Essential Practices for a Secure Workplace [Endless Customers Podcast S.1 E.14]

About this Episode

AI technology comes with amazing capabilities — and some troubling downsides. But, says Bob Ruffolo, CEO and founder of IMPACT, many of these risks have been around long before AI.

For years, every digital technology has come with risks, and we’ve navigated them carefully and responsibly. But think about it, the concerns about AI are concerns we’ve had for decades: 

• “It’s too easy to accidentally plagiarize.”
• “We might expose client data to the wrong people.”
• “Overly-manipulated media will make people question our brand.”
• “We need to be on the lookout for biases.”

You read these statements in 2024, and our mind goes immediately to AI. But these same concerns have dogged Photoshop, cloud-based computing, and content marketing for years.

All that said, there are legitimate safety concerns about the use of AI, and we need to take them seriously.

However, says Bob, you want to avoid a stringent top-down policy that restricts experimentation. Instead, it’s important to create a culture that supports safe and responsible innovation.

At IMPACT, we use what we call the SAFETY guidelines to govern our AI use:

• Secure – Know the data security levels of the tools you use and act accordingly.
• Assistive, not Autonomous – Human in the loop at all times. You are ultimately still accountable. Will this induce more trust, yes or no?
• Fact Checked – Review all output for accuracy.
• Experiment – Test AI for improved performance in all areas of your domain, for improving work quality, to increasing your capacity and output to reduce costs.
• Transparent – Be transparent in AI usage to maintain trust. Cite sources publicly.
• Your Expertise Matters – AI is a tool to enhance your existing creative insights and strategic thinking. You own your AI skill set and you own how you scale it for your own professional development and for the good of the organization.

But guidelines are only good if the whole team follows them. Bob reminds the audience that it doesn’t matter if the top brass understands risk analysis. You need your front-line workers to be acting responsibly as well. 

The best way to get everyone on the same page, he says, is through a full-team workshop. That way, you have a shared vocabulary and crystal clear expectations. 

Connect with Bob

Bob Ruffolo founded IMPACT in 2009. In that time, he’s grown the company from a small web design agency to a premier marketing and sales training organization. Today, IMPACT’s experts provide coaching and guidance to teams all over the world.

Learn more about Bob at his IMPACT bio page

Connect with Bob on LinkedIn 

Keep Learning

Watch Ep. 7: AI for Businesses — 6 Steps All CEOs Should Take

Read The AI Best Practice Guidelines Your Company Needs

Learn more about IMPACT’s AI Culture workshop