SAAF AI Adoption Charter

Purpose: Define the vision, scope, governance, and guiding principles for AI adoption across your organization or department. Serves as a foundational agreement for responsible and strategic implementation.

Why Use This?

Launching an AI initiative without a shared charter risks confusion, misalignment, or missed ethical pitfalls. This charter helps you:

• Align stakeholders across business, tech, and compliance

• Establish clear ownership and boundaries

• Lay a foundation for ethical, scalable AI implementation

• Build trust across departments and leadership

  
  

Charter Template

1. Vision Statement

What is the high-level purpose of adopting AI in your organization or team?

Example: "To enhance decision-making, reduce manual workload, and unlock insights through the responsible, ethical, and scalable use of AI across business operations."

Our Vision:

2. Scope of Initiative

What systems, teams, processes, or use cases are included (and excluded)?

Included In Scope	Out of Scope / Not Prioritized
e.g., workflows, automation	e.g., HR data, external-facing agents

3. AI Use Case Types to Prioritize

What categories of AI use will you focus on?

☐ Summarization & content generation

☐ Smart search & recommendations

☐ Workflow automation

☐ Data analysis & forecasting

☐ Customer/agent assistance

☐ Internal agent development

☐ Other: ___________________________

4. Guiding Principles

Define 3–5 statements to guide all AI design and decision-making.

Principle	Description
Human Oversight Comes First	All critical decisions must remain reviewable and human-controlled.
Transparency & Explainability	Outputs should be understandable by non-technical stakeholders.
Data Responsibility	We will avoid using sensitive or biased data in model development.
Start Small, Scale Smart	Begin with low-risk pilots before wider deployment.
Inclusion & Access	AI must support diverse users across roles and experience levels.

5. Roles & Responsibilities

Role	Responsibilities	Person/Team
Executive Sponsor	Secures funding, provides leadership alignment
AI Program Manager	Coordinates across departments, manages charter
Governance Lead	Ensures ethical compliance and review
Data Owner(s)	Approves access and use of datasets
Business Unit Liaison(s)	Validates use cases and team impact
IT / Platform Owner	Manages infrastructure and deployment

6. Ethical Review & Risk Handling

Establish a process for risk identification, escalation, and mitigation.

• Risk reviews will be conducted at key milestones

• A Red Flag Escalation Path will be documented

• Outputs flagged for bias, inaccuracy, or misuse will trigger re-review

• Final responsibility for Go/No-Go decisions lies with: _______________

7. Success Metrics

Define how progress will be measured.

Metric Type	Examples
Adoption	% of teams using AI or AI assistants
Efficiency	Hours saved per week on repetitive tasks
Quality	Reduction in errors, rework, or complaints
Governance	# of flagged issues reviewed and resolved
Feedback	Employee satisfaction with AI tools

8. Review Cadence

Activity	Frequency
Charter Review / Refresh	Quarterly
Governance Board Check-in	Biweekly
Risk & Ethics Audit	Monthly

Final Approval

By signing this charter, we commit to a responsible, coordinated, and transparent approach to AI adoption.