The Douro Harvest

Leading with AI and Behavioral Science

Build an AI strategy grounded in a deeper understanding of people.

How can AI help your employees work more effectively? How will it change the way customers discover, evaluate and purchase your products? What should you invest in, and how will you know whether it works?

The Douro Harvest brings together lessons on AI and behavioral science to help executives answer these critical questions. Led by Kellogg professors Sergio Rebelo and Alexander Chernev, the program connects an understanding of AI’s capabilities with insights into how people think, work and make decisions.

Set in Portugal’s Douro Valley, a spectacular wine region, this immersive executive program combines practical learning, thoughtful discussion and opportunities to connect with a global cohort of leaders. You will gain a clearer perspective on what AI can do for your career and your business — and how to turn that potential into results.

Highlights

Join a global community of executives exploring how technology and human insight can shape better businesses.
Return with practical ideas, a broader network, and a clearer view of your next steps.

Dates

September 5-11, 2027

Location

Porto, Portugal’s second-largest city, is famous for its historic architecture, vibrant culinary scene, and breathtaking views of the Douro River.
Douro Valley is a dramatic landscape of steep, terraced vineyards that has produced world-renowned wines for centuries, offering a rich blend of tradition, natural beauty, and winemaking heritage.

Accommodations

Porto: Douro Riverside: Set in a beautifully restored 19th-century soap, candle, and perfume factory, the Pestana Douro Riverside Hotel blends industrial heritage with modern comfort on the banks of the Douro. Original brick chimneys by master builder Lino Soares Guedes frame sweeping river vistas from the terraces, bar, and dramatic infinity pool. Inside, floral motifs and delicate fragrances recall the building’s aromatic past, creating an atmosphere where Porto’s history meets contemporary elegance.
Pinhão: Quinta do Ventozelo, is a 16th-century estate that is focused on producing excellent wines and maintaining Portugal’s countryside traditions. It has a collection of elegant rooms with magnificent vistas located in various houses throughout the estate.

Registration

Seats are offered on a first-come, first-served basis. The program costs $8,900 per person, including six nights of luxury accommodations, meals and beverages, ground transportation, and the academic program. Spouses/partners sharing accommodations receive a 50% discount. Guests are encouraged to participate in all sessions.

VIDEO: Gain a glimpse into this unique, experiential executive program.

VIDEO: Hear from Professor Sergio Rebelo as he discusses the 2026 Harvest programs.

Personal Consultation

Please contact us to schedule an advising session

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Program schedule

Sunday, September 5: Porto
3:00 pm – Check-in at Douro Riverside
4:30–7:00 pm – Tour of port wine cellar and program introduction
7:30–10:00 pm – Welcome dinner

Monday, September 6: Quinta de Ventozelo, Douro Valley
8:00–9:45 am – Breakfast, Douro Riverside
10:00 am – Departure for Ventozelo
12:15–1:45 pm – Lunch, Ventozelo
2:00–5:15 pm – Academic sessions (Sergio Rebelo)
5:15–8:00 pm – Free time
8:00–11:00 pm – Dinner, Ventozelo

Tuesday, September 7: Quinta de Ventozelo, Douro Valley
7:30–9:00 am – Breakfast, Ventozelo
9:00 am–12:30 pm – Academic sessions (Alexander Chernev)
1:00–2:00 pm – Lunch, Ventozelo
2:00– 3:30 pm – Academic sessions (Sergio Rebelo)
3:30–5:00 pm – Free time
5:00 pm – Depart for dinner
6:30–11:30 pm – Dinner with winemaker

Wednesday, September 8: Quinta de Ventozelo, Douro Valley
7:30–9:00 am – Breakfast, Ventozelo
9:00 am–12:30 pm – Academic sessions (Alexander Chernev)
1:00–2:00 pm – Lunch, Ventozelo
2:00–3:30 pm – Academic sessions (Sergio Rebelo)
3:30–5:00 pm – Free time
6:00–7:30 pm – Depart for dinner
8:00–11:00pm – Dinner with winemaker

Thursday, September 9: Quinta de Ventozelo, Douro Valley
7:30– 9:30 am – Breakfast, Ventozelo
9:30 am –11:30 am Harvesting grapes at Ventozelo
12:30–2:00 pm – Lunch, Ventozelo
2:00–6:30 pm – Designing and communicating customer value: experiential learning
7:00–9:00 pm – Celebration dinner, Ventozelo

