Section: Volume B

A balanced scorecard (BSC) is a tool that helps measure and communicate the performance of an organization or a function in relation to its strategy and objectives. A BSC typically includes four perspectives: financial, customer, internal process, and learning and growth. A BSC can help a CIO to make improvements to the enterprise's IT governance by defining the IT vision, mission, goals, and metrics that align with the business needs and expectations. A BSC can also help demonstrate the expected benefits from proposed changes by showing how they will affect the IT performance indicators and outcomes in each perspective. A BSC can provide a clear and comprehensive picture of the current and desired state of IT governance, as well as the gaps and opportunities for improvement.

The primary role of the governance function in enabling an enterprise to achieve its business objectives is to provide a means to effectively manage stakeholders. Stakeholders are the individuals or groups that have an interest or stake in the enterprise's activities, outcomes, and performance. They include shareholders, customers, employees, suppliers, regulators, and society at large. Effective stakeholder management involves identifying, engaging, communicating, and satisfying the needs and expectations of the stakeholders in a transparent and ethical manner. By providing a means to effectively manage stakeholders, the governance function can help the enterprise to align its vision, mission, strategy, and values with the stakeholder interests, foster trust and collaboration among the stakeholder groups, balance the economic and social goals and the individual and communal goals of the enterprise, and enhance the reputation and legitimacy of the enterprise in the market and society.
The other options are not as primary as providing a means to effectively manage stakeholders for the governance function. Determining risk thresholds that the enterprise can sustain is an important aspect of the governance function, but it is not the primary role. Risk thresholds are the levels of risk exposure that the enterprise is willing to accept or tolerate in pursuit of its business objectives. They are derived from the enterprise's risk appetite and risk tolerance statements, which reflect the enterprise's culture, values, and strategy. The governance function can help to define, communicate, and monitor the risk thresholds that the enterprise can sustain, but this is not its primary role. Preparing business continuity and resiliency plans is a vital responsibility of the management function, not the governance function. Business continuity and resiliency plans are the documents that outline the processes and procedures for ensuring the continuity of critical business functions and operations in the event of a disruption or crisis. They also describe how the enterprise can recover from the disruption or crisis and resume normal operations as soon as possible. The governance function can oversee and approve the business continuity and resiliency plans prepared by the management function, but this is not its primary role. Monitoring strategic plans to reach the desired target state is a key activity of both the governance function and the management function, but it is not their primary role. Strategic plans are the documents that define the long-term goals and objectives of the enterprise and how they will be achieved. They also specify the resources, actions, measures, and timelines for implementing the strategy. The governance function can set the direction and scope of the strategic plans, while the management function can execute and report on them. Both functions can monitor the progress and performance of the strategic plans to reach the desired target state, but this is not their primary role. Reference:= The five functions of governance - Project Manager, What is a Governance Structure? - ESG | The Report, Develop an effective governance structure | Australian Public Service ...