guardrails

I have noticed the metaphorical use of guardrails has been achieving cliché level. It seems we cannot take a step in business, government or personal relationships without setting up strong guardrails to keep us on the right path and prevent us from straying into dangerous situations.

Guardrails were introduced into business jargon as a strategy to keep the whole organisation focused on shared goals.  In particular guardrails are metrics applied to a budget to make sure that spending doesn’t go off course or get our of control.  In government guardrails are regulations designed to safeguard us all from the inherent dangers of a particular development or activity, as exemplified in the latest announcements on AI protections.  Guardailing is a term that has become popular in discussions of relationships.  It replaces the older notion of setting boundaries.

By comparison guidelines are soft and woolly and easily circumvented. Guardrails have the rigid structure of rules and regulations, and are more than just good advice.