Understand how AI is being used.
AI tools often arrive before anyone has decided how they should be used. The starting point is a plain picture of what is in use today.
A review would look at
- Which AI tools staff use, and for what kinds of work.
- Whether they sign in with work accounts or personal ones.
- Who owns and administers the organisation's subscriptions.
- Whether staff have clear guidance on appropriate use.
Protect sensitive information.
What matters most is what goes in. Business plans and personal accounts are covered by different terms, and the controls on offer vary by product, plan and configuration, so the answer for your organisation depends on what you actually use.
A review would look at
- What information staff put into AI tools.
- The settings and controls available in the tools and subscriptions under review.
- Practical guidance for handling business and client information.
Review access and sharing.
What an AI tool can access depends on its connections, permissions and configuration. A review checks those arrangements and whether information is shared more widely than intended.
A review would look at
- Existing access to files, sites and other business information.
- Permissions and sharing that are broader than they need to be.
- Whether connected tools can reach more information than intended.
Establish practical rules.
People need short guidance they can follow on an ordinary working day, and to know who to ask.
A review would look at
- Acceptable-use guidance written for your organisation.
- What staff should check before using an AI tool for a task.
- When a person must review the result, and when to escalate.
- Who approves tools and who handles concerns.
Review Microsoft Copilot readiness.
Microsoft's documentation for Copilot in Microsoft 365, the version organisations license for work, states that it only surfaces organisational data to which the individual user already has at least view permission. That makes your existing permissions and sharing the thing to check before it is switched on, or soon after. Other Copilot products and licences differ, so a review looks at the one you have.
A review would look at
- Permissions and sharing in SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams.
- Identity and access arrangements for the people who will use it.
- Data protection settings that apply, such as sensitivity labels, and what your licences include.