ITIL V3 Talk

ITIL 2011 Update

2011-12-17T23:34:00.001-08:00

Well, I see it has been a little while since I posted here (other projects has been consuming so much time) and so much has been happening in my life. I left my full time job to become self employed and I am now making a living just from my web activities. My main site is White Dove Books. It is a personal development website that I have been working on for the past 7 years.

However, recently, I was asked by me previous company to teach their new ITIL Foundation course. As I am still in what I think of as a transition period, I was happy to agree. It was also interesting for me to see the changes between what we have hitherto been calling ITIL V3 and the current version, which is now officially ITIL 2011. So I thought I would make a quick post here to outline the differences.

Firstly, the changes are all minor. There are two 'new' processes: Design Coordination and Business Relationship Management. I say 'new' because they were not named as processes previously, but they were both already present in the V3 books. Other than that and a quick once over, with the intention of correcting the mistakes - some of the most glaring ought to have been very embarrassing for the authors and publishers alike - the most changed book is Service Strategy.

None of the concepts have changed at all, but many people struggled (myself included) with the Service Strategy volume. By the way, despite the way it was written, it was still my favourite book in the series. For me, it was the most useful publication and I genuinely think if I had understood some of the things in it sooner, I might have been further forward in my web business by now. Still, it needed an update and I am glad to see that it has now been completed.

So, we now have 28 Processes Officially:

Service Strategy - 5 Processes
Strategy Generation
Financial Management
Service Portfolio Management
Demand Management
Business Relationship Management

Service Design - 8 Processes
Design Coordination
Capacity Management
Information Security Management
Availability Management
Service Catalogue Management
IT Service Continuity Management (ITSCM)
Service Level Management
Sujpplier Management

Service Transition - 7 Processes
Transition Planning
Release and Deployment Management
Service Evaluation
Service Validation
Service Asset and Configuration Management
Change Management
Knowledge Management

Service Operation - 5 Processes
Incident Management
Problem Management
Request Fulfillment
Event Management
Access Management

Continual Service Improvement - 3 Processes
The 7 Step Improvement Process
Service Measurement
Service Reporting

ITIL Foundation

2010-06-12T01:21:00.000-07:00

The ITIL Foundation Exam is the first hurdle to overcome on your way to the ITIL Expert Qualification. It is worth 2 of the 22 points you need in order to gain the 'Expert' qualification and status. In this series of articles, we will be looking at how you can pass your foundation exam.

Here are the essential facts about the exam itself:

1 Hour Duration
40 Questions
Multiple Choice
Externally Invigilated
Pass Mark is 26 Correct Answers (65%)

The official Foundation Syllabus can be accessed right here ... ITIL V3 Foundation Syllabus

The syllabus provides us with a good starting point for addressing the question of how you are going to pass that exam. You can use it as a reference for study of course; and that, indeed, is a good place for you to start. Try to get your hands of a copy of the ITIL Core Reference books and use the Syllabus as a guide to the sections you need to read.

If you need to get a copy of the ITIL books, here's the best place. They are not cheap, but they are pretty essential if you are going to get serious about learning ITIL ...

How to Implement Service Management

2009-09-18T00:46:00.000-07:00

"It is not necessary to change. Survival is
not mandatory" - W Edwards Deming

Introducing Service Management into an organisation need not be viewed as the huge project that many people seem to think it must necessarily entail. In fact, a good way of going about the task is to think of it as a Service Improvement Programme or a Continual Service Improvement Programme (CSIP).

Most organisations considering implementing Service Management already have several, or perhaps many of the ITIL processes in place. For example, it is difficult to see how an IT department could serve its customers without having at least something that approximates to a Service Desk and, at very least, an Incident Management process, no matter how immature, already in place. Similarly, the existing IT staff will already be using a toolset that provides some kind of mechanism for recording, tracking and closing incidents.

So, in many ways, the organisation will already be engaged in Service Management to some extent - even if it is a very limited implementation. The Service Improvement Programme approach, then, is not only a valid option, but a sensible one. The operation can utilise the Continual Service Improvement (CSI) approach to get from its current state to its desired future state.

Here are the steps:

* Where are we Now?
* Where do we Want to Be?
* How will we Get There?
* How will we know we have Arrived?

Those four simple steps are the steps of a Service Improvement Programme. An organisation with just a Service Desk and Incident Management process in place might elect to focus on introducing Problem Management, for example; or perhaps, simply improving their existing Incident Management process. This can be properly planned, executed and bedded-in before considering what to do next.

Continuing in this manner, using cycles of improvement, you effectively have a Continuous Service Improvement Programme. ITIL has value for the organisation since it provides the overarching, grand vision to which these cycles of improvement will be working. This approach can be very powerful. You don't have the potential disruption and other challenges associated with managing a larger-scale project and over the course of time, you can achieve significant improvement.

In adopting this approach, after each individual cycle (programme), you would stop and take steps to consolidate your position before eventually deciding to move-on. This means ensuring that the improvements are driven deeply into the working methods of the people who are responsible for your service provision. It is better to do one cycle of improvement well than to attempt to implement a whole raft of changes and, as a consequence, end-up doing them all poorly.

Let's take a look at each of the steps of a Service Improvement Programme:

Where are we Now?

This step involves the activity usually known as 'baselining'. The idea is to take some kind of measurement of your current position. If you wanted to improve Incident Management, for example, you might use one of the process maturity measurement frameworks, such as CMMI (Capability Maturity Model Integration), to assess the current level of maturity of your existing process. Alternatively, the baselining step might simply involve taking some simple measurements such as the number, or percentage, of incidents correctly classified at first point of contact. The idea is to take a measurement (or measurements) that can be later used to prove that an improvement did indeed result.

Where do we Want to Be?

This involves setting a specific, measurable goal for the improvement programme. Remember the SMART acronym? Goals should be:

S - SpecificM - MeasureableA - Achievable
R - RealisticT - Timetabled

For example, you might have a goal to improve the number of incidents correctly classified from the existing 50% to a desired 80% (just an example) within the next one month period. Notice how that goal is (SMART).

How do we Get There?

Generate a plan for the introduction of the improvement - whatever it is. This plan should contain everything necessary to get the change successfully implemented. If your organisation already has Change Management in place, for example, it would include the RFCs (Requests for Change) necessary to introduce the change initiative. If your operation does not yet have formal Change Management in place, then the plan would make use of existing internal processes for introducing change.

How will we know we've Arrived?

This is again down to measurement. If your goal had been to improve Incident Management, for example, then perhaps you might expect to see some of the following measureable outcomes:

* Increased Customer Satisfaction
* Better Classification of Incidents at First Point of Contact
* Quicker & More Accurate Escalation of Incidents
* Reduced Time-to-Fix/Respond to Incidents

If you already have Problem Management in place, then additional measureable outcomes might include:

* Better use of KEDB (Known Error Database)
* Reduced Impact of Incidents Using Workarounds
* Better Handling of Major Incidents
* Improved Identification of Problems at the Service Desk

The above items can all be measured and could all be a part of the initial baselining step (Where are we Now?). They can then be compared to the new measurements taken after the improvement initiative.

Which Improvements to Target

Using the above approach, significant improvement can be made over the course of time with minimum disruption to Business-as-Usual operation. The challenge is to choose the improvements that will deliver the most benefits. Of course, getting a few quick-wins is a very useful approach that will help to gain buy-in from those most-affected by the changes. So this should always be taken into account when prioritising improvement initiatives.

A Particular challenge for many organisations is the matter of Configuration Management. A lot of organisations are not doing it, at present, or are not doing it well. A good CMS (Configuration Management System) with a strong process well-integrated with Change and Release Management processes is right at the heart of effective Service Operations. Getting these things right can lead to huge benefits to the business in terms of cost-savings realised from minimised disruption from necessary change.

In addition, a good Service Catalogue properly integrated within a Portfolio of services will help to get everyone in IT into the Service Management mindset i.e. that IT's job is that of providing services to the business; rather than just keeping the infrastructure working. Good tools can help to get these things right but it is important to choose tools that work the way you want.

Will we Ever Finish Implementing Service Management?

Perhaps the best answer to this is - no!

These days, Service Management is seen much more as a dynamic entity. There will always be changes to cope with; and we will always be finding better ways of dealing with that change. We will always be adapting our thinking as well as our working methods and tools, so Service Management is always likely to be a journey; and not a destination.

Stakeholder Engagement

2009-09-17T01:27:00.000-07:00

“Stakeholder engagement has been floating around like the spice of good cooking from next door, and the sense has been that if we all could share some of that spice, everything would be better. But there's been no recipe for doing it and doing it well.” - Mark Lee

Organisations looking to introduce Service Management based on ITIL will want to be sure that it is the right thing to do. Sometimes, the IT department will be convinced of the benefits of pursuing an ITIL approach, but it is then left with the task of convincing the Business. So how should this issue be tackled. That's the subject of this lesson.

It is useful to bear in mind the goals of ITIL which are broadly threefold:

* Improve the Quality of Services Offered
* Reduce Associated Costs
* Improve Alignment between IT and the Business

The above goals are indeed also the promised benefits of Service Management; and it is easy to see where some of those benefits will come from. For example, if better Change and/or Release Management results in more change projects that work first time, then that translates directly into reduced downtime and therefore cost savings for the business. Similarly, if understanding the business requirements is a key to delivering better quality services, then it is easy to see how implementing Service Level Management (responsible for that dialogue) would help in this respect. It is also easy to see how Service Portfolio Management, which effectively manages the Service Pipeline (possible future services), leads to closer alignment between IT and the business.

Sometimes, the above considerations are alone sufficient reason to consider adopting Service Management. For those requiring a more detailed analysis of the benefits of Service Management, here's how to go about making a Business Case.

Making a Proper Business Case

The first things to consider in the preparation of a Business Case are the benefits that an organisation can expect from implementing Service Management. A good way of looking at this is to consider each of the phases of the V3 Service Lifecycle because each individual phase delivers tangible benefits to the Business.

Value to the Business of Service Strategy

• Better Alignment of IT and the Business
• Ensures The Right Services are Offered in the Catalogue
• Proactively Managing Demand for Services
• Develops Service Management as a Strategic Asset of the Business
• Proper Business Case for New Services

Value to the Business of Service Design

• Reduced Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) through better design
• Improved Quality of Service through better design
• Improved Consistency of Service Delivery
• Easier Implementation of New/Changed Services
• Improved Service Alignment with changing business requirements

Value to the Business of Service Transition

• Ability to Adapt Quickly to Change
• Better Able to Cope with Mergers/De-Mergers
• Increased Success Rate for Changes
• Accurate Prediction of Service Levels
• Proper Understanding of Risk

Value to the Business of Service Operation

• Overcoming Operational Challenges
• Balancing Competing Internal and External Influences/Demands on IT
• Balancing Proactive and Reactive Activities
• Balancing Cost and Quality of Services
• Balancing a stable infrastructure and responding to operational change

Value to the Business of CSI

• Continual Improvements to Services and Service Levels
• Process Improvements
• Service Management Improvements

To build an effective Business Case, it may be possible to select a number of the above benefits and translate them into tangible benefits in terms of direct cost savings that would yield a proper Return on Investment (ROI). Less tangible benefits such as increased customer satisfaction, improved staff morale etc should also be factored into a good business case. Such factors are non-financial and, as such, they offer Value on Investment (VOI) rather than ROI.

ITIL Facts

2009-09-01T05:12:00.000-07:00

I thought it might be beneficial to put together an information sheet on ITIL. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions:

What Does the Acronym Stand for?

It stands for: Information Technology Infrastructure Library, but these days, it is not really relevant what the acronym stands for - ITIL is simply Documented Best Practice for Service Management. It is a Framework that organisations use as guidance for implementing Service Management.

What is Service Management?

Service Management began with organisations like banks and airlines wanting to improve their customer-experience. It is neither the management of the business nor the IT, but is concerned with the middle-ground. The business and IT must join-up somewhere. ITIL helps organisations to understand how IT underpins and/or integrates with the business.

Are there Other Methods of Doing Service Management?

Yes. Here are some of the main Frameworks:

• ITIL - IT Infrastructure Library
• COBIT - Control Objectives for IT
• MOF - Microsoft Operations Framework

Should We Implement ITIL?

Strictly, we don't implement ITIL; instead, we implement Service Management and ITIL provides a way to do that. As for whether or not your organisation should do it, you should conduct a proper analyse the proposal and produce a formal Business Case to properly answer the question.

Should we Implement Version 2 or Version 3?

Again, bearing in mind that we actually implement Service Management and that ITIL is simply guidance - not a methodology - you implement your own adaptation of the Service Management principles; you effectively 'adapt and adopt' the guidance. So both Versions 2 and 3 are relevant information sources. Also bear in mind that all of Version 2 exists within the V3 guidance.

How Should We Introduce Service Management?

There are definitely two approaches that you should consider: the project approach and the Continuous Service Improvement approach. The first approach includes running a proper project making use of project management principles such as PRINCE2. The second approach involves continually moving forward toward the vision provided by ITIL in little cycles of improvement. Each approach offers advantages over the other and both are completely valid.

What Training is Necessary?

