Executive Strategy
Shadow AI Isn't a Discipline Problem. It's a Signal.
3 min read
Executive Strategy
3 min read
Earlier this year, a survey of health plan executives found that 60 percent of payers have employees using AI tools their IT departments never approved. The researchers called it shadow AI. That's not a discipline problem. That's a signal.
Earlier this year, a survey of health plan executives found that 60 percent of payers have employees using AI tools their IT departments never approved.
The researchers called it shadow AI. I understand the term, but I don't like that it implies employees are sneaking around. They aren't necessarily. They're often doing what good people always do when workloads are heavy. The tool is available, so they create shortcuts and workarounds. This isn't new to AI.
That's not a discipline problem. That's a signal.
The uncomfortable part isn't that staff found shortcuts. It's that leadership often can't answer a simple question: where is AI already running in this company? Which tools. Which data. Which decisions.
I spent years managing insurance operations, and here's what I know about invisible workflows: they don't stay harmless. A prompt with a client's information in it. A summary pasted into a policy file. Small things, until they're not.
The first AI project for most leadership teams isn't buying anything. It's finding out what's already happening.
FAQ
Shadow AI is when employees use AI tools their IT department never approved. It matters because it signals leadership can't answer where AI is already running in the company, which tools are in use, what data is exposed, and which decisions are affected. Invisible workflows with client data don't stay harmless.
Ask your teams directly. Survey what tools they use, what data goes into them, and which decisions they touch. Then set the rules: what's approved, what needs review, and where a human stays in the loop. A free AI Readiness Call walks through this with your leadership team.
Book a free 30-minute AI Readiness Call, or take the free Agency AI Readiness Scorecard to see where you stand.