How Are Enterprises Tackling AI Governance, Decision-Making and Expertise?

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Enterprises Are Conflicted About Outsourcing AI Responsibilities

Average

8.1

On a scale of 1-10, how confident is your organization in its ability to govern and audit AI-driven network decisions?

Who do you believe should be primarily responsible for managing AI decisions in your network?

Who should be responsible for maintaining audit records of AI security decisions?

HOW ARE ENTERPRISES TACKLING AI GOVERNANCE, DECISION-MAKING AND EXPERTISE?

Respondents are confident about their ability to govern and audit AI-driven network decisions, with an average confidence score of 8.05 on a scale of 1-10. Several respondents commented that working with a trusted external partner has contributed to their outlook. Where respondents are less confident, this was often attributed to a shortage of skilled personnel, a lack of faith in AI’s accuracy and decision-making abilities, and uncertainty about how the technology will mature.

This overall confidence is likely to be playing into the resistance enterprises are demonstrating to the idea of fully outsourcing AI networking decisions and audit records.

A hybrid approach where an internal team and an external partner are jointly responsible for managing AI networking decisions is most popular, with 41.6% of respondents favoring this model. A further 35.5% prefer to keep that responsibility in-house.

When it comes to maintaining audit records for AI security decisions, on the other hand, 37.8% felt internal teams should take exclusive responsibility, and 26.5% want shared responsibility with defined ownership.

If you could outsource ONE AI responsibility to a trusted partner, what would it be?

HOW ARE ENTERPRISES TACKLING AI GOVERNANCE, DECISION-MAKING AND EXPERTISE?

Who should have the final say in deploying AI-driven network changes?

When we asked respondents what one responsibility they’d outsource if they could, the picture is somewhat different. 39.4% of respondents chose AI model training and optimization, 34.8% responded with security monitoring and threat response, and one in five (20.3%) said compliance management and auditing.

We also asked who should have the final say in deploying AI-driven networks, 30.9% said the CTO and CISO should take shared decisions, and 22.9% said the CEO or executive leadership. This reflects the fact that technology is increasingly a strategic imperative and a board-level topic, and that IT, networking, and security teams recognize the importance of working as a cohesive whole.

HOW ARE ENTERPRISES TACKLING AI GOVERNANCE, DECISION-MAKING AND EXPERTISE?

Does your organization currently have the in-house expertise to manage autonomous AI-driven networks?

What worries you MOST about AI in network operations?

Yes: 85%

No: 15%

When we asked respondents if their organization currently has the in-house expertise to manage autonomous AI-driven networks, an overwhelming 85% said yes. However, just over two-thirds (67%) said that their biggest worry was implementing AI in network operations without the expertise to manage it properly.

These apparently contradictory responses might reflect the fact AI in network operations is comparatively new and enterprises simply aren’t sure if they can manage it yet. Or it could be that enterprises are feeling worried about the implementation but confident about ongoing management afterwards.