Training needs will differ markedly from organisation to organisation, a formal Training Needs Analysis is the best way to determine who need to be trained on what. However, here is a simple, workable plan: You should identify the key players and list them into separate groups as follows:

Group -1 Awareness Training

Awareness Training is useful for anyone who needs a top-level, broad overview/understanding of ITIL, what it is and how it is used.

• Senior Management
• Roles tangential to or interfacing with IT (Procurement, HR, etc)

Group 2 - Foundation Level Training

Everyone involved in IT will need some Awareness Training at very least and should be encouraged to gain the Foundation Level qualification.

• Service Desk (Customer Facing)
• Technical Management (Infrastructure Specialists)
• Applications Management (Software Specialists)
• IT Operations Management (Operational Staff)

Group 3 - Intermediate Level (Capability) Training

Anyone with accountability for a Process (Owner/Manager Roles) should attend the relevant Capabilities (Practitioner Level) Training and achieve the relevant Qualification.

• Process Owners (Incident Manager, Problem Manager etc)
• Process Managers (As above)

Group 4 - Intermediate Level (Lifecycle) Training

Anyone with accountability for a Lifecycle Phase (Manager Roles) should attend the relevant Lifecycle (Practitioner Level) Training and achieve the relevant Qualification.

• Product Manager
• Service Design Manager
• Service Transition Manager
• IT Operations Manager
• CSI Manager

Group 5 - Senior IT Management

Senior Managers involved in the implementation and ongoing management of the Service Management project should achieve the ITIL Expert Qualification.

• Project Responsibility (Project/Programme Manager, CSI Manager)
• IT Director
• Senior IT Manager
• Departmental Heads
• Service Owners
• Service Managers

Of course, the above is just a little bit of guidance. You should naturally do what is right for you, however this plan does represent a good starting place for discussion.

Web Support Services

2009-08-20T08:54:00.000-07:00

The outer ring of the ITIL V3 Lifecycle emblem, which is displayed in our header graphic, shows the Complementary Publications and Web Support Services that has always been intended as additional supplementary guidance for the ITIL core publications. Recently, we had a chance to create a trial login at bestpracticelive.com in order to take a look at the service.

The first time I saw the site was at the ITsmf conference in Brighton just over 18 months ago. My first reaction was that it looked good, but when I learned of the price – I can’t remember now exactly how much it was because I mentally turned off when I heard the word ‘thousand’ . Clearly too much I remember thinking and pointing out too.

Since then, I was speaking with a representative of the site at the Service Desk Show in Earl’s Court and he told me the price had been substantially reduced. Now there’s a good example of Demand Management in action for you. You can now get an individual membership for a couple of hundred pounds, but a corporate membership is still – you guessed it – thousands!

Now then, to the point of this post: is it worth investing. Well, of course, it could be, but that’s up to you to decide for yourself. From what I can see, the site is still very-much a work in progress. For example, when I reviewed it, there was very little if anything in the section on Roles. Just the front-end appeared to be there. Whenever I clicked on a specific Role, it said the detail was ‘coming soon’.

Similarly, the section on Principles appeared to need fleshing out a bit though the section on Processes was pretty good I thought. However, I have to say that if I had paid for access, I would have been very disappointed with the site in its present state.

The idea itself is certainly very good. Let’s face it, being able to access White Papers, Templates and the like is exactly what any serious practitioner needs when they start with ITIL and the whole business of implementing Service Management in the real world. But come-on TSO, you need to pull your finger out if you want this thing to really take off.

Is ITIL V3 Bombing?

2009-06-26T08:57:00.000-07:00

The worldwide statistics for ITIL V3 Training show a huge interest in ITIL Foundation training, but hardly any take-up on the newer intermediate-level Capabilities and Lifecycle courses. In this article we ask: why is this happening and what can be done about it?

Firstly, if we look back at the Version 2 scheme, we see something similar, in that the V2 Practitioner courses never really took-off in a big way. But despite this, the Foundation and Service Manager courses and qualifications were very well attended. The new Capabilities courses are broadly the V3 equivalent of the V2 Practitioner courses; and the ITIL Expert is – broadly – the V3 equivalent of the Service Manager qualification.

If the V2 Practitioner courses were not selling, then it should come as no real surprise that the V3 Capabilities courses are not either. But why is almost nobody – according to the most recent figures - going on to do the new ITIL Expert Qualification? Quite simply, I believe, because you need to do a bare minimum of 23 days worth of training to get the qualification. As a comparison, you only needed 13 days to get the V2 Service manager qualification.

The cost and inconvenience – measured in terms of days out of the office – make the endeavour far less attractive a proposition for most people I would suggest. Perhaps it is now time for APMG to do a bit of a rethink. How about making the Capability Courses modular, so that people could do a day or two – rather than five – and acquire an appropriate award, for example? When enough of these modules were completed, the relevant Capabilities Certificate could then still be awarded.

We also need to consider how to reduce the amount of training days needed to get the ITIL Expert Qualification. This might be done using a variety of methods including pre-reading, homework assignments, assessments and various other devices. However it is tackled, I believe that, if the V3 scheme is to be successful, we need to reduce the training days back down to something like the 13 days needed to get the V2 Service Manager’s Certificate.

Finally, I believe that it is time to dump the V2 scheme. Perhaps this is contentious, but if the V3 scheme is to work, then it needs to be done. Of course, it would be in everyone’s interest to get the V3 scheme right first. Let’s hope that can be done quickly!

Experiential Learning in ITIL

2009-06-21T08:40:00.000-07:00

There’s no questions about it, ITIL seems to lend itself most readily to the theoretical approach to learning. The whole flavour of the books themselves is quite academic and there are plenty of models and flowcharts included within the guidance that most people struggle to fit together into a coherent whole. Pity the poor devils who have to sit through three days of foundation training to arrive at an overview of 26 processes and 4 functions.

After some period of involvement in the delivery of ITIL training, I feel the time is right for a new approach to teaching and learning the whole subject. Despite the considerable difficulties involved in translating the theoretical models into practical, and meaningful, sessions to which delegates can properly relate, I firmly believe that foundation-level training needs to move away from the traditional classroom style approach beloved of so many training providers. It is time to chuck-away Powerpoint and get more into experiential learning.

At the ITsmf conference, held at Brighton about 18 months ago, I first came across the Apollo 13 simulation offered by Gaming Works – a professional game company – and I have been running business simulations ever since. The difference in the effect that such training has on course attendees is nothing short of amazing; and I am not inclined to over-use superlatives. However, when delegates are asked how they feel following the simulation, it is not uncommon for people to use words such as elated, exhilarated and ecstatic to describe their feelings following the event – not normal words you would associate with ITIL training!

In addition to having plenty of fun during the simulated mission, I believe that delegates are able to enjoy a true accelerated learning experience; taking away more practical understanding than is usual for the more normal ITIL foundation training which we also still deliver. Of course, to pass the exam, they do need to be able to remember a certain amount of theory – and there, of course, is the big challenge.

It is mainly because of the examination methods in use – multi-choice affairs that seem to focus on the wrong things (for example, definitions) – that traditional ITIL training looks the way it does. However, I believe that ITIL training does not need to be what many have described as the ‘death-by-Powerpoint’ approach. The time is right for a new approach to foundation training; and I believe that business simulations represent an interesting way forward.

ITIL in the USA

2009-05-23T00:19:00.000-07:00

Recently I came across an article entitled American ITIL by Chad Vander Veen on the subject of implementing ITIL within his organisation. What immediately struck me was his comments about the benefits ...

The combination of ITIL, executive support and a good understanding of technology have really reversed our situation. Our output has gone up at least 300 percent, and our downtime has gone from 200 hours per year to 7.42 hours.

Some pretty impressive stats there; and, although he does not actually attribute all of the increase in output and reduction in downtime to ITIL per se, he does underscore the fact that the adoption of best practice was a key factor in that achievement.

Since the article was written by about an American adopter, it also led me to wonder about the progress of ITIL in the USA. Of course, ITIL was comparatively late into the United States; it first took hold in Europe - notably, in the UK and the Netherlands, but had swept right across Europe, the Middle and Far East and into Australasia before it really began to make any impression in the USA.

There is no question that ITIL is growing rapidly at present, but stats for the USA seem to be a little thin on the ground at the moment. However, a little Googling, led me to this article ITIL Adoption in the US which quotes the following statistic ...

Nearly 60% of 100 U.S. CIOs polled confirmed that they are working with ITIL, but less than 10% of that number said they considered themselves "true practitioners." Outside the United States, 66% of 270 organizations have adopted the best practice framework that originated in the United Kingdom, and 17% of those organizations referred to themselves as ITIL

Interpreting these figures is a little difficult; and indeed, this is clearly a relatively small survey and could be a weighted sample. However, it is interesting to see the figures for the UK and USA are roughly on a par for adopters. In percentage terms - given the size of the USA, that would translate to a fairly low, but significant penetration of the market at the present time.

In the ITIL V3 books, I noticed that the 'IZE' word ending has been preferred to the, perhaps more English, 'ISE' (though both spellings are acceptable in English). It did make me wonder if the originators of the material (OGC/TSO) had the American audience in mind when the V3 books were first published. It will be very interesting to keep an eye on the growth of ITIL V3 in the USA over the next couple of years. At present, it seems to be the front-runner for the IT service industry, but its acceptance in the US market is crucial to its long-term success.

ITIL Badges

2009-03-31T02:22:00.000-07:00

There are now 5 new badges for ITIL V3 qualifications. They are for the following qualification levels: Foundation, Capability, Lifecycle, Expert and Master.

ITIL Version 2 Badges

Green Badge - means the holder has a V2 Foundation Qualification
Blue Badge - means the holder has a V2 Practitioner Qualification
Red Badge - means the holder has a V2 Service Manager Qualification

ITIL Version 3 Badges

Left to right: Foundation, Capability, Lifecycle, Expert and Master.

Personally, I feel the colours are confusingly similar. For example, when someone said they had a Green Badge, in the past, it was clear that meant they were a V2 Foundation Certificate holder. Now, when someone says they have a Green Badge, we will have to ask: is that V2 Green or V3 Green? Because the former still means what it always did, but the latter now means the holder has a V3 Lifecycle Qualifification (of which there are 5, of course!).

Someone - probably female - will no doubt tell me they are completely different colours and have different names. Females do have an amazing vocabulary for colours don't they? Just taking green as an example, we have: sage, lime, jade etc. However, for males, it's just dark green, light green and British Racing Green. Yes - I know -it's sad isn't it?

Anyway there you go - everything you wanted to know - and a few things you probably didn't - about ITIL Badges.

ITIL Qualifications Schema

2009-02-15T01:54:00.000-08:00

The New ITIL V3 Qualification scheme is shown above. There are essentially two streams that allow students to progress to the achievement of the ITIL Expert qualification - the Lifecycle Stream and the Capabilties stream.

The Lifecycle Stream consists of 5 modules; one for each of the new books ...

- Service Strategy
- Service Design
- Service Transition
- Service Operation
- Continual Service Improvement (CSI)

The Capabilities Stream consists of 4 modules. Broadly the equivalent of the older V2 Practitioner's Certificates, they are as follows ...

- SOA - Service Offerings & Agreements
- OSA - Operational Support & Analysis
- PPO - Plannig Performance & Optimisation
- RCV - Release, Control & Validation

To obtain the ITIL Expert qualification, you need to obtain 22 points in the schema. Each of the Lifecycle modules is worth 3 points; each of the Capabilities modules is worth 4 points.

The Foundation course & exam is compulsory - worth 2 points; and the Managing Through the Lifecycle is also compulsory (for the qualification) and is worth 5 points. There are some combination of modules from the two streams that are allowed; we'll look at those in a future post.

The details for the Advanced Diploma is still being worked out at the time of writing.

Our ITIL Knol

2009-01-25T01:17:00.000-08:00

The purpose of this post is to make a brief announcement about the future of this Blog which began as a project to provide a complete reference source for ITIL V3. The objective of providing a complete reference source has not changed - we still remain committed - however, the means of delivering that reference source has now changed; I believe, for the better.

We have now setup a Google Knol for the purpose of providing the online reference to ITIL V3. The Knol format makes it easier (than the blog format) for people to use, so that is the reason for the change. Meanwhile, this blog will continue, but with a change of focus providing a more news-worthy and topical view of the subject.

So please go ahead and visit the Knol; and also bookmark it so you can return easily - which you will probably want to do as it gradually builds into the most complete, free, online reference for ITL V3.

Capacity Management

2009-01-22T06:03:00.001-08:00

Capacity Management in V3 is strongly linked with Demand Management; as indeed, it was in V2. Demand Management is all about understanding the sources of demand i.e. patterns of business activity (PBA); Capacity Management is about doing something about it – whether that be planning for growth to cope with expected/anticipated rises in demand or attempting control or regulate the causes of that demand.

The process divides into three sub-processes:

* Business Capacity Management
* Service Capacity Management
* Component Capacity Management

Business Capacity Management is concerned with the future of the business. It has access to the business plans; and it is responsible for planning for the various alternative futures the business is contemplating at any time.

Service Capacity Management is the sub-process that ties in with Demand Management; trying to affect demand by making use of physical or financial constraints. An example of a financial constraint being the use of differential charging – if charging for IT services is actually carried out.

Component Capacity Management is the sub-process responsible for the bits and bytes of the infrastructure. It is focussed on issues such as the bandwidth, storage and throughput of systems.

