Implement Whole-of-Government Information Security Governance

Fragmented governance increases risk and weakens response coordination.
Agencies lack unified oversight across federal, state/provincial, and municipal levels.
Paper governance plans often fail during real-world incidents.
Cyber threats escalate rapidly due to visibility gaps and stretched resources.

Our Advice

Critical Insight

Cyber resilience is a collective effort. Shared accountability is critical.
Disconnected efforts increase vulnerability across interdependent public systems.
A unified governance model closes visibility gaps and builds public trust.

Impact and Result

Defined shared responsibilities across jurisdictions and security teams.
Established multi-agency governance structures and oversight committees.
Enabled shared dashboards and common KPIs to track progress and respond to threats.

Implement Whole-of-Government Information Security Governance Research & Tools

1. Implement Whole-of-Government Information Security Governance Deck – A step-by-step guide to help you establish or refine the governance model for your government agency security program.

This storyboard will take you through the steps to develop a security governance and management model and implement essential governance processes. This project will involve evaluating your governance and management needs, aligning with agency security strategy and goals, and building a model based on these inputs.

2. Design Your Governance Model – A security governance and management model to track whole-of-government accountabilities, responsibilities, and stakeholder interactions, as well as implementation of key governance processes.

This tool will help you determine governance and management accountabilities and responsibilities and use them to build a visual governance and management model.

3. Organizational Structure Template – Use this tool to address structural issues that may affect your new governance and management model.

This template will help you implement or revise your agency structure.

4. Information Security Steering Committee Charter & RACI – Use these templates to formalize the role of your steering committee and the oversight it will provide.

These templates will help you determine the role a steering committee will play in your governance and management model.

5. Security Policy Lifecycle Template – A template to help you model your policy lifecycle.

Once this governing document is customized, ensure the appropriate security policies are developed as well.

6. Security Policy Exception Approval Process Templates – Templates to establish an approval process for policy exceptions and bolster policy governance and risk management.

These templates will serve as the foundation of your security policy exception approval processes.

7. Government Security Program Design Framework – An executive-level presentation that details each strategic component of a comprehensive security program – governance, prevention, detection & response, and data privacy.

This program deck will provide a detailed overview of your government agency cybersecurity program.

Rethinking how governments provide cybersecurity services at all levels, moving toward a "whole-of-government" integrated model.

About Info-Tech

Info-Tech Research Group is the world’s fastest-growing information technology research and advisory company, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals.

We produce unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. We partner closely with IT teams to provide everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.

What Is a Blueprint?

A blueprint is designed to be a roadmap, containing a methodology and the tools and templates you need to solve your IT problems.

Each blueprint can be accompanied by a Guided Implementation that provides you access to our world-class analysts to help you get through the project.

Need Extra Help?
Speak With An Analyst

Get the help you need in this 4-phase advisory process. You'll receive 7 touchpoints with our researchers, all included in your membership.

Guided Implementation 1: Establish shared governance foundations

Call 1: Define scope, governance structures, and priorities.
Call 2: Clarify roles, responsibilities, and current state.

Guided Implementation 2: Align policy, risk, and strategic direction

Call 1: Align goals and build governance model.
Call 2: Visualize and finalize governance structure.

Guided Implementation 3: Secure shared systems and infrastructure

Call 1: Develop KPIs for shared systems and risks.

Guided Implementation 4: Implement essential governance processes

Call 1: Draft charter and align risk appetite and policy lifecycle.
Call 2: Finalize exceptions process and next steps.

Author

Vidhi Trivedi

Contributors

Christine Coz, Executive Counselor, Info-Tech Research Group
Bob Wilson, Cybersecurity Advisor, Info-Tech Research Group
Fritz Jean-Louis, Principal Cybersecurity Advisor, Info-Tech Research Group
Harshit Chandel, Head of Security Governance, Risk and Compliance
Darcelle Hall, Privacy Manager, OCINet
Jonathan Green, IT Manager, Guelph Police Services

Search Code: 106382
Last Revised: November 3, 2025

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