The viable governance model (VGM) : a theoretical model of IT governance with a corporate setting

Empirical studies into IT governance have considerably advanced our understanding of the mechanisms and practices used by contemporary organisations to govern their current and future use of IT. However, despite the progress made in identifying the various elements employed by contemporary IT governance arrangements, there has been relatively little research into the formulation of a holistic model of IT governance that integrates the growing collection of parts into a coherent whole. To further advance the concept of IT governance, the Viable Governance Model (VGM) is proposed. The VGM is a theoretical model of IT governance within a corporate setting that is based on the laws and principles of cybernetics as embodied in Stafford Beer's Viable System Model (VSM). Cybernetics, the science of control and communication in biological and artificial systems, establishes a firm theoretical foundation upon which to design a system that directs and controls the IT function in a complex enterprise. The VGM is developed using an approach based on design science. Given the theoretical nature of the artefact that is being designed, the development and evaluation activities are primarily conceptual in nature. That is, the development activity involves the design of a theoretical model of IT governance using theoretical concepts and constructs drawn from several reference disciplines including cybernetics, organisation theory, and complexity theory. The conceptual evaluation of the VGM indicates that the model is sufficiently robust to incorporate many of the empirical findings arising from academic and professional research. The resultant model establishes a "blueprint", or set of design principles, that can be used by IS practitioners to design and implement a system of IT governance that is appropriate to their organisational contingencies. Novel aspects of this research include: the integration of corporate and IT governance; the reinterpretation of the role of the enterprise architecture (EA) within a complex enterprise; the exposition of the relationship between the corporate and divisional IT groups; and the resolution of the centralisation versus decentralisation dilemma that confront designers of IT governance arrangements