TEXPO

IT Governance

Do not repeat the tactics, which have gained you one victory, but let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances.

Information Technology (IT) has evolved from being a support function to being the backbone of business in today’s world. IT plays a pivotal role in delivering value to organisations and business users. However, quite frequently, it fails to deliver expected value to the business. In recent years, surveys conducted by Gartner Research and IBM have consistently revealed that 20 to 70 percent of large-scale investments in IT are either wasted or have failed to bring a sufficient return on investment to the organisation.

While these statistics are alarming, IT related investments and implementations do achieve the desired results if proper and adequate governance structure is in place. All business functions and decisions need to be governed to deliver optimal value and IT is not an exception. Although sometimes mistaken as a field of study on its own, IT Governance is actually a part of the overall Corporate Governance Strategy of an organisation.

IT Governance focuses specifically on information technology systems, their performance and risk management while aligning with the corporate strategy. The primary goals of IT Governance are to ensure that the investments in IT generate business value, and to mitigate the risks that are associated with IT.

IT Governance looks at organisations from two perspectives:

• Governance over decision making process
• Governance over provision of IT Services

TEXPO consultants focus on both perspectives, addressing the “what” of IT Services and the “how” of IT activities. The overall IT Governance includes:

• The alignment and integration of business and IT planning
• The total amount of financial and other resources to be devoted to IT in an organization
• The allocation of IT spending and resources between business units
• The criteria for assessing the value of proposed investments in IT-related projects
• The relative priorities to be established for investment alternatives
• Accountability for realising the benefits of investment projects
• New IT investment funding, usage and chargeback policy