The Role of IT Governance in Enhancing the Performance of Smart Universities

Abstract

IT is the backbone for all organizations, and it has challenged the traditional way of doing business. Universities now are competing globally, and they are virtually crossing their borders. University governance in general plays a very important role in the running of any university. It directs the university towards achievement of its objectives, and it is affected by the surrounding environment. IT Governance is a subset of the university corporate governance and it is it implemented to govern and manage IT effectively. People, information, technology service, infrastructure, applications, culture ethics, processes, principles, policies, frameworks and organizational structure are the tools for IT Governance. The environmental challenges are threatening the existence of many universities and requiring a prompt attention. IT Governance may be the key for the universities to reposition itself and overcome the problems that threaten their existence. AI is a very important strategic tool that can help smart universities in fulfilling their strategic goals. AI presents challenges and opportunities to the IT Governance function. Literature shows that universities are not fully utilizing their IT capabilities and this a clear evidence that they are having serious issues with their IT Governance practices. This exploratory research aims to investigate the role that IT Governance in enhancing universities performance in areas such as: research, teaching and learning, competitiveness, and resources utilization. We develop a conceptual framework that identifies the environmental factors that impact the university IT Governance structure; and strategical and political enablers and benefits of implementing IT Governance system in universities.