Friday, September 10: Porto
7:30–10:30 am – Breakfast, Ventozelo
11:00 am – Departure for Porto
1:00 pm – Arrival, Douro Riverside

Saturday, September 11: Porto
7:00–10:00 am – Breakfast, Douro Riverside
12:00 pm – checkout

Key benefits

Develop a stronger foundation for your AI strategy. Understand what today’s models can do, where they fall short and how to assess their value for your organization.
Gain practical approaches to improving work. Identify opportunities to augment employees’ capabilities, develop useful applications and redesign roles.
Create better tools for managerial judgment. Recognize cognitive biases, evaluate evidence and make more informed decisions.
Discover deeper insight into your customers. Understand the forces shaping their choices and design experiences that build satisfaction and loyalty.
Evolve your perspective on emerging markets and channels. Explore how AI agents may change the way customers find, compare and buy products.
Foster connections with fellow executives. Exchange experiences and ideas with leaders facing similar opportunities and challenges.

Academic content

Understanding AI and Putting It to Work

Sergio Rebelo

Go behind the chat box to understand how AI works and what its capabilities and limitations mean for business decisions.

We examine how to identify promising applications, test their effectiveness before deployment, and collect data that improves their performance. You will explore how to choose among models and architectures, including open-weight and proprietary alternatives, and how to quickly develop applications that support better decisions and greater efficiency.

Throughout, we consider how AI can augment human capabilities, how agents may reshape tasks and jobs, and how businesses should respond as consumers increasingly rely on AI for advice and purchasing decisions.

Behavioral Science: Understanding Employees and Customers

Alexander Chernev

Understanding how people think, make decisions, and respond to change is essential to leading an organization and creating value for customers.

Drawing on psychology, behavioral economics, and marketing, we explore how to recognize cognitive biases, evaluate evidence, and make better managerial decisions. We connect these insights to the challenges of introducing AI into organizations: encouraging adoption, helping employees assess recommendations, and supporting effective collaboration between people and technology.

We then turn to customers: how to uncover unrecognized needs, engage people with your offerings, and create memorable experiences that build lasting loyalty. You will gain a framework for understanding what customers value and translating those insights into better products, services, and relationships.

Together, these perspectives help you align technological possibilities with the motivations and behaviors of the people who determine their success.

Who Should Attend

The Douro Harvest is designed for executives, business owners, entrepreneurs, and senior leaders who want to understand how AI and behavioral science can improve their organizations.

It is particularly relevant for leaders responsible for strategy, innovation, marketing, customer experience, operations, and organizational change.

Participants bring different industries, functions, and perspectives to the discussion. Kellogg alumni and executives new to the Kellogg community are equally welcome.

The Douro Experience

Step away from daily demands and make room for fresh thinking.

Based at Quinta de Ventozelo in the Douro Valley, the program offers an idyllic setting that encourages focused learning, reflection, and conversation. Academic sessions are complemented by shared meals, vineyard experiences, and opportunities to discover the region’s wines and culinary traditions.

The harvest is a memorable part of the experience. Time among the vineyards and conversations with winemakers provide a connection to the region—and a natural setting for getting to know fellow participants.

The result is a week of learning and discovery, with relationships and ideas that extend beyond the program.

Faculty

Sergio Rebelo - Academic Director; MUFG Bank Distinguished Professor of International Finance; Professor of Finance; Faculty Director, EMBA Program

Alexander Chernev - Academic Director; Professor of Marketing

What participants say

“Harvest Porto Douro Valley was an exceptional program and a truly memorable Kellogg experience. The content was consistently outstanding, combining intellectual depth with practical application across AI, behavioral science, customer experience, strategy, and experiential learning.

The Douro itself became part of the classroom, making the learning even more meaningful and memorable.

Equally important was the extraordinary group of participants. The group blended remarkably well: engaging, friendly, curious, and genuinely open to learning from and interacting with one another. Everyone seemed committed to making the most of every opportunity, both inside and outside the classroom, which added enormously to the experience. I left having learned an enormous amount, made meaningful new connections, and feeling both intellectually energized and personally enriched. One of the best executive education experiences I have had.”

“Considering how quickly AI is evolving, the program did a great job of providing fresh perspectives, relevant insights, and new knowledge.”

“The combination of historical perspective, scientific depth, and practical experimentation was instrumental in deepening my understanding of AI and gave me a much clearer framework for thinking about its future.”

“The discussion of the value AI can create, along with the various challenges associated with it, very informative and insightful.”