The newly-designed COBIT 5 framework broadens perspective to proactive IT Governance

Dubai, UAE - June 25th 2012

ISACA UAE Chapter - a non-profit global association of more than 95,000 IT governance professionals globally partnered with Protiviti's Member Firm for the Middle East Region to hold a workshop in the UAE on the only business framework for the governance and management of enterprise IT - COBIT 5.
Protiviti is a global consulting firm and its member firm for the Middle East is involved in providing technology, business & risk consulting, internal audit and transaction services in the region. The firm was most appropriately chosen by ISACA UAE CHAPTER to partner for this workshop given its staff's extensive experience in handling the dynamics and needs of the IT industry in today's times and proven efficacy in dealing with the intense new COBIT 5 framework.

COBIT 5 provides globally accepted principles, practices, analytical tools and models to help business and IT leaders maximize trust in, and value from, their enterprise's information and technology assets.

The two day hands on workshop, using a classroom-based learning approach, eased delegates into the new framework which simplifies governance challenges with just five principles and seven enablers. The workshop witnessed participation from senior managers/professionals in the area of IT Governance, IT Operations/Management, IT Quality, IT Security and IT Audit from various industries and government sectors in the UAE.  Dubai's Shangri-La Hotel was the venue for the workshop, which took place on June 19 and 20.

Avinash Totade, President of ISACA UAE Chapter added, " It's clear that enterprises everywhere are aggressively seeking guidance on how to manage and ensure value from the growing mountain of information and increasingly complex technologies they are grappling with - This is where COBIT 5 comes to help  as it offers the much-needed common vocabulary and processes to enlist stakeholders from across the organization--not just IT--in considering the impact of key business and technology issues such as cloud computing, mobile devices, BYOD (bring your own device), privacy and threats. He further added that the ISACA UAE Chapter is determined to bring more workshops in the future which would benefit its members and the community

Sudarsan Jayaraman from the UAE practice of Protiviti's member firm conducted the interactive workshop which provided detailed analysis of the new framework and gave clarity on differences between COBIT 4.1 and 5. He mentioned that the new COBIT 5 frameworks maps the stakeholders needs to Enterprise Goals and all the way to the IT goals and IT enablers.  This is important because we have found out that IT and the business cannot function in their own silos. With a process dedicated to establishing an IT Governance framework and another to establishing a management system for the IT processes, COBIT  5 provides management with the tools they need to implement an IT governance within their organisations.  Mr. Jayaraman added further, "I thank the ISACA UAE chapter for taking a lead in organizing this workshop. Our firm will continue to support ISACA's endeavours in taking the breakthrough COBIT 5 framework to other GCC countries during the course of this year."

Initiated & led by ISACA UAE Chapter and ably supported by Protiviti's member firm, the COBIT 5 workshop not only provided the participants with an overview of the new framework but its adoption as well as usage and implementation in today's complex IT oriented business operations.

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About ISACA UAE CHAPTER
The ISACA UAE Chapter was formed on 25th June 1997 and is the 150th Chapter of growing International organization - ISACA USA. The UAE Chapter has become one of the most active and successful chapters and conducts monthly meetings,  seminars, workshops and conferences for promotion and propagation of Information Technology Governance, Information Systems (IS) Audit, IS Security and IS Control in UAE . The ISACA® UAE Chapter has been conducting classes for candidates appearing for ISACA®s prestigious Certifications namely Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA®) and Certified Information Security Manager (CISM®) examinations.

About Protiviti's Member Firm for the Middle East Region
Protiviti's Member Firm for the Middle East Region is a leading provider of internal audit, consulting, risk, technology and transaction services. It is a member firm of Protiviti, Inc. (www.protiviti.com), a global business consulting firm that helps companies solve problems in finance, operations, technology, litigation, governance, risk, compliance and internal controls. Through its network of more than 70 offices in over 20 countries, Protiviti has served more than 35 percent of FORTUNE® 1000 and Global 500 companies. The firm also works with smaller, growing companies, including those looking to go public, as well as with government agencies. The Middle East member firm has a strong presence in the GCC region with offices in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Dubai, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Protiviti is a wholly owned subsidiary of Robert Half International Inc. Founded in 1948, Robert Half International is a member of the S&P 500 index.     

© Press Release 2012