CGEIT Exam Dumps - Isaca Certification Questions and Answers

Earned value management (EVM) is a project management technique that integrates scope, schedule, and cost to measure project performance and progress. The CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition highlights that EVM’s greatest advantage is its ability to provide a clear, quantifiable measure of project progress that stakeholders can easily understand.

Extract from CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition (Domain 5: Benefits Realization):"Earned value management provides a standardized, easy-to-understand measure of project progress by comparing planned value, earned value, and actual costs. This enables stakeholders to assess whether a project, such as a blockchain implementation, is on track to deliver expected benefits." (Approximate reference: Domain 5, Section on Project Performance Measurement)

Providing a measure of project progress that is easy to understand (option B) is the greatest advantage, as EVM offers clear metrics (e.g., cost variance, schedule variance) that help executives and stakeholders gauge the success of blockchain projects for IT contracts management.

Why not the other options?

A. It automates project progress reporting to business executives: EVM is not an automated reporting tool; it requires data collection and analysis.

C. It eliminates potential risks related to project earnings: EVM identifies variances but does not eliminate risks.

D. It enables accurate forecasts of the number of blocks to be completed: EVM measures progress in terms of value, not specific technical outputs like blockchain blocks.

Implementing appropriate controlsis the most critical leadership responsibility when deploying mobile technologies. Controls cover access, encryption, monitoring, and loss prevention—addressing core risks such as data leakage and unauthorized access.

Acceptable use and policy alignment are necessary, butcontrols ensure security and compliance in practice.

Comprehensive and Detailed Explanation:

The CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition, in its Governance of Enterprise IT domain, emphasizes the role of the IT steering committee in aligning IT initiatives with business needs. To gain enterprise support for a significant change in customer response, the CIO should first engage the IT steering committee to secure strategic alignment, resources, and stakeholder buy-in. This ensures the change is prioritized and supported across the enterprise. The manual likely references COBIT 2019’s EDM01-Ensured Governance Framework Setting and Maintenance, which highlights the steering committee’s role in strategic decisions.

Option A: Empower IT staff is premature without strategic approval.

Option B: New policies require prior stakeholder agreement.

Option C: Training providers are a tactical step, not the first action.

Double Verification: The answer aligns with COBIT’s EDM01 and the CGEIT domain’s focus on governance structures. The steering committee is the primary ISACA mechanism for strategic change.

ISACA CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition, Domain 1: Governance of Enterprise IT (focus on steering committee roles).

COBIT 2019, EDM01-Ensured Governance Framework Setting and Maintenance.

ISACA Glossary (for definitions of IT steering committee), available at https://www.isaca.org/resources/glossary.

 A data steward is a functional role in data management and governance, with responsibility for ensuring that data policies and standards turn into practice within the steward’s domain. Data stewards assist the enterprise in leveraging domain data assets to full capacity1. One of the primary responsibilities of a data steward is to establish data quality requirements and metrics, which define the criteria and measures for assessing the fitness of data for its intended use. Data quality requirements and metrics are based on the business needs and expectations of the data consumers, and they cover various dimensions of data quality, such as accuracy, completeness, consistency, timeliness, validity, and reliability23. Data stewards also monitor and report on the data quality performance, identify and resolve data quality issues, and implement continuous improvement initiatives to enhance the data quality4.

The other options are not the primary responsibility of a data steward, especially at an enterprise with mature data management programs. Implementing processes for data collection and use is a responsibility of a data engineer or a data analyst, who design and execute the technical aspects of data acquisition, transformation, storage, and analysis5. Ensuring compliance with data privacy laws and regulations is a responsibility of a data protection officer or a data privacy officer, who oversee the legal and ethical aspects of data processing, security, and consent. Developing data-related policies and procedures is a responsibility of a data governance committee or a data governance officer, who set the strategic direction and objectives for data management and governance across the enterprise.

Managing resources as part of the portfolio strategy would best help to ensure the appropriate allocation of IT resources to support an enterprise’s mission. This is because the portfolio strategy aligns the IT investments with the business goals and priorities, and ensures that the IT resources are allocated to the most valuable and strategic initiatives. By managing resources at the portfolio level, the enterprise can optimize the use of its IT resources across multiple programs and projects, and avoid resource conflicts, shortages, or wastages. A resource strategy as part of program management, prioritizing program requirements based on existing resources,and resource planning for each IT project are all useful practices, but they are not sufficient to ensure the appropriate allocation of IT resources at the enterprise level. They may only focus on the resource needs and constraints of specific programs or projects, and may not consider the overall alignment and optimization of IT resources with the enterprise’s mission. References := IT Portfolio Management: A Practitioner’s Guide - ISACA, Resource Allocation Done Right: Best Practices for 2022 & Beyond, A Complete Guide to Resource Allocation in Projects - Float

Understanding the root causeis the essential first step. The CEO shouldwork with regional leadershipto gather context before applying solutions or imposing changes. This collaborative approach ensures that corrective actions are informed, targeted, and not based on assumptions.

