Section 6.1.  Overview

6.1. Overview Although we tried diligently, we could not come up with a quote that spoke directly to the second COBIT domain of Acquisition and Implementation. However, we were able to find a quote by James F. Bell, who once said, "To face tomorrow with the thought of using the methods of yesterday is to envision life at a stand-still. To keep ahead, each one of us, no matter what our task, must search for new and better methodsfor even that which we now do well must be done better tomorrow." Thinking about this quote, we felt it was not only clear and relevant but also powerful enough to stand on its own. At the risk of diminishing the quote, we will venture to relate it in the context of this chapter. Let's assume that an organization, yours or anyone else's, has followed the COBIT guidelines and has implemented an IT environment that complies with said guidelines. Given the changes and advances in technologies, and the ever-changing requirement of the particular business, it would be fool hearted, if not negligent, to assume that the implemented methods, practices, and infrastructure could persist without evolving as requirements and needs change. The intent of the second COBIT domain is to set up guidelines for processes, practices, and policies to ensure that a company's IT organization continues to meet the needs of the company, by evolving with those needs. In this chapter, we will look at the numerous control objectives in the Acquisition and Implementation domain, and based on our experience, offer suggestions on how a small to medium-sized company might be able to reduce them to a manageable process.