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Aarti Vig 9030241001
Manohar Gadre 9030241015
ITBM 2009-11
10/14/2010
IT Governance Framework In Education Sector
University of Saskatchewan, Canada
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 2
Abstract
The white paper gives an overview of the IT governance framework at state
University of Saskatchewan. The paper begins with a brief introduction about the
university enlisting few facts about the history of university, courses & disciplines
offered and leadership & governance structure. It moves on to explain the IT
organization chart of the University and the role of CIO in the organisation taken
up for study. The paper then details out the IT Governance structure of the
University enumerating the IT strategy of the organization. The paper also
describes IT Architecture, Governance Bodies and Governance model followed in
the University. Lastly the paper derives the IT Governance Matrix for the
University comprising of the Inputs & Decision rights for five major IT decisions.
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 3
Table of Contents
1 Introduction ................................................................ ................................ ................ 4
2 About The University ................................ ................................................................ .. 4
2.1 History ................................................................ ................................ .................. 4
2.2 Leadership and Governance ................................ ................................................ 5
2.3 Faculty and staff ................................................................................................... 5
2.4 Students ................................................................ ................................................ 5
3 Organization chart for IT ................................ ............................................................ 6
3.1 CIO and Associate President of University of Saskatchewan ........................... 7
4 IT Governance at the University of Saskatchewan ................................................... 7
4.1 IT Governance: Defined ...................................................................................... 7
4.2 IT Governance Framework at University of Saskatchewan .............................. 8
4.3 IT Strategy for University of Saskatchewan ....................................................... 8
4.4 IT Architecture ................................ ................................................................ ..... 9
4.5 IT Governance Model at University of Saskatchewan ..................................... 11
4.6 Governance Bodies ................................ .............................................................12
4.7 IT Governance Arrangements Matrix ................................ .............................. 14
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 4
1 Intro
¡ ction
Over the past few years, there has been an increasing concern over how IT is
governed in educational institutions. One reason is the significant impact IT systems
have on how institution¶s work gets done. With IT affecting all aspects of a
university¶s academic and business affairs, input and buy-in from stakeholders is
both desirable and indispensible for CIO & other institutional departments. IT
alignment with the institution¶s goals is of utmost importance.
Large research-intensive institutions thrive on innovation, creativity, and
entrepreneurial spirit in their decentralized units. Yet this very need for
independence and creativity can result in a complex, unmanageable IT governance
structure. IT governance at any organizational level of the institution needs:
y Simplicity
y Inclusivity
y Maturity
y Specificity
The university, we selected- The University of Saskatchewan, Canada, is an excellent
example of design and implementation of IT Governance Framework.
2 Abo¢ t £
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rsity
The University of Saskatchewan, Canada, is a state university that believes in
achieving excellence in the scholarly activities of teaching, discovering, preserving,
and applying knowledge. The university offers 58 undergraduate and graduate
degrees, diplomas and certificates in over 100 disciplines.
2.1 History
The University of Saskatchewan was established in 1907 and celebrated its
centennial in 2007. The first classes began in 1909 with a registration of 70 students.
On October 12, 1912, the first building on campus, the College Building, was opened
for student admissions. It was declared a provincial heritage building in 1982, a
federal heritage building in 2000 and became a national historic site in 2009.
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 5
2.2 Leadership and §
ov ernance
The university is governed by three bodies:
1. The Board of Governors, consisting of 11 members and currently chaired by
Art Dumont, oversees all financial and major governance matters.
2. The Senate, with about 100 members, provides a link with the public and
professionals across Saskatchewan.
3. The University Council governs academic affairs.
2.3 Faculty and staff
The University of Saskatchewan prides itself on its outstanding and diverse faculty
and staff that number about 7,500.
2.4 Students
The university hosts students from all over the world. In the 2008-09 academic year,
14,586 students were enrolled full-time and another 3,832 were enrolled part-time,
including 1,271international students.
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 6
3 Organization chart for I
F igure 1: Organization chart for IT in University of Saskatchewan
The university has a dedication organization structure for its IT management. The
person of utmost importance here is the CIO, who actually played the major role in
designing and implementing IT Governance Framework at the University of
Saskatchewan.
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I r t i rsit s t h w
I P 7
3.1 CIO and A ssociate President of University of Saskatchewan
4 IT Governance at the University of Saskatchewan
4.1 IT Governance: Defined
IT gov e ̈n
© nce in sim
le te ̈ms c
© n be de
ined as a st ̈uctu
̈e of processes that gov ern
decision mak ing around in v estment decisions, client relationships, pro ject
management and other important IT operational areas. IT gov ernance is a bout
policies, plans, pro jects and priorities. It's a bout w ho mak es w hat decisions, w ho
adv ises those w ho mak e the decisions and how and w here that adv ice is prov ided. It's
also a bout roles, res onsibilities and authority . The leaders need to lead but
stak eholders need the opportunity to contribute meaningf ully to decision mak ing at
a point appropriate to their institutional roles.
Dr. Rick Bunt is Chief Information Officer and Associate Vice-
President and the major contributor to the design and development of the Governance framework at the University of
Saskatchewan.
