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Your Employees Are Already Using AI. Do You Have a Policy?
By Amy Hagan, Founder of HR Does AI
Here's a question for founders and executives: what AI tools are your employees using right now?
If the honest answer is "I'm not sure," you're not alone. And you already have an AI program. It just has no rules.
The risk isn't the tool
Most employees using AI at work are trying to get more done. The problem is what goes into the tool. A manager pastes in a performance review to "make it sound better." Someone uploads a customer contract for a quick summary. A recruiter asks a chatbot to rank candidates.
Each of those can expose confidential information or create employment risk. Employment discrimination and disability laws still apply when a decision is shaped by AI. "The tool suggested it" is not a defense.
What a practical AI policy covers
A good acceptable-use policy doesn't need to be long. It needs to answer six questions clearly:
- Which tools are approved? Name them, and say how to request a new one.
- What data never goes in? Employee records, medical information, investigation files, customer data, and anything confidential.
- What requires human review? Anything that affects a person's job, pay, or standing, and anything that leaves the building.
- Which uses are off-limits? Hiring, discipline, and termination decisions need extra scrutiny, and in some cases shouldn't involve AI at all.
- Who is accountable? The person who uses the output owns it.
- Who do I ask? A named contact for questions and gray areas.
Write it for real people
A policy written only for lawyers won't change behavior. Use plain language, give examples of good and bad uses, and train managers on it first. They'll get the questions.
Then revisit it regularly. The tools change fast, and your policy should keep up.
Start with a conversation
Before you draft anything, ask a few teams how they're using AI today. You'll learn what's working, where the risk is, and what people actually need. Then write a policy that supports the good uses and stops the risky ones.
Banning AI rarely works. Guiding it does.
Smarter HR. Stronger Business.