2.4.8 How should compliance to strategic ICT be achieved?

Compliance is an important factor in achieving institutionally aligned ICT. It is important to recognise an institution's ambitions for strategic alignment and having defined the scope offer an approach that both governs for and encourages compliance.

Governance provides the framework for investment approval and the appropriate progress monitoring and reporting of projects and services. But it is additional ICT activities, local initiatives without strategic ICT approval, that threaten the integrity of an institution's strategic ICT. Development without architecture is an exception process that aims to ensure all initiatives are identified and justified even though they may not be part of the strategic ICT agenda. Again visibility and awareness provide support for institutional alignment.

In this respect the Chief Information Officer, or equivalent, can have a dual role of ensuring the appropriate audit of ICT investments and in providing additional support to win the hearts and minds of those senior management deploying ICT outside of the strategic agenda.