A review of the research related to Information Technology (IT) governance reveals that researchers have yet to use systems theory directly as a basis for understanding IT governance; however, analysis of these researchers’ various definitions of IT governance shows a concurrence between these definitions and the characteristics of a system. This case study research adopts a systems imagination to observe IS and IT governance in the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), which has a budget of over $5 billion and over 7,500 employees and has recently conducted a strategic assessment of its IT organization - including IS and IT governance. The case study posits that VDOT is an indivisible, purposeful, goal seeking (teleological) system where (1) there are three peer elements (governance, management, and operations); (2) there is a governance feedback mechanism (auditing and monitoring); (3) there are peer areas within the governance element that are specialized for a VDOT asset (e.g., capital asset governance, financial governance, human resource governance, etc.) and IS governance is the peer area that is specialized for IT assets; and (4) there are sub-peer areas within IS governance that are specialized for an IT, and this specialized form of IS governance is named IT governance.

The Basel II Framework ensures banks are well capitalized. It is designed to be more risk sensitive than the old Basel Capital Accord and considers operational risk, such as "the risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal procesess, people and systems or from external events." Banks are forced to calculate the regulatory capital charge for operational risk and want to optimize it. IT is a substantial part of operational risk and therefore is a part of the regulatory capital charge for operational risk. The Basel Committee requires banks to implement a framework to manage operational risk. One objective of this study is to provide description of this framework, IT aspects of operational risk and IT governance under Basel II, based on available sources of information. Another objective is to design processes for assessing and managing IT and operational risks under Basel II. Last but not least objective of this study is to disclose recent credit risk data and indicators for consolidated sector and large banks in the Czech republic. The amount of the regulatory capital charge for operational risk is an important part of the overall capital charge. This work increases IT practitioner's understanding of such topics as assessing and managing operational risk under Basel II.

Information technology (IT) is a key enabler of modern business practices, yet reliably effective IT systems remain a significant challenge for many organizations. The consequences when systems fail to behave as expected becomes ever-more problematic as IT dependence grows. Therefore, methods for assessing IT effectiveness and generating actionable recommendations for improvement are key drivers of success. For this reason, large organizations often adopt IT best practice frameworks such as COBIT, ITIL or ISO/IEC standards which can offer greater assurances of IT effectiveness. However smaller organizations are rarely able to adopt these frameworks due, in part, to resource constraints, and a preference to eschew authoritative practices in favour of informal guides to action. Consequently, a significant research gap is the lack of IT effectiveness approaches for organizations unable or unwilling to adopt formal IT best practice frameworks. This thesis presents an alternative norms-based approach to IT effectiveness which some organizations might find more suitable. Norms are informal beliefs (e.g. ‘using a complex password helps safeguard data’) which motivate behaviours and can often be expressed using non-technical language. We review the literature to formulate a predictive model connecting norms to IT quality. Employing a scientific methodology defensible on philosophical grounds and accepted research practices, we distil a set of IT effectiveness norms from the COBIT 4.1 IT governance framework and adapt theories of motivation to justify our assertion that IT effectiveness norms can motivate actions. Our work is signficant in its formulation of an alternative approach for assessing IT operations and improving organizational IT outcomes. Our survey instrument –validated in four studies, which include a non-profit and government organization, multiple small businesses, a large pharmaceutical company and a university –is a light-weight and reliable assessment tool. Our predictive model is able to explain 26% of observed variance, and can offer actionable and non-technical insights which can improve organizational outcomes. A norms-based approach may bring many of the same IT effectiveness benefits offered by formal IT best practices into organizations, such as small businesses, which lack the resources for their implementation. This approach may also help bridge important communication gaps between IT professionals and others in the organization by providing a different, less technical perspective for framing, assessing, diagnosing, and communicating about IT processes.

This research report aims to provide a picture of Sweden's current attitude and approach to future digitization of the election system and how this change process can take place. It also aims to provide answers to our formulated research questions:   What is people's attitude to the current election system and future digitization of the election system?   How could the current Swedish electoral system be changed with the help of digitalisation and what could these changes look like?   Furthermore, it describes the methods and tools used for the collection of information and thus provides an accurate basis of the current situation through a summary of previous research on the subject through a literature study. Furthermore, the method chapter describes in detail the collection of information that was done through a quantitative and a qualitative study. First, an investigation is done on the current situation at the Swedish electoral authority. This investigation then forms the basis of the online survey that collected information from private individuals to give an understanding of their view and attitude on an electronic voting system. The results of this information collection are compiled and then presented in our results. This result is then discussed in our method chapter where we ourselves reflect on the information and responses we collected. In our discussion we also give examples of whether and how the introduction of a digital election system can and should take place. We do this by identifying different levels of digitization based on the results and presenting them together with a number of identified criteria. Finally, this research report can serve as a basis for answering the question of and in what way Sweden should introduce a digital election system.

