Knowledge MaxxingAlgorithmic impact assessment
An algorithmic impact assessment is a structured process for evaluating a system's likely effects on people before it's deployed, covering risks, affected groups, and mitigations.
Prerequisite: Risk control
What matters
Doing this assessment before deployment, rather than after problems surface, is what lets a team catch and address foreseeable harms while changes are still relatively cheap to make.
Example
Before launching a new eligibility-screening model, a team might conduct an algorithmic impact assessment identifying which applicant groups could be disproportionately affected.
Common misconception
An algorithmic impact assessment is not a one-time checklist filled out for compliance and then ignored; it should genuinely inform design and deployment decisions.
Recall question
Why is conducting this assessment before deployment more valuable than after?