Organizationally oriented, COBIT is focused on linking organizational goals to IT goals, providing metrics and maturity models to measure their achievement, and identifying the associated responsibilities of all process owners across the organization.

The process focus of COBIT is illustrated by a process model that subdivides IT into four domains and 34 processes. These processes are defined in such a manner that the objectives of each is clearly understood, metrics and communication mechanisms are identified, and the resources essential for process success ( i.e. applications, information, infrastructure and people) are determined.

The COBIT framework is process-oriented and controls-based. The four domains are designed to cover the full spectrum of governing the IT investment. In order to effectively achieve this goal, COBIT's 34 processes are structured within the four domains and are comprised of some 210 individual control objectives.

This structure can best be understood by first looking at the domains themselves:

PLAN AND ORGANIZE (PO)
This domain covers strategy and tactics, and focuses on the identification of how IT can best contribute to the achievement of organizational objectives. The strategic vision is the driving force of the organization, and it must be planned, communicated and managed in order to succeed.

ACQUIRE AND IMPLEMENT (AI)
In order to realize the IT strategy, IT solutions must be identified, developed or acquired, and subsequently implemented and integrated into the organizational process. Once in place, changes and maintenance of existing systems must also be controlled and optimized in order to ensure that the solutions continue to meet their assigned objectives.

DELIVER AND SUPPORT (DS)
This domain focuses on the actual delivery of required services, which includes service delivery, management of security and continuity, service support for users, and management of data and operational facilities.

MONITOR AND EVALUATE (ME)
All IT processes need to be regularly assessed over time for their quality and compliance with control requirements. This domain addresses performance management, monitoring of internal control, regulatory compliance and governance.

As stated above, these four domains are comprised of 34 individual processes, each containing a number of control objectives. These IT control objectives provide a complete set of high-level requirements to be considered by management for effective control of each IT process. While the 210 control objectives are beyond the scope of this page, the 34 processes are listed here in order to provide some understanding of the scope of the framework. Please click on a domain title to view the associated processes:

	Plan and Organize     PO1 Define a Strategic IT Plan PO2 Define the Information Architecture PO3 Determine Technological Direction PO4 Define the IT Processes, Organization and Relationships PO5 Manage the IT Investment PO6 Communicate Management Aims and Direction PO7 Manage IT Human Resources PO8 Manage Quality PO9 Assess and Manage IT Risks PO10 Manage Projects
	Acquire and Implement     AI1 Identify Automated Solutions AI2 Acquire and Maintain Application Software AI3 Acquire and Maintain Technology Infrastructure AI4 Enable Operation and Use AI5 Procure IT Resources AI6 Manage Changes AI7 Install and Accredit Solutions and Changes
	Deliver and Support     DS1 Define and Manage Service Levels DS2 Manage Third-party Services DS3 Manage Performance and Capacity DS4 Ensure Continuous Service DS5 Ensure Systems Security DS6 Identify and Allocate Costs DS7 Educate and Train Users DS8 Manage Service Desk and Incidents DS9 Manage the Configuration DS10 Manage Problems DS11 Manage Data DS12 Manage the Physical Environment DS13 Manage Operations
	Monitor and Evaluate     ME1 Monitor and Evaluate IT Performance ME2 Monitor and Evaluate Internal Control ME3 Ensure Compliance With External Requirements ME4 Provide IT Governance