ITIL version 3 glossary available for download

The OGC ITIL glossary for version 3 has been made available for public download at the OGC site after you've accepted the terms of use. The glossary has been used during the writing of the version 3 books and to my knowledge it was one of the first things that the authors agreed on. It has been both trimmed and extended and it contains references to the books in the version 3 suite. I think it will be of great value in helping us all to use the same definitions and acronyms in the ITIL community.

Regards, David :-)

Have you ordered the ITIL v3 books yet?

I haven't seen any info on the web about the pricing and the different ways to acquire the ITIL v3 documentation and want to share my findings in the subject. Two days have passed since the books became "orderable" and this is what I've found out.

First I must say that all 5 books in the ITIL v3 suite are extensively integrated and therefore I talk about the whole suite in this post. The different processes in version 3 are placed in the different books after careful consideration, I'm sure. At the same time, since Change Management for example is placed in the Service Transition book, but is still very central in the day-to-day operation of a service management team, it is not enough to buy the Service Operation book to get a view of the day-to-day processes of ITSM. For many people this will probably feel like having to buy more than needed. To me it feels like the right way to go. I think we've had a situation with the version 2 library that is unfortunate focusing a bit to much on the Service Delivery (SD) and Service Support (SS) books. Thus creating a view that those are all you need to read in the library. There are also organisations grouping their competences very much after the grouping in the library creating an unnecessary distance between for example Application Management and some of the processes in the SS book (e.g. Change Management). So, back to the v3 suite. Let's start with an overview of the material available.

There are 3 different channels or formats as you all probably know;

- Hard copy (£299+shipping)
- Downloadable PDF (£351.33)
- Online 1-year subscription (£311.38)

The prices are taken from TSO webshop at http://www.best-management-practice.com/

I placed my order today and thought that you could be interested in some findings about the ITIL v3 documentation. One thing that surprised me not being a TSO customer before is the way they are pricing the 1-year online subscription. The price shown above for the subscription gives you access to the suite for 1 year and nothing more. The value of the promised updates with for example complementary guidelines, case studies etc. is really hard to assess today. We cannot even be sure there will be any mayor updates for the next 12 months. Enhanced functionality that will be in the online version:
• an interactive process map with links through to the title(s) you have in your portfolio
• enhanced search results covering the core library

To pay £300 for the hard copy that will be on my desk, in my bag and in my library for years is to me a much better value for money than having online access to the same material for 12 months paying some extra pounds. The information I've been given about the costs of renewals of the subscription makes it even worse. I was told by the TSO customer service that the pricing of renewals of their other online products was about the same as the 1-year subscriptions and that ITIL v3 would probably be priced in the same way. In MHO this means that the material online must be developed considerably and that a lot of material must be added online every year to make this a good deal for a single user.

Having said that I must point out an aspect of the online subscription that makes it a really good deal and that is the multi user version. TSO is offering a concurrent user version of the online subscription. The product is priced individually as it is obvius that an order for 1000 concurrent users is priced differently than an order for 5 concurrent. The same disadvantages that apply to the single user version are still there and the cost of keeping the product is still that of a new product per year.

The concurrent user option offers greatest access to the guidance and is based on the number of users accessing the content at the same time. For example, if your company has 500 employees but only expects 10 to access the guidance simultaneously, a licence for 10 concurrent users would be appropriate. This is the best option for corporate access.

Regards, David :-)

Details on the ITIL version 3 launch

At last the release party we all have been waiting for is here! The itSMF invites everyone to celebrate the launch of ITIL version 3. The place is Vinopolis, a conference centre a couple of blocks from the London Bridge, and the date is now set to June the 5th. For £295 (itSMF members) and £395 (non members) you get a whole day with the Refresh team, the authors and of course Sharon Taylor. Although I guess the presentations will be similar to the ones given on several itSMF conferences during the last couple of months it is of course an "historic event". To get your name on one of the tickets to this event you should go to the new website that has been set up for the launch: http://www.itilv3launch.com/ (see image above). Proud sponsors are IBM and OGC's partners TSO and APM Group. A cool event that I'll not attend, unfortunately..

So, now the launch is really close and it feels like the best practices that were published as GITIMM/ITIL for the first time more than 20 years ago are getting a great Refresh. Thanks to all of you out there that have been working for almost 3 years with this. Can't wait to get my hands on the books...

Best regards, David :-)

Where can I find information on version 3?

I would like to thank Damra for her comment were she asked (in Swedish) where she could find more information on ITIL version 3 and how she could keep updated. I'll try to answer those question and thus also adding to the information on this blog about ITIL version 3.

The OGC has an entire site packed with information at http://best-management-practice.com/ and a lot on ITIL version 3. There are also (as always) lots of (to many to list..) official and non official sources, websites, blogs and newsletters and (unfortunately) you have to pretty much read it all to get a good view of the ITIL Refresh. Perhaps the most "efficient" way to keep yourself informed is to subscribe to the official newsletter of the Refresh at http://www.best-management-practice.com/ITILRefreshRegister.

Having read a lot of the material mentioned I will try to meet your wish Damra and give an insight in version 3 on this blog. A remark is needed though: The format of this blog, with short and not so dense posts, is not unintentional. I have very little time to write and even if I had the time I prefer this more "light" format. To summarize: I will try to keep you briefly informed of version 3, but if you want to be really informed you'll have to read dozens of sources like every other passionate ITIL fan do...

Best regards, David :-)

Service Life-cycle perspective - the most significant change in ITIL version 3

Hi again,

What is the most significant change in ITIL version 3?

Copyright OGC/TSO

Undoubtedly the single greatest change to ITIL in the new version is the life-cycle perspective. ITIL has evolved from a function-based library containing more than 40 books in version 1, via a process-oriented library with some indications of the necessity of the life-cycle perspective (read Application Management) in version 2 to a complete life-cycle oriented view of services in version 3.

Another result of the ITIL Refresh is that a far better integration between the different books is coming into place. I think that this is very important for ITIL to remain a tool of choice for all the professionals out there that have read the existing books over and over again and found some inconsistencies between them and already see ITIL as an integrated library.

Regards, David :-)

A conference is always inspiring!

I just came back from the annual itSMF conference here in Sweden. Two days packed with info about the upcoming version 3 of ITIL direct from the authors and socializing with lots of friends from the community. Very nice! It was really inspiring!

The changes made to ITIL in version 3 feel like long awaited upgrades and the authors had no problem convincing the audience (us) that the life-cycle perspective is great and that it adds a lot to the processes.

Copyright OGC/TSO

After having heard several presentations about version 3 I feel the greatest improvement lies in the new Service Strategy book (you can see the cover on the picture above). The need for us ITSM people to not only have a strategy for our process implementations, but for our services, is emphasized in that new book. At the conference one of the authors of the book, Majid Iqbal from Carnegie Mellon University held an acclaimed lecture on different ideas, models and tools to use to secure better alignment between your services and the business goals. He also talked about the need for ROI calculations on services and promised a lot of material on that subject in the new book. I think that this area and this type of questions will be very important to adress as a consultant working with IT service management. The customers expect ROI calculations more and more often and we're asked to motivate with economical terms our different decisions regarding the services.

The conclusion is that IT Service Management is taking some steps towards IT Governance and IT Management. I personally think that this is both exciting and in the long run needed in an increasingly automated world of IT operations where the production part is offshored.

I will get back with thoughts on the rest of the 5 core books in the coming weeks. The official release date is 30th of May and the books will go public on June 2nd in London.

Regards, David :)