function, and nervous system shape human behavior, emotions, and cognitive processes in modern business and management contexts.
Focused on the application of neuroscience across leadership, marketing, innovation, and communication, the program helps participants translate research-backed insights from science into better decisions, stronger team dynamics, and sustainable business growth across organizations.
Is the Understanding the Brain program from Wharton worth it?
The value of any executive program depends on your professional goals, leadership development priorities, and the kind of impact you want to achieve. As organizations increasingly recognize the influence of behavior, emotions, and cognitive bias on decision making, gaining a deeper understanding of neuroscience has become essential for business leaders.
The Understanding the Brain program from Wharton Executive Education offers a structured way to explore how brain science, consumer behavior, and neuroscience research inform leadership strategies, marketing campaigns, and organizational processes. Guided by Wharton faculty and supported by a global peer network, the program blends academic science with practical application for long-term relevance in business management.
Who should take the Understanding the Brain program?
This program is suited for professionals, managers, and business leaders who want to strengthen decision making, improve communication, enhance team dynamics, and better understand human behavior in organizational and customer-facing roles. It is particularly valuable for those involved in leadership, marketing, innovation, advertising, and organizational change initiatives.
No prior experience in neuroscience, clinical neuroscience, or psychology is required. The program is designed for participants with diverse backgrounds who want to apply brain science and behavioral insights to real-world business challenges.
What topics are covered in the Understanding the Brain program?
The program covers essential neuroscience concepts and their applications across business functions. Topics include brain anatomy, brain function, the social brain, consumer neuroscience, neuromarketing, neuroscience of decision making, applications of neuroscience in marketing, creativity and innovation, and future trends in neuroscience and technology.
Through case studies, industry examples, and applied frameworks, participants gain actionable key insights into how brain science, neural activity, and behavioral processes influence leadership, consumers, and organizational performance.
How does this program apply neuroscience to leadership and decision making?
The program examines how leaders determine and respond to complex situations by exploring neuroscience-based key concepts such as normalization, choice overload, decoy effects, and evidence accumulation. These neuroscience principles help participants understand how judgment is formed and how decision making processes can be improved. By applying these tools and strategies, leaders can reduce emotion-driven choices, strengthen focus, improve clarity, and lead teams more effectively across organizations.
Does the program cover neuromarketing and consumer behavior?
Yes. A dedicated module focuses on neuromarketing, consumer neuroscience, and consumer behavior, examining how brain science can improve marketing efficiency, advertising effectiveness, and customer engagement beyond traditional methods such as focus groups.
Participants analyze marketing campaigns and real-world case studies from global brands to understand how neuroscience helps predict consumer behavior, brand preference, and decision patterns among consumers.
How do I know if this program is right for me?
After reviewing the information on the program landing page, we recommend you submit the short form above to gain access to the program brochure, which includes more in-depth information. If you still have questions on whether this program is a good fit for you, please email learner.success@emeritus.org, and a dedicated program advisor will follow-up with you very shortly.
Are there any prerequisites for this program?
Some programs do have prerequisites, particularly the more technical ones. This information will be noted on the program landing page, as well as in the program brochure. If you are uncertain about program prerequisites and your capabilities, please email us at the ID mentioned above.
Note that, unless otherwise stated on the program web page, all programs are taught in English and proficiency in English is required.
What is the typical class profile?
More than 50 percent of our participants are from outside the United States. Class profiles vary from one cohort to the next, but, generally, our online certificates draw a highly diverse audience in terms of professional experience, industry, and geography — leading to a very rich peer learning and networking experience.
What other dates will this program be offered in the future?
Check back to this program web page or email us to inquire if future program dates or the timeline for future offerings has been confirmed yet.
What is the learning experience like in this Wharton neuroscience program?
The Understanding the Brain program is delivered over six weeks in a fully online format, with a commitment of 4–6 hours per week. The learning experience includes live teaching sessions, interactive discussions, industry examples, knowledge checks, and crowdsourcing polls.
Participants gain access to Wharton faculty, recorded sessions with transcripts, peer collaboration, and an AI Tutor that helps learners engage, learn, and move confidently through complex neuroscience subjects.
Are there practical projects or real-world applications in the program?
Yes. The program includes a final project where participants create and pitch a business or organizational application that applies brain science to real-world challenges. This project allows learners to translate insights into actionable potential applications relevant to their organizations or industries.
Ongoing industry examples and applied discussions reinforce how neuroscience supports innovation, business growth, and leadership impact.
Who teaches the Understanding the Brain program?
The program is led by Michael Platt, Director of the Wharton Neuroscience Initiative and Associate Professor-level authority in marketing, psychology, and neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania, a globally recognized university and business school. Guest industry experts also contribute applied perspectives, ensuring a balance between academic research, practical tools, and real-world business relevance.
Do I need a background in neuroscience or psychology to join?
No prior experience in neuroscience, clinical neuroscience, computer science, or psychology is required. The program starts with foundational concepts and gradually builds toward applied business use cases.
It is designed for professionals with diverse roles and potential job titles who want to strengthen their understanding of how the brain influences leadership, decision making, and workplace behavior.
How much time is required each week?
Each program includes an estimated learner effort per week. This is referenced at the top of the program landing page under the Duration section, as well as in the program brochure, which you can obtain by submitting the short form at the top of this web page.
How will my time be spent?
