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AI Glossary

Governance Committee

A Governance Committee is a cross-functional group responsible for overseeing AI governance, reviewing AI initiatives, and ensuring AI systems are managed responsibly.

Governance Committee

Overview

Managing artificial intelligence responsibly requires oversight from more than one individual.

Many organizations establish a Governance Committee to guide important AI decisions.

A Governance Committee is a group of leaders and subject matter experts responsible for overseeing AI governance, reviewing significant AI initiatives, and ensuring AI systems align with organizational policies and objectives.

Governance committees often include representatives from:

  • Executive leadership
  • Legal
  • Compliance
  • Risk management
  • Information security
  • Data science
  • Business operations

The committee reviews high-risk AI projects, approves governance policies, evaluates risk assessments, and monitors organizational AI activities.

A helpful way to think about a governance committee is the board of directors for an organization’s AI program.

While individual teams develop and operate AI systems, the committee provides strategic oversight and accountability.

Governance committees are a key component of AI Governance and support effective AI Accountability across the organization.

Why It Matters

Governance committees improve oversight, strengthen accountability, encourage cross-functional collaboration, and help organizations manage AI consistently.

Real-World Example

Before deploying a high-risk AI hiring platform, an organization’s governance committee reviews the project’s risk assessment, fairness testing, documentation, and security controls before approving deployment.

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