He has Ph.D. and M.Sc. degrees in Computer Science from the
University of Toronto and a B.Sc. degree from Queen·s University,
and has been a Professor of Computer Science since joining the
University of Saskatchewan in 1972.
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 8
4.2 I
ov ernance Framew ork at
niv ersity of Saskatchew an
The IT governance frame work University of Saskatchewan comprises of four major
elements:
y Strategy
y Architecture
y Governance Model
y Decision Matrix
We will look at each of elements, sequentially in the following sections.
4.3 I
Strategy for
niv ersity of Saskatchew an
ICT Strategy is the long term plan of action that answers the questions ³How ICT
should be used to enable the university to achieve its goals? How ICT should be used
as part of our institutional business strategy? How we do it is a matter of tactics;
whether it should be done at all is a matter of strategy?
It¶s an accepted fact that Information Technology is critical to success in the
contemporary university. IT has transformed the way, University do their work and
where they do it² from teaching and learning, to conducting research, to
communicating with colleagues here and afar. It¶s affected how it deliver services to
³customers´ that span every sector of our community and how they support and
manage their business processes. Meeting ever-increasing demands is a constant
challenge and how they respond is a vital factor in our ability to remain competitive
as a preferred place to work or study. The University believes that technology that
does not provide any value to its customers is of no use; hence it strives to integrate
the technology to provide services that provide value to end users & customers.
The prime priorities defined for the IT strategy for the year 2008-12 can be
summarised as:
1. Consolidation & Integration: The University aims to devote more of collective
attention to the consolidation and integration of their services, focusing on
increased interoperability and increased standardization in both their systems
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 9
and data. The functionality they need requires that various systems work
together seamlessly.
2. Increasing Support to Users: As the university becomes more technology
reliant it becomes imperative that they ensure that users in both
administrative units and colleges get the help needed to enable them to reap
the full benefit of the technology provided.
3. Focus on Information: Information is one of a university¶s most valuable
assets and a critical requirement for a high performance culture. The effective
use of information, both strategically and operationally, is vital to the future
success of the University and can be a competitive differentiator. The IT
strategy aims to implement information system which can help provide
relevant & timely information to management.
4. Manage Risks: IT is characterized by extremes: exceptional opportunities to
improve processes, but also very large investments and potentially crippling
risks. It must protect its systems, users and data from those that would do
harm accidentally or intentionally and need to ensure that plans are in place
so that users can carry on with their business in the event that some crucial
technology on which it depends should suddenly become unavailable. The IT
strategy intends to develop plans for disaster recovery and business continuity
planning.
5. Innovation & Leading: The IT strategy puts innovation and leadership in
technology in one of the top priorities and expects staff to monitor new
development and assess application of new developments to the University.
The Implementation of IT Strategy is aptly supported by University¶s IT architecture.
4.4 I
Architecture
The University¶s Framework for data, applications and technical infrastructure is
captured in a set of policies, design principles, organizational structures andtechnology choices to achieve the effective integration of systems, processes and
data.
In the IT architecture of University, applications and data sources co-operate. The
central IT projects or projects done by some other unit are planned and executed in
an integrated way. ³Vertical applications´ are built on ³horizontal services.´ This
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I r t i rsit s t h w
I P
ena bles users to access serv ices in a uniform and consistent manner, emplo ying a
familiar interface, w ithout needing to k now underlying structural details such as
w hich s y stem does w hat and w hich data source contains w hich information. The
follow ing diagram Figure 2 presents how this is carried out
Figur!
2:"
llustr#
t i on o$
"
%
&
' ' l i c#
t i ons$
r# ( ! )
or0
$
or t 1 ! 2
ni v!
rsit y
PAWS ref ers to Personali 3 ed A ccess to W eb Serv ices, that prov ides access to w eb
serv ices to Students, Faculty, A lumni and other members of Saskatche wan
Uni v ersity society.
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 11
4.5 I4
5
ov ernance Model at 6
niv ersity of Saskatchew an
The IT governance model for the University of Saskatchewan depicting various units
that participate in the IT decision makings and inputs is displayed in Figure 3.
F igure 3: IT Governance model for the University
The executive authority for University¶s IT rests with the CIO and Associate VicePresident- Dr. Rick Bunt, who reports to the Vice President Academics.
The CIO has overall responsibility for strategy, policy, technology and for
applications. Stakeholders participate in decision-making at several levels.
ITS ± Information Technology Services division provides services to students,
faculty, alumni and other community members.
ISA ± Information strategy and analytics, which supports the strategic use of institutional data by providing direction, oversight and coordination on the
management and use of data and to enhance institutional planning, performance
measurement and decision making activities through the deployment of business
intelligence solutions that will deliver accurate, reliable and timely information.
SESD- Student Enrolment and services division
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 12
SIRIUS- University of Saskatchewan, Student Information and Registration System
UniFi ± University Financial Information System
FSD- Financial Services Division
U-Friend- IT support the management of development functions within the
University. U-Friend is responsible for recording donor-related information and
reporting on philanthropic activities.