We have designed this program to fit into your current working life as efficiently as possible. Time will be spent among a variety of activities including:
Engaging with recorded video lectures from faculty
Attending webinars and office hours, as per the specific program schedule
Reading or engaging with examples of core topics
Completing knowledge checks/quizzes and required activities
Engaging in moderated discussion groups with your peers
Completing your final project, if required
The program is designed to be highly interactive while also allowing time for self-reflection and to demonstrate an understanding of the core topics through various active learning exercises. Please email us if you need further clarification on program activities.
What is it like to learn online with the learning collaborator, Emeritus?
More than 300,000 learners across 200 countries have chosen to advance their skills with Emeritus and its educational learning partners. In fact, 90 percent of the respondents of a recent survey across all our programs said that their learning outcomes were met or exceeded.
All the contents of the course would be made available to students at the commencement of the course. However, to ensure the program delivers the desired learning outcomes the students may appoint Emeritus to manage the delivery of the program in a cohort-based manner the cost of which is already included in the overall course fee of the course.
A dedicated program support team is available 24/5 (Monday to Friday) to answer questions about the learning platform, technical issues, or anything else that may affect your learning experience.
How do I interact with other program participants?
Peer learning adds substantially to the overall learning experience and is an important part of the program. You can connect and communicate with other participants through our learning platform.
What certificate will I receive after completing the program?
Upon completing the program, participants receive a digital certificate of completion from the Wharton School.
What are the requirements to earn the certificate?
Each program includes an estimated learner effort per week, so you can gauge what will be required before you enroll. This is referenced at the top of the program landing page under the Duration section, as well as in the program brochure, which you can obtain by submitting the short form at the top of this web page. All programs are designed to fit into your working life.
This program is scored as a pass or no-pass; participants must complete the required activities to pass and obtain the certificate of completion. Some programs include a final project submission or other assignments to obtain passing status. This information will be noted in the program brochure. Please email us if you need further clarification on any specific program requirements.
What type of certificate will I receive?
Upon successful completion of the program, you will receive a smart digital certificate. The smart digital certificate can be shared with friends, family, schools, or potential employers. You can use it on your cover letter, resume, and/or display it on your LinkedIn profile.
The digital certificate will be sent approximately two weeks after the program, once grading is complete.
Can I get the hard copy of the certificate?
No, only verified digital certificates will be issued upon successful completion. This allows you to share your credentials on social platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
Do I receive alumni status after completing this program?
No, there is no alumni status granted for this program. In some cases, there are credits that count toward a higher level of certification. This information will be clearly noted in the program brochure.
How long will I have access to the learning materials?
You will have access to the online learning platform and all the videos and program materials for 12 months following the program start date. Access to the learning platform is restricted to registered participants per the terms of agreement.
What equipment or technical requirements are there for this program?
Participants will need the latest version of their preferred browser to access the learning platform. In addition, Microsoft Office and a PDF viewer are required to access documents, spreadsheets, presentations, PDF files, and transcripts.
Do I need to be online to access the program content?
Yes, the learning platform is accessed via the internet, and video content is not available for download. However, you can download files of video transcripts, assignment templates, readings, etc. For maximum flexibility, you can access program content from a desktop, laptop, tablet, or mobile device.
Video lectures must be streamed via the internet, and any livestream webinars and office hours will require an internet connection. However, these sessions are always recorded, so you may view them later.
How much does the Understanding the Brain program cost?
The program fee is listed on the program page and covers academic content, online coursework, live faculty interaction, and learning tools. Flexible payment plans and early registration benefits may be available.
Additional details on financing options can be found on the Wharton Executive Education website.
Can I still register if the registration deadline has passed?
Yes, you can register up until seven days past the published start date of the program without missing any of the core program material or learnings.
What is the program fee, and what forms of payment do you accept?
The program fee is noted at the top of this program web page and usually referenced in the program brochure as well.
Flexible payment options are available (see details below as well as at the top of this program web page next to FEE).
Tuition assistance is available for participants who qualify. Please email learner.success@emeritus.org.
What if I don’t have a credit card? Is there another method of payment accepted?
Yes, you can do the bank remittance in the program currency via wire transfer or debit card. Please contact your program advisor, or email us for details.
I was not able to use the discount code provided. Can you help?
Yes! Please email us with the details of the program you are interested in, and we will assist you.
How can I obtain an invoice for payment?
Please email us your invoicing requirements and the specific program you’re interested in enrolling in.
Is there an option to make flexible payments for this program?
Yes, the flexible payment option allows a participant to pay the program fee in installments. This option is made available on the payment page and should be selected before submitting the payment.
How can I obtain a W9 form?
Please connect with us via email for assistance.
Who will be collecting the payment for the program?
Emeritus collects all program payments, provides learner enrollment and program support, and manages learning platform services.
Are there any restrictions on the types of funding that can be used to pay for the program?
Program fees for Emeritus programs with Wharton Executive Education may not be paid for with (a) funds from the GI Bill, the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance Act of 2008, or similar types of military education funding benefits or (b) Title IV financial aid funds.
What is the program refund and deferral policy?
For the program refund and deferral policy, please click the link here.
Didn't find what you were looking for? Write to us at learner.success@emeritus.org or Schedule a call with one of our Program Advisors or call us at +1 680 205 5118 (US) / +44 185 845 9995 (UK) / +65 3135 1422 (SG)
Flexible payment options available.
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