How to talk to your board about AI
Boards want to ask about AI but don't always know how. Give them a structure and they'll engage usefully instead of asking 'what about AGI' for an hour.
Bring three artifacts: what we use, what could go wrong, what we're doing about it.
Avoid hype and avoid panic — directors can smell both.
Leave with one decision: scope, budget, or accountability.
The three artifacts
Distill the program into three single-page documents the board can absorb in 10 minutes.
- What we use: an inventory of AI tools, what they do, and which workflows depend on them.
- What could go wrong: the three biggest risks (data, accuracy, dependence) translated to your business.
- What we're doing about it: the policy, the review cadence, and the next 90 days of work.
The conversation
Aim for 30 minutes of board time. Walk through the artifacts, then ask the board to choose one of three actions: approve scope, approve budget, or assign accountability. Sending them away without a single decision is the most common failure mode.
Plain-English answers
Should we hire a Chief AI Officer?
Want a hand getting this right?
A 30-minute conversation often saves weeks of guessing. We'll talk through your team, your data, and what to do first — no slide deck required.