All these sub-processes work together to plan for anticipated future growth and also to get the best out of the current infrastructure. They all get involved in monitoring and tuning activities; and they are all involved in the construction of the capacity plan.

Let's Talk About Service Design

2009-01-20T01:30:00.000-08:00

We have just completed the Service Strategy processes in this series, so let's now turn our attention to the Service Design publication. There are 7 processes in this book. Here they are ...

* Capacity Management
* Information Security Management
* Availability Management
* Service Catalogue Management
* ITSCM
* Service Level Management
* Supplier Management

We will be going through each one of these in turn, however, I wanted to discuss why some of these processes are in the Service Design book in the first place. Processes like Capacity and Availability Management, for example, each have operational responsibilities, so why are they not in the Service Operations book?

The answer to the above question related to the view that in creating value, services must address both the functional aspects (Utility) of the requirement; and also the non-functional aspects (Warranty). And further, if we consider what is meant by warranty, we discover that it consists of a kind of guarantee or promise.

There are four aspects to the warranty promise - these four parts of the promise ensure that the service will:

1. Be there when needed (availabiltiy)
2. In sufficient quantity (capacity)
3. Is continuous enough (ITSCM)
4. Is secure enough (security)

So that is why the decision was made to locate these processes in the Service Design book; rather than elsewhere. In other words, when designing a new or changed service, these things need to be designed-in.

OK - that said - we'll crack on with taking a look at each of these processes in turn in the coming posts.

Demand Management

2009-01-16T04:43:00.001-08:00

There are really two aspects to Demand Management that should be considered: the first concerns operational support activity; the second relates to strategic intent – hence the inclusion of the process in the Service Strategy publication.

The Demand Management process is primarily concerned with understanding Patterns of Business Activity (PBAs).

IT Services are effectively consumed on demand in the operational environment in supporting business activity. The more business activity there is, the more transactions there will be to process and store. So this process is concerned with the business end of things. Understanding the sources of such demand and also introducing mechanisms to affect it.

The sources of demand can be so affected by making use of Financial and/or Physical constraints e.g. differential charging may be used to affect the demand for services if charging is being done.

There are strong links between this process and the Capacity management process. Demand Management is about understanding where the demand is coming from; Capacity Management is about coping with it.

Strategically, whatever the customer is asking for (demanding) must become an important aspect of future plans for new services, hence there is also an important input from the Demand Management process into the Service Portfolio/Service Catalogue processes.

Service Portfolio Management

2009-01-10T21:57:00.001-08:00

The Service Portfolio is the tool that is central to the concept of the service lifecycle. The Portfolio contains the following parts:

Pipeline
Service Catalogue
Retired Services

However the Service Portfolio Management process is concerned with the management of the Pipeline. If consists of the following steps:

Define
Analyse
Approve
Charter

The service portfolio is where services begin their lives - in the concept stage. So, bear in mind that: ideas that begin in the pipeline may never come to fruition and the process is continuous. Information in the portfolio is constantly being refreshed and reevaluated, however, let's go through the steps.

It's all very well having an idea for a new service, but is it a good idea? That's what this first step is all about. Ideas for new services are first properly defined; and a formal business case is produced spelling out the justification for progression.

Financial management provides key inputs to this process allowing the proposed new service to be analysed for its value proposition. The proposed service is categorised with reference to the following questions.

Does this proposed new service allow us to:

Run the business
Grow the business
Transform the business

This thorough analysis allows the proposition to be balanced against all other possible investments and properly prioritised.

The formal approval would naturally take place at the relevant change authority as defined by the organisation. But this is the stage where the decision is made to as to whether or not to take the service forward into the design phase of the lifecycle. Services not approved may remain in the portfolio for further evaluation, refactoring etc.

The charter step is the committing of resources to the project and the communication of the decision. Once the new service reaches the chartered state, it enters the service catalogue. Notice that at this stage, the service has not been designed - that has still to happen. But now the proposal is destined to become a service.

You can see that the service portfolio management process is essentially responsible for the management of the service pipeline. The portfolio itself - as well as the service catalogue - comes under formal change control, so progress from pipeline to catalogue follows the normal considerations of the change management process.

Financial Management

2009-01-10T08:51:00.000-08:00

Good Financial Management allows a service operation to measure, and quantify, both effectiveness and efficiency in financial terms; answering questions such as:

Which are our most profitable services?
Which services should we invest in?
Which services should be retired?
Is our strategy paying off?

The Financial Management for IT Services ITIL process is responsible for three main activities:

Budgeting
Accounting
Charging

Budgeting is, essentially, financial planning; and it has three main areas: operating and capital planning, demand planning and regulatory and environmental planning.

Accounting is a means of achieving operational visibility and demonstrating good stewardship. It is concerned with activities such as service recording, cost types and cost classification.

Charging is, of course, focused on the service catalogue. An optional activity in ITIL, it is the business of recovering costs, making a profit or making a loss (providing a subsidised service).

The process interfaces with many of the other ITIL processes, essentially gathering data from various sources across the whole organisation; and is responsible for disseminating financial information, wherever necessary, to be used as a means of facilitating superior decision-making.

Strategy Generation Process

2009-01-08T23:18:00.000-08:00

The ITIL V3 Strategy Generation Process does not, at first glance, look like a process as such. When the publications were first released, the steps of the process were referred to as the '4 Main Activities' of Service Strategy. However, since the publication of the overview documentation (An Introductory Overview for V3), it has become clear that these 4 Main Activities are indeed the steps of the process.

So here are the steps ...

Define the Market
Develop the Offering
Develop Strategic Assets
Prepare for Execution

Now Let's go through them.

Firstly, the 'Define the Market' step is all about understanding, or gaining clarity, on the question of: who is the customer?

It might sound a bit unnecessary, but actually, for some operations, they are not sure exactly who their customers are. This naturally brings up the subject of different Types of Service Provider. V3 suggests there are 3 broad types of Service Provider.

Here they are...

Type I - a single internal customer
Type II - multiple internal customers
Type III - external customer(s)

The second step concerns understanding what the customer wants. The creation (development) here is the development of the offering i.e. what will be offered - the idea. It is not the development of the service solution - that is done in Service Design. However, it includes the identification of 'Market Spaces' - or niches - in which to operate and develop service offerings.

The third step is all about tooling-up. In other words acquiring the necessary Resources and Capabilities to put the strategy into effect.

Resources - Stuff you can use (money, people, products)
Capabilities - Stuff you can do (manage, organise, develop)

Finally the 'Prepare for Execution' step concerns thorough self-analysis arounf what the organisation already does well - useful to take account of such things in the development of a strategy - and also, the production of a strategy itself.

A Strategy can, of course, take the form of any of the 4 Ps - or any mixture of the 4 Ps - see my article on Mintzbergs 4Ps for more information.

The ITIL Processes - A Series

2009-01-07T21:58:00.001-08:00

Well, I think it's about time we worked our way right through the ITIL V3 processes from the beginning to the end - all 26 of them. To do this will probably take a bit of time, but I think it will be worthwhile too.

We'll also follow the LifeCycle i.e. well look at all the processes in Service Strategy first, then move on through Service Design, Service Transition, Service Operation and then finally, Continual Service Improvement (CSI).

As a quick reminder, here is the process list we'll be working through ...

Service Strategy - 4 Processes

Strategy Generation
Financial Management
Service Portfolio Management
Demand Management

Service Design - 7 Processes

Capacity Management
Information Security Management
Availability Management
Service Catalogue Management
IT Service Continuity Management (ITSCM)
Service Level Management
Sujpplier Management

Service Transition - 7 Processes

Transition Planning
Release and Deployment Management
Service Evaluation
Service Validation
Service Asset and Configuration Management
Change Management
Knowledge Management

Service Operation - 5 Processes

Incident Management
Problem Management
Request Fulfillment
Event Management
Access Management

Continual Service Improvement - 3 Processes

The 7 Step Improvement Process
Service Measurement
Service Reporting

Quite a list as you can see - but I think it will be worth doing; even though the process perspective is just one of several that can be applied to the guidance.

Perhaps at some future stage we can investigate a few alternative perspectives, but, for now, many people would benefit from a clear description of the 26 ITIL processes, so, if that includes you, stay posted!

Ascending Bloom's Taxonomy

2008-11-24T22:30:00.000-08:00

With the new ITIL V3 Intermediate Level courses - and exams for that matter - the focus is meant to take students away from simply regurgitating knowledge to demonstrating understanding and application of the subject matter.

For the intermediate qualification level students are expected to be able to

Use the practices and concepts
Apply what is learned in workplace situations
Separate concepts into component parts to understand structure
Distinguish between facts and inferences

These ideas correspond with Bloom's Levels 3 and 4 of the Taxonomy ...

Bloom's Taxonomy

1. Knowledge
2. Comprehension
3. Application
4. Analysis
5. Synthesis
6. Evaluation

So the big challenge for educators is: exactly how to Ascend the Taxonomy. Let's hope it signals the death of the bullet-pointed Powerpoint presentations that seem to pass so frequently for ITIL training these days. If this challenge results in more interesting ITIL V3 courses being made available in the future, then it will be a welcome development.

itSMF Conference - Roger Black

2008-11-12T08:12:00.000-08:00

Roger Black was the concluding speaker at this year's itSMF Conference in Birmingham - and his address was well-worth waiting for! He told the story of the British 4 x 400 Metres relay team's triumph at the 1991 World Championships when they beat the favoured US team.

He told how the much-fancied American team were capable, at least on paper, of breaking the world record for the event; and they were expected to win the gold medal. Everyone expected the British team to get the Silver.

The race itself is well worth another look ...

Roger told how a last minute tactical change proved to be crucial in the winning of this event.

On the evening of the final, Kriss Akabusi suggest to Roger Black that if the British team were to run the race the way the Americans expected, they would almost certainly finish in second place. What they needed to do, they decided, was to use Roger Black, their fastest runner to run the first leg and Derek Redmond, the next fastest, to run the second leg. The idea was to put pressure on the Americans who were expecting the faster runners to be running in the final places.

Despite a brilliant second leg individual performance by the American athlete, Quincy Watts, the tactic placed John Regis in second place behind the American at the third leg. Regis was able to match the American on the third leg so when the batton was handed-over to Kriss Akabusi for the anchor-leg, the British runner was in second place.

Running against the world record holder, Kriss Akabusi - Black's close friend and training companion - ran the final leg coming in first to take the Gold medal for Britain; in the process setting a new British, Comonwealth and European record.

The story is an inspiration; and there are many lessons to be learned from it including: 1) if you want to see different results in the future, you need to do something different in the present in order to create that future; 2) Small changes really can produce big results; and 3) synergy is something that is real - the race is a brilliant example of what can be achieved through teamwork.

So I hope the story inspires you too! Think about those changes you need to make and dream big; the race is not won until it's over.

Knowledge Management

2008-11-05T22:26:00.000-08:00

This is a new process in V3 in which knowledge is coupled with human judgment to facilitate the making of wise decisions. Knowledge Management is concerned with getting the right information to the right person at the right time in order to facilitate the right decision.

In V3, we have a Service Knowledge Management System (SKMS) which is used for the purpose. The SKMS, through layers of software, allows the information held in the Configuration Management System (CMS) to be presented to those who need access.

The process is concerned with the production and maintenance of a central SKMS in which raw data is tranlsated into useful knowledge by setting it into context. The SKMS is a Knowledge Management system - translating raw data into useable knowledge ...

Data - consists of raw numbers/facts
Information - data set into context
Knowledge - information within context

The coupling of human judgement then facilitates wise decision-making ....

Knowledge + Judgment = Wisdom

In V2, we had the idea of the CMDB which always contained Hardware, Software and Documentation i.e. knowledge. Version 3 now has the process for properly managing that knowledge.

itSMF Conference and Exhibition 2008

2008-10-31T03:16:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again!

The itSMF Conference and Exhibition 2008, this year entitled “Driving Real Value” takes place at the Hilton Metropole Hotel, Birmingham from Monday 10th to Wednesday 12th November 2008.

For full directions and a map please follow this link: www.hilton.co.uk/birminghammet

The registration desk - in the Monarch Foyer - will be open from 08.30 until 16.00 on Monday and Tuesday; and until 12.00 noon on Wednesday.

* The opening session on Monday starts at 10.20 am
* The first session on Tuesday is at 09.00 am
* The first session on Wednesday is at 09.00 am

During the morning tea/coffee break on Tuesday 11th of November there will be 2 minutes silence for Remembrance Day.

This year there are around 80 exhibitors - hope to see you there!

Is ITIL Version 3 better than Version 2?

2008-10-29T03:53:00.000-07:00

Well here we are over a year after the official launch of ITIL ® Version 3; and now, with the imminent launch of the Intermediate level Capabilities and Lifecycle courses, it seems like a good time to address the question: is ITIL ® V3 actually any better than V2? I suppose the first thing to recognize is that ITIL ® Version 2 is wholly embedded within the new Version 3 guidance. So, despite the fact that labels for some familiar concepts and ideas have indeed changed their names, essentially, all the good things we know and love from V2 are still there.

