Title: An Integrated ICT Management Framework for Commercial Banking Organisations in South Africa
Abstract: Introduction According to Araya, Chaparo, Orero and Joglar (2007) and Cordis (2007), the integrative view on ICT infrastructure refers to the inclusion of elements that directly deal with ICT and organisation such as direct ICT human resources, ICT technological infrastructure, ICT proprietary resources (protected patent, and copyright), and ICT budget. Indirect resources include personnel outside ICT department as management, culture of the organisation and its structure, relationship with business partners, and budget outside the ICT department that provides training for employees in general. All these resources combined, not only direct resources but also other resources, sustain the success of ICT with the organisation and contribute to the competitive advantage of the organisation. Lucas (2005, p. 5) mentions that the key to success with technology is not the technology per se but the ability to manage it well. The same is the view of Caruso (2003), with emphasis on the implementation of security policy to safeguard IT infrastructure. Concerning the management of ICT infrastructure, many tools have been developed including the use of different best practices presented in frameworks such as Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL), Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT), Capability Maturity Model (CMM), and International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 17799. These four frameworks are some of the different frameworks that incorporate useful best practices used in managing ICT infrastructures in different businesses sectors including the banking sector, which is the focus of this article. Although many authors, including organisations, such as IT Governance Institute (2007), mention that as all frameworks complement each other, users can benefit from using the COBIT content as an overall approach to and governing IT, together with more detailed standards such as ITIL for service delivery, CMM for solution delivery, and ISO 17799 for information security. None of them, to our best knowledge, have proposed how they fit together in a single management framework that can allow a holistic view when applied to ICT management. In this article a formal research process will be applied, which is described in the research design section. The objective was to explore the necessary components that ICT Management Frameworks needs to incorporate for better management and control of ICT infrastructure. Literature Review The first step in this literature review is to describe the ICT Management Framework, and then briefly provide an overview of the four frameworks. In general, a framework is a set of beliefs, ideas, or rules that is used as the basis for making judgment and decisions (Hornby, 2000, p. 471). An ICT Management Framework is a management tool that provides the ICT organisation with a precise guideline of best practices and proved standards that need to be addressed for successful technical, organisational, and legal management of ICT service delivery in support of business strategies and operations (Barton, 2003, p. 32; Turban, Rainer, & Potter, 2005, p. 36; Thamhain, 2005, p. 6). According to the IT Governance Institute (2005) the effective adoption of best practices can provide many benefits, especially in the area of advanced technology. These include: --Avoiding re-inventing the wheel; --Reducing dependency on technology experts; --Increasing the potential to utilise less-experienced staff if properly trained; --Making it easier to leverage external assistance; --Overcoming vertical silos and nonconforming behaviour; --Reducing risks and errors; --Improving quality; --Improving the ability to manage and monitor; --Increasing standardisation leading to cost reduction; --Improving trust and confidence from management and partners; --Creating respect from regulators and other external reviewers; and --Safeguarding and proving value. …
Publication Year: 2008
Publication Date: 2008-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 9
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