The IT Governance Evangelist

Who owns IT Governance, the Business or IT?

Steve Romero — Fri, 09 May 2008 14:18:00 GMT

Is IT Governance primarily a function of the business, or a function of IT? Many organizations are misled by the label. Sure, IT enables IT Governance, but the ITG discipline is a means for the business to govern IT, to ensure IT is aligned, delivering value and appropriately managing risk, resources and performance. The business must govern IT just as it must govern every other...

Straight Talk About Project Failures

Steve Romero — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 16:46:00 GMT

I recently recorded a podcast with Tim Jennings, Research Director with the Butler Group. The Butler group completed a study finding that 50% of IT projects fail. My brief discussion with Tim focuses on this issue and highlights best practices for guidance on implementing successful project management initiatives in IT organizations. I find the topic of IT project failure rates...

Manage IT Governance Components in an IT Governance Context

Steve Romero — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 19:45:00 GMT

I just finished studying an analyst report entitled "The State of IT Governance In North American and European Enterprises." You already know that almost anything about IT Governance excites me, with an analyst report about my favorite topic high on the list. But, while there was certainly a lot of compelling data in the report, I was left wanting more. The study...

Is this news?

Steve Romero — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 19:40:00 GMT

I just read an article in the Wall Street Journal entitled "How to Tap IT's Hidden Potential." The article talked about the "wall" between the IT Department and "everything else" and says "That wall has to go." I ask you, is this news? This article is a wake-up call reminding me, yet again, that we have a long way to go before IT is...

A New Way to Look at Project Managers

Steve Romero — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 12:11:00 GMT

I'm always appreciative when someone prods me to look at something familiar in a new way. Therefore, I extend my thanks to Mark Perry for his Gantthead blog posting entitled "PMO Tips: Five A+ habits PMO managers like project managers to have." I've analyzed the objectives, skills, responsibilities and education requirements of a project manager extensively, but I have...

When I say, “IT and Business Alignment” do you say, “IT Governance”?

Steve Romero — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 13:37:00 GMT

A recent CIO Magazine CIO2CIO Program Study reported the detailed findings of a Business Service Management survey conducted by IDG Research Services. It provided insight into the advent and role of service management in IT organizations worldwide, but there were two items that I found particularly interesting. The first was regarding the "Importance of IT Priorities in the...

IT Governance and Corporate Boards

Steve Romero — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:42:00 GMT

I learned about an interesting survey in a CBR article entitled "Corporate boards not serious about IT Governance measures: survey." The study was conducted by IT Governance Ltd, a UK company founded by Alan Calder, an internationally recognized ITG authority and author of numerous books on the topic. The survey results were disturbing-though not surprising. At least to me....

The Enlightened IT Manager

Steve Romero — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 16:59:00 GMT

Should IT managers become acquainted with formal project management methodologies? I was recently asked this question in an interview for an Insurance Networking News article entitled "IT Project Management Keeps the Business on Track." I answered yes, of course. But that is just tip the of the IT manager's education iceberg. For years I have provided incentives...

My interview in Michael Krigsman’s “IT Project Failures” blog

Steve Romero — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 19:46:00 GMT

Michael Krigsman interviewed CA Marketing VP David Hurwitz and I for his "Rearranging the Deck Chairs: IT Project Failure" blog on ZDNet. You may be interested in the posting entitled "Project portfolio management and IT governance." We talked about the cause and affect of the lack of robust IT Governance and the propensity for IT projects to fail. While it contains no...

Is ITIL a Priority for You in 2008?

Steve Romero — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 17:39:00 GMT

In the December 20, 2007 issue of CIO Insight, Allan E. Alter published a research article entitled "CIOs Rank Their Top Priorities for 2008." 250 CIOs were surveyed about their top priorities for 2008, resulting in three lists of top ten priorities for business, management and technology. Each area was interesting but the management priorities most caught my...

Reflecting on my First Year as an IT Governance Evangelist

Steve Romero — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 19:39:00 GMT

I've been an official "IT Governance Evangelist" for just over a year. During this time, I have spoken on IT Governance in 49 cities. I know this because my family tacked pins in a corkboard map to track my travels. While I have experienced different accents, customs, landmarks, architecture, geography and weather, what strikes me most after a year of near-nonstop travel are...

How CIOs Should Spend Their Time--Oversimplified

Steve Romero — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 20:03:00 GMT

Is simplifying always a good thing? I recently read a Forrester report entitled "How CIOs Should Spend Their Day" describing a formula for how CIOs should allocate time among their various constituencies. In short, Forrester invokes its 30-30-30-10 model to force "disciplined balance across constituents, which are classified into four groups: above, across, below, and...

Educating the Technology Leaders of the Future through IT Governance

Steve Romero — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 14:58:00 GMT

I recently was asked how we should teach future IT leaders, and I couldn't hold my ITG tongue for long. This is what happened: I was recently invited to attend the Board meeting for the Center for Electronic Business, which is sponsored by San Francisco State University. The mission of the CEB is "to promote interaction among students, faculty and practitioners that results in...

Viva Processo

Steve Romero — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 17:19:00 GMT

I recently spoke at an Executive Leadership Conference CA sponsored in Los Cabos, Mexico. The opportunity to visit such a wonderful destination was enticing, but it was the prospect of presenting my ideas about IT Governance (ITG) to a room full of CIOs that provided the greatest thrill. I talked about the value of IT Governance and how Project and Portfolio Management (PPM) is a good...

No Such Thing as IT Governance?

Steve Romero — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 15:32:00 GMT

I recently spoke at the Oceania CACS (Computer Audit, Control and Security) IT Governance Conference in New Zealand, sponsored by the Sydney, Australia ISACA Chapter. (My topic was "IT Governance - Empowering the Confident CIO," but more on that in a future blog.) I arrived very early on day two, having lost day one on the flight from California. I managed to attend a couple of IT...