Although it is true that we have more processes and functions in the new version, the major change has been the introduction of the concept of the Service Lifecycle. It might be argued that the Service Lifecycle was there in V2, but the big change is that Version 3 is actually structured around the concept. This has far-reaching implications because – for example – no longer is it possible to look in a single section and find everything you need to know about Capacity Management. In the new scheme of things, you will find Capacity management discussed most extensively within the Service Design volume; however, you will find it referenced through the entire Lifecycle i.e. it is dotted about all 5 of the new publications.

The Version 3 emphasis is on a whole Lifecycle approach, so for example, Service Operation is not just about Operational issues; it is also involved in all other phases of the Lifecycle; providing feedback and becoming actively involved in such things as requirement-gathering, design, transition and improvement. If I may coin a word beloved of ITIL ®, this truly does represent an holistic approach to the discipline of Service Management.

If we consider Version 2 for a moment: there were 7 subjects – and 9 books – in the V2 library. But many people thought they understood Service Management when they had digested the 2 ITIL ® core publications - Service Support (Blue Book) and Service Delivery (Red Book). The new Lifecycle approach goes a long way to address this issue; effectively helping to break down the process-silo mentality that had become prevalent in some IT service operations.

In addition to the above, perhaps the biggest benefit of Version 3 is that it provides the context for a more mature, rounded and professional view of Service Management. Version 2 discussed the alignment of IT with the Business, Version 3 focuses on integration – a more mature model. We also now recognize the different sizes and shapes of organizations, different types of service provider and different organizational structures that exist within the real-world; making the revised guidance much more relevant to the needs of today’s businesses.

Throughout, the new reference framework, emphasis is placed upon the benefits to the Business, the Business Case and the true value of adopting ITIL ® practices - all in all, a much more mature approach. So is ITIL ® better than Version 2? The simple answer is: yes! In years to come, I believe we will come to think of Version 2 as somewhat quaint. No doubt the guidance will continue to evolve over time, but with Version 3, ITIL ® has finally come of age.

Process Manager & Process Owner Roles

2008-08-05T05:28:00.000-07:00

The 26 ITIL V3 processes each have an Owner and Manager Role associated with them, so there are both Incident Process Manager and Incident Process Owner Roles. These Roles may be combined into a single job of course, so someone working with the job title of - say - the Incident Manager, within an organisation, may be responsible for both Roles.

Process Owner

The responsibilities of the Owner Role include ensuring the Process is Fit for Purpose. This includes the following activities for both the Process and its Metrics ...

Sponsorship
Design
CSI

Process Manager

Much more of a hands-on Role, it is responsible for the Planning and Coordinating activities of the process including ...

Monitoring
Reporting
Supporting the Process Owner

Every one of the 26 processes has these Roles - though they may be combined together; and also combined with other related process Roles, in actuality.

ISMS or SMIS?

2008-07-31T05:33:00.000-07:00

In my copy of the Service Design publication, I find a reference to the Information Security Management System (ISMS) p 142 and also a reference to the Security Management Information System (SMIS) p145. My initial reading of this section led me to believe that they were simply different things: the ISMS being the framework; and the SMIS being the database. The terms may be confusingly similar but it seemed to make sense to me.

However, I have discovered that the TSO have now published a 2nd Impression of the guidance with corrections. In the new version of Service Design, the reference to the database has been changed to ISMS. A bit more research is necessary here to clarify, but after re-reading the section, I believe that this correction could be an error, because the text reference to the ISMS definately refers to the Information Security Framework; wheras the diagram shows the ISMS as a database.

The 4 Ps of Service Strategy

2008-07-30T15:35:00.000-07:00

The 4 Ps of Service Strategy (after Mintzberg) are as follows: Perspective, Plan, Position and Patterns - at least according to ITIL v3. A Strategy can be any of these things or, indeed, any mixture of them.

Perspective - in other words Vision - straightforward enough I think; we all need a Vision.
Plan - again no problem here - a Strategy can be a Plan.
Position - a marketing term - how do we position ourselves in the market - so far so good.

Now then ...

Patterns - that seems an odd one doesn't it?

I have taken to thinking of Patterns as 'the way we do things around here' and so would be essentially related to organisational culture. That's what I thought it meant; and in ITIL, it probably does. However, I have taken a bit of trouble to find the Mintzberg reference.

Here it is ....

For Mintzberg (1994) strategy is a word that we define differently than we practice. For many, the definition of strategy is "a plan," but in actuality strategy appears as a pattern that blends intended responses with responses that emerge out of the changing environment. (The power and importance of emergent strategy increases when compared to the fact that less than ten percent of intended strategies are successfully implemented.)

Strategy may appear as a plan to some, but to others the term is used to describe a position, "namely the determination of particular products in particular markets" (p. 27). For others, strategy implies a perspective or concept of doing business. This last often speaks volumes to the organization's values and culture.

Less positively in his list of "p" terms to define strategy, Mintzberg suggests that strategy is used to mean ploy, or a "specific maneuver intended to outwit an opponent or competitor" (p. 29)

Source: New York: The Free Press, 1994 - Henry Mintzberg

So, as you can see, in Mintzberg's mind the 4th P was actually Ploy. Now to me, that makes much more sense in terms of strategy. A ploy is an attempt to gain a competitive advantage by means of taking some identifiable action.

As you can also see, Mintzberg does refer to Patterns, but his meaning is slightly different to ITIL's, in that he is contrasting emergent strategy with planned strategy in his use of the term.

This does not represent a great problem, as such, but perhaps it does help a little to understand why people tend to struggle with the concept of Patterns being an intended strategy.

Publication Covers

2008-07-28T22:58:00.000-07:00

At the last itSMF conference, I attended a session that was run by one of the co-authors who wrote the Service Transition book. He began his session with a story about Sharon Taylor, the chief architect of ITIL V3. She had apparently asked how to come up with a reason for the image that had been selected for the front of the Service Transition publication.

He spent a few minutes explaining that the image was an x-ray picture of peas in a apod and went to to say that no two peas in a pod were alike; and, similarly, no two transitions were ever alike. He then went on to say that when he announced this revelation to Sharon, her response was that she had only been joking in the first place! It was a good way to start because it got the speaker a few laughs.

Anyhow, for some time now, I have been wondering why these images were actually chosen for the ITIL V3 publication frontispieces. So here is my own explanation for the pictures. They are not the official reasons; just the product of my own mind.

1. Service Strategy: image - Leaf - this book is about the future of the business, so the image relates to growth.

2. Service Design: image - Nautilus - if ever something in the natural world actually looked like it had been designed, it is surely this design icon.

3. Service Transition: image - Peas - peas are seeds. You plant peas and they give birth to the next generation - a transition.

4. Service Operation: image - Flower - represents the ultimate flowering of the operation's IT services.

5. Continual Service Improvement (CSI):image - Starfish (5 tentacles) - represents reaching out into the 5 phases of the Lifecycle implying that CSI runs right through the guidance.

There you have it - you may disagree, but I think it's probably close!

OSA Capabilities Exam

2008-07-26T00:08:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, I sat one of the very first OSA Capabilities examinations - again, as a favour to ISEB/APMG to provide them with feedback about the new exams. As before, I have no idea if I passed or failed, but also, as before, I felt I did ok. Anyway, here is a little reflection on the experience.

There were 8 complex multi-choice questions; and they were all scenario-based. The idea is to get people to recognise the specifics of a situation and prescribe responses based on their ITIL knowledge. It is, of course trying to test whether or not the candidate can apply the ITIL theory - not just regurgitate it.

By and large, I felt the questions were pretty fair; and, actually, I felt that this exam was slightly better that the SOA exam I sat last week. There was one question that really got me thinking though. Of course I cannot say what it actually was, but it really did have me going over the material again and again until I finally decided upon an answer, finally relying on the old, tried and trusted, elimination method.

How successful complex muti-choice will be in the future remains to be seen. It is inevitable that the format is here to stay - we probably can't do anything about that - but reading through a scenario and a fairly lengthy set of options looking for the bit that doesn't fit in with the guidance, for me, lacks something.

It is not my intention to knock ISEB or APMG, who are doing their best to get these new exams right before they are launched. But, if we are to continue with the format , in my humble opinion, what is needed is a real break-through in our collective-thinking about how to structure multi-choice exams.

Governance

2008-07-25T02:05:00.001-07:00

Do you remember the Herald of Free Enterprise tragedy - the ferry that sailed with the bow-doors open and consequently sank? Well, ask your self this question: was it the policy of the organisation to sail with the bow doors open or not? The answer is 'no' - however, it was common practice at the time. I think this sad story perfectly illustrates the importance of the role of governance. It is one thing for an organisation to have a policy; it is another to get people to follow it - that is the role of governance.

Of course, organisations have different categories of policies: some policies concern the strategy of the organisation - how it will achieve it's vision, mission and goals. These policies are the concern of a category known as Business Governance. Other organisational policies deal with things like fairness, ethics, openness etc - these policies are the domain of Corporate Governance. Standards such as Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) address the area of Corporate Governance.

Enterprise Governance - a fairly new term - is a method of structuring an organisation in order to balance the concerns of Corporate Governance and Business Governance. In other words, Enterprise Governance is a top-level term encompassing both Business and Corporate Governance.

That brings us to IT Governance which is the province of ITIL. Many ITIL V3 processes are actually classified as Governance Processes and some others play an important role in Governance. IT Governance then concerns IT Policies. This involves actually having policies in IT that are well documented, widely communicated and are aligned with Corporate and Business policies.

Ensuring that IT policies are adopted and process-based working methods are followed - what might be considered to be the bread and butter of ITIL - can therefore be seen as a method of achieving IT Governance.

Goals and Objectives

2008-07-23T02:22:00.000-07:00

In ITIL V3, we constantly come across references to both Goals and Objectives in the guidance; and often people will ask what the difference is between these things. I did a bit Googling around the subject; and found a consensus that the difference is that Goals are broader, longer-term aims; whereas Objectives are specific, quantifiable, realistic targets that measure the accomplishment of a goal over time.

Well, after teaching for much of my life that Goals are SMART affairs i.e.

S - Specific

M - Measurable

A - Achievable

R - Realistic

T - Timetabled

... it comes as a bit of a surprise to me! Perhaps it comes as a bit of a surprise to you too. Anyway, that appears to be the case, not just in ITIL, but in other areas and disciplines and methodologies, such as TQM.

Let's take Service Transition just as an example here ...

Service Transition Goals (include)

* Set customer expectations
* Enable the business to integrate a release into their processes and services
* Reduce variations in the predicted and actual outcome

Service Transition Objectives (include)

* Plan and manage changes
* Increase satisfaction
* Reduce impact on business operations

Applying the SMART test, You can see that the Goals are less tangible, more broad affairs whereas the Objectives are a bit more specific and measurable. So for anyone struggling with the difference, that is what is meant.

Good Practice and Best Practice

2008-07-22T11:36:00.001-07:00

ITIL V2 guidance was always considered to be documented Best Practice. The V3 publications are billed, however, as Good Practice. Does this suggest that V2 was better than V3? Clearly this is not the intention: so what's going on here?

ITIL V3 embraces, aggregates and integrates many complementary ideas and working practices into a framework that should be adapted to organisational needs. Such adaptation - always a central theme of ITIL - means that one implementation of Service Management may well differ markedly from another.

Despite such differences, implementations of Service Management that are both fit for purpose and fit for use are representations of Good Practice and might therefore be classed as ITIL conformant. Best Practice is an ideal we may strive toward, but Good Practice is what we actually do; and ITIL is indeed a source of Good Practice.

Personally I feel the change is a good move because the phrase Best Practice semantically suggests you cannot improve upon it; and that's never been a part of the ITIL philosophy. The phrase Good Practice however fits much better - at least in my mind - with the notion of CSI (Continual Service Improvement).

SOA Capabilities Exam

2008-07-16T10:58:00.000-07:00

Well, today I sat a dummy SOA (Service Offerings and Agreements) Exam; basically, as a favour to ISEB, with the intention of providing feedback on the exam itself. So, as one of the first people in the world to take the exam, I thought I would provide a quick report on what you might expect if and when you get around to taking it yourself.

Well, it's a multi-choice exam as they all tend to be (ITIL V3 anyway) these days. There were 8 questions and there were a number of scenarios/case studies upon which the questions were based - I believe they call it complex multi-choice. All things considered, I think I did ok, however, I will not be able to find out whether or not I passed or failed. The results simply go into ISEB's stats to help them with the development of the exam itself.

My main concern is over questions that seek to test whether or not the candidate can remember detail from the publications. My own view is that such ability is largely irrelevant. If I want to know what should be in an OLA for example, I would simply open the book and read the guidance. In my opinion, that's exactly what it's there for! By the way, I am not saying that was one of the questions - this is just an example to illustrate my point.

It is of course very difficult to ascend Bloom's Taxonomy and test the ability to Apply and/or Evaluate information in the context of a multi-choice exam; no matter how complex and scenario-based you decide to make your questions. That is the great difficulty and also the great challenge as we inevitably move toward the complex multi-choice format for ITIL Exams.

ISEB, to their credit, are doing what they can right now to iron-out difficilties with the Capability Exams - that is exactly why I sat the Exam today. However, I personally think that much more thought is required to really give the new qualification scheme the credibility it seeks for itself. I don't profess to have answers to the difficulties posed by multi-choice exams and, I guess, such difficulties are widely recognised too, but try we must for the sake of those who follow.