Other steps like reviewing business cases or revising benefits calculations may follow, butdiagnosis must come before treatment.

When faced with new regulations, the first step is to assess the risk they pose to the enterprise, including the likelihood and impact of noncompliance, even if enforcement is historically weak. The CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition underscores that risk evaluation is the initial step in addressing emerging risks to prioritize actions and allocate resources effectively.

Extract from CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition (Domain 3: Risk Optimization):"Evaluating the impact of emerging risks, such as new regulations, is the first step in the risk management process. This involves assessing the potential consequences of noncompliance, including financial, operational, and reputational impacts, as well as the likelihood of enforcement." (Approximate reference: Domain 3, Section on Risk Assessment)

Evaluating the impact of the emerging risk (option C) allows the enterprise to understand the potential penalties, operational disruptions, and reputational damage, as well as the likelihood of enforcement given the agency’s history. This assessment informs whether mitigation plans, architecture updates, or other actions are necessary.

Why not the other options?

A. Develop mitigation plans for noncompliance: Mitigation plans are developed after assessing the risk’s impact and likelihood, as the assessment determines the scope and urgency of mitigation.

B. Update the enterprise architecture (EA): Updating the EA may be a subsequent action if the risk assessment identifies specific architectural gaps, but it is not the first step.

D. Perform benchmarking activities: Benchmarking is not directly relevant to assessing regulatory risk and is a secondary activity at best.

Operational processes are the routine and repetitive tasks that support the day-to-day operations of an enterprise, such as data entry, payroll, customer service, etc. These processes are usually well-defined, standardized, and measurable, which makes them easier to outsource to a third-party provider who can perform them more efficiently and cost-effectively. Outsourcing operational processes can also free up internal resources and capabilities for more strategic and innovative activities that add value to the enterprise. Therefore, operational processes that are well-defined are a good candidate for outsourcing.

 Risk management is a crucial aspect of any cloud-based CRM system, as it involves identifying, assessing, and mitigating the potential risks that could affect the availability, performance, security, and compliance of the system. Before signing a contract for a new cloud-based CRM system, the CIO should ensure that the risk management responsibilities are clearly defined and allocated between the service provider and the customer, and that both parties accept and agree to them. This will help to avoid any confusion, conflict, or liability issues in case of any incidents or breaches that may occur in the future. Some of the risk management responsibilities that should be agreed upon and accepted are:

The scope and frequency of risk assessments and audits

The roles and responsibilities for risk monitoring and reporting

The escalation and resolution procedures for risk issues

The contingency and recovery plans for risk events

The security and privacy policies and standards for data protection

The service level agreements (SLAs) and key performance indicators (KPIs) for service quality and availability

References := Cloud-Based CRM: Best Practices for Implementation, The Best Contract Management Software, CRM Migration Best Practices: An Introductory Guide for HubSpot Agency Partners

A maturity assessment evaluates the current state of IT governance processes to identify gaps in capability that need improvement. The CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition states that the primary purpose of a maturity assessment is to identify capability gaps to guide governance framework enhancements.

Extract from CGEIT Review Manual 8th Edition (Domain 1: Governance of Enterprise IT):"The primary purpose of a maturity assessment is to identify gaps in IT governance capabilities, such as processes, skills, or controls, relative to desired maturity levels. This enables the enterprise to prioritize improvements and enhance governance effectiveness." (Approximate reference: Domain 1, Section on Maturity Assessment)

Identifying gaps in capability (option D) focuses on assessing the maturity of governance processes and determining where enhancements are needed to achieve desired outcomes.

Why not the other options?

A. Benchmark IT performance: Benchmarking compares performance, not capability maturity.

B. Identify gaps in performance: Performance gaps are a secondary outcome, while capability gaps are the primary focus.

C. Support impact analysis: Impact analysis is not the primary purpose of maturity assessments.

 Engaging stakeholders to identify and validate business requirements is the best way to improve the success rate of future IT initiatives. Stakeholders are the individuals or groups who have an interest or influence in the IT initiatives, such as business users, customers, managers, sponsors, etc. Engaging stakeholders can help:

Understand the needs, expectations, and priorities of the stakeholders, and ensure that they are aligned with the business objectives and strategy

Define and document the business requirements that specify what the IT initiatives should deliver in terms of functionality, quality, performance, and value

Validate and verify that the business requirements are clear, complete, consistent, feasible, and testable

Communicate and manage any changes or issues that may affect the business requirements or the IT initiatives

Engaging stakeholders to identify and validate business requirements can help avoid missing key functionality in the corporate applications, and ensure that they meet the stakeholder’s needs and expectations. This can also reduce the reliance on spreadsheets and databases as alternative software solutions, and increase the user satisfaction and adoption of the enterprise applications.

