AI Governance Framework
A CEO showed API tokens via DM in front of 40 people. Four artifacts (policy + registry + approval + review) prevent the embarrassing class of incidents.
What
A minimal governance pack covering the four things that actually matter at 30–100 person scale: (1) an AI policy document everyone reads on Day 1, (2) a current registry of AI tools the company uses (with owner + data scope per tool), (3) an approval process for new AI tools with sensitive data, (4) a quarterly AI review cadence. Skip the 200-page enterprise framework; ship the four artifacts.
Why it matters
A large fintech and an AI-marketing firm both flagged this as the gap that lets shadow AI usage outpace policy. Concrete failure modes: an exec showing API tokens via Telegram DM in front of 40 people; PII pouring into a free-tier chatbot; AI-generated code shipping without IP review. The pack costs <2 weeks to write and prevents a quarter's worth of cleanup work later.
End-to-end
- Write the AI Policy (1–2 pages): allowed data classes per tool tier, banned tools, escalation contact, incident-report path.
- Build the AI Tools Registry as a single markdown table: tool, owner, data classes processed, contract type (per-seat, API, free), expiry/renewal. Update on every new tool.
- Define the approval process: who reviews new tool requests (typically: head of security + head of the requesting function), SLA (3 business days), criteria (PII handling, data residency, audit logs).
- Set up a quarterly AI review: 90 minutes. Review registry, incidents, adoption metrics, policy updates.
- Add InfoSec from the design phase of every new AI project — review before coding, not after deployment.
- For regulated industries, add: a PII control report (quarterly), preventive PII-outbound control (gateway / DLP), AI review of CI/CD vulnerabilities, IP strategy for AI-generated code.
Gotchas
- A 200-page framework no one reads is worse than a 2-page policy everyone reads. Lead with the four artifacts; expand only when a real incident demands it.
Tools
- A single markdown file for the policy
- A registry (markdown table or a row per tool in a sheet)
- A named owner per AI tool
- A quarterly calendar entry