Royal Caribbean Group finance leaders came to FIU Business with a shared challenge: how to turn the promise of artificial intelligence into practical tools for finance transformation.
Over two days, 30 Royal Caribbean participants took part in a customized FIU Executive Education program focused on AI, digital transformation and the future of finance. The program was designed to help participants move beyond one-off AI tools and think more strategically about how emerging technologies can reshape workflows, improve decision-making and support measurable business value.
The training focused on finance-specific challenges, including productivity, forecast accuracy, cycle time, margin, cash flow and risk reduction. Participants explored how AI and digital tools could be applied across areas such performance management, close and reporting, procurement and accounts payable, treasury, revenue and margin analytics, and project economics.
Igor DeNoronha, an AI and digital transformation instructor for FIU Executive Education, said the goal was to help participants understand AI as part of a broader transformation strategy.
“They came here to learn about AI and digital transformation in general, applied specifically to the financial function,” DeNoronha said. “We ended up teaching them to focus not only on technology, but on strategy, engagement, how people work, data and stewardship.”
The program combined strategy sessions with hands-on work including a hackathon. Participants examined operating models, governance, auditability, model risk, human-in-the-loop controls and responsible use, while also building toward concrete outcomes: a 90-day action plan, a 12-month roadmap, a technology dependency map and governance and adoption actions.
The experience helped Royal Caribbean participants connect the concepts to real business needs.
Orestes Jimenez (MSF ’18, BBA ’17), senior manager of newbuild finance at Royal Caribbean Group, said the program offered both strategic context and practical application.
“It’s been good, both from a strategic perspective on how we should be thinking about AI and how it can help us better manage our teams and build better processes,” said Jimenez. “Today was a really good session because we got to be a little more hands-on and step away from the theoretical side of it.”
Jimenez said the experience helped him better understand AI as more than a prompt-based tool.
“Most people think of AI as something you prompt and it does everything for you,” he said. “But it’s more there to help you use tools that will help you go through the entire process.”
Conrad Rimbau (BBA ’93), supply chain finance manager at Royal Caribbean Cruises, said the program gave him space to step back from daily demands and think differently about his team’s work.
“It opened my eyes to the capabilities that AI could do,” Rimbau said. “Coming from the work environment, you’re caught up many times in the day-to-day minutia.”
Rimbau said he plans to bring the lessons back to his team through real-life examples that encourage employees to expand what they do and move outside their comfort zones.
The program also highlighted FIU Business’ continued connection to South Florida industry and its alumni network. Eight FIU Business alumni were among the Royal Caribbean participants, including Jimenez and Rimbau.
“It’s definitely nostalgic to be back on campus,” Jimenez said. “But it just shows that FIU continues to grow and expand what it is providing to some of these large companies, specifically in South Florida.”
Rimbau described returning to FIU as a point of pride — and a family tradition. His mother graduated from FIU in the 1970s, and his daughter is a graduate of FIU Law.
“Technically, we are a three-generation household,” he said.
The Royal Caribbean program comes as FIU continues to expand its role in customized executive education. FIU recently debuted at No. 7 in the U.S. and No. 2 in Florida in the Financial Times Executive Education Custom 2026 ranking, which recognizes providers of customized executive programs for companies and organizations.
To learn more about Executive Education at FIU Business, visit the FIU Business Executive Education website.