Governance Framework | System Health Capability Studio

Governance Architecture · System Health

Accountability defined.
At every level.

Governance is not a document — it is an operating structure. This framework defines eight distinct ownership roles, a four-tier escalation ladder, a five-cadence review rhythm, and explicit decision rights for every scenario. Nothing in the System Health capability operates without an accountable owner. Nothing escalates without a defined pathway.

Framework at a Glance

Defined ownership roles

Escalation tiers

Operating cadence levels

Decision right tiers

Guiding governance principles

Ownership & Accountability — Eight Defined Roles

Role

Who Holds It

Scope of Accountability

Decision Authority

Executive Sponsor

Business

CQO / VP Quality

Enterprise Quality Leadership

Accountable for the strategic investment in System Health. Provides executive sponsorship, approves the governance structure and framework changes, and ensures the capability is resourced and prioritized at the enterprise level.

Owns Outcomes

Business Owner

Business

Quality Leadership

VP-level quality leads

Owns quality outcomes and System Health performance. Sets health standards and thresholds, reviews the monthly QMB scorecard, and makes decisions on systemic quality risks and cross-domain issues.

Decides

Capability Owner

Capability

AD, System Health & Data Product Governance

Predictive Quality

Owns the governance framework design, capability roadmap execution, and day-to-day escalation management. Single accountable owner for the capability. Escalates to Business Owner for systemic risk; resolves threshold breaches with domain owners.

Escalates & Resolves

Process Owner

Operations

Quality Process Owners

Per workflow domain

Owns workflow performance and SLA adherence within their quality domain. Resolves operational health issues within defined SLAs. Escalates unresolved issues to the Capability Owner within the agreed response window.

Resolves

System Owner

Operations

eQMS Admins + IT / Platform Engineering

Technology & platform team

Owns system configuration, technical health, uptime, and integration integrity. Implements monitoring infrastructure and data quality rules. Accountable for system-level SLAs and resolving technical health alerts.

Resolves

Data Owner

Data

Data Stewards

Per data domain

Owns data quality standards, lineage documentation, and completeness requirements within their domain. Accountable for Data Integrity health signals and for remediating identified data quality gaps on the defined schedule.

Stewards

Data Product Owner

Data

Data Product Owners

Per certified product

Certifies and governs data products. Accountable for maintaining certification status, managing version control, enforcing business definitions, and renewing certification on schedule. No data product may be consumed by leadership without Data Product Owner sign-off.

Certifies

Assurance

Internal Audit & Compliance

Independent function

Provides independent verification of system health governance and compliance. Reviews health records, certification evidence, and escalation logs. Produces audit findings and recommendations; not operationally accountable for day-to-day health.

Verifies

Decision Rights — What Gets Decided at Each Level

Decision Rights Framework

How Decisions Are Made

Action	Decision Type	Who Decides	Conditions & Scope
Resolve	Operational health issue — alert triage, SLA breach, data quality gap	Process Owner or System Owner (within their domain)	Issue is within domain scope and resolves within defined SLA. No escalation required if closed on time.
Escalate	Threshold breach or unresolved issue — SLA missed, health score below threshold, unowned issue	Capability Owner	Issue crosses defined health threshold OR remains unresolved beyond SLA window. Capability Owner drives resolution and owns the escalation record.
Decide	Systemic risk or cross-domain issue — multiple domains affected, compliance exposure, investment needed	Quality Leadership (Business Owner)	Issue affects multiple domains, carries compliance risk, or requires investment or resource decisions beyond the Capability Owner's authority.
Approve	Governance structure change — threshold recalibration, new domain added, framework revision, major investment	CQO / VP Quality (Executive Sponsor)	Changes to the governance framework itself, operating thresholds, role definitions, or capability investment scope. Annual framework review minimum; triggered changes as needed.

Escalation Ladder — How Issues Move Through the Governance Structure

Tier

Level

What Triggers It

Response & Action

Ops

Tier 1 · Operational

Self-Resolve

Health alert fires within a single domain. SLA breach is identified. Data quality gap is detected. Issue is within the Process or System Owner's scope.

Owner resolves directly. Root cause documented. Corrective action applied. Alert closed within defined SLA. No escalation if closed on time and within scope.

Cap

Tier 2 · Capability

Capability Owner

SLA missed at Tier 1. Health score crosses defined threshold. Issue is unresolved or unowned after the response window. Ambiguous scope between domains.

Capability Owner takes ownership. Assigns accountability if unowned. Drives cross-domain coordination. Updates health record. Escalates to Tier 3 if not resolved within the capability owner's authority.

Biz

Tier 3 · Business

Quality Leadership

Multiple domains affected simultaneously. Compliance exposure identified. Issue requires resource or investment decisions. Unresolved at Tier 2 within defined window.

Business Owner decides. Authorizes remediation resources. Determines cross-domain priority. Triggers QMB or emergency review if compliance risk is present. Documents decision and rationale.

Exec

Tier 4 · Executive

CQO / VP Quality

Regulatory exposure confirmed. Governance framework change required. Major investment or re-prioritization needed. Issue has not resolved at Tier 3 within agreed timeline.

Executive Sponsor decides. Approves framework revision or threshold change. Authorizes major investment. Communicates externally to regulators if required. Annual framework review is a standing Tier 4 governance obligation.

Operating Cadence — Review & Reporting Rhythm

Daily

Automated Monitoring

Weekly

Operational Review

Monthly · Primary

QMB Scorecard

Quarterly

Executive Forum

Annual

Governance Review

What happens Automated health signal detection across all four domains. Alert routing to assigned owners. SLA clock starts on all open items.

System Process Owners

What happens Operational health review — open issues, SLA performance, resolution status, and domain-level trending. Escalations actioned.

Capability Owner Domain Owners

What happens System Health scorecard presented at Quality Management Board. Data product certification status reviewed. Cross-domain issues surfaced. Decisions made at Business Owner level.

Quality Leadership Capability Owner QMB

What happens Capability maturity progress reviewed. Strategic investment priorities assessed. Threshold calibration recommended. Roadmap advancement approved or adjusted.

Exec Forum VP Quality

What happens Full governance framework review. Role definitions confirmed or updated. Operating thresholds recalibrated. Framework changes approved by CQO / VP Quality.

CQO / VP All Owners

Governance Guiding Principles

Governance Philosophy

Five principles that make this governance structure trustworthy

Every Role Has a Named Owner

Governance roles are not job titles — they are named individuals with documented accountability. If a role has no named owner, it is treated as an open governance gap requiring immediate resolution.

No Ambiguous Ownership

Every health domain, data product, and system component has a single named accountable owner. Shared ownership is explicitly defined, not assumed. Ambiguity in ownership is itself treated as a governance deficiency.

Escalation Paths Are Pre-Defined

Every issue type has a documented escalation path before it occurs. No issue should reach a review forum without having a defined owner and a structured resolution pathway already in place.

Governance Is Operational, Not Ceremonial

Governance reviews are structured decision forums, not status updates. Every cadence meeting has defined inputs, decision authorities, and required outputs. Attendance without accountability is not governance.

The Framework Governs Itself

The governance framework is itself subject to review and improvement. The annual Governance Review is not optional — it is a standing Tier 4 obligation. Framework gaps, role vacancies, and threshold drift are treated with the same urgency as health domain issues.