The Power of Governance: Establishing a Maximo Steering Committee for Prioritization and Alignment
Welcome back! Last year I did a two-part series of blog posts talking about the importance of a Maximo roadmap for projects, large changes, and support. In that series, I mentioned the importance of establishing a governance meeting, so I thought as a continuation of that series of posts that I would cover this topic. Let’s go!
When managing an enterprise asset management system like Maximo, one of the greatest challenges is balancing competing priorities from different departments and stakeholders. As an engineering, maintenance, or IT professional that plays a key role in the Maximo system at your company, you've probably found yourself in situations where multiple managers submit requests for changes or enhancements, each claiming theirs is the top priority. Or maybe it’s the same manager that can’t seem to make up their mind! Without a clear structure to evaluate and align these requests with the organization’s overall goals, it’s easy to end up in a state of chaos—frequent task-switching, delayed projects, and frustrated teams.
A governance meeting—or Maximo Steering Committee—can solve these challenges by providing a forum for key stakeholders to evaluate, prioritize, and approve changes and projects in a structured way. Below, I’ll share the purpose of such a meeting, key benefits, practical steps for setting one up, and a personal anecdote to illustrate its impact.
Why a Governance Meeting?
Governance meetings are more than just check-ins; they’re strategic forums where decision-making happens. Specifically for Maximo, they allow stakeholders to:
- Prioritize Requests: Decide which proposed changes, enhancements, or integrations align with organizational objectives and deserve immediate attention.
- Allocate Resources Wisely: Ensure time, budget, and technical resources are spent on high-value initiatives.
- Maintain Transparency: Provide visibility into the Maximo team's workload, timelines, and progress for everyone involved.
- Create Accountability: Assign clear ownership to initiatives and track progress, reducing delays caused by miscommunication or shifting priorities.
My Experience at “Life Science Inc”
At my former company, I saw firsthand the chaos that can arise without governance. One engineering manager in particular frequently submitted requests for new functionalities or reports in Maximo. Maximo was still fairly new at the company at this point; they were “all-in” on Maximo, seeing all the potential it had to really streamline a lot of processes and help meet regulatory requirements. So as an IT system analyst whose job was almost 100% to support and enhance Maximo, there is no doubt that I was loving this enthusiasm! But, my team would start working on a request, only for the same manager to sometimes come back a week or two later with a new “urgent” request, expecting us to drop everything and pivot.
After months of juggling shifting priorities and feeling like we weren’t making meaningful progress, my supervisor and I decided to implement a governance structure. The Maximo program manager from engineering who we worked very closely with was in total agreement, as he shared our frustration. So, we scheduled regular meetings, monthly at first, with department heads, process owners, and IT stakeholders. During these sessions, we reviewed all outstanding requests, assigned priorities, and created a shared roadmap.
It was a bit painful at first, but eventually the difference was night and day. Projects were completed faster, the team felt less frustrated, and stakeholders had more confidence that their requests were being handled fairly and efficiently.
Benefits of a Maximo Governance Meeting
Clear Prioritization and Road mapping: With a governance meeting, every request is vetted based on predefined criteria, such as business impact, regulatory requirements, or ROI. Low-priority items can be deferred to later in the roadmap, while high-priority initiatives are added to the roadmap earlier with realistic timelines.Avoiding Scope Creep: Governance meetings establish a formal process for proposing and approving large changes. This reduces ad hoc requests that can disrupt workflows.
Stakeholder Alignment: When all relevant parties have visibility into Maximo-related activities, it minimizes conflicts over priorities and fosters collaboration.
Efficient Use of Resources: By aligning IT resources with organizational goals, governance ensures teams aren’t stretched thin trying to do everything at once.
Better Communication: These meetings create a central source of truth. Stakeholders know exactly what’s in progress and what’s planned, reducing confusion and the need for constant status updates.