Utility, Warranty, Functionality & 1/4" Drills

2008-06-13T05:51:00.000-07:00

Well, I am very grateful to Sharon Dale for pointing out to me that the terms Utility and Warranty do not - according to the new Key Element Guides (KEGS) from the OGC - correspond to the terms Functional and Non-Functional.

A quick check in the new Service Strategy KEG and - what do you know - the author does specifically point this out. Functional and Non-Functional, he says, relate to the drill; whereas Utility and Warranty refer to the hole.

Now what's all this talk about drills and holes? Well, here is a lovely quote from the Service Strategy publication:

"People don't want 1/4" drills, they want 1/4" holes"

I must confess, I began to imagine walking around Homebase looking for someone ready to purchase a drill. In my mind, I found such a person, walked up to him and asked,

"What are you buying that drill for?"

"Because I need a 1/4" drill", he answered.

"Ah, I think I can help you there", I said, "you see, you really don't want a 1/4" drill - you actually want a 1/4" hole!"

"Oh - I didn't realise the asylum was having an outing today", he replied.

Now then, lets get back to the point of all this! What it is really trying to say is that what people want (the hole in the analogy) is an outcome; and the terms Utility and Warranty are used to describe aspects of that outcome. Utility is what the customer gets; Warranty is how it is delivered.

Sticking with the analogy, the thing that produces the hole (the drill) is effectively the service in our terms; and the terms Functional and Non-Functional refer to that.

From Wikipedia ...

A system may be required to present the user with a display of the number of records in a database. This is a functional requirement. How up-to-date this number needs to be is a non-functional requirement.

OK - so hopefully that clears up the matter; at least for the time being.

The OGC Logo - Oooops!

2008-06-02T11:46:00.000-07:00

Well I don't know if you saw it on Have I got News for You? but if you didn't, it appears the OGC have dropped a bit of a ... how do you say it politely ... faux pas - yes that would be it!

Above is the OGC logo!

It all looks very nice, but you have to wonder if someone actually did it on purpose because when you rotate it through 90 degrees ... you get a bit of a surprise!

Now I don't think it requires too much commenting on - do you?

Actually, I would rather like to think of someone with a bit of a sense of humour perhaps doing it on purpose. We could do with a bit of humour in those books don't you think?

The Service Package

2008-05-15T09:09:00.000-07:00

In ITIL V3 The Service Package consists of a Core Service Package and one or more Service Level Packages. These combine to provide a Differentiated Offering. Service Level Packages are ways of differentiating the offering by providing specific units of Utility and/or Warranty for a given service.

Utility (fitness for purpose) is the term given to describe the functionality of an IT Service; whereas Warranty (fitness for use) is used to describe the non-functional aspects of the service; for example, availability, security, continuity and capacity.

Value is created when a service is both:

Fit for Purpose

- AND -

Fit for Use

The Service Package itself is an output of the Service Strategy phase of the Lifecycle. However, the publication does not seem to identify any particular process as being responsible for its production. This is something that has been on my mind for a little time now. You could certainly make a case for several processes being involved in its creation: Strategy Generation, of course, but also Demand Management and Service Portfolio Management.

It may be that all of these processes are involved in the construction of the Service Package: Demand Management from the 'what does the customer want' perspective; Strategy Generation in the 'Develop the Offerings' step within the process; and Service Portfolio Management which is where a service really begins its life.

This subject is something we will need to return to in the future. More clarity is most certainly required, I feel, around the subject of the Service Package.

ITIL Factoids

2008-04-12T23:52:00.001-07:00

"Someone said the last person to know everything was the Librarian of Alexandria". - Source: The IT Skeptic

I actually heard exactly the same factoid some time ago, but it was concerning Leonardo Da Vinci! It just goes to show that just because it sounds good doesn't make it so!

As usual the IT Skeptic doesn't mix his words when talking about the spread of information via internet memes.

It is certainly true that people want to spread the word about the growth and acceptance of ITIL. Many of those people actually produce or write for internet Blogs; and much of their source material comes from other bloggers or from web sources.

So, in this new age of blogging, we need to think carefully about apparent facts and how they are propagated. Just because something is in print, does not make it so - especially in these days of the web!

Free Exam Questions

2008-04-09T00:14:00.000-07:00

I had intended, at some future stage, to put together a list of sites where you could access sample Version 3 exam questions. Well it seems our friend the IT Skeptic has made a nice little start on that project.

So for now, here are eight sources for ITIL Version 3 exam questions ...

Exam Questions

I also notice he has some Version 2 sites there too so you can use them as preparation for your ITIL Version 2 and/or Version 3 Foundation examination.

If you have difficulty with any of these questions, you can post your questions here and I will answer them for you.

ITIL Game

2008-03-27T16:41:00.000-07:00

Just recently I came across this free online game ...

ITIL Game

It looks very professional and I was, at first, excited to see a free ITIL resource that might benefit my visitors. Having now had a brief 'play' with the thing, I am left feeling that it does not really cut the mustard.

It's - quite naturally - a marketing tool and so it has some advertising embedded which is a bit of a shame. However, if you have a few minutes over coffee, I suggest you go over there and have yourself a bit of a laugh!

Request Fulfillment

2008-03-26T00:00:00.000-07:00

This year the question even got more confusing with the release of ITIL V3 which dictated that the “Password Reset” is not an Incident which is what I thought it was for the last nine years and now calls it a Service Request. The premise being that an Incident is a service impacting event.

Source: Troy DuMoulin's Blog

ITIL V3 has deliberately changed the definition of an incident and introduced new processes called Request Fulfillment to handle things like password resets; and Event Management to handle changes of state in the infrastructure e.g. warning messages.

Personally, I like the idea. The reason is simple - it makes for better incident stats! In V2, an incident was actually defined as an event: some ... event that is not part of the normal operation of the system ... was the actual phrase.

However, in V3, an incident concerns an impact on the quality of the service; something that an event does not actually do!

Similarly, password resets are not really incidents. They, of course, need to be logged and correctly handled, but keeping them out of your incident stats has to be desirable when it comes to subsequent analysis; and that's what the request fulfillment process is there for.

Naturally, the whole Adapt and Adopt philosophy of ITIL means that you can, if you wish, continue to handle service requests through your incident management process - just as you did in V2. If that approach suits your operation for some reason, then just do it! In the short term, you might have to do that because of a limitation within the Service Desk tool.

In the future, I think we will come to see the introduction of these two new processes as progress.

Enterprise Architecture - Pt 2

2008-03-20T07:23:00.001-07:00

In the Service Design publication, we find ITIL does have something to say about Enterprise Architecture. It actually quotes Gartner's definition of Enterprise Architecture ...

The process of translating business vision and strategy into effective enterprise change, by creating, communicating and improving key principles and models that describe the enterprise's future states and enables its evolution.

There is a complete table of Enterprise Architecture frameworks included, some of which are proprietary; and some of which are non-proprietary ...

- ARIS
- BredeMeyer
- BTEP
- C4ISR
- Catalyst
- CIMOSA
- Gartner
- EAP
- E2AF
- FEA
- GERAM
- IAF
- Forrester
- RM-ODP
- TAFIM
- TEAF
- TOGAF
- Zachman

All of these frameworks include guidance on processes, organisational structures, policies, governance and management.

The ITIL V3 Service Design book also includes guidance on the same areas, so it appears that the ITIL view is that Enterprise Architecture forms an integral part of the Service Management discipline.

Enterprise Architecture

2008-03-20T00:24:00.000-07:00

Recently, I became aware of the term Enterprise Architecture as having meaning outside of the context of ITIL; so I have been doing a bit of research into its relationship with ITIL. There are many different definitions of Enterprise Architecture on the web; and there appears to be quite a bit of confusion as to exactly what it is: some seem to think it is ITIL under a different name; others vehemently oppose that view.

First, take a look at this site - the Enterprise Architecture Institute - which is focussed on the theme; and notice the logo for a start! This looks very similar to the ITIL V3 model doesn't it? Now take a closer look at the logo and what do we find ...

* People
* Process
* Technology
* Business

Doesn't that sound familiar?

Now take a look at this article at The Content Economy, in which Casimir Artmann states ...

If you ask five persons, “What is Enterprise Architecture”, will you [sic] probably get five different answers depending on their background.

He goes on to say that ...

Architecture is the art of matching requirements with constraints in complex situations.

Now that language is very-much the same language as ITIL v3 isn't it!

The history of Enterprise Architecture apparently begins with the Zachman framework in the 1980s; the origins of ITIL (what is now referred to as V1) also begin in the 1980s. So it seems we have two separate frameworks which are distinct but which also cover a lot of common ground and are related to the same organisational issues - and which appear to be converging.

My own perception is that ITIL comes at the subject more from the infrastructure side working towards the needs of the business. Hence its original language of alignment of IT and the business - something which is being gradually abandoned in V3 in favour of the idea of integration with the business. By contrast, Enterprise Architecture seems to approach the same ground from the business perspective.

To my mind at least, ITIL v3 seems to draw quite a bit from the Enterprise Architecture approach.

Service Definitions

2008-03-12T00:46:00.000-07:00

There may have been some confusion in certain quarters about the inclusion of three separate definitions for services in the new V3 Glossary. We now have separate definitions for service, IT service and Business Service. For example, here is a comment from a well-respected blog focussed on ITIL V3 ...

"Now here's where the confusion starts, because what is now actually being meant when someone uses the term business service? Due to its ambiguous meaning you now always need to clarify the context in which the term business service is being used."

Source: Service Definitions

The writer raises an important point which I would like to deal with here. The key to understanding the differences between the Business Service and the IT Service in V3 depends upon the Service Provider Type.

There are three types of Service Provider recognised by ITIL V3 ...

Type I - Single Internal Customer
Type II - Multiple Internal Customers
Type III - External Customer

For a Type III provider, the Business is IT; whereas for Types I and II, IT Services underpin Business Services and processes - and that is the key to understanding why these separate definitions exist in the Glossary.

So a Business Service can also be an IT Service - it really depends upon the organisation and what it actually does. However, in many cases, business and IT services will be completely different; with IT underpinning the services the Business offers to its customers.

Apollo 13 Simulation

2008-03-11T15:28:00.000-07:00

After experiencing the thrill of playing the Apollo 13 Game - a Business Simulation by Gameworking based in the Netherlands - and reliving the same exhilaration I felt as a child when the real astronauts splashed-down, I wanted to share some observations about the experience.

In this simulation, players participate in a reenactment of the Apollo 13 mission - the most successful failure in the history of NASA. All of the problems the real crew experienced need to be identified and solved in order for the participating team to recreate NASA's greatest triumph - getting the crew back to Earth safely.

It is quite a challenge even if you know the real story and already understand how the various problems during the real Apollo 13 mission were actually solved. It requires participants to rapidly develop team-working abilities, excellent communication practices, understanding and trust to achieve the revised mission goal of saving the crew.

The game has many applications - including helping to deal with the matter of internal resistance to the adoption of ITIL practices - and can certainly help to accelerate learning for operations planning to adopt ITIL.

Foundation Certificate

2008-03-09T03:01:00.000-07:00

The Foundation Syllabus for V3 is much broader - and also shallower - than the older v2 equivalent. It covers the whole 5 books of the guidance; whereas the V2 syllabus only covered 2 of the 9 books (7 subjects) in the v2 library; and only 10 processes! The syllabus of the foundation course now makes it a bit tougher, in my opinion, for people coming across ITIL for the first time because the course is still only 3 days in length.

The V3 model is multi-faceted and rich - a significant step in the right direction for the guidance itself, but with 27 processes now to consider and an additional 3 Functions - making 4 Function now in total - there is plenty for candidates to get to grips with.

Naturally, achieving a good overview is an important first step to understanding the Framework, so if you are intending to do an ITIL Foundation course in the near future, I would suggest you get hold of a copy of the Introductory Overview (available here as a PDF download)and study it before you attend. The concept of the Service Lifecycle is not difficult, but it is an extra dimension that was not present in the V2 course; and it can take a little time to come to terms with its full significance.

An Introductory Overview

2008-03-04T22:12:00.000-08:00

The long-awaited Introductory Overview for v3 is finally here and you can now download the PDF complete free here ...

Introductory Overview

Amongst other things, the overview finally settles the matter of how many processes there actually are in v3 - and it turns out to be 26.

The guide is published by the UK Chapter of the itSMF; and was written by the following team of authors:

* Alison Cartlidge
* Ashley Hanna
* Colin Rudd
* Ivor Macfarlane
* John Windebank
* Stuart Rance

The guide provides a high-level overview the Core Publications ...

* Service Strategy
* Service Design
* Service Transition
* Service Operation
* Continual Service Improvement

An overview of the ITIL V3 Certification scheme is also included.

New itSMF Forum

2008-03-04T00:18:00.000-08:00

The itSMF has just launched it's new website and forum - you can find a link to it in the Useful V3 Resources list on the right hand site of this site. The new site has a nice clean look and feel about it and I think it looks much more professional than the old one, but the feature I like best about it is the inclusion of a new Forum!

Powered by the wowBB script, written in php by Aycan Gulez, the look and feel of the Forum is excellent! The Forum is surely going to become the place for ITIL professionals to meet online and discuss the future of Service Management, so I suggest you get yourself over there right away, join the Forum and begin to participate in shaping the future of the framework.

