Comparative Challenges of Implementing IT Governance in SMEs: A Study of Bangladesh and Denmark

IT governance has emerged as one of the most critical elements of organizational success in the modern digital economy in enabling technology assets to support business objectives, reduce risks, and ensure regulatory compliance. Whereas large organizations have the resources and expertise to adopt governance frameworks like COBIT, ISO/IEC 27001, or the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are at a significant disadvantage. Financial limitations, scarcity of skilled human resources, low management awareness level, and complexity in international compliance regulations are likely to deter SMEs from embracing good governance practices (Mirtsch et al., 2021; Almaqtari et al., 2024).These challenges are investigated in this research through a comparative study of SMEs in Bangladesh and Denmark, two different settings: a developing and a developed economy. My interest in pursuing this research stems from the fact that I have work experience at AIBL Capital Market Services Limited, where I observed directly the critical role that governance plays in maintaining operational security and efficiency. The inferences are that SMEs in Bangladesh are primarily faced with shortages of resources and infrastructure (Bangladesh Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology, 2018), while SMEs in Denmark are faced with the cost and complexity of complying with rigorous regulations such as GDPR and NIS2 European Commission, 2016; European Commission, 2022). The above analysis puts into perspective the need for tailored, context-specific governance styles which are appropriate for SMEs across various economies.