Despite employees' eagerness to start using AI, many organizations still lack formal policies or approvals to guide AI usage. 

 

This absence of governance is risky.  74% of companies don’t have a governance policy, and 42% cite the lack of an AI policy as the primary reason they haven't moved forward with AI. 

 

In the absence of clear guidelines, employees fall behind, get anxious about their jobs, and often resort to using personal accounts, which exposes companies to security, compliance, and intellectual property risks. To ensure AI is leveraged safely and effectively, organizations must establish actionable governance policies and usage guidelines

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Why This Is a Problem

1. Falling Behind Competitors: Without a clear AI policy, organizations risk losing their competitive edge, as competitors with established AI governance can move faster, innovate more effectively, and implement AI-driven solutions with confidence.

2. Employee Anxiety About Job Security: The absence of clear guidelines may leave employees uncertain about the impact of AI on their roles, leading to fear and anxiety about job displacement, which can negatively affect morale and productivity.

3. Increased Security and Data Privacy Risks: Employees may turn to using personal devices or accounts to access AI tools, creating significant vulnerabilities. These external platforms may not have the necessary security measures, putting sensitive company data at risk of breaches or unauthorized access.

4. Non-Compliance with Regulations: In regulated industries, the use of unapproved AI tools can lead to non-compliance with legal and data protection requirements. This increases the likelihood of fines, legal action, and reputational damage.

5. Intellectual Property (IP) Leakage: When employees use personal accounts or unapproved tools, there’s a higher risk that proprietary information could be exposed to third-party systems, jeopardizing the organization's intellectual property and confidential business data.
    

Steps to Get Started with AI Governance
 

To address these risks and provide clarity for your team, your organization needs to establish a formal framework for AI use. This framework should include AI Principles, an AI Governance Policy, and an AI Usage Guide, ensuring everyone understands both the high-level values and practical guidelines for AI adoption.
 

1. AI Principles

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AI Principles serve as the foundational values that guide how AI is used across the organization. These principles reflect your company’s commitment to responsible, transparent, and ethical AI use. They cover essential aspects like:

• Transparency: Employees and customers should understand when and how AI is being used.

• Fairness: AI must be free from bias and discrimination in all applications.

• Accountability: There should be a clear line of responsibility for any decisions or outputs generated by AI systems.

• Privacy: AI must respect user and customer privacy, adhering to strict data protection standards.

• Security: AI tools should be secure, with data protected from breaches and unauthorized access.

Benefits:

• Sets a strong ethical foundation for all AI applications.

• Aligns AI usage with company values and industry standards.

• Builds trust among employees, customers, and stakeholders.
   

2. AI Governance Policy

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The AI Governance Policy provides the formal rules and guidelines for AI use in the organization. It addresses the what and why of AI, covering areas like:

• Risk Management: How to assess and mitigate potential AI-related risks.

• Compliance: Ensuring AI use adheres to all relevant regulations and data privacy laws.

• Ethics: Defining responsible AI use that aligns with company principles.

Benefits:

• Provides a clear structure to guide responsible AI usage.

• Protects the organization from legal, ethical, and reputational risks.

• Ensures AI aligns with the company’s long-term business objectives.
   

3. AI Usage Guide

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The AI Usage Guide is a practical resource that explains how employees should use AI tools in their day-to-day roles. It provides step-by-step instructions, best practices, and case studies to ensure that AI is used efficiently and in compliance with the governance policy.

Key elements of the usage guide include:

• Step-by-step instructions on how to access and utilize approved AI tools.

• Best practices for using AI in daily workflows.

• Security protocols for safeguarding data when using AI.

• Examples of correct and incorrect AI usage in line with company policy.

Benefits:

• Empowers employees to use AI tools with confidence.

• Reduces the risk of employees using personal accounts by offering approved solutions.

• Boosts productivity and efficiency through structured, responsible AI use.

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Socializing AI Guidelines and Providing Support

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Once these policies are in place, socializing them across the organization is critical. Employees need to be made aware of these guidelines through internal communications, training sessions, and accessible resources. Here are a few steps to effectively introduce these policies:
 

1. Conduct Training Sessions: Host workshops or webinars to explain the new AI principles, governance policy, and usage guide. These sessions should be interactive, giving employees a chance to ask questions and see real-world examples of responsible AI usage.

2. Make Information Accessible: Ensure that all AI guidelines and principles are available on internal platforms like the company intranet, with clear documentation employees can refer to.

3. Designate an Internal AI Contact: To make sure the team feels supported, appoint an internal AI point of contact—whether a specific person or a department, such as IT or legal—where employees can direct any questions or concerns related to AI usage.
    

By proactively addressing AI governance and usage, you not only mitigate risks but also set your organization up to capitalize on AI’s full potential. Establishing clear principles, governance, and usage guidelines now will position your team to responsibly innovate and lead with AI.

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Sample Policy and Usage Documents:
 

►  Google's AI Principals

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► Vischer: One of my favorite sources on AI Usage Policies comes from the Swiss Law Firm, VISCHER. They maintain a fantastic library of detailed yet accessible information.  They share a fantastic One-Page AI Direction and 11 Principles for Using AI. 

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► Fisher Phillips has also shared a sample policy, "Acceptable Use of Generative AI Tools" 

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► HubSpot offers a "AI Usage Policy for Startups [+Template]".​​