What is COBIT? Understanding the COBIT Framework [Updated]

What is COBIT?

COBIT stands for Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology. It is a framework created by the ISACA (Information Systems Audit and Control Association). It was designed to be a supportive tool for managers—and allows bridging the crucial gap between technical issues, business risks, and control requirements.

COBIT is a thoroughly recognized guideline that can be applied to any organization in any industry. Overall, COBIT ensures quality, control, and reliability of information systems in an organization, which is also the most important aspect of every modern business.

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What is ISACA?

ISACA stands for Information Systems Audit and Control Association. It develops controls and guidance for information governance, security, control, and audit professionals.

This international association focuses on IT governance, providing benchmarks and governance tools for organizations that employ information systems. ISACA is behind the creation, sponsorship, and driving of the COBIT framework.

What is the History of COBIT?

Originally published in 1996, COBIT helped financial auditors better navigate their IT environment growth. 

ISACA released a more comprehensive version in 1998. It enveloped areas beyond audit controls. The third and fourth versions, released in the 2000s, added further management guidelines around cyber security.

The fifth COBIT version came in 2013 and brought along tools, objectives, and best practices universally applicable to all IT operations in enterprises. It expanded on the fourth version by incorporating related standards from the ISO (International Organization for Standardization), including ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library.

ISACA then updated COBIT 5 to COBIT 2019. It is the latest version. This COBIT version is more comprehensive, flexible, and suitable for all enterprises, irrespective of their immediate goals or size. COBIT 2019 includes six governing principles, unlike COBIT 5, which had five. Also, in this version, the number of processes supporting management objectives and governance has increased from 37 to 40. 

Why Is COBIT Important?

The COBIT framework provides a common language for IT professionals, compliance auditors, and business executives. They can communicate with each other on the same IT goals, controls, objectives and outcomes.

The absence of a common language demands explanations on when, how, where, and why certain IT controls were created.

Implementing COBIT in any organization from any industry ensures control, quality, and reliability of IT systems.

What Is COBIT Framework?

The COBIT business orientation includes linking business goals with its IT infrastructure by providing various maturity models and metrics that measure the achievement while identifying associated business responsibilities of IT processes. The main focus of COBIT 4.1 was illustrated with a process-based model subdivided into four specific domains, including:

• Planning & Organization
• Delivering and Support
• Acquiring & Implementation
• Monitoring & Evaluating

All of this is further understood under 34 processes as per the specific line of responsibilities. COBIT has a high position in business frameworks and has been recognized under various international standards, including ITIL, CMMI, COSO, PRINCE2, TOGAF®, PMBOK, and ISO 27000. COBIT acts as a guideline integrator—merging all solutions under one umbrella.

The latest COBIT version, 5, came out in April 2012 and consolidated the principles of COBIT 4.1, Risk IT Frameworks, and Val IT 2.0. This version draws references from the IT Assurance Framework (ITAF) from ISACA and the revered BMIS (Business Model for Information Security).

What Are the COBIT Framework Basics?

COBIT is more than a set of technical standards for IT managers. This framework supports the requirements of businesses via combined IT applications, related processes and sources. It provides the following two main parameters: 

• Control: IT management practices, policies, procedures, and structures, providing an acceptable assurance level that business goals will be met. 
• IT control objective: States the acceptable results level that must be attained when implementing control procedures for a particular IT operation.

What Are the Principles of COBIT?

The latest version, COBIT 2019, presents six principles for a governance system:

1. Meet stakeholder needs
2. Holistic approach
3. Dynamic governance system
4. Distinct governance from management
5. Tailored to enterprise needs
6. End-to-end governance system

What Do You Need to Know Before Using COBIT?

• Objectives: The latest version has 40 governance and business management objectives. IT professionals can prioritize or ignore the objectives based on the stakeholders’ needs. 
• Design factors Include strategic, contextual, and tactical factors that help define an organization’s requirements and how they must be addressed in a framework. They drive implementation choices for technology, methods, and outsourcing.
• Domains: The objectives are categorized into specific domains that map to various business processes such as planning, creating, and monitoring.
• Goals cascade: It defines the connection between business goals and requirements.
• Components: These are generic elements such as infrastructure, skills, process descriptions and structures influencing IT.

What is the Difference Between COBIT 5 and COBIT 2019?

How Does COBIT Compare With Other Governance Frameworks?

While COBIT, ITIL, and TOGAF® provide exceptional mechanisms for improvement, maintenance, and prioritizations, they differ in scope and audience:  

​COBIT vs ITIL

• The ITIL framework narrowly focuses on ITSM (IT service management), but COBIT broadly focuses on risk management, which can be applied to various business areas. 
• ITIL needs a third-party tool like Tudor IT Process Assessment (TIPA) to document compliance, while COBIT audits are conducted by ISACA Certified Information Systems Auditors (CISAs).

COBIT vs TOGAF®

The Open Group Association created and maintains TOGAF®. Unlike ITIL, an IT service framework, TOGAF® is an architectural framework. 

• COBIT focuses on creating an enterprise-wide IT governance system that implements several security controls. Conversely, TOGAF® helps create an information architecture for enterprises to integrate and streamline business and IT goals. 

The two can be used as a hybrid model to establish a strong governance framework.

The Various COBIT Components

• Framework

IT helps organize the objectives of IT governance, implement best practices in IT processes and domains, and link business requirements.

• Process Descriptions

It is a reference model and also acts as a common language for every individual in the organization. The process descriptions include planning, building, running, and monitoring all IT processes.

• Control Objectives

This provides a complete list of requirements the management has considered for effective IT business control.

• Maturity Models

Accesses the maturity and the capability of every process while addressing the gaps.

