WGU C954
Information Technology Management OA
Original Practice Questions & Answers
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 1 | Original study material
, Section 1: IT Governance & Strategic
Alignment
Covers IT governance frameworks, aligning IT with business strategy, IT steering committees, and value
delivery.
Q1. What is the primary goal of IT governance?
A. Minimizing hardware costs
B. Ensuring IT investments align with and support business objectives
C. Replacing the CIO with a committee
D. Eliminating the need for a security policy
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: IT governance exists to make sure technology decisions and spending support broader
organizational goals, manage risk, and deliver measurable value.
Q2. Which framework is most commonly associated with IT governance and control
objectives?
A. COBIT
B. TCP/IP
C. UML
D. Six Sigma
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: COBIT (Control Objectives for Information and Related Technologies) is a widely used framework for
IT governance and management.
Q3. An IT steering committee is best described as:
A. A group of external auditors reviewing tax filings
B. A cross-functional group that prioritizes and approves IT projects and investments
C. A vendor negotiation team only
D. The help desk escalation team
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Steering committees typically include business and IT leaders who prioritize projects, approve
budgets, and ensure alignment with strategy.
Q4. Strategic alignment between business and IT means:
A. IT operates independently of business goals
B. Business goals are set only after IT systems are built
C. IT strategy is designed to directly support and enable business strategy
D. Business units purchase their own unmanaged software
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: Strategic alignment ensures technology decisions are driven by, and support, the organization's
overall business objectives.
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 2 | Original study material
,Q5. Which of the following is a common barrier to effective IT governance?
A. Clear reporting lines
B. Lack of communication between business and IT leaders
C. Documented policies
D. Defined KPIs
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Poor communication between business and IT stakeholders is one of the most cited reasons
governance initiatives fail.
Q6. A balanced scorecard used in IT strategy typically measures performance across which
dimensions?
A. Only financial metrics
B. Financial, customer, internal process, and learning/growth perspectives
C. Only technical uptime metrics
D. Employee satisfaction alone
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: The balanced scorecard framework evaluates performance across four perspectives, not just
finances, to give a holistic strategic view.
Q7. What is 'IT value delivery'?
A. Shipping hardware on time
B. Ensuring IT investments produce the benefits promised at acceptable cost
C. A synonym for outsourcing
D. Delivering source code to open-source repositories
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Value delivery is a core governance focus area: confirming that IT spending actually produces the
promised business benefits.
Q8. Which role is typically accountable for enterprise-wide IT strategy?
A. Help desk technician
B. Chief Information Officer (CIO)
C. Junior developer
D. Network cable installer
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: The CIO is generally responsible for aligning technology strategy with overall business goals at the
executive level.
Q9. Outsourcing an IT function primarily trades off:
A. Control for potential cost savings and specialized expertise
B. Nothing; outsourcing has no tradeoffs
C. Security for more security
D. Time for less time only
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: Outsourcing can lower costs and add expertise but generally reduces direct control over the process
or resource.
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 3 | Original study material
, Q10. A SWOT analysis in an IT strategic plan is used to:
A. Configure network switches
B. Identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats relevant to IT strategy
C. Write SQL queries
D. Encrypt data at rest
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: SWOT analysis is a planning tool for evaluating internal and external factors that affect strategic
decisions, including IT strategy.
Q11. Which best describes 'IT risk management' within governance?
A. Ignoring risks until they occur
B. Identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks that could affect IT objectives
C. Only insurance purchasing
D. A one-time annual event with no follow-up
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Risk management is an ongoing governance process of identifying and addressing risks to protect IT
and business objectives.
Q12. Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for an IT system includes:
A. Only the purchase price
B. Purchase price plus ongoing costs like maintenance, training, and support
C. Only labor costs
D. Only depreciation
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: TCO captures the full lifecycle cost of a system, not just its initial acquisition price.
Q13. Which statement about IT policies is accurate?
A. Policies are optional suggestions
B. Policies establish formal rules and expectations for IT use and management
C. Policies replace the need for training
D. Policies only apply to external vendors
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: IT policies formally define acceptable use, security requirements, and operational expectations
across the organization.
Q14. A CIO deciding between building software in-house versus buying a COTS (commercial
off-the-shelf) package is primarily performing:
A. Network topology design
B. A build-vs-buy strategic analysis
C. Database normalization
D. Firewall configuration
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Build-vs-buy decisions weigh customization, cost, time-to-deploy, and maintenance tradeoffs
between custom development and packaged software.
