Beginners Guide to ITIL- help or hindrance?Dennis Adamsa s s o c i a t e sManagement and Infrastructure SIG MeetingCan it help me?What are the pitfalls?Dennis Adams 4th October 2006

IntroductionWhy we are doing this (Target Audience)Confused by what ITIL is?Heard the buzz-words, but not sure of the substance?Scared by the prospect of being inundated with too much processes, so that your teams are unable to get any work done?

These are all typical reactions from technical leaders and managers when faced with the ITIL hype. The purpose of this presentation is to introduce what ITIL is really about, and take away the mystery.

Explain and Justify PROCESS to TECHNICAL Audience.

ITIL for Dummies ?

Topics to Cover

What is ITIL ?What do we mean by a Process Approach to the world as a different way of looking at how we work together ?

What are the main Processes within ITIL ?What some of the main Processes look like in more Detail

The importance of the Configuration Management Database (CMDB)

Conclusions: Dont Implement ITIL? (!?)Time for Questions

The ITIL definition of IT Service - is this helpful ??

An integrated composite that consists of a number of components

such as management processes, hardware, software, facilities and people

that provides a capability to satisfy a stated management need or objective.

Dictionary of IT Service Management

Think of MANAGING IT as PROVIDING a SERVICEIT SERVICESERVICEDELIVERYSERVICE SUPPORTBUSINESSAlign IT services with the needs of the BusinessImprove the Quality of the ServiceReduce the long-term costs

Think in terms of PROCESSES rather than SKILLSFunctional OrganizationProcess ApproachUsing a Process Approach, we no longer think in terms of individual technical teams doing their own thing.Rather we think in terms of the overall goal which should be directed to the main goals of the organization.

What is ITIL?ITIL = Information Technology Infrastructure LibraryA Library of Processes books outlining good practice for managing IT Infrastructure.A set of ready-made how to references.

ITIL IS A NON-PRESCRIPTIVE REFERENCE

ITIL is a Registered Trade Mark, and a Registered Community Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce, and is Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark OfficeITIL revision 3 is currently being written.

A British Standard (BS 15000) certification (BS 25000 to come).Linked to ISO 9000 Quality Certification.

An Analogy: Remember Development Methodologies?Paralysis of Analysis ?

Waterfall Development

Hobby craft developer

Prototype and User Design

Quick and Dirty

Structured Design Method

Anarchy ?JFDI ?Development Methodologies define Ways of Working to ensure that we do things in a Repeatable, Professional manner.

InitiateDesignDeployService Desk / Help Desk Identify root-cause of ProblemsInfrastructures ChangesNew Application ReleasesDocument the ConfigurationResolve Customer IncidentsBuildTestDEVELOPMENTPRODUCTIONPRINCE 2 (Projects)ITIL (Infrastructure)

Application Management

The ITIL Library of Process BooksThe Business Perspective

Planning to Implement Service ManagementSupplementary VolumesMain VolumesCORE ITILKey:ICT Infrastructure ManagementSecurity Management

Service Delivery

Service Support

The Core ITIL Books: IT Service Management

Capacity ManagementAvailability Management

IT Service Continuity Management.

Service Level Management

IT Financial Management

Service SupportService Delivery

Service Desk

Incident ManagementProblem Management

Change ManagementRelease ManagementConfiguration ManagementUser SupportControl Processes

EXAMPLE: Process to manage CHANGEImpact AnalysisAssess PriorityLog RFCCategorizeApprovalChange SchedulingTesting PlansInform UsersChange Review

EXAMPLE: What is CAPACITY PLANNING ?BUSINESS CAPACITY MANAGEMENT Future Service requirements from the Business Future Capacity from the Business Resource Requirements in future. CAPACITY PLANSERVICE CAPACITY MANAGEMENT What are the existing requirements? Are we meeting SLAs? How well are we utilising existing resources today?