Today Information Technology (IT) can be found in every modern enterprise. As IT has become one of the most crucial parts of an enterprise, it has made management aware of the impact IT has on the success of the enterprise. This has led to a significant increase on IT investments. IT governance aims at assuring that IT delivers more value from IT investments and enforcing IT‟s role as a business enabler. AB Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (SL) is a government owned company that is responsible for the general transportation system in the municipality of Stockholm. This master thesis aims at assessing the IT organization at SL from an IT governance perspective. The purpose of such assessment is to identify problem areas and suggest measures for improvement. The IT governance framework COBIT (Control Objectives for Information and related Technology) has guided the theory for IT governance throughout this study. A framework for the assessment of the IT governance maturity at SL was developed based on the IT Organization Model Assessment Tool (ITOMAT), a formalized method for assessing the IT governance maturity. The IT governance maturity of SL obtained the score 2,68 out of 5,00. Considering the fact that SL started with the process of introducing IT governance to the organization as recent as 3 years ago, the result obtained is higher than expected. It indicates that significant progress has been achieved in their IT governance. Nevertheless, the organization still has great potential for improvement.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is making significant progress in recent times and is gaining a strong foothold in business. Currently, there is no generally accepted scholarly framework for the governance of AI-based information technologies within corporate environments. Boards of directors who have the responsibility of overseeing corporate operations need to know how best to govern AI technologies within their companies. In response, this dissertation aims to understand the key elements that can assist boards in the governance of AI-based information technologies. Further, it attempts to understand how AI governance elements dynamically interact within a holistic system. As AI governance is a novel phenomenon, an exploratory investigation was conducted via a qualitative approach. Specifically, the study adopted a grounded theory methodology, within the constructivist paradigm, with the intent of generating theory instead of validating existing theory. Data collection included in-depth interviews with key experts in AI research, development, management, and governance processes in corporate and academic settings. Data were further supplemented with data received from conference presentations given by AI experts. Findings from this dissertation elicited a theoretical model of AI governance that shows various AI governance areas and constituting elements, their dynamic interaction, as well as the impact of these elements in enhancing the organizational performance of AI-based projects and reducing the risks associated with those projects. This dissertation provides a scholarly contribution by comparing governance elements within the IT governance domain and the new AI governance domain. In addition to theoretical contributions, this study provides practical contributions for the benefit of the boards of directors. These include a holistic AI governance framework that pictorially represents twenty-two AI governance elements that boards can use to build their own custom AI governance frameworks. In addition, recommendations are provided to assist boards in starting or enhancing their AI governance journeys. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Artificial Intelligence (AI) refers to a set of technologies that seek to perform cognitive functions associated with human minds, such as learning, planning, and problem-solving. AI brings abundant opportunities as well as substantial risks. Major companies are trying to figure out how best to benefit from AI technologies. Boards of directors, with the responsibility of overseeing company operations, need to know how best to govern such technologies. In response, this study was conducted to uncover key AI governance elements that can assist boards in the governance of AI. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with AI experts and by attending AI conference presentations. Findings yield a theoretical model of AI governance that can assist scholars in enhancing their understanding of this emerging governance area. Findings also provide a holistic framework of AI governance that boards can use as a practical tool to enhance their effectiveness of the AI governance process.

This dissertation is composed by three essays that explore the relationship between good IT governance and effective information security services. Governance steers and verifies performance of fiduciary duties, through the implementation of proper governance mechanisms. With a focus on information security, this essay presents three categories of governance mechanisms - process-based, structural, and relational. When properly instituted, they work together to ensure that IT understands business requirements for information security and strives to fulfill them. An explanation is offered about the efficacy of those mechanisms, based on an agency theory perspective that views IT as an agent for business. The two underlying causes for agency problems are goal incongruence and information asymmetry between the agent and the principal. Governance mechanisms help to reduce both goal incongruence and information asymmetry. Hence, they lead to desired outcomes. A theoretical framework is presented and empirical tested.

