SLID launches IT Governance Masterclass for Board Directors

Sri Lanka Survey Report on Board IT Governance – 2022, jointly carried out by the Sri Lanka Institute of Directors (SLID) and EY Sri Lanka, highlighted significant gaps in IT governance knowledge and expertise at board level. 
To address this gap and ensure board directors’ knowledge and expertise of IT governance is enhanced and aligned to the current technologically-driven operating environment, the SLID has developed a one-of-its-kind masterclass to support the learning and development of directors on this subject. 

IT Governance Masterclass for Board of Directors, designed by experts in the field of IT governance, will address the most concerning findings of the survey with a focus on eliminating the difficulties faced by the board of directors in making well-informed IT decisions and their inability to identify gaps in IT processes and systems.
The inaugural two-day masterclass is scheduled for May 24 and 25, 2023 and will utilise the latest teaching and learning tools and incorporate a collaborative and discussion-based approach to provide the best outcomes. Additionally, numerous real-life case studies will be discussed to gain practical insights.

SLID Chairman Faizal Salieh noted the objective of this masterclass is to enhance the IT competencies of the board, enabling them to make well-informed decisions regarding IT strategies, which are critical at the oversight level. Additionally, this masterclass will promote more extensive and productive discussions of IT issues and risks amongst the board of directors.
The masterclass, divided into four modules, will focus on: 

Digital transformation and link to business strategy – covering the evolution of digitisation in business, the impact of digital transformation and the ability of the board to evaluate the digital transformation strategies required for different industries using real-world examples.
IT security and risk management – covering IT-related risks such as security, data protection, privacy and intellectual property; tolerance level assessment for specific types of IT risks and understanding risk mitigating strategies and their adequacy for a specific business.

IT project management and vendor management – covering the significance of adopting structured project management tools and their benefits for IT projects, procurement-related risks and IT vendor and cost management for large projects.
IT operations and cost management – covering the understanding of the organisation’s IT structure and its impact on business efficiency, internal IT governance framework and assessing IT strategy and policies for decision-making at the board level.

When asked to share more insight on the development of the masterclass, SLID Council Member Dilshan Rodrigo indicated, ‘’The Sri Lanka Survey Report on Board IT Governance - 2022 commissioned by SLID and EY Sri Lanka, provided valuable insights on the specific knowledge gaps that exists in IT governance among Sri Lankan boards. We have identified a skilled pool of facilitators to support board capacity building efforts in this area. We believe this masterclass will be an invaluable tool for boards to navigate the future with confidence.”