This article provides an overview of IT Service Management and ITIL.
The ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Libraries) framework provides a set of descriptive guidance documents with IT service management, which has been adopted by many organisations around the world. ITIL was originally developed in the 1980s by the UK Government and championed by the internationally acclaimed IT Service Management Forum (itSMF), to promote effective and efficient delivery of IT services. ITIL phenomenon has since spread from the UK to private and public organisations around the world. The framework enables IT management to document, audit, and improve their IT Service Management processes and facilitates the alignment of ITSM processes with the overall organisational requirements – avoiding creation of process silos.
ITIL has 5 key areas/publications at its core, providing the necessary guidance for an integrated approach. These are periodically reviewed and updated as technologies and related processes change – currently in version 4. Each book provides a set of best practices for each core stage of the IT service management lifecycle. The first publication is the ITIL Service Strategy, which explains the organisational goals and customer requirements. The second publication is the ITIL Service Design, which explains how to move strategies into solutions and plans that support the organisation. The third publication is the ITIL Service Transition, which explains how to introduce services into the organisational ‘live’ environment. The fourth publication is the ITIL Service Operation, which explains how to manage the IT services and functions. The fifth publication is the ITIL Continual Service Improvement, which helps adopters evaluate and plan large and small improvements to IT services across the entire lifecycle.
ITIL framework ensures value realisation by focusing on the ‘how’ — how to plan, design, organise and implement effective IT Service Management capabilities and processes.
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