Known Error

2008-03-03T05:24:00.001-08:00

The concept of the Known Error is much the same in V3 as it was in V2 - it is something for which a documented workaround exists in the CMS - Known Errors and workarounds are thus completely related. The Known Error Database (KEDB) is one of the repositories inside the CMS.

The Problem Management process has 2 key aims. Both are outputs of the process: the production of Workarounds; and the production of RFCs. Workarounds are temporary fixes or techniques for working-around an incident. It doesn't mean that an incident is not going to be fixed if there is a work-around in the CMS - though that may sometimes happen. The idea is to get the user back up and running quickly with the provision of a temporary fix whilst the incident is being worked-on.

Problem Management is then also responsible for the resolution of Work-Arounds by raising RFCs (Requests for Change) which go to the Change Management process for permanent resolution. In certain cases - perhaps where the permanent resolution is expensive and the inconvenience is small - the organisation may decide to live with the Work-Around, but in most cases, they are resolved via Change Management.

The CMS

2008-03-02T21:54:00.000-08:00

The Configuration Management System (CMS) is the V3 concept that most closely matches to the v2 concept of the CMDB. In v2, the CMDB contained incidents, problem records, the knowledgebase (KEDB)and so on. All of this not reside in the CMS - a logical entity that is comprised of different physical repositories including possibly more than one CMDB.

So, the CMDB IS still there in V3 and it still contains that useful logical representation of the infrastructure. However, V3 has caught-up with the reality of doing what was advocated in V2; and recognises that the true achievement of the functionality described requires the integration of a number of data sources.

Other databases within the CMS include the AMIS (Availability Management Database), the CMIS (Capacity Management Database)which replaced the CDB and the SMIS (Security Management Database). In addition, we now have the DML (definitive Media Library) which replaces the old DSL (Definitive Software Library). By the way, the DHS (Definitive Hardware Store) seems to have disappeared from V3!

The CMS itself now resides within the SKMS (Service Knowledge Management System) along with the Service Portfolio - both new concepts in V3.

Release Management

2008-02-10T22:43:00.000-08:00

In V3 the process is known as Release and Deployment Management but, apart from the name change, the Release management process itself remains pretty much unchanged. The process includes all of the following elements …

• Build
• Configure
• Schedule
• Plan
• Communicate
• Prepare
• Distribute
• Install

What is a major difference in the V3 process is the testing procedure – which is now based on the idea of the V Model. The V Model is a simple but effective idea: you define the tests you will subsequently carry out during build and release, in the design phase of the lifecycle.

There are many different levels of testing you could do when implementing a release including: you can test the final product (Service Acceptance Testing); you can test the release; you can test the build etc. The idea of testing at different levels of the build and release is the essence of the V Model.

The most common reasons for the failure of a release have always been insufficient testing – now we have additional guidance on how to create an effective testing programme.

The CMDB

2008-02-08T21:20:00.000-08:00

The concept of the Configuration Management Database (CMDB) is not exceedingly difficult to comprehend, particularly as it applies to the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). However, the actual implementation of a CMDB and clearly demonstrating value can introduce subtle complexities as a result of competing business objectives and internal IT requirements.

But as a standard and trusted data source, even the simplest of CMDB’s can provide a means for improving internal communications and dialogue with IT customers. Even small-scale CMDB deployments could potentially help IT yield measurable benefits in operational effectiveness, cost efficiencies and improve the overall quality of service. But perhaps most importantly, the CMDB provides an early foundation for changing a reactive IT culture into a proactive service provider.

Establishing an initial IT framework and baseline of data through the deployment of a simple, tactical CMDB tool can help promote a more cohesive IT Service Management culture.

CMDB: Simply Defined

In the real world, a banking customer would not write a check without first ensuring there is enough money in their account. Additionally, these same customers need to rely on their banks to accurately record their deposits and withdrawals. Each time money is withdrawn or deposited, the customer assumes the transaction was successful and any changes to the account balance were precisely updated. This level of accuracy is required to determine how much money needs to reside in the account at any given time to cover the customer’s daily expenses.

Unfortunately, IT decisions are not always based on a similar level of data integrity, and its common place to see one IT group interfere with another internal group, redundantly performing operational tasks or even making assumptions about who is handling a specific IT support activity. The IT Security Team, for example, may pick a specific time to apply patches to a cluster of servers, inadvertently disrupting automated database backups taking place on those same servers at the same time.

From a proactive standpoint, the same IT Security Team can establish an improved process for internal communications, identify the owners of the target server group and notify them prior to deployment-- alleviating issues with subsequent service support and delivery activities.

A CMDB provides a common repository for IT configuration items (CI), their attributes and relationships, offering a single source of record and a logical model of the IT infrastructure as it related to IT services. As a proactive management tool, the CMDB can provide accountability and ownership of CIs, improving the identification, verification and management of the IT infrastructure.

Why Use a CMDB?

This concept of a CMDB serving as single source of data is one of its greatest strengths-- without a central repository for configuration information, IT organizations continue to work in silos, and fail to align activities with business objectives. A basic Configuration Management (CM) process and toolset (i.e. CMDB) can enable teams to better communicate and coordinate processes by establishing a common data repository.

The CMDB breaks down barriers between IT and the business, removing IT silos and creating a higher level of synergy between people, processes and supporting technologies.

Put another way, how can you manage and improve IT services if you don't know what equipment you have, where it is, how it’s connected and the impact of changing it? It is suggested that 80% of critical system outages are the result of people or process failure, with the main proponent being that of changes to the IT environment. This is exacerbated by the fact that planning activities derived from inadequate sources of information drive a path to failure. Additionally, subsequent recovery processes are further hampered by those same inadequate data stores.

Since the CMDB provides the logical model for the IT infrastructure and related services, organizations can more easily manage configuration items and their relationships with other entities and services. Some of the primary benefits a CMDB can provide from the start are related to the areas of proactive change management, security and IT compliance.

Less Reactive, More Proactive Management. A CMDB, coupled with an effective Change Management process, can provide the ability to more effectively manage changes within the IT environment. Since the number of IT changes in an environment will increase as the infrastructure becomes more complex, having a central repository of all configuration information and relationships can help avoid downtime through better planning and understanding of the impact of those changes on the rest of the computing environment.

Improved Security Deployment and Assessment of Risk. When assessing a known vulnerability on a server, CMDB information can be used to assess risk based on both the severity of a patch, as well as the business context of the vulnerability. This capability allows IT organizations to prioritize patches that support the business and ensure that critical systems are secured first.

More Accurate and Streamlined Compliance. To better facilitate Sarbanes-Oxley and HIPAA initiatives, IT organizations can tap into the CMDB data model to ensure that asset information is accurate and complete. Additionally, the CMDB coupled with the assignment of accountable CI owners and auditors can better enable IT organizations to demonstrate better internal controls. Tracking CIs, relationships and validating their accuracy through continuous monitoring can provide a higher level of assurance that IT systems and related components are controlled and managed in accordance with legislative requirements.

Other advantages of deploying and optimizing a standard CM process and supporting CMDB toolset may include:

* Centralize storage of physical and logical infrastructure information
* Establish clear ownership and accountability for IT components
* Allow more efficient planning and support of the IT infrastructure
* Highlight technical inefficiencies for correction and/or improvement
* Provide a foundation for standard ITIL-based service management (ITSM)
* Compliment regulatory compliance and auditing activities
* Decrease the cost of patching, repairing and troubleshooting
* Minimize downtime and improve customer responsiveness
* Decrease redundancy of IT operational support activities
* Support proactive Problem Management initiatives
* Track intangible attributes of IT assets and their relationships
* Fine-tune Incident Management and operational support
* Allow for more efficient handling of data center and/or IT asset migrations
* Articulate the business context of IT processes and associated activities
* Proactively assess inherent risk from potential IT service failures
* Support Business and IT Service Continuity (ITSCM) initiatives
* Promote IT standards to the broader IT community
* Provide a service-oriented view of the IT infrastructure
* Foster an environment of continuous improvement

Implementing a CMDB

Deployment of a CMDB can only be accomplished in parallel with a Configuration Management process. Therefore, IT organizations need to establish goals, create a baseline and foster an environment of continuous improvement. In turn, related activities will help IT management and supporting personnel to gain momentum and demonstrate the value of standard policies, processes and supporting procedures.

In order to establish an effective Configuration Management process, process stakeholders need to ensure that any data associated with core IT operational processes is appropriately stored and managed. Guaranteeing the integrity, validity, accuracy and completeness of CM data is no small task, and requires certain levels of accountability and ownership in order to properly manage the data.

Therefore, deployment of a CMDB requires careful consideration of who owns and is accountable for the operational components of the repository itself. At a minimum, the following Key Goal Indicators (KGI) should be reviewed, established and/or communicated to all stakeholders prior to commencing any CM strategy or CMDB implementation:

- Establish process ownership and executive sponsorship for the Configuration Management process

- Ensure accountability for the setup, ongoing maintenance and support of CMDB related hardware and components

- Ensure network availability, throughput, capacity and access to CMDB related resources is provided

- Implement regular, scheduled backup of data and related files required for continuous, reliable CMDB operation

- Plan for timely audit and validation of CMDB data to ensure ongoing accuracy of IT environment

- Establish a continuous improvement program specific to CM that focuses on the people driving the process

Bottom Line: For many organizations, simply establishing a starting point for a CMDB can greatly help facilitate effective awareness and maturity of the Configuration Management process. However, incorporating too much detail during an initial CMDB deployment can add significant cost to the process and exceed the actual (or perceived) value it provides. In the end, early adopters of CMDB tools that take a tactical, realistic approach to deployment will be rewarded with more rapid realization of IT service support and delivery efficiencies.

Patrick Moore is an independent consultant and freelance technical writer and can be reached at moorep@itilworx.com (http://www.itilworx.com).

Six Sigma

2008-02-07T22:27:00.000-08:00

Over the past few years, the ITIL has helped many IT companies to form long-lasting and fruitful working relationships with their customers through the use of highly effective tools such as Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and Operational Level Agreements (OLAs). Both these tools are quite effective, but the problem is that they deliver the desired results only when they are properly implemented. The inability to use the tools in the prescribed manner can render them completely useless - and in the worst case scenario, can even lead to conflicts between the IT company and its customers.

This is why it becomes necessary to implement proven process improvement methodologies such as Six Sigma that help in deriving the maximum benefits from a proposed change in business processes, which in this case are the SLAs and OLAs.

Why Six Sigma?

It is necessary to utilize Six Sigma concepts and methodologies while drafting SLAs and OLAs because most business processes that are in use are quite complex. It is very difficult to predict the variations in outcome based solely on personal experience, past records, or the gut feelings of the manager.

Since SLAs and OLAs are based on quality requirements of the customers, it makes sense to use a data driven approach such as Six Sigma to make changes in a given business process. This way, IT companies can ensure that the outcome of the proposed changes finds favor with the requirements of customers as well as the promises made by the company itself.

Using Advanced Six Sigma Simulation Tools

If past data related to a business process is available, then an IT company can easily make a few calculations based on exact customer requirements and draft the SLA and OLA. However, the same process becomes quite difficult when the SLAs and OLAs are to be drafted based on a customer requirement that would compel the company to design and use a completely new business process. This is where IT companies need Six Sigma the most, because it helps in selecting the most appropriate solution from available options.

Armed with advanced simulation tools, Six Sigma can easily test the feasibility of the proposed business process. If there is more than a single design proposal, then also it will not be a problem because the Six Sigma simulation tools can easily identify which design will offer the maximum benefits, both to the company and the customer. Once this is done, the company will have no problems whatsoever in drafting the SLAs and OLAs because after the simulation, it is quite certain that the proposed changes or the newly proposed process design will deliver the desired results as specified in the two agreements.

It is not necessary to contest the effectiveness of Six Sigma in ITIL Service Level Management simply because it is something that is common knowledge nowadays. For evidence, you just have to look at the number of IT companies that have successfully implemented Six Sigma alongside ITIL and are reaping benefits such as substantial increase in clientele, customer satisfaction levels, and most importantly - profitability.

Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solutions - Six Sigma Online ( http://www.sixsigmaonline.org ) offers online six sigma training and certification classes for lean six sigma, black belts, green belts, and yellow belts.

ITIL Certification

2008-02-06T00:08:00.000-08:00

The new ITIL V3 certification scheme uses a similar model to the older version 2 scheme in that, there are two separate paths open to candidates once the foundation certificate is obtained.

In version 2 these paths were called:

Service Manager’s Certificate
Practitioner’s Certificate

The V2 Service Manager’s Certificate – obtained by passing 2 x 3 hour closed-book examinations – maintained an overall balance of the 10 processes in the old Red and Blue Books. The Practitioner’s Certificate was a role-based examination; and the original idea was that you could become a Practitioner for any of the 10 processes.

In the new scheme, the equivalent of the Practitioner’s Certificates are known as Capabilities Modules; and the broad equivalent of the old Manager’s Certificate are called Lifecycle Modules. In order to attend either set of course-modules, you need to have completed a V3 Foundation or a V2 Foundation plus the relevant bridging course – and have passed the associated exams.

