EA 872 Week 4 - How to Ensure Your Governance Framework Works

I was reading an article about how to make sure your company has Governance Framework Works.

Governance can make or break successful IT and project management. Most leading organizations develop designed approaches to management very carefully. Even the best frameworks, however, will fail if not properly executed by CIOs or those responsible for management.

The ideal management structure is not necessarily dictated by organizational structures or even constitutional structures for those in the public sector. It is driven by the characteristics and the organizational dynamics of those in leadership positions, and their willingness and ability to engage in decision-making processes. Leaders who are disengaged, fear IT decisions, avoid conflict or lack the time may not be ideally suited for a role in governance. Similarly, those with high engagement, strong convictions, the absence of fear of conflict and plenty of time are also ill-suited to participate in governance if they lack decision-making authority or the ability to execute decisions. They may be very opinionated, but opinions do not constitute management.

1. Authority: Individuals involved in governance must have the organizational authority to make final decisions and make sure they are executed. Further, they control organization resources and are empowered to direct them to a purpose.
2. Aptitude: Individuals involved in governance must have the aptitude to make decisions, including around complex IT or business-process-related issues. They need not have the expertise; but, they must have the intellectual willingness to learn what they need to do and render a decision with confidence and conviction.

Governance processes can take many forms, and there may be several processes operating simultaneously. A management process can be any process in which a decision is required. Often, these happen routinely through the standard chain of command. Most organizations also have a separation of functions that results in concurrent processes working toward the same end. For example, budgeting and procurement are types of governance processes that may come to bear on the same project or IT operation. Each requires decisions, and each may involve different policy makers. In these situations, the governance framework must bring decision makers (the who) together to ensure the harmony of objectives.