Billions of IT investment dollars continue to be wasted each year due to poor IT alignment, oversight and control. The IT Governance Institute (ITGI) has addressed this international problem with the new Val IT series Enterprise Value: Governance of IT Investments, designed to meet worldwide demand for generally accepted guidelines and best practices to help boards of directors and executive management attain an appropriate return on investment (ROI) for IT-enabled investments.

Val IT is a governance framework consisting of a set of guiding principles and processes that conform to those principles. It is based on Control Objectives for Information and related Technology (COBIT ), a framework for information technology governance and control, also developed by ITGI. Val IT complements COBIT from a business and financial perspective-while COBIT sets best practices for the means of creating value, Val IT now adds best practices for the end.

"Effective IT governance starts with leadership, commitment and support from the top. However, while this leadership is critical, it is simply not enough," said Everett Johnson, CPA, international president of ITGI. "Val IT provides boards and executive management with clear understanding of executive, business and IT roles and responsibilities, much needed guidance on the IT investment decision-making process and how to increase the value of IT investments."

The Val IT series consists of several publications that shed light on how to ensure that IT investments deliver value. The first three publications are:

• Enterprise Value: Governance of IT Investments, The Val IT Framework
  
• Enterprise Value: Governance of IT Investments, The Business Case
  
• Enterprise Value: Governance of IT Investments, The ING Case Study

The principles offered in Enterprise Value: Governance of IT Investments, The Val IT Framework focus on how to handle IT enabled investments and value delivery practices.

Val IT recommends that IT-enabled investments:

• Be managed as a portfolio of investments
  
• Include the full scope of activities required to achieve business value
  
• Receive supervision through their full economic life cycle

Val IT advises that value delivery practices:

• Recognize that there are different categories of investments and each should be evaluated and managed differently
  
• Define and monitor key metrics and respond quickly to any changes or deviations
  
• Engage all stakeholders and assign appropriate accountability for the delivery of capabilities and the realization of business benefits
  
• Should be continually monitored, evaluated and improved

The framework also presents key management practices for three specific processes:

• Value governance - 11 key management practices
  
• Portfolio management - 14 key management practices
  
• Investment management - 15 key management practices

Enterprise Value: Governance of IT Investments, The Business Case focuses on the eight steps to develop an effective business case and provides useful tools for each. It also provides a comprehensive outline of appropriate business case content.

Enterprise Value: Governance of IT Investments, The ING Case Study demonstrates real-world examples of the application of the Val IT framework.

Related links: (Open in a new window.)
www.isaca.org/valit
www.isaca.org/bookstore
www.itgi.org

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