RESOURCE CAPACITY MANAGEMENT How well are we using existing technology? Are we using each component appropriately? What future technologies could be better?

EXAMPLE: The activities in CAPACITY PLANNING

Business Strategy

Business Planning

IT Strategy

ITBusiness PlanServiceLevelExceptionsResourceUtilisationExceptionsMonitoringService Level ThresholdsResource UtilisationAnalysisTuningEnsuring we can meet our SLAsImplementation

Some Best Practices in the ITIL LibraryHow to get the best benefit from a SERVICE DESKSingle point of contact, Monitoring and escalation on behalf of customers.A systematic way of managing INCIDENTS:Log / Classify / Investigate / Diagnose / Resolution Being Pro-Active: PROBLEM MANAGEMENTRoot Cause Analysis, Kepner & Tregoe Analysis, Ishikawa diagrams.Keeping track of IT Assets: CONFIGURATION MANAGEMENTStopping dangerous changes: CHANGE & RELEASE MANAGEMENTImpact Analysis and Authorisation before ChangesBeing Customer-Focused: SERVICE LEVEL MANAGEMENTBean-Counting: FINANCIAL MANAGEMENTCharge-back to reflect the cost to the Business.CAPACITY: Prediction instead of PanicAVAILABILITYDesign for continual up-timeDR and BCP: IT SERVICE CONTINUITYRisk Assessment and Planning

Why implement ITIL-based processes? ITIL emphasises that IT should be seen as a service to the business.ITIL could be (part of) a Quality Management strategy to improve the quality of the IT Service for the business.

Introducing clear processes should enable the company to grow and/or bring on more staff more easily.Being based on a best practice approach means that you do not have to reinvent the wheel.

Cost reduction - Standardising how you do things can simplify and reduce costs.Professionalism / Clear points of contact with external organisations and stakeholders.

The BEST WAY to Implement ITIL Service Management?IncidentProblemChangeReleaseConfigurationService DeskConfiguration Management Database (CMDB)

or MORE LIKE THIS ?IncidentProblemChangeReleaseConfigurationService DeskConfiguration Management Database (CMDB)

.. Just Some parts of a theoretical CMDBHARDWARESpecificationLocationOwnerFinancialsSoftwareSOFTWARELicensesVersionsAPPLICATIONSUsersHardwareUSERSApplicationsContractsIncidentsINCIDENTSApplicationsHardwareResolutionsKNOWN ERRORSIncidentsPROBLEMSIncidentsResolutionsCHANGESApplicationsUsersEquipmentO/SEquipmentINFRASTRUCTURESOFTWAREe.g. OracleRELEASESApplicationsNETWORK LinkagesDependanciesSLAApplicationsUsersContractsDEFINITIVE SOFTWARE LIBRARYSERVICESApplicationsDEFINITIVE HARDWARE STOREB C PDOCSAVAILABILITYSTATISTICS

Case Study: Understanding Applications and MachinesData CollectionProcesses Hardware in Data CentreNew Equipment Purchasing Objective: Impact Analysis of Applications Machines

Pitfalls and WarningsOrganisations should not be over ambitious when implementing Service Management (IT Service Management Little ITIL).

DONT IMPLEMENT ITILITIL is a Framework of Best Practices, not a Prescriptive ManualUse what is useful, when and where it is useful.

Remember that any IT Process will only work if the participants have the right data in the right place at the right time.Configuration Management Database (CMDB)

Remember that the objective is to document and implement repeatable processes in order to make the organisation more efficient and/or more responsive to customers.ITIL should never been seen as an end in itself.

Some RecommendationsSee ITIL processes as a way of standardising what is already done / should be already done.Everyone should benefit from simplified and clearer ways of doing things.

Consider the ITIL Foundation ExamFor most IT Infrastructure Professionals, it is common senseLooks good on the CVGives you a common vocabulary for discussing how things are doneEmphasises customer focus and process40 questions multiple-choice, pass mark is 25.

