Australia leads standards push on governance

November 20, 2008: Standards Australia has been appointed secretariat and convenor of a new international working group to drive development and harmonisation of International Standards on corporate governance of IT.

A resolution to establish the working group was approved at the 23rd meeting of ISO/IEC Joint Technical Committee for Information Technology (JTC1) in Nara, Japan on 18 November, 2008.

Reporting directly to JTC1, the primary role of the new working group will be to develop Standards and related documents to assist business leaders with the corporate governance of their IT systems and networks.

Key tasks will include the standardisation and harmonisation of IT terminology and the ongoing maintenance of ISO/IEC 38500, which is based closely on the Australian Standard for Corporate Governance of Information and Communication Technology (AS 8015:2005).

“Opportunities to lead working groups at this level come up rarely. Standards Australia is honoured and excited to be invited to lead this working group which will play a vitally important role in guiding business leaders throughout the world in the effective governance of their IT activities,” said Mr John Tucker, CEO of Standards Australia.

“Australia’s appointment to head up this working group is testament to the expertise and knowledge of Standards Australia’s IT-030 Committee and we thank Standards New Zealand for initiating a work program on corporate governance of IT at the international level.

“It provides further opportunity for Australia to continue to influence the global IT community in decision-making and development of international IT Standards,” he said.

Corporate governance of IT is increasingly recognised by organisational leaders as a critical business activity affecting all businesses, organisations and governments.

“Positioning this new working group at JTC1 level, independent of the broad body of JTC1 subcommittees, reflects the importance of top level attention to directing and controlling the use of IT,” said Mark Toomey, Chair of IT-030.

“The IT-030 Committee has achieved tremendous advance. The inaugural Chair Dr Ed Lewis provided vital leadership and focus through the development of AS 8015, and together with Standards New Zealand, made a significant contribution to its subsequent adoption as ISO/IEC 38500.

“Standard Australia’s leadership role in this new working group will see Australia continue to provide global leadership in the challenge of ensuring that IT use is effective, efficient and acceptable,” he said.

Membership of the working group will be open to all countries who are currently members of JTC1.

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