AI Governance for IT: A Practical 10-Step Checklist
An actionable checklist IT teams can use to implement AI governance in 30 days, from auditing shadow AI to deploying enterprise platforms with proper controls.
Why AI Governance Matters
Real data showing the impact of proper AI governance
From audit to full governance
Clear, actionable items
Of Canadian office workers using AI tools, only 25% on enterprise solutions (IBM, 2025)
Full visibility after implementation
How We Help You Govern AI
Comprehensive AI governance solutions automated for your business
Shadow AI Discovery
Automated tools to find unauthorized AI usage across your organization.
- Network traffic analysis
- SaaS discovery scanning
- Employee usage surveys
- Expense report review
Platform Selection & Deployment
Choose and configure enterprise AI platforms with proper governance.
- Requirements gathering
- Platform comparison and selection
- Secure configuration
- SSO and RBAC setup
Policy Creation & Enforcement
Implement acceptable use policies with technical and administrative controls.
- Policy template customization
- Automated enforcement rules
- User training and rollout
- Violation monitoring
Ongoing Monitoring & Optimization
Continuous governance with usage tracking, compliance reporting, and improvements.
- Real-time usage dashboards
- Compliance audit reports
- Cost optimization alerts
- Quarterly governance reviews
The 10-Step AI Governance Checklist
Complete these 10 steps for comprehensive AI governance in 30 days
Audit Current AI Usage
Discover what AI tools are being used across your organization (shadow AI and approved tools).
How to do it:
- • Run network traffic analysis for AI endpoints (openai.com, claude.ai, etc.)
- • Use SaaS discovery tools (Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps)
- • Survey employees: "What AI tools do you use for work?" (anonymous)
- • Review expense reports for AI subscriptions
⏱️ Time: 3-5 days | 🎯 Owner: IT Security/Network Team
Assess Risks & Compliance Gaps
Evaluate which AI usage creates compliance, security, or financial risks.
Key questions:
- • Which tools are sharing client/proprietary data?
- • Are any tools using data for training (privacy risk)?
- • Do we have BAAs for healthcare data, DPAs for GDPR?
- • What's the total financial exposure (cost + liability)?
⏱️ Time: 2-3 days | 🎯 Owner: IT + Legal + InfoSec
Select Enterprise AI Platforms
Choose 2-3 enterprise AI platforms that cover all use cases with proper governance.
Typical platform mix:
- • M365 Copilot for productivity (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams)
- • Azure OpenAI for custom applications and integrations
- • ChatGPT Enterprise for general AI assistance (if not using Copilot)
⏱️ Time: 3-5 days | 🎯 Owner: IT Architecture + Procurement
Configure Platforms with Governance
Set up chosen platforms with SSO, data protection, logging, and access controls.
Configuration checklist:
- • Enable SSO (Azure AD, Okta, Google Workspace)
- • Turn off training on business data (where applicable)
- • Configure audit logging and retention
- • Set data residency (Canadian datacenters if required)
- • Enable DLP and compliance policies
⏱️ Time: 3-7 days | 🎯 Owner: IT Admin + InfoSec
Create Acceptable Use Policy
Draft and approve a simple AI acceptable use policy that defines what's allowed and what's not.
Policy must cover:
- • Approved AI platforms (and how to request new ones)
- • What data can/cannot be shared with AI
- • Prohibited activities (personal accounts for work, etc.)
- • Consequences for violations
⏱️ Time: 3-5 days | 🎯 Owner: Legal + IT + HR
Steps 6-10: Deployment & Ongoing Governance
Train Users & Deploy
Conduct training, assign licenses, migrate from shadow AI to approved platforms.
⏱️ 5-7 days
Set Up Monitoring & Alerts
Configure dashboards, usage reports, cost alerts, and compliance monitoring.
⏱️ 2-3 days
Block/Monitor Shadow AI
Block unapproved tools at network level or monitor usage for policy violations.
⏱️ 2-3 days
Document & Communicate
Publish governance docs, communicate policy, set up support channels.
