Approaches to Shadow IT Governance
- Details
- Written by Dave Carey
Shadow IT used to be one of those things that CIOs tried to eradicate or at least keep in check, like some pernicious garden weed. Yes, that still happens, but now shadow IT has reached the point of acceptance in quite a few organizations and in many it is not only tolerated but encouraged.
In a recent blog (Help for CIOs in Coming Out of the IT Shadows), I wrote about the inexorable growth of shadow IT and the fact that some CIOs are embracing it as a means of helping enable business users while taking some of the pressure off the IT department. That’s a ‘good news’ story and it’s happening quite a bit these days. But where a lot of work still needs to be done is in the area of governance.
At two recent CIO roundtables (“The CIO in a Data-driven World” and “Crunch Time for CIOs”) produced by The IT Media Group, attendees spent a fair bit of time talking about what they’re doing in their organizations to help the business adopt shadow IT in a way that is both secure and consistent with corporate standards. Below are some of the approaches discussed during those sessions.
One CIO talked about making sure that areas of the business involved in developing shadow IT have “a leg in IT”. This involved having the appropriate business people physically relocated to sit closer to IT, and making them part of regular IT meetings in which projects are discussed. As the CIO noted, “The governance happens without them even noticing.”
Another tackled the issue the other way around. “The strategy we use in order to be successful influencers is to be at every single table where they are making decisions. You sit along with them on that journey before they get to the state where you have to fight them,” he said.
A third CIO pointed out that regardless of the model you put in place, you still have to have that relationship with your business partner and show that you are demonstrating value. If the business doesn’t accept your framework, it’s not going to follow it. If your model is that everything is in IT and they have to go through that review process but there is no value or speed to market, they are going to create another level of shadow IT.
There was, however, consensus around one particular aspect of shadow IT governance: it requires the involvement of the senior leadership team. Again though, the approaches can differ widely.
One prominent organization has eradicated shadow IT completely through the direct involvement of the CEO, who has declared emphatically that anything involving technology belongs in IT. At the other end of the spectrum, an attendee said that the CEO and the business line VPs in his organization are all connected to the various conversations about shadow IT. If anything is happening, they’re already talking to IT to say, “Hey, heads up if you aren’t aware. Let’s work together.”
One thing was quite clear from the many CIOs who weighed in on this issue, every company has its own approach to governance and a great many are still wrestling with what kind of a governance framework is best suited to their organization.
The IT Media Group’s Master Series roundtables are a great forum to discuss such issues, find out what others are doing around them, and table ideas and receive valuable feedback from a great group of highly knowledgeable peers. If you are an IT executive and haven’t yet joined one of these sessions, what are you waiting for? Complete this short subscription form to get on our CIO Master Series invitation list.
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