Information Technology (IT) is often viewed as a resource that is capable of enhancing organizational performance. However, it is difficult for organizations to measure the actual contribution of IT investments. Despite an abundance of literature, there is an insufficiency of generally applicable frameworks and instruments to help organizations definitively assess the relationship among organizational performance, IT-business alignment, and IT governance. Previous studies have emphasized IT-business alignment as an important enabler of organizational effectiveness; however, the direct and indirect effects of IT governance have not been incorporated into these studies. The purpose of this study was (1) to propose a new model that defines the relationships among IT governance, IT-business alignment, and organizational performance, (2) to develop and validate measures for the IT governance and IT-business alignment constructs, and (3) to test this IT Governance-Alignment-Performance or "IT GAP" model. This study made some novel contributions to the understanding of the factors affecting organizational performance. The quest for IT-business alignment in the MIS literature has been based on the presumption that IT contributes directly to organizational performance. However, this study found that although IT-business alignment does contribute to organizational performance, IT governance is an important antecedent of both IT-business alignment and organizational performance. The major contributions of this work are the development and validation of uni-dimensional scales for both IT-business alignment and IT governance, and the confirmation of the validity of the IT GAP model to explain the hypothesized relationships among the three constructs. Future studies may improve upon this research by using different organizations settings, industries, and stakeholders. This study indicates that in order for organizations to improve the value, contribution, and alignment of IT investments they first need to improve the ways in which they govern their IT activities and the processes and mechanisms by which IT decisions are made.

O objetivo deste trabalho é pesquisar os gastos em Tecnologias da Informação e Comunicação (TIC) do Governo do Estado de São Paulo e das Secretarias do Estado de Educação e da Saúde, e compará-las internamente e externamente com outras entidades. O capítulo 1 contextualiza a problemática da pesquisa enquanto o capítulo 2 traça os objetivos gerais e específicos. O capítulo 3 apresenta uma revisão bibliográfica sobre Administração Pública, TIC, o uso de TIC na Administração Pública, Administração Pública no Brasil, estrutura do Estado de São Paulo e das secretarias estudadas, descrição dos sistemas contábilfinanceiros SIAFEM e SIGEO, conceitos de orçamento público do Estado de São Paulo e as variáveis e indicadores utilizados na pesquisa. No capítulo 4 encontram-se os métodos e procedimentos utilizados na pesquisa, identificando as contas contábeis utilizadas no estudo, a relação dos gestores entrevistados, a forma de análise e apresentação dos resultados. No capítulo 5 se demonstrou os resultados obtidos, no capítulo 6 a análise comparativa e conclusões, e no capítulo 7 encontram-se as considerações finais. / The objective of this work is to study the expenses on Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) of the State of São Paulo, the Department of Education and the Department of Health, compare each other and with other departments. Chapter 1 gives an overview of the research context while chapter 2 presents the main objectives. Chapter 3 presents a review on Public Administration, ICT, the use o ICT in the Public Administration, Public Administration in Brazil, the structure of the State of São Paulo and the departments studied, a description of SIAFEM and SIGEO financialaccountancy systems, state´s public budget concepts, and variables and indicators used in the study. On Chapter 4, the methods and procceedings of the study, presenting the accounts used, managers interviewed and the analysis structure. Chapter 5 demonstrates the results of the study, chapter 6 the comparative analysis and chapter 7 presents the final remarks.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-03-05T18:41:00Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 26 / Nenhuma / A teoria traz como um problema e uma limitação dos modelos de gestão de TI presentes em grande parte das empresas a abordagem excessivamente operacional envolvendo o tema segurança da informação. Esta visão operacional não leva em consideração elementos estratégicos essenciais em busca das práticas mais adequadas no contexto do negócio. O objetivo desta dissertação é desenvolver e aplicar um framework para promover o alinhamento estratégico entre os objetivos de negócio, objetivos de TI e as práticas de segurança da informação. Estas práticas são avaliadas e analisadas no contexto da governança de TI e governança da segurança da informação. Para este fim, foi realizada a integração dos modelos do BSC x COBIT x ISO27002 com a aplicação prática em uma empresa de automação significativamente dependente de sistemas de informação. A integração destes modelos foi com base nos requisitos de segurança confidencialidade, integridade e disponibilidade resultando em um framework que possibilita abordar a segurança da i