ChatGPT Prompts for Australian CEOs (2026)

These prompts are designed to be used directly in ChatGPT, Claude, or any capable general-purpose AI tool. They work best when you add specific context about your organisation — your industry, size, current challenges, and the particular situation you are working through. The more specific your context, the more useful the output will be.

Treat each prompt as a starting point. The first response is rarely the final answer — the value comes from iterating, pushing back, and asking follow-up questions. AI is most useful for CEOs when it is treated as a thinking partner rather than a search engine.

How to Get the Most from These Prompts

These prompts are designed to be used directly in ChatGPT, Claude, or any capable general-purpose AI tool. They work best when you add specific context about your organisation — your industry, size, current challenges, and the particular situation you are working through. The more specific your context, the more useful the output will be.

Treat each prompt as a starting point. The first response is rarely the final answer — the value comes from iterating, pushing back, and asking follow-up questions. AI is most useful for CEOs when it is treated as a thinking partner rather than a search engine.

Strategic Planning and Direction

Strategy stress test: "I am the CEO of [describe your organisation — industry, size, stage]. Our current strategy is [describe it briefly]. Play devil's advocate and identify the five biggest weaknesses or risks in this strategy. For each one, suggest what we would need to believe for the strategy to succeed despite that weakness."

Scenario planning: "Our organisation operates in [industry] in Australia. Help me develop three distinct scenarios for how our competitive landscape might look in three years — one optimistic, one pessimistic, and one that involves a significant disruption we are not currently anticipating. For each scenario, identify the two or three strategic moves that would position us well."

Strategic priorities: "I need to set three to five strategic priorities for the next financial year. Our organisation is [describe it]. Our current challenges are [list them]. Our biggest opportunities are [list them]. Help me think through how to frame these priorities so they are genuinely strategic — not just operational goals dressed up as strategy."

Competitive positioning: "We compete in [market] against [describe competitors broadly]. Help me analyse our competitive position — where we are genuinely differentiated, where we are vulnerable, and what moves our competitors might make in the next 12 months that we should be preparing for."

Board and Investor Communication

Board paper narrative: "I need to write the CEO section of a board paper covering [topic]. The key messages I want to convey are [list them]. The board's main concerns about this topic are likely to be [describe them]. Help me structure a clear, logical narrative that addresses those concerns directly while making the case for [your position or recommendation]."

Difficult board question preparation: "I am presenting to my board next week on [topic]. Generate the ten toughest questions a board member might ask, including the ones I would least want to be asked. For each question, help me develop a clear, honest response."

Investor update: "I need to write a quarterly investor update. The key developments this quarter were [list them]. The challenges we are navigating are [describe them]. The outlook for next quarter is [describe it]. Help me write this in a tone that is honest and direct without being either overly optimistic or unnecessarily alarming."

Organisational Leadership

All-staff communication: "I need to communicate [describe the situation — a restructure, a strategic shift, a difficult result, a significant change] to our entire organisation. The key messages are [list them]. The concerns employees are likely to have are [describe them]. Help me write a message that is honest, clear, and acknowledges the difficulty of the situation without creating unnecessary anxiety."

Leadership team alignment: "My leadership team is not fully aligned on [describe the issue]. The different positions are [describe them]. Help me think through how to facilitate a conversation that moves us toward a decision without forcing false consensus or leaving people feeling unheard."

Performance conversation: "I need to have a difficult performance conversation with a senior leader who [describe the situation without identifying details]. Help me think through how to structure this conversation — what to say, how to say it, and how to handle the likely responses."

Decision-Making and Problem-Solving

Decision framework: "I am facing a decision about [describe it]. The options I am considering are [list them]. The key factors I need to weigh are [list them]. Help me build a simple framework for evaluating these options that I can use in a conversation with my leadership team."

Pre-mortem analysis: "We are about to [describe a significant initiative or decision]. Assume it has failed badly 18 months from now. What are the most likely reasons it failed? For each reason, what could we do now to reduce that risk?"

Second-order thinking: "We are considering [describe a decision or initiative]. What are the second and third-order consequences of this decision that we might not be thinking about? Include both positive and negative possibilities."

External Relationships and Reputation

Media preparation: "I have a media interview coming up about [topic]. The journalist is likely to ask about [describe the sensitive areas]. Help me develop clear, honest responses to the difficult questions while staying on message about [your key points]."

Crisis communication: "We are dealing with [describe the situation without sensitive details]. I need to communicate publicly about this. Help me draft a statement that is honest, takes appropriate responsibility, and outlines what we are doing to address the situation — without making commitments we cannot keep."