The what and why of CobiT and IT Governance

23/03/2010

Using 34 control objectives, CobiT is a framework that is designed to guide organisations in the implementation of effective IT Governance.

So what is IT Governance? IT Governance is the structures and processes put in place to ensure an organisation’s IT function supports and fulfills overall corporate strategy as well as effectively managing IT risk and resources. IT Governance measures and tracks the performance of IT.

It is integral to those organisations who would suffer from lost, damaged or leaked data or those that are bound by external authorities and standards such as Public Records Acts, audit requirements, data protection/privacy etc.

However, whilst many organisations are aware of IT Governance, few realise the importance of implementing it properly, according to John Mitchell, international expert on Corporate and IT Governance and compliance. ‘I am constantly amazed at CIOs who have no clear governance programme in place to ensure that their function can not only support current business objectives, but also help to extend the enterprise in the future.”[1]

Why does your organisation need it? With around 40-55% of IT projects failing or having no discernable benefits, Governance is integral to every organisation no matter their size. If implemented successfully, Governance can provide the following benefits to an organisation:

  • reduce wasteful spend on clumsy mistakes
  • prevents loss of important data and records
  • compliance with several Governance standards and authorities such as Public Records Acts, Basel II and Sarbanes-Oxley
  • makes IT more responsive to business needs
  • guides the success of IT initiatives
  • reduces risk of IT failure

    CobiT training
    Running for 3 days, the CobiT Essentials course provides students with a Foundation level of understanding of CobiT, including the need for an IT Govenance structure, the history of IT Governance, the CobiT framework and gives guidance on applying CobiT in practice.

    ProActive are official licencees of CobiT content for training purposes, licensed by ISACA. If successful in the multiple-choice exam, students will come away from the course with a CobiT Foundation Certificate issued by ISACA.



    [1] Governance is key, British Computer Society, viewed 19th March 2010