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Governance Policy

This policy establishes the overall governance framework for AI agents, including roles, responsibilities, and decision-making authorities.

1. Purpose & Scope

1.1 Purpose
To define the principles, roles, responsibilities, and processes required to ensure Aigents operate under responsible and accountable oversight, aligned with laws, ethical values, and organizational priorities.

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1.2 Scope
Applies to all Aigents developed, integrated, or used within the organization, including:

  • Autonomous systems acting with minimal oversight

  • Aigents interfacing with customers, employees, or third parties

  • Aigents accessing sensitive or regulated data

  • Third-party Aigents used in organizational workflows

2. Governance Principles

2. Governance Principles to be adhered to:

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  • Accountability: All Aigents have assigned Business and Technical Owners. Humans remain ultimately responsible for outcomes

  • Transparency: Clear documentation of capabilities, limitations, logic, and decisions must be maintained

  • Fairness: Bias mitigation and equity checks are required throughout the lifecycle

  • Privacy and Security: Strong data governance and cybersecurity controls must be applied

  • Safety and Reliability: Aigents must undergo rigorous testing and monitoring

  • Human Oversight: Critical decisions must remain reviewable or reversible by humans

3. Governance Structure

3.1 AI Governance Board

 

Chaired by executive leadership, this board oversees:

  • Policy creation and evolution

  • Approval of high- and critical-risk Aigents

  • Monitoring compliance and incident trends

  • Addressing systemic ethical or regulatory concerns

 

Members include leaders from Legal, Risk, InfoSec, Privacy, Ethics, Tech, and Business Units.

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3.2 AI Ethics Committee

 

Provides ethical guidance on:

  • Ethical implications of proposed Aigent use cases

  • Fairness and bias mitigation strategies

  • Transparency and explainability requirements

  • Human oversight and intervention protocols

 

Includes diverse perspectives from technical, ethical, legal, and business domains.

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3.3 AI Technical Review Team


Conducts technical assessments of:

  • Aigent architecture and design

  • Data quality and bias mitigation

  • Security and privacy controls

  • Performance and reliability metrics

  • Testing and validation protocols

4. AI Agent Registry & Inventory

4. All Aigents must be registered in the central Aigent Registry, including:

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  • Basic information (name, version, purpose, deployment date)

  • Business and Technical Owners

  • Risk classification

  • Data sources and access permissions

  • Capabilities and limitations

  • Integration points with other systems

  • Approval status and conditions

  • Compliance status with organizational policies


The Registry must be reviewed quarterly to ensure accuracy and completeness.

5. AI Agent Approval Process

5. All Aigents must undergo a risk-based approval process before development or deployment:

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5.1 Risk Classification


Aigents are classified based on:

Potential impact on individuals and organization
Autonomy level and human oversight requirements
Data sensitivity and regulatory considerations
Operational criticality and business impact


Classifications: Low, Medium, High, or Critical Risk

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5.2 Approval Requirements


Low Risk: Business Unit approval
Medium Risk: Technical Review Team approval
High Risk: AI Governance Board approval
Critical Risk: Executive Leadership approval

6. Risk Management

6. Aigent risks must be systematically identified, assessed, and mitigated:

 

6.1 Risk Assessment

 

Required for all Aigents, addressing:

  • Ethical and social impact risks

  • Privacy and data protection risks

  • Security vulnerabilities

  • Reliability and performance risks

  • Regulatory compliance risks

  • Reputational risks

 

6.2 Risk Mitigation
Mitigation strategies must be documented and implemented, including:

  • Technical controls

  • Process controls

  • Governance controls

  • Monitoring and testing protocols

 

6.3 Ongoing Risk Management

 

Risks must be reassessed:

  • After significant Aigent updates

  • When usage patterns change

  • When regulatory requirements change

  • At least quarterly for High and Critical Risk Aigents, annually for others
     

7. Performance Monitoring & Evaluation

7. All Aigents must be monitored for:

  • Technical performance (accuracy, reliability, response time)

  • Fairness and bias metrics

  • Security and privacy compliance

  • Business value and impact

  • User feedback and satisfaction

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Monitoring frequency and metrics must be proportional to risk classification.

8. Training & Awareness

8.1 . Required training for all personnel involved with Aigents:

  • Basic AI literacy for all employees

  • Role-specific training for Aigent developers, owners, and operators

  • Ethical AI principles and responsible use

  • Governance policies and procedures

  • Incident reporting and response

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Training must be refreshed annually and updated as policies evolve.

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8.2. Required training for all  Aigents: in addition to role specific training and instructions:

  • Company context and objectives

  • Company brand, tone of voice and values

  • Ethical standards

  • Compliance Policies

  • Governance policies and procedures

  • Incident reporting and response

  • Escalation protocols for bringing a human into the loop

9. Documentation Requirements

9. Required documentation for all Aigents includes:

  • Design specifications and architecture

  • Data sources, quality measures, and bias mitigation

  • Training methodologies and validation results

  • Testing protocols and outcomes

  • Risk assessments and mitigation plans

  • Approval documentation and conditions

  • Operational procedures and monitoring plans

  • Incident response procedures

 

Documentation must be maintained throughout the Aigent lifecycle and archived for at least 3 years after retirement.

10. Compliance & Reporting

10. Compliance with this policy will be assessed through:

  • Regular self-assessments by Business and Technical Owners

  • Periodic audits by the AI Governance Board

  • Independent reviews by Internal Audit

 

10.1 Quarterly compliance reports will be provided to the AI Governance Board, including:

  • Policy adherence metrics

  • Incident summaries

  • Risk assessment updates

  • Emerging governance challenges

11. Policy Exceptions

11. Exceptions to this policy may be granted only when:

  • A compelling business need exists

  • Alternative controls are implemented

  • Risks are thoroughly assessed and accepted

  • Approval is obtained from the AI Governance Board

  • The exception has a defined expiration date

 

All exceptions must be documented in the Aigent Registry and reviewed quarterly.

12. Roles & Responsibilities

12.1 Business Owner

  • Defining business requirements and use cases

  • Ensuring alignment with business objectives

  • Accepting business risks

  • Ensuring compliance with governance requirements

  • Monitoring business performance and value

 

12.2 Technical Owner

  • Designing and implementing technical solutions

  • Ensuring technical quality and security

  • Managing technical risks

  • Maintaining technical documentation

  • Monitoring technical performance

 

12.3 AI Governance Board

  • Overseeing policy implementation

  • Approving high and critical risk Aigents

  • Reviewing compliance reports

  • Addressing systemic governance issues

  • Approving policy exceptions

 

12.4 All Employees

  • Understanding and following AI governance policies

  • Reporting potential policy violations

  • Completing required training

  • Using Aigents responsibly

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