The Executive’s Guide to Information Technology, Second Edition

Chapter 19. IT Governance

	Disagreement produces debate but dissent produces dissension. Dissent . . . means originally to feel apart from others. People who disagree have an argument, but people who dissent have a quarrel. People may disagree and both may count themselves in the majority. But a person who dissents is by definition in a minority. A liberal society thrives on disagreement but is killed by dissension. Disagreement is the life blood of democracy, dissension is its cancer.
	--Daniel J.Boorstin, U.S.historian[1]

This chapter introduces IT governance and the IT steering committee. IT governance consists of methods corporate management and the CIO employ to ensure the IT department successfully executes an IT strategy and operating philosophy that support the company’s strategic and tactical goals. Simply said: IT governance ensures the IT department is working on the right things and doing the right things correctly. One of the most critical components of IT governance is the IT steering committee, a group composed of the CIO and company senior managers who collaborate to ensure IT priorities are aligned with company business priorities. Senior executives and representatives from business units and functions across the company meet regularly to provide input on IT direction; communicate company business objectives; remove impediments to IT success; and approve IT priorities, spending, and projects. The chapter also discusses functions that support IT governance as well ...