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Itilics Whitepaper
Now that the dust has settled on ITIL® V3.
ITIL V3 was offi cially released in May, 2007. At Itilics we have been reading through the new books and attending our V3 train the trainer sessions, developing and reviewing our new training materials and preparing for the changes to our industry that V3 will no doubt bring. It is clear, especially after several chats with key authors of the new books that the Service Management world has moved on. The key missing piece of ITIL® that we felt always let the framework down from becoming as ubiquitous as it should be was the tie in to strategy. ITIL® is always being talked about in terms of being ‘implemented’ and ‘adopted’ or as a ‘project’ when the truth is really that it needs to simply be the way that we do business in IT. V3 brings this truth to the fore simply by the fact that we are now discussing service lifecycles. It has also been interesting to hear that the ITIL® V3 books have been the result of thousands of pages of feedback from practitioners the world over and the result of first hand research into what current practice is in many, many organisations around the world. ITIL® V3 is still good practice and not management theory.
So, what does ITIL® V3 mean to you and for your organization? It is important that all organisations embrace V3. It would be catastrophic for the industry if large portions of the industry resist and remain focused on V2. So far, some organisations we have spoken to feel this way. Some of the real power in ITIL® has always been that it provides a common language for the industry thereby allowing service providers and their customers to work together with shared understanding of terms. V3 changes some defi nitions from V2 and introduces new concepts. Whilst many of the changes are subtle, it is easy to see how, if parts of the industry do not move forward that this will result in 2 definition sets, amongst other irregularities, and may lead to a return to miscommunication. After studying ITIL® V3, there are some areas that are completely new…and…many elements from books outside of Service Support and Service Delivery have been included into this new lifecycle approach. Also, parts of processes have been split into roles/activities more aligned to where they should occur in a service’s lifecycle. For example, the proactive elements of problem management now occur in Service Design and Transition and the reactive operational aspects of problem management are discussed in Service Operations.
Some of the exciting new areas of focus in V3 that add terrific value to the knowledge acquired in V2 are:
• The tie in and focus on the Service Strategy piece
• An explicit focus on Service Design to meet business requirements
• A stronger emphasis on testing and deployment
• Guidance on Request Fulfi llment where Service Desks spend 40% of their time
• The inclusion of Event Management and Access Management as discrete processes
You can see that from this list alone, that many of the gaps that ITIL® V2 had are being closed. It is fair to say, that the volume of new material in ITIL® V3 was daunting. We also had some fears about the length of the Foundation Course remaining at 3 days. This was due to the broader syllabus that needs to be covered in the new course. However, the Itilics consulting team have been poring over the new material and synthesizing the new knowledge. They have also had several discussions with key authors to validate the intent and background to the new material. The result of this research is Itilics knows that the practical value inherent in the V2 Foundation Certificate training can be retained and our courseware reflects this knowledge and understanding.
There is a new certifi cation available that Itilics believe is critical for all ITIL® practitioners. This is the ITIL® Foundation V3 Bridge. This is a 1-day course that will cover for you the key areas of change in V3 and the concepts and reasons behind the new ITIL® structure. This is the best and fastest way to absorb the changes so that you can identify the areas where you need to focus to take advantage of the new knowledge.
As Don Page (CEO of Marval) says “People are constantly appreciating assets that only need the occasional upgrade.” This is the upgrade you need to remain at the forefront of IT Service Management best practice.
Jeff Scotland - Director Software & Consulting
Itilics Pty Ltd
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