• Management Guidelines

It helps better assign responsibilities, measure performances, agree on common objectives, and illustrate better interrelationships with every other process.

COBIT is used by all organizations whose primary responsibilities involve business processes and related technologies—all organizations and businesses that depend on technology for reliable and relevant information. It is used by both government and private sector organizations because it helps increase the sensibility of IT processes.

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Why Is COBIT 5.0 the Most Celebrated Version?

Previous versions of COBIT faced a variety of criticism; they were thought to facilitate limited opportunities—and sometimes even adverse results. A major IT firm found that COBIT practices can actually lead to a “Hot Potato” situation wherein all stakeholders have passed on the tasks down the line. Critics maintained that COBIT 5.0 encouraged paperwork and rote rules rather than merely promoting IT governance engagements and improving accountability. 

COBIT 5.0 addressed all the criticisms sustainably. It now encourages all organizations to govern and manage information in the most holistic and integrated manner. The guiding principles of COBIT 5.0 are:

1. Meeting the needs of stakeholders
2. Covering the whole enterprise from end to end
3. Application of a single integrated framework
4. Ensuring a holistic approach to business decision-making
5. Separating the governance from the management

In several cases, COBIT 5.0 has been appreciated for its ability to reduce the risk of IT implementations. IT initiatives typically require quick, agile adaptations that need regular buy-ins from stakeholders and other users simultaneously. The COBIT 5.0 framework has been able to bring about a collaborative culture within the organization, which better meets the needs, risks, and benefits of all IT initiatives.

The Advantages of COBIT 5.0 Certification

A COBIT 5.0 Certification not only prepares professionals for the global challenges to the business IT process but also delivers a substantial amount of expertise information on:

1. IT management issues and how they can affect organizations
2. Principles of IT governance and enterprise IT while establishing the differences between management and governance
3. Accessing how COBIT 5.0 processes can help the establishment of the five basic principles along with other enablers
4. Discussing COBIT 5.0 concerning its process reference model and goal cascade

Benefits of COBIT

The professionals best suited for COBIT methodologies are those who are already in a position to understand the nuances of IT governance in business management practices. The course will be especially beneficial for:

• CIOs / IT Managers / IT Directors
• Risk Committee
• Process Owners
• Audit Committee Members
• COBIT 4.1 and earlier users
• IT Professionals in audit, risk, security, governance, and assurance sectors

While the modern world is gearing towards an environment of several emerging technologies, including consumerisation, cloud computing, social media, big data, mobility, information, and IT, it is easily the new currency. The technology ensures massive volumes of information chunks that are easily supported and managed. This raises the success rate of businesses but, at the same time, raises other challenging and complex management and governance concerns for security professionals, enterprise leaders, and governance specialists. New businesses demand that risk scenarios are better met with the power of information. COBIT 5.0 is the exact solution that modern businesses are asking for.

Goals of the COBIT Framework

There are four primary goals of the COBIT framework:

1. To help organizations achieve their objectives for the governance and management of enterprise IT.
2. To provide a comprehensive set of best practices for enterprise IT governance and management.
3. To promote alignment between enterprise IT and the business goals of the organization.
4. To provide a common language for enterprise IT governance and management.

Meeting Stakeholder Needs

Regarding meeting stakeholder needs, COBIT has emerged as a leading framework. COBIT provides a comprehensive and structured approach to integrating stakeholder requirements into an organization's governance and management processes. It also helps ensure that these requirements are met consistently and efficiently, making it a key tool for meeting stakeholder needs.

To meet stakeholder needs, COBIT provides several key features and benefits. First, COBIT integrates the requirements of different stakeholders into governance and management processes. This helps to ensure that these requirements are met consistently and efficiently. Second, COBIT provides a comprehensive and structured approach to integrating stakeholder requirements into an organization's governance and management processes. This helps to ensure that these requirements are met consistently and efficiently. Third, COBIT provides some tools and techniques that can be used to assess an organization's compliance with stakeholder requirements. These tools and techniques help ensure that an organization meets its stakeholders' needs consistently and efficiently.

Therefore, COBIT is a key tool for meeting stakeholder needs. By integrating the requirements of different stakeholders into governance and management processes, COBIT helps to ensure that these requirements are met consistently and efficiently. Additionally, by providing a number of tools and techniques for assessing an organization's compliance with stakeholder requirements, COBIT helps to ensure that these requirements are met consistently and efficiently. This way, COBIT can be seen as a key tool for meeting stakeholder needs.

Taking a Holistic Approach to Governance

As organizations strive to improve their overall performance, they increasingly adopt holistic approaches to governance. This means considering the organization's entire ecosystem when making decisions about how to best manage risks and optimize resources.

COBIT is a framework that can support a holistic approach to governance. It provides a comprehensive set of guidelines, tools and techniques to help organizations effectively govern their enterprise IT resources.

When adopting COBIT, it is important to remember that the framework is not a one-size-fits-all solution. Rather, it should be customized to meet the organization's specific needs. Additionally, COBIT should be integrated with other frameworks and standards, such as ITIL and ISO 27001, to ensure that the organization's governance program is comprehensive and effective.

By taking a holistic approach to governance and utilizing frameworks like COBIT, organizations can improve their overall performance and better manage their enterprise IT resources.

Conclusion

While the modern world is gearing towards an environment of several emerging technologies, including consumerization, cloud computing, social media, big data, and mobility, information and IT is easily the new currency. This raises the success rate of many organizations but, at the same time, raises other challenging and complex management and governance concerns for security professionals, enterprise leaders, and governance specialists. New businesses demand that risk scenarios are better met with the power of information. COBIT 5.0 is the exact solution that modern companies are asking for.

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Disclaimer: "TOGAF® is a registered trademark of The Open Group."