In the V3 certification scheme, you can obtain the new ITIL Diploma qualification by collecting points from the above modules. Each of the Capabilities and Lifecycle modules are worth 3 or 4 points each; and you need to collect 18 points by amassing the credits. This qualifies you to sit a Unification Course and Exam which is worth a further 4 points; and results in the award of the Diploma.

The points system works like this:

V3 Foundation – 2 Points
Lifecycle Modules – 3 Points Each
Capability Modules – 4 Points Each
Unification Course – 4 Points

You need 22 Points for the V3 Diploma qualification. Already we are seeing many companies, both within the public and private sectors, requiring ITIL qualifications or at least some exposure to ITIL. There is no question about it at all, this new qualification – the ITIL V3 Diploma – is going to become the must-have qualification for IT professionals.

Strategy Generation Process

2008-02-02T01:22:00.000-08:00

Described elsewhere on the web as a ‘mystery process’ because is it perhaps not entirely clear from the Service Strategy publication that it is indeed a process, the activities of the process appear to be up for some debate. Again elsewhere, the four main activities of Strategy Generation appear to many to be the main candidates for the activities of this process:

4 Main Activities of Strategy Generation

Define the Market
Develop the Offerings
Develop Strategic Assets
Prepare for Execution

However, we take a different view: you will find what we consider to be the steps of the process in the Service Strategy book on page 83. If you look carefully at the diagram on that page, it reveals the process is derived from Mintzberg’s 4 Ps:

Determine Perspective
Form a Position
Craft a Plan
Adopt Patterns of Action

It can clearly be seen from the diagram that we have what looks like a process; the heading (it’s there if you look) says ‘strategy generation, evaluation and selection'; and we can also see the output is shown as a Service Strategy.

ITIL Processes

2008-01-29T23:10:00.001-08:00

The ITIL processes are organised in such a way that they may appear in the different books of the guidance. At first this might seem a little confusing, however, remember that the books reflect the Service Lifecycle – that’s the structure of the guidance – so a process may well appear in more than one book. For example, take Capacity Management: you will find the process in the Service Design book, but you will also find operational aspects of the same process in, where else - Service Operations.

So that said, what follows is a list of the 26 ITIL processes organised within the five books of the guidance. The book under which each process is listed is the primary source of reference for that process.

Service Strategy

Strategy Generation
Financial Management
Service Portfolio Management
Demand Management

Service Design

Capacity Management
ITSCM
Availability Management
Service Catalogue Management
Information Security management
Service Level Management
Supplier Management

Service Transition

Transition Planning
Release & Deployment Management
Evaluation and Early Life Support
Service Validation
Service Asset & Configuration Management
Change Management
Knowledge Management

Service Operations

Problem Management
Incident management
Request Fulfilment
Event Management
Access management

Continual Service Improvement (CSI)

7-Step Improvement Process
Service Measurement
Service Reporting

Continual Service Improvement (CSI)

2008-01-29T05:09:00.000-08:00

The idea of Continual Service Improvement has always been a part of the ITIL philosophy. It was there in the version 2 guidance in the form of the CSIP (Continual Service Improvement Programme) – an activity carried out by the Service Level Management process. The old CSIP is still effectively there – it is now called the CSI Model. However. in version 3, we have a whole book dedicated to the subject.

Based on the ideas of William Edwards Deming (no relation as far as I know) and the famous Deming Cycle – Plan, Do, Check, Act - the idea of improvement is, to a large extent, embedded within the ITIL processes. They all get involved in planning, doing and checking – that is the normality for ITIL processes. It is the final stage in the improvement cycle which is the focus of this publication.

We get a new 7-Step Improvement Process which, in fact, is actually derived from the Deming Cycle; and it makes complete sense when you realise that the doing (in this context) is – measuring.

Here are the steps of the 7-Step Process:

First, connect with the Vision (Not a Step as such)

Define what you should measure
Define what you can measure
Gather the data
Process the data
Analyse the data
Present the data
Implement corrective action

Before the process begins, it is important to reference the organisation’s vision because we are not concerned with improvements just for the sake of them; for maximum benefit we want to implement improvements that contribute to the fulfilment of the mission.

We also get new allied processes for Service Measurement and Reporting. There are lots of existing ITIL processes that already get involved in measuring; and so CSI does not attempt to reinvent the wheel, but rather to make use of the existing data that is already being gathered by other processes for various purposes. The Service Reporting process is concerned with reporting – to the Business/Customer – in the format that is right for the audience; and to the right level of detail.

Service Operation

2008-01-29T00:37:00.001-08:00

Pretty-much the day-job for many IT professionals, the Service Operation phase of the lifecycle includes things like: Incident Management, Problem Management and so on. There are ‘new’ processes in this publication e.g. Event Management and Request Fulfilment; however, there is nothing taxing in here at all.

ITIL V3 is ‘big’ on the idea of creating value for the business. Services are defined as a means of ‘creating value’; one key characteristic of a process is that it ‘creates value’; we deliver value by means of providing services that have both warranty (fitness for use) and utility (fitness for purpose) – more about that in a future post!

Service Operations is where the value is seen by the business! How is that value actually seen? Services run within agreed SLA targets; financial investment in service management delivers a return (ROI); and Service Management (the disciplines itself) becomes a Strategic Asset of the Business.

Service Operations activities relate to maintaining the status-quo; and they are a bit of a balancing act. We strive to balance:

Internal v External Focus
Proactive v Reactive
Cost (of service) v Quality
Stability v Responsiveness

An organisation that is externally focussed has a philosophy of the ‘customer of always right’; whereas one that is internally focussed might have the attitude that ‘you can have any colour you want; as long as it’s black’.

Balancing the benefits of being proactive (fixing things before they are broken) against the churn that is created just by being proactive is an important consideration that requires a balanced approach.

Cost versus Quality is a typical Project Management consideration. The higher the quality of the service we provide, the more the cost of provision – generally. We all want quality services, but they cost money; and the budget dictates that a proper balance must be struck.

Change always involves some kind of risk. Stable environments are what we want – that generally means environments that don’t change. But, of course, our live environments do change – that is the essence of the service lifecycle – so here again we see a balance that must be struck between being responsive to the implementation of change; and being resistant to it.

Service Transition

2008-01-28T00:50:00.000-08:00

The Service Transition phase of the Lifecycle is primarily about Change Management and its related processes. Much of this phase will already be familiar to the IT professional, especially those with familiarity of earlier versions of ITIL.

The book is concerned with the transition of services from the design stage to the operational stage; and the achievement of this transition is a properly controlled and coordinated manner. In order to achieve this, the guidance includes all the necessary process activities related to the planning, build, testing and release of services into the live environment.

A major change in version 3 is the introduction of the V Model – a theoretical model which describes levels of testing to be used in the build and rollout of a release into the live environment. Essentially, the message is that the testing to be carried out at the transition stage should be decided upon in the design stage. The use of such a model ensures that the business (or customer) eventually get what they actually want.

In addition, there are a number of new processes included in the service transition book; related to pre-release planning, service evaluation and validation. The inclusion of more extensive guidance in this area underscores the increased perception of the importance of service transition within the overall discipline. These days, we live with very high levels of change; and must find ways to effectively manage them – these additional processes help to achieve that.

Service Design

2008-01-26T01:43:00.001-08:00

Service Design receives a Service Level Package - an output from Service Stratgey - which defines the specific outcomes and the levels of Utility (functionality) and Warranty (delivery promise) of a service required by the customer.

The purpose this phase (design) of the lifecycle is to translate that information into a comprehensive design document called a Service Design Package. The Service Design Package contains everything needed to take the service forward through the remaining stages of the lifecycle.

The contents of the Service Design Package include:

Requirements - Business Requirements and how and when the service will be used.
Service Design - including Functional Requirements and Service Level Requirements (SLR) i.e. Utility & Warranty.
Organisational Readiness Assessment - report covering new skills, capabilities requred of the organisation.
Service Lifecycle Plan - Overall Plan covering all stages of the Lifecycle.

There are five key aspects to consider when designing - or redesigning - services:

Design of Services
Design of Architecures
Design of Processes
Design of Measurement Methods
Design of Tools

All of the above considerations are taken into account for the introduction of new services and/or the redesign of existing services and they are all included in the detail of the Service Design Package.

Service Strategy

2008-01-24T10:32:00.001-08:00

The Service Strategy publication is the part of ITIL that links up with the strategic thinking of the business. There are four processes documented in the Service Strategy volume of the guidance. They are:

Strategy Generation
Financial Management
Service Portfolio Management
Demand Management

The Strategy book seeks to address such questions as:

What Services should we offer; and to whom should we offer them?
How can we differentiate our Service Offerings from competing alternatives?

At the heart of the guidance is the Strategy Generation process; described in the guidance as the four Main Activities of Service Strategy. However, they really are a process; the steps of which are:

Define the Market
Develop the Offerings
Develop Strategic Assets
Prepare for Execution

You can think of Strategy Generation as what might be called the 'mental creation' of the service offerings. In other words, it involves a thorough examination of opportunities, encompassing all the necessary pre-planning activities required, prior to actually getting involved in designing the service. We shall go through each of the steps of the process itself in a future article.

The Service LifeCycle

2008-01-16T09:16:00.000-08:00

The introduction of the Service Lifecycle is the big change in Version 3 of ITIL; and it is fundamentally a change of structure. ITIL is fond of the idea of the lifecycle: incidents have lifecycles, problems have lifecycles and now, in version 3, services have a lifecycle; and the new V3 publications are structured around this concept.

Services are conceived, designed, transitioned into the live environment and then operated for their useful lives; during which time, we seek to continually improve them. Each publication in the V3 library – if we can still legitimately call it a library that is – represents a phase in the service lifecycle.

In Service Strategy, we consider the strategic direction of the organization, seeking to answer such questions as: what services should we offer and to whom; and how do we differentiate our offerings from our competition?

In Service Design, naturally, we design our services, but this publication is not solely concerned with service design. It is also concerned with the design of underlying architectures. Additionally, it designs processes and measurement methods; and lastly, it designs our toolset – the tools we actually utilize to implement Service Management.

Service Transition is essentially about Change Management; transitioning services into the live environment. It is also concerned with all of the paraphernalia that goes along with Change Management including Release Management, Planning and Testing. We will look at the difference between Change and Release Management in a future article.

Service Operation is concerned with the operational side of IT including the likes of Incident Management and Problem Management; as well as a whole bunch of newer concepts such as Event Management which is essentially managing warning messages and alerts.

Finally, Continual Service Improvement (CSI) is about striving to improve services, processes, measurements – the whole discipline – and so is said to operate across the lifecycle. CSI is also concerned with improving itself – i.e. addressing the question of how can we get better at the process of improving things.

ITIL V3 - The Facts

2008-01-14T09:13:00.001-08:00

The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) v3 was released in June 2007, seven years after the last critical ITIL methodology update. With this new update has come a renewed interest in the ITIL framework in general for businesses in the IT field, as well as concerns about what this means for those who were using v2. Before a discussion of the revised ITIL methodology can begin, however, it is important to understand some basic concepts of ITIL, including its benefits.

What is ITIL?

The ITIL methodology was conceived in the 1980s by the United Kingdom's Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency (CCTA), when the organization realized that a more systematic approach to managing the IT infrastructure on which it had become dependent was required. The CCTA has since changed its name to the OGC (Office of Government Commerce), and in addition to creating the ITIL framework, has continued to champion additional products and services that have become standard in both the private and public sectors.

According to the official website, "ITIL is best practice in IT Service Management, developed by OGC and supported by publications, qualifications and an international user group." (1) The library "consists of a series of books giving guidance on the provision of quality IT services, and on the accommodation and environmental facilities needed to support IT." (2)

How Does Use of the ITIL Framework Benefit Businesses Overall?

Over the past 20 years in which the average person has been using computers in the workplace, the nature of end-user complaints has not changed much. To this day, many users feel that technology is confusing, systems are sluggish and inefficient, and response time from support personnel is inconsistent and slow. Typically, IT managers solve these problems by purchasing more tools and hiring more support people, which doesn't always address the root cause.

The ITIL methodology is different. Instead of a solution that involves further financial investments in tools and personnel, which ultimately will give the IT department more issues to manage and juggle, ITIL divides the work into repeatable processes and activities. With this approach, results are measured and then improvement targets are set for efficiency and effectiveness for those activities. Essentially, the ITIL framework provides the structure to work smarter, not harder.

The ITIL framework also represents a solid investment for businesses because it is completely scaleable and entirely platform independent. Therefore, the ITIL methodology can be applicable to both global businesses running the latest and greatest technology as well as to smaller institutions that may be running older systems on a smaller scale.

How Does ITIL v3 Differ from the Previous Version of the ITIL Methodology?

The previous version of the ITIL methodology (v2) was released in 2000, but the sweeping and fast-paced changes to the way businesses leverage technology (Internet applications, e-business, distributed systems, etc.) since that time meant that it was in critical need of an update. In June 2007, the newest version of the ITIL framework was released; v3 takes advantage of the dynamic nature of the web and, in addition to its five core print books, it also provides web-only components and tools. The hope is that the new ITIL framework will make future revisions less cumbersome, as the material on the web can grow more organically than it would be able to if it were only in print form.