Setting Up a Governance Meeting: Practical Steps
Identify Key Stakeholders Gather representatives from departments that rely heavily on Maximo—operations, maintenance, IT, procurement, and any others. Include decision-makers who can advocate for their teams and approve budgets or timelines. Don’t be afraid to invite director-level people who you think might be “too high to care”. If you can get them to agree to come to the meeting, even if they don’t participate much, their familiarity with your Maximo program can make a difference in the future. Particularly when that decision to move to SAP PM or some other inferior EAM system starts getting bandied about, having “friends in high places” can really make a difference.Establish Meeting Cadence Determine how often to meet. At “Life Science Inc” we started with monthly meetings until we had the roadmap well-established, and things got under control. Eventually we moved to a quarterly meeting.
Define Evaluation Criteria Create a framework for prioritizing requests. Examples might include:
- Business impact: Will this save money, increase efficiency, or ensure regulatory compliance?
- Urgency: Is this tied to a critical deadline or operational need?
- Feasibility: Can it be implemented with existing resources and infrastructure?
Assign Roles Designate a chairperson to run the meetings, a secretary to document decisions, and leads for specific projects.
Sample Agenda for a Governance Meeting
A typical governance meeting starts with a review of outstanding items. This part of the discussion focuses on previously approved projects or changes, allowing the team to assess whether they are on track or identify reasons for delays. It ensures accountability and keeps ongoing work visible to all stakeholders. From there, the conversation shifts to evaluating new requests. Stakeholders take the time to walk through recently submitted proposals, weighing their merits, debating their potential impact, and ultimately deciding on their priority levels. These discussions can be collaborative and, at times, lively as different perspectives and business needs come to light.
Resource allocation naturally follows. At this point, the group determines how best to distribute available resources—such as budget, IT capacity, and personnel—balancing new priorities with ongoing work. This ensures that realistic decisions align with the organization’s strategic goals. Once priorities are clear, the meeting moves into roadmap updates. The team adjusts the shared roadmap to reflect decisions made during the session, aligning everyone with the evolving direction and priorities.
The meeting typically concludes with an open-floor segment, providing an opportunity for stakeholders to raise concerns, pose questions, or share ideas that may not have surfaced earlier. This final touch fosters collaboration and keeps the conversation inclusive, ensuring no important issues are left unaddressed.
Tips for Success
Be Consistent Once you set up the governance meeting, stick to the schedule. Cancelling too often can undermine its credibility.Focus on Decision-Making Avoid letting the meeting become a discussion forum with no resolutions. The goal is to make decisions and assign priorities.
Communicate Decisions Widely After each meeting, distribute notes and updates to all relevant parties, even those who couldn’t attend.
Be Flexible While structure is critical, recognize that emergencies happen. Build some buffer into the roadmap for unexpected high-priority items.
Final Thoughts
Implementing a governance meeting may seem like an administrative burden at first, but the benefits far outweigh the costs. At my former company, this simple change improved communication, reduced friction, and ensured that our Maximo system was delivering maximum value to the organization.
From Interloc’s perspective…we’ve seen a lot of companies that would benefit from a Maximo steering committee/governance process. If your Maximo team is feeling overwhelmed by competing demands or struggling to keep stakeholders aligned, a governance meeting could be the solution. It’s a small investment of time that can yield significant returns in efficiency and stakeholder satisfaction. We’d love to help you put a governance meeting together.
Let me know how your governance meeting journey goes—and if you have any tips or anecdotes of your own to share, please share them in the comments below!
About Kevin Wertz
Kevin Wertz is a Maximo consultant who has been with Interloc since April 2023. Before that he spent 23 years at a leading biotherapeutics manufacturer supporting CMMS/EAM systems, 16 of which he supported two Maximo systems full-time as in-house IT support. Throughout his career, Kevin has led multiple Maximo implementations and technical upgrades, demonstrating expertise in system optimization and development. Kevin is also an accomplished speaker, having presented at conferences such as MaximoWorld, Canada Maximo Users Group (CanMUG), IBM Pulse and InterConnect (now part of the IBM Think conference), and the former Life Sciences Maximo User Group (now part of the Manufacturing Maximo Users Group). Kevin loves to write and share his passion for Maximo.