Governance

Purpose

The governance model ensures standards are relevant, effective, and aligned with UBC’s goals. It:

  • Provides a clear process for developing and approving standards.
  • Promotes consistent adoption of technology across the university.
  • Engages stakeholders in reviewing and shaping standards.
  • Encourages best practices in IT management.

Governance Structure

  • Architecture Review Board (ARB): Endorses standards and ensures strategic alignment.
  • Enterprise Architecture (EA): Maintains standards, facilitates reviews, and supports deviations.
  • Architecture Working Group (AWG): Develops and refines standards with stakeholder input.
  • Task Groups: Focused teams (e.g., Cloud, IAM, Collaboration) drafting domain-specific standards.
  • Stakeholders: Faculty, staff, and IT partners consulted throughout reviews.

Maturity Levels

Technologies are classified by maturity to guide adoption:

  • Matured – Proven, stable, widely used at UBC; recommended for broad adoption.
  • Emerging – Innovative, in pilot or limited use; may carry higher risk.
  • Deprecated – Phasing out; not recommended for new projects.
  • Demised – No longer supported or operational; must be retired immediately.

Guidance on Standards Use

When using UBC Technology Standards:

  1. Start with standards first
    Evaluate approved tools before considering alternatives.
  2. Engage early
    Contact EA if your project requires a different approach.
  3. Document decisions
    Record rationale and lessons learned for future reference.
  4. Stay current
    Standards are updated regularly; check for the latest guidance before planning or deploying technology.
  5. Consider maturity
    Prefer matured technologies for critical systems, emerging technologies for pilots or innovation projects, and avoid deprecated or demised technologies.