As organizations accelerate their adoption of Artificial Intelligence, the need for practical and structured AI Governance becomes increasingly critical. This session provides a real-world look at what AI governance truly entails—beyond conceptual frameworks—based on a recent initiative led by the DAMA Uruguay community. Through surveys and interviews with professionals across multiple sectors, we explored how organizations are approaching AI projects, which governance practices they are trying to establish, and where the most significant gaps and risks are emerging.

We will share the key challenges identified and will also highlight the concrete steps organizations are beginning to take to build their AI governance capabilities. Although these findings originate in Uruguay, they mirror a global reality: AI governance is still in its early stages everywhere, while pressure to deploy AI systems continues to grow. Attendees will gain practical insights, lessons learned, and emerging practices to guide their own governance efforts.

Key takeaways:

• What AI governance looks like in real organizational contexts, based on community-driven research.
• Key challenges identified: data quality gaps, unclear ownership, and emerging risks.
• Concrete steps organizations are beginning to take as AI adoption accelerates.
• Lessons learned from surveys and interviews conducted by the DAMA community.
• Emerging practices and actionable recommendations to strengthen AI governance.

Speaker: Gustavo Mesa, Vice President, DAMA Uruguay

Gustavo Mesa is a Software Engineer with 20 years of experience in Data Management, specializing over the past decade in Data Governance within the financial sector, working at Quanam as a Data Management Practice Leader. He has led and supported initiatives in Data Quality, Data Governance, Metadata Management, and Data Warehousing across both public and private organizations. He is a Certified Data Management Professional (CDMP) Master level and currently serves as Vice President of DAMA Uruguay. Passionate about knowledge-sharing, he delivers Data Management workshops and speaks at national and international events. He is also part of the team that—together with Banco República del Uruguay—won the DGPO Best Data Governance Practice Award 2025, presenting the winning case at DGIQ+EDW 2025.

Speaker: Cecilia Poittevin, President, DAMA Uruguay

Cecilia Poittevin is a professional with over 20 years of experience in data management, privacy protection, and leadership in information technology, with an extensive track record in the financial sector, leading data governance strategies, information security, and regulatory compliance in electronic payment and financial management companies. Certified as a CDMP Practitioner and currently serving as President of DAMA Uruguay, Cecilia is an active member and founding partner of the Uruguayan Association of Privacy Consultants (AUCP), promoting best practices in privacy and data protection.