What is ITIL?

ITIL® (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) is industry best practice for running an IT organisation or department.  Originally developed by the UK Government, it represented a standardised approach to delivering IT Services.  With businesses becoming more reliant on IT do deliver its services, ITIL has become an industry recognised standard, with its terminology and processes commonly used across IT.  ISO standard ISO2000 has been developed to provide an independently auditable standard for IT service management, prior to this ITIL was measured in qualifications for individual employees.

If you wish to find out more from the OGC (Office of Government Commerce) visit their office website:  http://www.itil-officialsite.com

Business Benefits

ITIL in essence looks at IT in terms of services it provides to the business, ensuring that reliance on IT is understood in business language, that risks are managed and processes are in place to ensure effective and efficient IT.

• Aligns IT to the business requirements
• Provides a best practice template for all process which are tried and tested
• Provides processes that are defined, consistent, and reliable
• Has clear roles and responsibilities
• Improves service provision to the business
• Help business understand the cost of IT
• Gives the business tools to measure and improve service provision

Who should use ITIL?

Whether you are only operating a small internal IT team or are a large IT service provider you will be able to benefit from using ITIL processes.  Smaller organisations tend not to require the same level of documentation and formalised processes, when considering if ITIL is right for your organisation you should consider issues or restrictions with your current set up and the business benefit standardisation will bring.  Business and IT can advise you before you commit to a full roll out and if it is at all necessary.

Pragmatic Approach

Whether you are in the middle of an ITIL role out, just starting to look into moving towards best practice, or you have a business impacting issue can be resolved or controlled by implementing best practice.  Business and IT can help by recommending process improvements/implementations in line with ITIL.

ITIL was designed to provide a best practice framework, however a pragmatic approach to roll out is required for success. Implementation has to be in line with individual business requirements and needs, and most importantly has to provide a business benefit to your company.

Business and IT ensure that we understand the challenges your business is experiencing by carrying out high level investigations before recommending particular services.  This allows us to evaluate where the possible issues and causes are, allowing us to recommend a solution that will really work for your business.  While in a perfect world implementing all the ITIL process to get maximum benefit would be ideal, realistically this not normally cost effective use of resources and does not focus on what is causing the business pain now.  We pride ourselves on only delivering required solutions, and not overselling services that aren’t required.

Training

Business and IT can recommend any training courses required for a department as part of a restructure or as part of the personal development programme.  We are not aligned with any one training supplier, allowing us the independence to pick the right provider for your individual business, considering course delivery, cost, timings, and location.