Governance is a widely used term describing the organisation and processes required to control, direct and manage many aspects of IT Organisations. Effective governance at all levels is key to delivering effective IT. Poor or inadequate governance will often negate the potential benefits of otherwise excellent IT. This award is for the organisation who has, in the opinion of the judges, best implemented either business / IT, IT / IT Infrastructure, or IT project level governance changes that deliver most benefit relative to the organisational size and starting point.

Award Criteria

The judges will be looking for:

• The submission which has the best implementation of a new governance model or strategy which is delivering tangible business benefits in terms of better IT investment decisions, better communication with the business, improved alignment of IT with the business, better management of scarce resources or resolution of conflicting demands at the interface between any of business-to-IT, IT-to-IT-Infrastructure function or IT-to-IT-project level.  The improvement should have been delivered by, or as part of, a defined project or programme
• In the context of the organisation’s size, the benefits achieved, the significance of the changes made, the ease of introduction, and the effectiveness of the change techniques used

Project Detail Required

Background information

1. Business turnover or Public sector annual budget
2. Number of employees
3. Annual IT spend
4. Project elapsed time, Man days effort, and Project Management days effort

Award Information

1. Describe the vision and objectives for the project.
2. Describe and provide evidence of the tangible benefits and value delivered (See rule 2).
3. Describe the intangible (soft) benefits and value delivered.
4. Describe the business perception of Governance in IT that existed before the project.
5. Governance Area which was changed (Business / IT, IT / IT Infrastructure, IT Project).
6. Describe the governance arrangements / environment that existed before the project.
7. Describe the governance issues that required the change (the burning platform).
8. Describe the new governance arrangements / environment created and the decision processes which were used to develop and agree them.
9. Describe which business units / business areas were most affected, and what the main techniques / methods / approaches were that were used to overcome the issues with what results.
10. Identify which individuals (anonymous if needed) were most affected and how and what techniques / methods / approaches were used to overcome the issues with what results.
11. Describe the business perception of Governance in IT that existed after the project.
12. Why should this project win this award?