ICT Governance Frameworks: COBIT, ITIL, COSO, CMMI, and FAIR

This report provides a comparative analysis of five key ICT governance frameworks: COBIT, ITIL, COSO, CMMI, and FAIR. It begins by outlining the strengths and weaknesses of COBIT, including its ability to ensure high-quality data and achieve strategic goals, while acknowledging potential issues with customization. The report then examines ITIL, highlighting its customer satisfaction benefits and improved communication, while also noting concerns about security. Following this, the report delves into COSO, emphasizing its role in improving internal controls and cybersecurity, alongside its limitations in addressing external influences. CMMI is then assessed for its consistency and process improvement capabilities, balanced against its resource-intensive nature. Finally, the report explores the FAIR framework, focusing on its ability to analyze information risks, whilst also acknowledging its lack of commercial gain. Each framework analysis includes characteristics of companies that would benefit from its implementation, along with proposed implementation plans. The report highlights the significance of these frameworks in enhancing ICT governance, risk management, and overall business performance.

Running head: ICT GOVERNANCE
ICT Governance
Team Leader: Parminder Singh Kalsi
Team Members
Yadwinder Singh
Robin
Rajwinder Kaur
Name of the University
Author’s Note:

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Table of Contents
1. COBIT....................................................................................................................................2
2. ITIL........................................................................................................................................4
3. COSO.....................................................................................................................................5
4. CMMI.....................................................................................................................................7
5. FAIR.......................................................................................................................................8
References..................................................................................................................................9

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Team Member 1: There are several IT frameworks for enhancing ICT governance in an
organization.
Team Member 2: Yes. The most popular frameworks are COBIT and ITIL. These are widely
utilized in several companies.
Team Member 3: There are several advantages and disadvantages of these two frameworks
that are needed to be considered.
1. COBIT
1.1 Strengths of COBIT Framework
i) Client will be able to ensure maintenance of high quality data for supporting
business decisions.
ii) Achievement of the strategic goals for realizing business advantages by efficient IT
utilization.
iii) Achievement of operational excellence via scalable technological application.
1.2 Weaknesses of COBIT Framework
i) The client might face lack of customization with COBIT.
ii) There could be over ambitious or even unrealistic goals for completing the project.
1.3 Characteristics of the Company governing COBIT Framework
The organization would have characteristics such as using IT effectively, promoting
the operational excellence, ensuring the IT risks and finally ensuring the company in realizing
value of investments with COBIT framework (Amid and Moradi 2013).
1.4 Proposed Implementation Plan for COBIT Framework

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i) The first phase is identification of drivers.
ii) Identification of enterprise goals to be achieved.
iii) Obtaining support from senior management.
iv) Focusing on beneficial improvements.

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2. ITIL
2.1 Strengths of ITIL Framework
i) Client will be able to increment customer satisfaction with IT services.
ii) Better communication would be enhanced.
iii) There would be a reduction of risk to not meet business needs.
2.2 Weaknesses of ITIL Framework
i) The first weakness is lack of security and confidentiality.
ii) Outsourcing of organization would be difficult with ITIL.
2.3 Characteristics of the Company governing ITIL Framework
The organization would have characteristics such as global recognition, improvised
interactions in the IT department, improvised availability of systems and applications, high
productivity and many more with ITIL framework (Valverde, Saade and Talla 2014).
2.4 Proposed Implementation Plan of ITIL Framework
i) Identification of the process to be implemented.
ii) Organization should involve relevant people in the group.
iii) Proper technology is to be identified for implementing ITIL.
iv) Finally management is needed by proper teamwork.

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Team Leader: Do you know that apart from COBIT and ITIL frameworks, there are other
popular frameworks as well?
Team Member 2: What are they?
Team Leader: I know 3 more, which are COSO, CMMI and FAIR frameworks. The best part
of these three frameworks is that they provide calculated risks in an organization.
3. COSO
3.1 Strengths of COSO Framework
i) Client would be able to improve the internal controls for risk management.
ii) Cybersecurity would be highly improvised with COSO framework.
iii) There would be a better guidance for the most effective risk management.
3.2 Weaknesses of COSO Framework
i) COSO does not focus on the internal controls and by neglecting the influences of
external environment.
ii) It does not measure the risks of events and consequences that could be occur.
3.3 Characteristics of the Company governing COSO Framework
The organization would have characteristics such as improving their cybersecurity,
involving board of directors for having reasonable assurance that objectives of strategy and
operations are being achieved with COSO framework (Graham 2015).
3.4 Proposed Implementation Plan of COSO Framework
i) Controlling environment should be enhanced properly.
ii) The risks should be assessed in the second phase.

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iii) Activities should be controlled properly.
iv) Information and communication would be enhanced.
v) The activities would be monitored in the final step.

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4. CMMI
4.1 Strengths of CMMI Framework
i) Client would be able to maintain consistency and cost savings.
ii) CMMI allows self improvement and process improvement.
iii) Market demand would be enhanced on a top priority.
4.2 Weaknesses of CMMI Framework
i) It is not suitable for all companies and it requires extra resources and knowledge for
process improvement.
ii) CMMI always requires a considerable amount of effort and time for successful
deployment (Amid and Moradi 2013).
4.3 Characteristics of the Company governing CMMI Framework
The organization would have characteristics such as maintenance of quality in
projects and even ensuring uniformity, increased customer satisfaction and improved
productivity with CMMI framework.
4.4 Proposed Implementation Plan of CMMI Framework
i) Determination of objectives is the first phase.
ii) Identification and resolving of risks.
iii) The third step is development and testing.
iv) Finally planning should be completed effectively.

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Team Leader: FAIR framework is responsible for reducing the complexities related to IT
risks.
Team Member 3: Are there any disadvantages of this framework?
Team Leader: Yes. FAIR framework does not provide any commercial gain.
5. FAIR
5.1 Strengths of FAIR Framework
i) Client would be able to analyse the information risks effectively.
ii) The IT risks would be able to be determined easily.
iii) It helps in strengthening and replacing the existing processes of risk analysis.
5.2 Weaknesses of FAIR Framework
i) FAIR is absolutely proprietary and does not provide commercial gain.
ii) It does not help in direct competition with any other framework of risk assessment.
5.3 Characteristics of the Company governing FAIR Framework
The organization would have characteristics such as establishment of accurate
probabilities of the data loss event, strengthening the existing procedures of risk analysis and
obtaining error free results with FAIR framework (Dong, Ryan and Zhang 2014).
5.4 Proposed Implementation Plan of FAIR Framework
i) Identifying the risks present in the company.
ii) The cyber risk strategy should be considered.
iii) Developing and testing the framework properly.

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References
Amid, A. and Moradi, S., 2013. A Hybrid Evaluation Framework of CMM and COBIT for
Improving the Software Development Quality. Journal of Software Engineering and
Applications, 6(05), p.280.
Dong, M., Ryan, S. and Zhang, X.J., 2014. Preserving amortized costs within a fair-value-
accounting framework: Reclassification of gains and losses on available-for-sale securities
upon realization. Review of Accounting Studies, 19(1), pp.242-280.
Graham, L., 2015. Internal control audit and compliance: documentation and testing under
the new coso framework. John Wiley & Sons.
Valverde, R., Saade, R.G. and Talla, M., 2014. ITIL-based IT service support process
reengineering. Intelligent Decision Technologies, 8(2), pp.111-130.