⏱️ 2-3 days
Schedule Ongoing Reviews
Set up monthly usage reviews, quarterly governance reviews, annual policy refresh. AI governance is ongoing, not one-time.
⏱️ Ongoing
Total Implementation Time
30 Days
From audit to full AI governance
What our clients say
Chuck Baresich
President
Haggerty AgRobotics Company
Had the team prepare a system for us to automate the re-branding of our digital invoicing and statements. The system has been working flawlessly for over a year. Simple to administer and the team are easy to get in contact with make adjustments or update our requirements.
Marilee A Nowgesic
CEO
Canadian Indigenous Nurses Association
The team is friendly, reliable and extremely patient to ensuring our concerns are addressed and understood. They have enabled an open table to allow for their clients to receive timely (...really feels like 24/7 platforms...) and concise information on the latest trends in IT, data collection and many other relevant issues. DigitalStaff has also provided an environment that allows for multiple levels and skills of their clients - so you never have to feel like you're not contributing. Their ability to translate your project needs provides an impressive output/deliverable to suit the needs of our projects.
Kevin Potts
President
Norseman Construction
Oscar and his team are amazing, they are always there when we need them. The automation process has been truly amazing, and we have found alot more time and productivity in our day to day processes.
Kyle Watters
Owner
Elmira Stove Works
We have been using Digital Staff for almost 10 years now, they look after all of our network and computer IT needs. They are friendly and great people to work with, knowing they are only a phone call away is piece of mind in our business. I would highly recommend this company for all your IT needs and if you are looking to save time, money and improve efficiency.
Gerda Zonruiter
Senior Research and Evaluation Consultant
Centre for Organizational Effectiveness
Oscar has helped me problem solve and find solutions for specific tasks saving me a lot of time. He provided me with the instruction I needed to implement the solutions on my own. He was responsive and easy to work with.
Paul B Bélanger
Trademark Attorney
The Law Office of Paul B. Bélanger
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Jill Osborne
National Executive Director
Kids Kicking Cancer Canada
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Michael Mandich
Customer
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Ali Tavakoli
AI, RPA, and Automation Developer
DigitalStaff
DigitalStaff is a great company for doing Robotic Process Automation, the owner is very friendly and can take care of any issues that come up very quickly. Highly recommend DigitalStaff for RPA workload or any other type of software development where you need to automate tasks.
Ilze Van der Merwe
National Expansion Manager
Kids Kicking Cancer Canada
Our Organization can highly recomend DigitalStaff. They have helped us automate many of our work processes which saves us time and makes us efficient. We are a small organization with few hands, and having DigitalStaff assist us in our IT and backend processes makes our work lighter which opens up our time to get to things that really matter, which is making a difference in Children's lives.
Dr. Joan Clayton
Psychologist
Dr. Reist & Associates
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Joe Orendorff
Owner
Elmira Stove Works
Great Service!
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about AI governance
Can we implement this checklist without a dedicated governance team?
Yes! Most organizations implement AI governance with existing IT staff (1-2 people part-time). The checklist is designed for practical implementation with limited resources. For larger organizations, consider assigning a dedicated AI governance lead.
Do we need to complete all 10 steps before we can use AI?
No. Steps 1-5 are critical and should be completed before widespread AI usage. Steps 6-10 are important but can be implemented iteratively over the first 90 days. The goal is progress, not perfection.
What tools do we need to implement this checklist?
Most can be done with built-in tools: Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps (SaaS discovery), Azure AD (SSO), M365 admin center (usage monitoring). For shadow AI scanning and advanced monitoring, we provide specialized tools as part of our governance implementation.
How often should we revisit this checklist?
Initial implementation: 30 days. Then quarterly reviews to update policies, add new approved tools, optimize costs, and adapt to new AI capabilities. AI governance is not set-and-forget. It is an ongoing program.
Need Help Implementing the IT Governance Checklist?
We provide hands-on support for each step, from shadow AI discovery to platform deployment and ongoing monitoring. Get it done in 30 days with expert guidance.
✓ No credit card required • ✓ Free consultation • ✓ Custom governance roadmap