AI governance is the set of practical guardrails a business puts around artificial intelligence: which tools staff are allowed to use, what data may never be pasted into public chatbots (shadow AI), how Microsoft 365 Copilot permissions are restricted, and where a human must review AI output before it reaches a client.
What good AI governance looks like for an SME
- A short, plain-English AI Safe-Use Policy every staff member understands
- Commercial Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) ensuring business data never trains public models
- Locked-down SharePoint and OneDrive permissions before turning on Copilot
- Named human-in-the-loop sign-off on client-facing work