Exam CISA topic 1 question 1782 discussion

An IT roadmap is a strategic document that outlines the direction, priorities, and planned investments for IT within an organization. It helps in determining the strategy for IT portfolio management by aligning IT initiatives with business goals, identifying key projects, and ensuring resources are allocated efficiently.

The life cycle cost-benefit analysis (Option D) is the most useful for determining IT portfolio management strategy. This approach evaluates both financial and nonfinancial benefits (e.g., strategic alignment, operational efficiency) across a project’s entire lifespan, enabling organizations to prioritize investments based on strategic value, risk, and ROI.

The CISA Review Manual states that IT portfolio management aims to "determine if the enterprise is pursuing the best IT-related projects to achieve enterprise goals" by evaluating criteria such as strategic alignment, cost-benefit relationships, and resource optimization. The manual emphasizes that the value of IT projects is determined by analyzing the "relationship between what the enterprise will pay (costs) and what it will receive (benefits)". Life cycle cost-benefit analysis directly supports this by assessing both financial and nonfinancial benefits (e.g., operational efficiency, strategic alignment) over the entire project lifespan. Portfolio management requires prioritizing investments based on "strategic value, return on investment (ROI), and risk"1. Life cycle cost-benefit analysis provides a structured framework to compare projects and allocate resources to initiatives with the highest strategic impact.