The other options are not the best way to improve the success rate of future IT initiatives. Engaging the business user community in acceptance testing of acquired applications is a good practice, but it is not sufficient to ensure that the applications have the key functionality that meets the business requirements. Acceptance testing is done at the end of the IT initiative lifecycle, after the applications have been developed or acquired. If the business requirements were not properly identified and validated at the beginning of the IT initiative lifecycle, acceptance testing may reveal significant gaps or defects that may be costly or difficult to fix. Establishing a process for risk and value management is a useful technique, but it does not directly address the issue of missing key functionality in the corporate applications. Risk and value management involves identifying, assessing, prioritizing, and treating the risks and benefits associated with IT initiatives. However, without clear and valid business requirements, risk and value management may not be effective or accurate. Prohibiting the use of non-approved alternate software solutions is a restrictive measure, but it does not solve the problem of missing key functionality in the corporate applications. Prohibiting the use of spreadsheets and databases may force the users to use the enterprise applications, but it may also create dissatisfaction, frustration, or resistance among them. Moreover, it may prevent them from performing their tasks efficiently or effectively if the enterprise applications do not meet their needs.

For more information on engaging stakeholders to identify and validate business requirements, you can refer to these web sources:

Stakeholder Engagement - ISACA

Business Requirements - ISACA

Requirements Validation - ISACA

Business risk has the greatest impact on the design of an IT governance framework, as it determines the level of control, oversight, and alignment that is required for the IT function to support the business objectives and mitigate the potential threats and vulnerabilities. Business risk is influenced by various factors, such as the industry, market, customer, competitor, regulatory, and environmental context of the enterprise. Therefore, the IT governance framework should be tailored to suit the specific risk profile and appetite of the enterprise, and to address the key risk areas and scenarios that could affect the business performance and value. According to COBIT 2019, one of the design factors that can influence the design of an enterprise’s governance system is the risk profile1. This design factor reflects the degree of risk exposure and tolerance that the enterprise has in relation to its use of information and technology1. The risk profile can be assessed by considering various aspects, such as the likelihood and impact of risk events, the sources and types of risks, the risk appetite and thresholds, the risk management capabilities and maturity, and the risk culture and awareness1. Based on the risk profile, the enterprise can decide on the appropriate governance objectives, components, enablers, practices, and activities that are needed to manage and mitigate the risks effectively1. The other options, IT performance metrics, resource allocation, and business leadership, are also important for the design of an IT governance framework, but they are not as impactful as business risk. IT performance metrics are used to measure and monitor the effectiveness and efficiency of the IT function in delivering value to the business2. Resource allocation is a process that optimizes the use of IT resources across multiple programs and projects in alignment with the business goalsand priorities3. Business leadership is a role that provides strategic direction, guidance, and support for the IT function in achieving its objectives4. However, these factors are more related to the implementation and execution of the IT governance framework, rather than its design. They are also influenced by the business risk factor, as they depend on the level of risk exposure and tolerance that the enterprise has. References := IT Governance: Definitions, Frameworks and Planning - ProjectManager, Resource Allocation Done Right: Best Practices for 2022 & Beyond, The Role of Business Leadership in Effective IT Governance, COBIT Design Factors: A Dynamic Approach to Tailoring Governance in … - ISACA

This is because alignment with business strategy means that IT projects are selected and executed in a way that supports the organization’s vision, mission, goals, and objectives. Alignment with business strategy can help to ensure that IT projects deliver value to the organization and its stakeholders, as well as to optimize the use of IT resources and capabilities. Alignment with business strategy can also help to avoid or minimize conflicts, gaps, or redundancies among IT projects, as well as to facilitate communication and collaboration among IT and business units.

Some of the sources that support this answer are:

1: This source provides a comprehensive guide on how to optimize IT project intake, approval, and prioritization. It suggests that one of the steps to redesign the governance framework is to conduct a portfolio review to assess the benefits realization of IT investments and ensure that they are aligned with the business strategy and deliver value.

2: This source discusses how to prioritize IT tasks and projects, and provides some expert tips and a downloadable template. It advises that one of the criteria for prioritizing IT projects is strategic alignment, which means that the project supports the organization’s strategic goals and objectives.

3: This source describes the process of how to use the Technology Governance Framework to determine if a proposal requires approval from a formal IT governance body, then how a submitted proposal would proceed on its path to acceptance. It states that one of the factors that influence the prioritization of proposals is alignment with strategic direction, which means that the proposal supports the organization’s vision, mission, values, and goals.

To address concerns about staff saving sensitive corporate information on publicly available cloud file storage applications, the first step should be to require staff training on data classification policies. Educating employees about the types of data classified as sensitive and the associated handling requirements helps to raise awareness and change behavior. Training should emphasize the importance of protecting sensitive information and the proper use of approved storage solutions. While creating secure storage solutions, blocking access to certain applications, and revising policies are important measures, education and awareness are fundamental first steps to ensure compliance and mitigate risks.

Thebest strategic responseis todevelop and enforce IT asset life cycle policies in consultation with business units. This approach ensures that legacy systems are managed proactively and collaboratively, balancing risk management, regulatory compliance, and operational needs. Policies should define criteria for decommissioning, archival solutions, and acceptable retention practices.

Firewalls and isolation are tactical mitigations, not strategic solutions. Surcharges may discourage usage but do not resolve governance and retention challenges comprehensively.