ULC- University Learning Centre
EMAP- Educational Media Access and Production
CCDE- Centre for Continuing and Distance Education
4.6 Gov ernance Bodies
y Campus Advisory Board for Institutional Systems (CABIS): CABIS is the
senior advisory body. With a membership comprising senior policy makers,
business process owners and data stewards, CABIS brings the perspective of
the broad university community and advises the CIO on a wide range of
matters pertaining to the development and use of institutional information
systems and institutional data. With a focus on strategy and policy rather than
tactics CABIS makes recommendations about priorities and plans in
accordance with the values and goals of the university. CABIS meets four
times a year and is chaired by the CIO.
y Enterprise Systems Planning Committee (ESPC): The ESPC provides a place
for program managers, project managers and operational managers to do
³horizontal´ operational planning relating to issues that cut across the
University¶s key institutional systems. The primary focus of the ESPC isoperational or tactical matters, including technical issues. The ESPC meets
monthly and is chaired by ITS¶s manager of administrative information
systems.
y IT Managers Forum (ITMF): The IT Managers Forum is a monthly
meeting of IT support staff from the colleges. ITMF provides a place for
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 13
tactical planning on issues affecting academic units. The forum meets monthly
and is chaired by ITS¶s manager of student computing.
y Academic Support Committee (ASC): The Academic Support
Committee provides oversight and advice on behalf of University Council. The ASC¶s focus is primarily, but not restricted to, matters that directly affect
academic activities (teaching, learning and research).
y Information Technology Services (ITS): Provides support and advice to
individual units on matters pertaining to local systems and processes and to
various committees on campus-wide IT issues and implications. The Director of
ITS is a member of CABIS and ITS staff members chair both the ESPC and the IT
Managers Forum.
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4.7 I7
Gov ernance Arrangements Matrix
The Figure 3 illustrates the IT Governance arrangement matrix for five major IT decisions and corresponding
IT Decisions
Archetypes
IT Principles IT Architecture IT Infrastructure Business Application
Inputs Decisions Inputs DecisionInputs DecisionInputs Decision
Business Monarc
PEC
PCIP
Board
PEC, PCIP,
Board
PEC
PEC
PEC
IT Monarchy CIOITS
ITS
CIO
CIO
CIO
ITS
CIO, ITS
Feudal Approach
Federal Approac
CABIS
ESPC
ASC
IT Mgr
CABIS, ASC
CABIS, ASC,
ESPC, ASC,
IT Mgrs
CABIS, ASC,
ESPC, ASC, IT
Mgrs
CABIS, ESPC
IT Duopoly Appro
Unit Lea
F igure 4: IT Governance Arrangements Matrix
/ : Inputs : Decision Rig
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Note:
President's Executive
Committee (PEC)
Provost's Committee on
Integrated Planning (PCIP)
Infomation Technology
Services (ITS)
Cheif Information Officier
(CIO)
Systems (CABIS) With a
membership comprising
senior policy makers,
business process owners
and data stewards
Academic Support
Committe (ASC)
IT Managersgrs (IT
managers)
Campus Advisory Board for
Institutional
The typical organisational units are illustrated in the Figure can be grouped into following
logical units:
y Univ ersity Executiv e: Board, PCIP (Provost's Committee on Integrated
Planning), PEC (President's Executive Committee)
y I8 9
Leaders: CIO, ITS Head
y Ad visory Group: CABIS, ESPC, ASC, IT Mgr
y College/ AdminUnits
Let us look at each of the principles in IT decisions in detail:
1. I@
A rinciples: It refers to high level statements on how IT is used in the business.
In University of Saskatchewan, the decisions on the role played by IT at the
university, goals of IT at university and the way IT will be funded and governed aretaken by Chief Information Officer (CIO) of the University. However, the inputs
are received from major stakeholders of the university which include PEC, ITS
division, CABIS, ASC and College Admin Units.
2. IB Architecture: The IT Architecture specifies organizing framework for data,
applications and technical infrastructure, captured in a set of policies,
organizational structures and technology choices to achieve the effective
integration of systems, processes and data to meet the university¶s goals. The
decision pertaining to IT architecture lies with the CIO while the inputs for ITarchitecture can come from Advisory groups of CABIS, ESPC, ASC & IT Managers.
The top level of university executive (PEC) and Colleges and Admin units can as
well provide inputs.
3. IC
Inf rastructure: The IT infrastructure strategy involves organizing framework
for data, applications and technical infrastructure, captured in a set of policies,
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IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan
ITBM 2009-11 Page 1
6 Ref erences
y Don¶t Just Lead, Govern: How Top performing Firms Govern IT : IT
Governance Working Paper (No. 341), CISR MIT Solan.
y IT Governance:How top performance manage IT decision rights for duperior
results, Wiel Ross, Harvard Business School, Harvard Press
y University of Saskatchewan, http://www.usask.ca/avp-ict/governance/
retrieved on 11th Oct ¶10.
y IT Governance at University of Saskatchewan, http://www.usask.ca/avp-
ict/governance/ retrieved on 12th Oct 2010.
y IT Architecture, http://www.usask.ca/avp-ict/governance/ retrieved on 12th
Oct ¶10.