Governance Lisa Lugo Senior Vice President Strategic Operations NYC Economic Development Corporation

Agenda Introduction What is governance and why is it needed? Prioritization methodology Implementing good governance Critical success factors Things to avoid NYC IT Governance Model

Lisa Lugo Senior Vice President for Strategic Operations, NYC Economic Development Corporation (current) Assistant Commissioner, IT Strategic Planning and Communications, NYC DoITT (2002-2008) Over 20 years in the technology industry

What is governance and why is it needed? Governance enables an organization to make informed investment decisions, to ensure that resources are deployed in ways that will maximize value to the organization. Governance consists of two primary elements: Steering committee with decision-making authority Prioritization methodology: weighing value vs. effort. Governance creates an objective framework for decision-making, and helps to decrease the “squeaky wheel” syndrome. Exceptions will never be eliminated, but governance helps keep them under control.

Prioritization Methodology The method involves scoring projects by value vs. effort in a reasonably objective manner Value relates to the benefits of a project. In the private sector this is the ROI. Effort relates to the costs of a project including dollars, resources, and risk.

Prioritization Example Evaluator enters scores here. The rest is calculated Value and Effort are decomposed into a number of specific criteria. Each criteria is given a weight. The weights must add up to 100%. Evaluators score a particular project against the criteria. This is multiplied by the weight to determine the total score. Scoring can be done by multiple evaluators; the results are compiled into a total score for that project.

Prioritization example, continued In this example: Project X has 100% value and 20% effort and is plotted on the grid accordingly. Project X is high value and low effort. It should proceed. Project Y has 48% value and 63% effort. It is low value and high effort. It should be reconsidered and/or stopped.

Implementing good governance Start with identifying the organization’s business goals and priorities. All stakeholders should participate in developing the process to ensure buy-in. Clearly demonstrate the value of governance – the “WIIFM”. Examples: It enables the business to effectively accomplish its goals. IT has a clear direction on where to spend its resources to get the most value for the level of effort.

Critical Success Factors Executive sponsorship is crucial. Steering committee must have decision-making authority. The process must include clear metrics, and real accountability. It should be consistently applied to be considered credible. The process should have flexibility so it can adapt to changing business conditions. It should be well understood and accepted as part of the organizational culture.

Things to avoid The key is to conduct “just enough” analysis to make a reasonable set of decisions.1 Avoid the following: Analysis paralysis Overly complex and time-consuming processes Too much data Conflicting processes 1 Adapted from Gartner, Inc.

NYC IT Governance Model Decision-Making Bodies Advisory Councils Task Forces (illustrative) Communication and Change Management Mayor/Deputy Mayors Technology Steering Committee Executive CIO Council IT Portfolio Management Advisory Council Enterprise Architecture Board Training Document Management Architecture Domain Teams Workgroup Business Direction IT Vision Requests for Sponsorship Recommended Cross-Agency Initiatives Requests for Analysis Standards Approvals Priorities Charter and Objectives

Questions?