An IT governance structure at SDSU would help improve the current decentralized IT environment. For example, an IT governance structure that has representatives from all divisions would allow for:

• Input from each divisional unit and core constituency of the campus community, including faculty, students, and staff.
• Improved communication with the campus community related to IT initiatives, projects, and decision making.
• The guidance and prioritization of IT investments.
• The development of standards and the realization of economies of scale.
• The development of IT strategic initiatives.
• Organizational risk management. Proactive risk management ensures that IT managers and leadership are aware of the risk associated with the IT initiatives and provides the basis to implement risk mitigation strategies.
• Shared/consensus understanding of resources available and process to attain them.
• Clear execution and enforcement of new technologies and initiatives. Governance provides IT managers with the framework to manage all IT initiatives and demands, through a single point where they are prioritized and fulfilled. It allows standardizing technology platforms and helps managers make informed decisions on IT initiatives.
• Accountability. Effective governance is about accountability. This enables managers to enforce the responsibilities that relate to IT program management.

One of the immediate goals of the IT governance steering committee is to identify urgent and pressing technology issues, as well as critical needs at SDSU, and identify working groups to address them.

The SDSU IT Governance Council consists of a steering committee with IT representatives from each division and co-chairs from each working group. The IT Governance Council steering committee also includes a representative from the faculty senate, a representative from the Research Foundation, and a representative from associated students. The purpose of the committee is to facilitate collaboration among divisional units in the prioritization, funding, design and use of IT to ensure cost effective support of SDSU’s teaching, learning, research, and administrative goals.

An effective IT governance structure at SDSU will focus on the overall strategic priorities such as:

• Securing campus digital assets and safeguarding student and research data.
• Investing wisely in core systems that serve the entire campus.
• Providing shared IT services to students, faculty and staff.
• Allowing for transparency for all budget allocation for campus technology efforts.