There has been an increasing number of South African companies adopting artificial intelligence (AI) governance programmes to help them make informed decisions about the deployment of AI and analytics in businesses operations.
This was the word from John Giles, MD at law firm Michalsons, speaking at the ITWeb Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) Conference 2025, held recently in Bryanston, Johannesburg.
Delivering a presentation titled: “Strategies for success in managing emerging regulatory landscapes”,Giles highlighted the importance of an AI governance programme to meet compliance requirements, training of staff in AI and gaining efficiency in developing and applying AI in processes.
Michalsons, he explained, started working on an AI Blueprint two-and-a-half years ago, with the aim to guide organisations on the implementation of AI in line with SA’s National AI plan.
When the law firm started working on the blue print, local organisations initially did not acknowledge its relevance, as AI deployments were not as prevalent as they are now, Giles explained.
However, he said, the advent of increasing AI adoption has resulted in an uptake in local firms introducing AI programmes to govern deployments across processes.
“When we started working on the AI blueprint, people wondered why are doing it because no one was ready for it. Now there is a trend to organisations creating our governance programmes,” Giles explained.
“Just because you don't believe in AI, it doesn't mean that AI doesn't believe in you. Some organisations don't believe in AI but then you find that everyone in the organisation is using it. And so organisations have to have governance programmes; they have to have some control. Our blue print has about 13 steps to it. And we've done a lot of work about what a programme should look like.”
According to Michalsons, every organisation needs an AI programme, which provides guidance on the implementation processes, measures, tools, training, practices or controls that an organisation puts in place, with the long-term aim of ensuring trustworthy AI.
The programme guides firms through the complexities of AI, helping them ask the right questions to make informed decisions, and protect their organisation and stakeholders from harm.
SA is witnessing growing adoption of AI, with local employees increasingly using AI in their work processes, according to the results of research conducted by management consulting firm, Oliver Wyman's New-York based think tank, Oliver Wyman Forum.
As the global debate over the technology’s ethics and safety plays out, there is a significant gap in balancing innovation with governance, risk and compliance, which are often at odds with each other, he asserted.
“Currently, there is a trend of prioritising innovation over safety. There’s a big trend that says let’s get rid of the brakes, let’s drive as fast as we can. We want to innovate; we want to move forward; and we want to achieve things from a business perspective. We should all be keen on that because we want innovation; we want progress; but I really do believe that it has to be done safely, in a trusted way and complying with laws.”
Many organisations often introduce multiple programmes simultaneously – which often results in confusion and a lack of focus, he warned.
“Lots of organisations would have an AI governance programme, a GRC programme, a data governance programme and others. It gets tiring to have so many. One tip is to try and deal with a GRC programme that deals with everything, so it’s important to try and streamline it and make it simpler. A programme is about how a team practically and continuously implements regulations throughout their organisation, it’s not a framework, and it’s not a project. Programmes don’t end, projects have a beginning and an end.”
Giles emphasised on AI upskilling for employees, as being a crucial part of adopting the technology, to help bridge the skill gaps, and leverage its capability to streamline workplace processes.
“AI training is a big topic because the EU AI Act stipulates that all stuff in an organisation must go through AI training. And it has to be hands on. Employees, for example HR [human resources] staff must be able to use AI to improve processes so that in future they are better at doing their actual role. Making it fun is also important, so incorporating games can make the training exciting for employees,” Giles concluded.
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