AI Use Policy for Small Business: What to Include (and What to Skip)

You do not need a 20-page document. A clear one- or two-page AI use policy gives staff rules they can follow, and gives clients and insurers something concrete when they ask how you handle AI.

The seven sections that matter

1. Purpose and scope. Who the policy covers (employees, contractors) and which tools it applies to.
2. Approved tools. Name the specific tools and plans staff may use for work, and say personal accounts are not allowed for business data.
3. Data rules. A short list of what may never be entered: client personal data, financial and health records, passwords and keys, and anything covered by a confidentiality agreement.
4. Review of outputs. A person checks AI output before it goes to a client, into a contract, or onto your website. AI can sound confident and still be wrong.
5. Disclosure. When you tell clients that AI was involved, and any client or contract terms that restrict it.
6. Incidents. What to do if someone pastes the wrong thing: tell a named person right away, no blame, and here is what happens next.
7. Ownership and review. Who owns the policy and when you revisit it. Quarterly is realistic while the tools change quickly.

What to skip

• Long lists of banned tools. They age fast. Name approved ones instead.
• Technical language staff will not read.
• Rules you cannot enforce. If you cannot check it, simplify it.

Make it stick

Share it in a short team meeting, put it where people will find it, and give new hires a copy on day one. Pair it with tool settings that match the rules, so the policy and the software say the same thing.

Start with our free AI use policy template. If you want a hand, our free 30-minute AI and security check-up covers where you stand today, and we can help you draft and roll out a policy that fits your team.