Problem/Issue Statement:
The main issue for this company deals with their struggle to decided whether to continue using their legacy system, developed by Arthur Andersen, or to create a completely new IT infrastructure. This situation stemmed from the splitting and rebranding of Andersen Consulting from it's parent company Arthur Andersen in 2001. Since then Andersen Consulting has become known as Accenture. Accenture decided that after the split they were going to do a complete IT overhaul. They decided to go with one platform that housed streamlined applications. They also found new vendors/suppliers and were able to reduce their IT expense around the globe. This feat is very hard for many organization to undergo but Accenture did it very successfully for a company their size. Accenture wanted a simplified process that still allowed them to remain on the cutting edge of IT.
Currently, Accenture is considering another IT upgrade. They are looking at two options: the first is keeping their newly overhauled system and the second is the implementation of a governance system called Control Objectives for Information and Related Technologies (COBIT) to update their business standards and reporting. COBIT 5 is being highly considered due to massive amount of regulations and compliance standards Accenture has to comply with across the globe. If they switch to COBIT 5 it will help Accenture to "maintain high quality information to support business decisions, achieve strategic goals and realize business benefits through the effective and innovative use of IT, achieve operational excellence through reliable, efficient application of technology, maintaing IT-related risk at an acceptable level, optimize the cost of IT services and technology and support compliance with relevant laws, regulations, contractual agreements and policies." (Credit: http://www.isaca.org/COBIT/Pages/default.aspx?cid=1003566&Appeal=PR)
The current symptoms of the problem are a lack of sophisticated ability to measure the successfulness of IT projects, an inability to address the many regulations and compliance policy standards that must be adhered to by law.
If Accenture decided to implement COBIT 5 the scope of rebuilding/re-crafting include the re-training the staff to get their accreditation on the system, the implementation of new staff or redistribution of staff to ensure that COBIT 5 is being used correctly, and expenses related to training and tech support. Implementing this new system will affect Accenture's branches all over the world so the rollout would be massive.
List of Plausible Alternatives:
There are two alternatives for Accenture. To keep their current system or to adopt a new IT governance system - COBIT 5.
In order to make a comparison we need to look at the pros and cons of both options. Firstly, in keeping their current IT system it wouldn't cost them any additional funds, all the employees are familiar with the works on the system and one of the biggest pluses is that the system has been working since its inception in 2001. On the opposing side there are questions as to whether or not the system is all encompassing or not. Their system is not as sophisticated as COBIT therefore one could wonder how accurately it measures and evaluates risk.
If they were to adopt COBIT 5 they would not only have one of the most common used systems but it operates on a best practices used method. On the other end COBIT would cost Accenture a lot of money in re-training and certifying their employees on the new system. They may also suffer from their employees resistance to the learning the new program as well as the fact that COBIT might not be as specific and effective for their clients as their current system is.
Evaluating the Alternatives:
When looking at these two options the two biggest issues seem to be system ability and cost. Accenture needs to figure out which option is best so they can keep moving forward and expanding as a company while keeping their costs as limited as possible. The bottom line for Accenture is evaluating if COBIT help cover gaps in their current system and make their IT governance system more cutting edge and accurate or is it not worth spending the money on a new system that might not be as specific and tailored as the one they currently have.
Recommendation:
I believe that the best option for Accenture is to continue using their current IT system. Replacing it with COBIT would not only incur high costs in training, materials and consultants, but it could potentially create employee resistance, which could lead to lower productivity levels not just during the transition period but permanently. Accenture's current IT governance system has been working without any hiccups or glitches since 2001 and they have not had any customer related issues during that time period. Why would they want to spend additional funds (approximately $312 Million) when they do not have to? COBIT may be cutting edge and more widely accepted but it could potentially not fill as many gaps as they hope and they would be out of pocket a large sum of money for making the switch. I believe that Accenture should stay on it's current path and if they want to make a move I think the idea of applying for accreditation for their system and then potentially selling it to other companies to use might be an option to explore down the road.
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