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 4 | Original study material
Information Technology Management OA
Original Practice Questions & Answers
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 1 | Original study material
, Section 1: IT Governance & Strategic
Alignment
Covers IT governance frameworks, aligning IT with business strategy, IT steering committees, and value
delivery.
Q1. What is the primary goal of IT governance?
A. Minimizing hardware costs
B. Ensuring IT investments align with and support business objectives
C. Replacing the CIO with a committee
D. Eliminating the need for a security policy
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: IT governance exists to make sure technology decisions and spending support broader
organizational goals, manage risk, and deliver measurable value.
Q2. Which framework is most commonly associated with IT governance and control
objectives?
A. COBIT
B. TCP/IP
C. UML
D. Six Sigma
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: COBIT (Control Objectives for Information and Related Technologies) is a widely used framework for
IT governance and management.
Q3. An IT steering committee is best described as:
A. A group of external auditors reviewing tax filings
B. A cross-functional group that prioritizes and approves IT projects and investments
C. A vendor negotiation team only
D. The help desk escalation team
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Steering committees typically include business and IT leaders who prioritize projects, approve
budgets, and ensure alignment with strategy.
Q4. Strategic alignment between business and IT means:
A. IT operates independently of business goals
B. Business goals are set only after IT systems are built
C. IT strategy is designed to directly support and enable business strategy
D. Business units purchase their own unmanaged software
Correct Answer: C
Explanation: Strategic alignment ensures technology decisions are driven by, and support, the organization's
overall business objectives.
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 2 | Original study material
,Q5. Which of the following is a common barrier to effective IT governance?
A. Clear reporting lines
B. Lack of communication between business and IT leaders
C. Documented policies
D. Defined KPIs
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Poor communication between business and IT stakeholders is one of the most cited reasons
governance initiatives fail.
Q6. A balanced scorecard used in IT strategy typically measures performance across which
dimensions?
A. Only financial metrics
B. Financial, customer, internal process, and learning/growth perspectives
C. Only technical uptime metrics
D. Employee satisfaction alone
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: The balanced scorecard framework evaluates performance across four perspectives, not just
finances, to give a holistic strategic view.
Q7. What is 'IT value delivery'?
A. Shipping hardware on time
B. Ensuring IT investments produce the benefits promised at acceptable cost
C. A synonym for outsourcing
D. Delivering source code to open-source repositories
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Value delivery is a core governance focus area: confirming that IT spending actually produces the
promised business benefits.
Q8. Which role is typically accountable for enterprise-wide IT strategy?
A. Help desk technician
B. Chief Information Officer (CIO)
C. Junior developer
D. Network cable installer
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: The CIO is generally responsible for aligning technology strategy with overall business goals at the
executive level.
Q9. Outsourcing an IT function primarily trades off:
A. Control for potential cost savings and specialized expertise
B. Nothing; outsourcing has no tradeoffs
C. Security for more security
D. Time for less time only
Correct Answer: A
Explanation: Outsourcing can lower costs and add expertise but generally reduces direct control over the process
or resource.
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 3 | Original study material
, Q10. A SWOT analysis in an IT strategic plan is used to:
A. Configure network switches
B. Identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats relevant to IT strategy
C. Write SQL queries
D. Encrypt data at rest
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: SWOT analysis is a planning tool for evaluating internal and external factors that affect strategic
decisions, including IT strategy.
Q11. Which best describes 'IT risk management' within governance?
A. Ignoring risks until they occur
B. Identifying, assessing, and mitigating risks that could affect IT objectives
C. Only insurance purchasing
D. A one-time annual event with no follow-up
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Risk management is an ongoing governance process of identifying and addressing risks to protect IT
and business objectives.
Q12. Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for an IT system includes:
A. Only the purchase price
B. Purchase price plus ongoing costs like maintenance, training, and support
C. Only labor costs
D. Only depreciation
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: TCO captures the full lifecycle cost of a system, not just its initial acquisition price.
Q13. Which statement about IT policies is accurate?
A. Policies are optional suggestions
B. Policies establish formal rules and expectations for IT use and management
C. Policies replace the need for training
D. Policies only apply to external vendors
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: IT policies formally define acceptable use, security requirements, and operational expectations
across the organization.
Q14. A CIO deciding between building software in-house versus buying a COTS (commercial
off-the-shelf) package is primarily performing:
A. Network topology design
B. A build-vs-buy strategic analysis
C. Database normalization
D. Firewall configuration
Correct Answer: B
Explanation: Build-vs-buy decisions weigh customization, cost, time-to-deploy, and maintenance tradeoffs
between custom development and packaged software.
C954 IT Management Practice Q&A | Page 4 | Original study material
