What COBIT-Design-and-Implementation Questions and Answers feature?

The role of the board when establishing where the enterprise wants to be is to set priorities, time scales, and expectations. This ensures that the strategic direction and goals are clearly defined and communicated across the organization.

References in COBIT 2019 Design and Implementation:

COBIT 2019 Framework: Governance and Management Objectives, EDM01 (Ensure Governance Framework Setting and Maintenance):This objective outlines the board's responsibilities in setting the strategic direction, including priorities, timeframes, and expectations.

COBIT 2019 Implementation Guide, Chapter 3:This chapter emphasizes the board's role in defining the enterprise's strategic goals and ensuring that these goals are aligned with governance and management practices.

By setting clear priorities, time scales, and expectations, the board ensures that the enterprise has a focused and coherent strategy for achieving its desired future state.

The COBIT 2019 framework aligns enterprise goals with balanced scorecard (BSC) dimensions. Under thegrowth and innovationBSC perspective, one of the core enterprise goals listed is:

"Product and business innovation" – which directly supports strategic growth by encouraging new products, services, and ways of operating.

This goal aligns with an enterprise that is expanding and looking to leverage innovation to sustain growth. Other options like risk management or cost optimization fit different BSC dimensions (e.g., financial, internal process).

In COBIT 2019, information is seen as a key enabler because it underpins effective governance and management practices. Information items refer to the data and information that the organization needs to achieve its goals and support decision-making processes. This includes various types of information such as financial data, operational data, compliance reports, and performance metrics.

The COBIT 2019 Framework identifies seven components of a governance system:

Processes:Structured sets of practices and activities to achieve specific objectives and produce a set of outputs in support of achieving overall IT-related goals.

Organizational Structures:Key decision-making entities in an enterprise.

Principles, Policies, and Frameworks:Established rules and guidelines.

Information:All information produced and used by the enterprise, crucial for governance.

Culture, Ethics, and Behavior:Encompasses the values of the enterprise and its employees.

People, Skills, and Competencies:Required for successful completion of all activities and decision-making.

Services, Infrastructure, and Applications:Enabling and supporting the enterprise through its use of technology.

Information itemsfall under the fourth component, "Information," which is necessary for effective governance. Information items ensure that:

Decision-makers have the relevant data to make informed decisions.

There is transparency and accountability in reporting.

The organization can monitor and measure performance against strategic objectives.

Compliance with regulatory and legal requirements is maintained.

COBIT 2019 Design and Implementation Guide References:

COBIT 2019 Framework: Introduction and Methodology, Chapter 5:This chapter details the governance and management objectives and their components, highlighting the importance of information.

COBIT 2019 Design Guide, Chapter 2:This chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the components of a governance system, including information items.

COBIT 2019 Implementation Guide, Chapter 3:This chapter explains how to incorporate various governance system components, such as information items, into the tailored governance system design.

Considering information items is essential because they provide the necessary context and insights for effective governance. By ensuring that information is accurate, timely, and relevant, an organization can better align its IT governance with its overall business objectives, thereby enhancing decision-making, performance tracking, and compliance.