Enterprise AI Measurement Guide
AI Governance · AI Tool Compliance
Department Map
Which departments have the highest concentrations of shadow AI tool usage, and are there departments that look compliant only because they're not using AI at all?
What it shows
The Department map visualizes the Unapproved AI Tool Usage Rate at the department level, showing where the company average sits relative to each function's individual rate, rendered as heat levels so outliers are immediately visible. Departments running well above the company average surface as governance hot spots. Departments running near zero may be under-equipped rather than compliant.
Why it matters
An org-wide governance number can hide extreme department-level variance in both directions. One department at 100% unapproved usage collapses into a low company-wide average if every other department is clean, and the 100% department never surfaces on a standard compliance report. The heat map converts that hidden variance into a visual that immediately identifies where to intervene. It also identifies departments where approved AI adoption is so low that employees are routing around governance simply because they haven't been equipped with sanctioned alternatives.
The Larridin angle
The map distinguishes between departments where shadow AI is genuinely risky (unapproved tools handling sensitive data or customer interactions) and departments where the unapproved classification may be a platform quirk (desktop versions of approved tools). Larridin's governance architecture makes that distinction visible rather than collapsing all unapproved usage into a single risk category.
Related AI Governance Metrics
Common questions
How does the Department Map help identify governance hot spots?
The Department Map visualizes unapproved AI tool usage rates as heat levels, making it easy to spot departments with significantly higher usage than the company average, which are considered governance hot spots.
What does a high heat level in a department indicate?
A high heat level indicates that the department has a high rate of unapproved AI tool usage compared to the company-wide average, suggesting a need for further investigation into potential governance issues.
Why might a department with low unapproved AI usage still be a concern?
A department with low unapproved AI usage may be under-equipped with approved tools, leading employees to circumvent governance due to a lack of sanctioned alternatives, rather than compliance.
How does the map differentiate between risky and benign unapproved tool usage?
The map distinguishes risky unapproved tool usage, such as handling sensitive data, from benign cases like platform quirks, allowing governance teams to prioritize interventions effectively.