At its core, version 3 of the ITIL methodology covers a much broader angle than v2, and it adds service strategy and service lifecycles into the mix to better fit more mature IT organizations. Where the previous ITIL framework focused primarily on processes, v3 now revolves around services and has more emphasis placed on strategy and operations management. As a result, support and delivery processes are now divided over the lifecycles of service design, transition, and operations.

What Does the ITIL Methodology Used in Version 3 Bring to the Table?

Essentially, v3 is much more strategic and aims to reach a new, different audience than earlier releases of the ITIL framework. In v2, the ten processes of the Service Support and Service Delivery books had more of a "bottom up" focus; organizations implemented the modules which offered the most immediate relief, typically starting with support processes and gradually adding delivery processes. But the new ITIL methodology focuses much more heavily on the alignment between IT and business, with a "top down" perspective. A, B, and C level executives will find great value in this new version of the ITIL framework.

In addition, previous versions of the ITIL framework did not have as broad a focus as v3 does. V2 covered processes and the supporting activities for those processes, but it did not offer quite the extended view of how IT fits in with the business, and more specifically, why it needed to. The release of the latest ITIL methodology acknowledges that for businesses to get to the next level, they need to partner with IT to design services.

Version 2 of the ITIL methodology is still viable and will continue to provide usefulness; and some organizations will choose to "not fix it if it ain't broken." However, v3 adds a new, emphatic layer of strategic insight, which mature organizations will find exceedingly valuable.

Are There Any Inherent Challenges with Version 3 of the ITIL Framework?

It is important to note that there is some consensus among industry leaders that the newest ITIL methodology has been found to be more challenging to implement in smaller environments. For this reason, retaining knowledgeable consultants with experience in implementation of the ITIL framework is always a good idea for any organization seeking to improve its IT Service Management capabilities. While ITIL v2 certifications will continue to be considered valid, it is highly recommended that v2-certified individuals enroll in update or bridge courses offered by qualified providers in order to ensure that their knowledge remains up to date.

Conclusion

The release of v3 of the ITIL methodology opens up a great time for executives and IT professionals to begin to explore ITIL in general or to update their certification. Because ITIL v3 focuses on different areas than v2, the new information can be of great benefit to businesses. In addition, ensuring that those in the IT industry have a solid understanding of the latest ITIL framework will lay the groundwork for a speedy adoption of future releases.

1. http://www.itil.co.uk/faqs.htm#11, accessed June 11, 2007.
2. http://www.itil.co.uk/about.htm, accessed June 11, 2007.

About the Author

Jill Knapp is a senior consultant and trainer for Quint Wellington Redwood, a trusted training partner for WestLake Training and Development. Her IT career spans the Big 5 Consulting, Medical, Legal, Financial, Pharmaceutical, dot.com, Fortune 500, Entertainment, Publishing and Retail industries, with consulting expertise in Service Desk implementations, process redesign, outsourcing and technical writing. When she's not traveling for work, Knapp is traveling with her big band, The Industrial Jazz Group. For more information about ITIL training courses offered by WestLake, please visit www.westlaketraining.com.

What is ITIL?

2008-01-13T23:06:00.000-08:00

As a qualified and experienced ITIL Consultant - I'd like to set the record straight on a few points.

The IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is an excellent set of best practices, carefully organized and edited to provide readers with information and structure for how to plan, implement, maintain and improve the service delivered to an organizations customers.

ITIL is owned by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) and is copyright and trademark protected. The IT Service Management Forum (itSMF) is the leading, independent, not for profit, organization that is owned and run by it’s worldwide members – to promote and exploit the benfits of ITIL.

Oftentimes, when people first read one of the core ITIL books; ITIL is always classed as ‘common sense’ particularly by so called practitioners that say to themselves, "yeah, we do that already – so what?"

Well guess what. It IS common sense - but unfortunately it is found all to UNCOMMONLY.

At the heart of ITIL are a set of processes and procedures that any organization can review, customize and configure to their own content. These have been written and enhanced over 15 years from a variety of ITIL/Service/Process experts. This is the whole point of ITIL – it’s a best practice starting point – to be considered, re-worked and carefully implemented into an organization to match that businesses needs. No verbatum, to-the-letter-of-the-book, style implementation will ultimately be more than 50% effective for any organization. Every place is different. Every Business is different. Every customer is different.

Over the last ten years, many thousands of IT Service professionals have provided feedback and helped to enhance the core OGC ITIL texts - so you can rest assured that it is THE #1 place to start when implementing strategic IT Service Management.

Moreover, recently, ISO20000 has been ‘fast tracked’ through the International Standards Committee to become the worldwide standard for IT Service Management. A lot of ISO20000 requires key aspects of ITIL to be implemented, namely IT Service Support and IT Service Delivery processes. Note: ISO20000 does NOT specify that ITIL is a pre-requisite for certification – but it is the logical starting place for best practice adoption.

A few home truths about ITIL - having observed its implementation in various guises into many clients over the last 10 years:-

- It requires investment in time, effort and people’s energy – therefore there’s a cost
- It requires capable and experienced people – people who are ITIL foundation and ITIL managers certified
- It requires a transformation programme to own and guide the effort of many smaller, but still significant projects.
- It requires active, senior buy-in. No buy-in – no ITIL. It’s that harsh.
- It therefore requires to be understood at a senior level and therefore the ROI in ITIL must be deliberately planned and realized
- It's ‘transformational’ change - so that means people change roles; people have new ways of working and communicating; the organization begins to hardwire the voice of the customer into the heart of IT/Technology

Some further considerations:-

- It's tough to do; people play politics with their empires; people protect their functional silo's; people resist change

- It takes time; to plan, to design, to build, to test; to 'DO'

Essentially you have to change the 'planes engine whilst the 'plane is still in flight - meaning – YOU have to transform the way Technology delivers service - without impacting the quality and availability of Service.

ITIL's all about Service. Not Tools. Not Technology. Not Process. In my opinion, they are just by-products of what the end goal is.

[Incidently - there's NO such thing as an ITIL compliant tool. ITIL is a set of best practices - not a 'standard' that can be complied to. Vendors always incorrectly say their tool is 'compliant'. Gartner agrees with me on this.]

ITIL makes you think deeply about who's doing what, when, how, with what tools, how well are they doing, could they do better, how does the customer perceive us... these are just some of the constant questions that are raised EVERYDAY when you are implementing and running an ITIL based Organization.

These are the RIGHT questions for IT Service Success!!

The benefits of ITIL are many - but here are a few of commonly reported ones: -

- ITIL breaks down functional silo's, gets people and information flowing; gets people talking; all for the benefit of the Customer (service recipient).

- ITIL helps to re-organize IT/Technology to be Customer focussed. The roles, responsibilities, information and reporting requirements all converge to push meaningful and timely information towards the right Customer interfaces.

- ITIL makes people think from a Service perspective; not a technology silo perspective.

- ITIL reduces costs and helps with automation to further reduce cost. ITIL also lets you do more with less over time - avoiding future staffing cost increases.

- ITIL can be rolled out in 'groupings' of best practice to achieve organizational 'quick wins'

- ITIL should be fun. A way of doing things around here with people fully involved and included in key decisions.

It boils down to this...

Will the person sitting on a seat do the right thing at the right time at the lowest possible cost - in order to play their part in delivering the service that the customer pays for - keep on doing it right first time - and improve things where-ever possible?

Holy Grail?

No.

Already being achieved?

Absolutely! In lot's of different companies around the world. ITIL's been around for years!!

Further Resources: -

To learn more about various ITIL aspects, visit: - www.ITServiceBlog.com

If you want to research ITIL, try: - http://www.ITServiceToday.com

For an understanding from the OGC, visit: - http://www.ITIL.co.uk

Robin Yearsley is a qualified and experienced ITIL Consultant who continues to provide practical and insightful wisdom to anyone who is considering ITIL for their Organization. Robin has presented at several itSMF events and enjoys nothing more than applying good old fahioned common sense and enthusiasm to assist the Clients he helps each year. Common in all of Robin's articles is the need to express how important people are to the planning, implementation and ultimate success of any ITIL Programme. It's people that make the ultimate difference.

Implementing ITIL

2008-01-13T08:14:00.000-08:00

Any IT manager who wants to pursue the IT Service Management journey by implementing the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) needs to understand two very important factors well in advance.

• The first factor is to have dedicated, trained and committed process owners.

If you want to have a successful Incident Management process which is under continuous improvement, you will need somebody who is ultimately responsible for it’s success and who can dedicate the time and focus to drive it and to make sure it actually happens. A lot of organizations makes one of the following mistakes:

• The process owner is non-existent which means there is nobody dedicated to drive a particular process.

There is a process owner, but he or she is bogged down in day to day reactive activities or other "more important" business-driven projects and thus have no time for unnecessary "red tape" like ITIL.

• There is more than one process owner for a particular process - a classic mistake. The idea of ITIL is to have a single consistent process throughout the organization and having two head cooks in this "process kitchen" is sure to mess up the cake. Who will ultimately be responsible if there is more than one owner? Major companies who have successfully implemented ITIL have only one process owner throughout the company, even if there are numerous divisions spread across the globe. This ensures that the process is consistent throughout all divisions and helps the break down barriers between departments and divisions.

The primary problem here, is that companies do not want to spend the money on dedicate resources for process owners. Obviously a process owner can have a split role, doing other work as well, especially in smaller companies. As long as that other role is not of a reactive firefighting nature. One person can also be made responsible for more than one process. Although these processes should be of similar focus. The Change, Configuration and Release roles can be shared by one person in small companies for example. I believe in a large corporate these roles should be fulfilled by dedicated people, and companies who does not fill these roles are not serious enough about ITIL and is most probably lacking the management commitment.

Which brings us to the second, but probably the most important critical success factor, namely management commitment?

If you are responsible for an ITIL implementation, make sure you have commitment from the top; otherwise ITIL might just become another failed IT project throwing time and money down the drain.

And management commitment does not mean, "the manager says his committed". The manager must walk and talk ITIL and continuously show his commitment. In practical terms this means empowering staff through professional training, tools etc., appointing the right people in the right roles and managing by means of ITIL, e.g. demanding the right reports and taking action...

Kotter's 8 steps to organizational change is actually a good guideline for top management to follow.

Management commitment is probably the most important success factor for ITIL, but in my experience, probably also the most difficult to find. That is why a lot of ITIL implementations just become a black hole sucking up money.

I think there are a lot of IT managers that is under this misconception, that ITIL is a silver bullet to fix all their problems. Just install ITIL (almost like installing a new technology) and everything will be OK. What they do not understand is that ITIL is a major organizational change, including a culture change. We used to focus only on technology, but now we have to focus on the customer.

Another reason for low management commitment is also that ITIL is usually an internal IT department endeavor and not a direct requirement from the business. ITIL is a methodology for improving IT and not as such the business.

To overcome this, an ITIL project should become a business requirement and commitment is needed from all the way to the top, from the CEO.

Arno Esterhuizen
arno@itil.co.za
http://itilblog.blogspot.com

The Version 3 Processes

2008-01-13T05:15:00.000-08:00

ITIL Version 3 is structured around the notion of a Service Lifecycle; and that’s the big change from Version 2 – it’s fundamentally a change of structure. All of the old Version 2 processes continue to live in Version 3. However, we now have an additional 16 processes to consider.

Not all of these ‘extra’ processes are actually new. Some of them were in Version 2, but just now in the two core publications – Service Support (Blue Book) and Service Delivery (Red Book). Here is a list of the Version 2 Processes that were described in those books:

Service Support

Incident Management
Problem Management
Change Management
Release Management
Configuration Management

Service Delivery

Service Level Management
Financial Management
Availability Management
Capacity Management
IT Service Continuity Management (ITSCM)

All of those processes exist in Version 3; however, some of them are slightly renamed:

Release Management – becomes Release & Deployment Management
Configuration Management – becomes Service Asset & Configuration management

Here is a straight list (in alphabetical order) of the ‘new’ Version 3 processes:

7-Step Improvement Process
Access Management
Demand Management
Evaluation
Event Management
Information Security Management
Knowledge Management
Request Fulfilment
Service Catalogue Management
Service Measurement
Service Portfolio Management
Service Reporting
Service Validation & Testing
Strategy Generation
Supplier Management
Transition Planning and Early Life Support

Our Mission Statement

2008-01-12T04:56:00.000-08:00

This Blog is intended to be an online document charting progress in my journey toward full comprehension of ITIL Version 3. As such, the site should be seen as a work-in-progress; and therefore, may contain inaccuracies. However, I will do my best to make corrections as and when necessary so that ultimately a complete reference source will emerge.

Anyone visiting the Blog is welcome to enter into dialogue on the subject by posting comments and questions; and I will do my best to answer them. Here we will be addressing those questions and providing our expertise, guidance and deciphering skills to present ITIL in a way that people can understand and relate to.

So in true ITIL fashion, let's begin with a Mission Statement.

Our Mission Statement

To provide a comprehensive, online source of reference for IT Professionals wishing to learn about Service Management based on the ITIL Version 3 Best Practice Framework.

Over the coming weeks and months, we will be considering the following subjects in some detail:

The Service Lifecycle
The ITIL V3 Books and Publications
The ITIL Processes
The CSI Philosophy
Service Management Tools
And much more too!