Keep asking what is the business benefit ?

Further Useful InformationOGC Home Page for ITIL: http://www.itil.co.ukTSO (The Stationery Office): http://www.tso.co.uk http://www.get-best-practice.co.uk/itilProducts.aspxIT Service Management Forum (itSMF): http://www.itsmf.comInteractive Forum: http://www.itilcommunity.com

ITIL Toolkit: http://www.itil-toolkit.comKey Skills Training: http://www.ksl.org, http://www.itiltraining.com

Square Mile Systems: http://www.squaremilesystems.co.ukPink Elephant Consultancy: http://www.pinkelephant.comDennis Adams Associates: http://www.dennisadams.net

Questions?Is ITIL a panacea for all IT Infrastructure Management challenges?It never claims to be !It is a set of good practice processes to be used as a toolkitITIL itself speaks about:Process / Product / People.Implement ITIL as part of a Strategic Cultural change in the organisation, which should include:Metrics, Operational Tools, Processes, Standards.

Can you implement parts of ITIL and ignore the rest?Yes.Remember that to make processes succeed you need appropriate data.

More Questions ?Dennis Adamsa s s o c i a t e s

Beginners Guide toITIL- help or hindrance?Dennis Adams 4th October 2006Dennis Adamsa s s o c i a t e sManagement and Infrastructure SIG MeetingCan it help me?What are the pitfalls?http://www.dennisadams.net

Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*This sort of verbal obfuscation is what gives PROCESS a bad name !Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*What we really mean is this.We increasingly have to think of IT as more than a collection of technical bits (servers, databases etc.)We need to think of IT as being a SERVICE and that we, as technical people and professionals, SUPPORT that Service.We then DELIVER that Service to the BUSINESS, for the purpose of making MONEY.Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*When we start thinking of IT as a Service, then we start thinking about how do we manage it better.Say what are we trying to achieve overall?Rather than what does this team do?

Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*ITIL was conceived by the British Government who approached various organisations and experts to write the books which were originally published in the 1980s.These were revised in 2001 and 2002, and the library has expanded in scope since then.The latest version is being developed for publication in 2007.Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Sometimes these methodologies can get in the way, sometimes they help.Either way, they can be useful, if you pick-and-choose what will help you.And remember - ITIL is NON-PRESCRIPTIVE - IT does not demand that you do anything!Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Just as PRINCE2 is a methodology, an approach, which can be used successfully by development teams to manage projects,So ITIL is an approach, a set of best practices for managing the day-to-day support activities in Production.Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*This is what the ITIL library actually consists of.Recently Added:Introduction to ITILSoftware Asset ManagementSmall-Scale ImplementationManaging Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*As mentioned, the key volumes are SERVICE DELIVERY and SERVICE SUPPORT.They are often what is called Core ITIL.Most people, when they talk about ITIL, are thinking of these two books only, and the chapters in them.So, when we talk about ITIL, we need to understand what is meant by these 11 topics.Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Fact One: The books themselves are meant to guide; they are not steadfast laws. None of the authors, contributors or publishers ever expected organizations to adhere to every word of their publications.Fact Two: You can't implement ITIL with just processes and technology. You must address the people involved as well. ITIL demands attention to three components: people, process and technology. Changes in process improve efficiency and effectiveness. Changes in technology reduce costs and accelerate responsiveness. But you ultimately have to change people to develop the culture you need to better support the business and optimize availability of critical IT services.(Brian Johnson)Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*What is the itSMF?A not-for-profit organisation owned by its members, the itSMF is a major influence on, and contributor to, industry best practice, Standards and personal development, working with a wide range of governmental and standards bodies worldwide.Formed in the UK in 1991, there are now national chapters in an ever-increasing number of countries. There is an International body that guides and supports existing and emerging chapters, their website is www.itsmf.org.Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*Managing Production Systems(c) Dennis Adams Associates Ltd, 2005*