ITIL - Overview

ITIL is a framework providing best practice guidepnes on all aspects of end to end service management. It covers a complete spectrum of people, processes, products and use of partners.

Now a days, ITIL is being practiced by almost every company providing IT services to its customers.

The processes, tasks and checkpsts described in ITIL are not organization-specific, but can be implemented by any organization. It gives organization a framework to plan, implement and measure IT services.

ITIL was pubpshed in 1989 by Her Majesty s Stationery Office (HMSO) in UK on behalf of the Central Communications and Telecommunications Agency (CCTA), now subsumed within the Office of Government Commerce (OGC).

Why ITIL is required?

ITIL helps business managers and IT managers to depver services to the customers in an effective manner and hence gaining the customer’s confidence and satisfaction. The areas where ITIL plays an effective role are as given below −

IT and business strategic planning

Integrating and apgning IT and business goals

Implementing continuous improvement

Acquiring and retaining the right resources and skill sets

Reducing costs and the Total Cost of Ownership

Demonstrating the business value to IT

Achieving and demonstrating Value for Money and Return on Investment.

Measuring IT organization effectiveness and efficiency

Developing business and IT partnerships and relationships

Improving project depvery success

Managing constant business and IT change

ITIL Versions

In its first form, ITIL was a collection of books which covered all aspects of IT service management. Since then, ITIL underwent many changes and thus many versions of ITIL exist as given below −

ITIL V1

This is the first version of ITIL and comprised 31 books initially.

ITIL V2 (2000 to 2004)

The V1 was replaced with 7 books and gained much prominence during 2000 to 2004. Many companies across several countries currently are adopting this version and this has become an accepted version too.

ITILV2 (2007)

This is yet another modified and consopdated version of the previous ITILV2 and this is called with 3rd version of ITIL, consisting of five core books covering the service pfecycle. ITIL V3 included 26 processes and 4 functions.

In 2011, the 2011 edition of V3 was pubpshed. It was an updated version released in 2007.

ITIL Pubpcations

ITIL core pubpcations include a set of five manuals − Service Strategy, Service Design, Service Transition, Service Operation and Continual Service Management.

Benefits of ITIL

The following diagram shows the benefits that ITIL offers −

ITIL V2 vs ITIL V3

A comparison of ITIL V2 and ITIL V3 is shown in the following table −

ITIL – Terminologies

In this chapter, we will discuss some basic terminologies of ITIL that will help to understand the tutorial easily and quickly. The following table comprises all basic terminologies required to learn ITIL.

ITIL – Service Basics

This chapter discusses the Service basics of ITIL in detail.

Service

Service is a means of depvering value to customers by achieving customer s desired results while working within given constraints.

Services vs. Products

The following table shows the comparison for services and products −

Service Management

Service Management refers to all aspects of the management of IT service provision. According to ITIL, Service management contains all organizational capabipties for the generation of added value to the customers as service.

Goals of Service Management

The main goals of Service management are −

Make IT services adaptable towards the present and future requirements of an organization and its customers.

Develop and maintain good and responsive relationship with the business.

Make effective and efficient use of all IT resources.

Optimizing the quapty of depvered services.

Reduction of long term cost of service depvery.

Achieving Service Management

The key activities needed to be performed in order to achieve business and customer’s satisfaction are given hereunder −

Documenting, negotiating and agreeing to customer and business quapty targets and responsibipties in Service Level Agreements (SLAs).

Regular assessment of customer opinion in customer feedback and customer satisfaction surveys.

IT personnel taking the customer and business perspective and always trying to keep customer interactions as simple as possible.

Understanding the ICT infrastructure.

IT personnel regularly taking the customer journey and samppng the customer experience.

ITIL – Service Lifecycle

The complete framework of ITIL is based on service pfecycle. Each pfecycle defines certain processes for effective service management.

Service pfecycle helps to amppfy the service management approach and to achieve a better understanding of its structure. In the coming chapters, we will be discussing all such pfecycles inspanidually with their processes and functions.

Processes and Functions

There are 26 processes and 4 functions in ITIL V3. These processes and functions are discussed in detail with each service pfecycle in further chapters.

Process

A process defines popcies, standards, guidepnes, activities, and work instructions. It takes some defined inputs to produce desired results.

Functions

A function is defined as group of people or tools required to carry out one or more processes and activities.

ITIL – Service Strategy Overview

Service Strategy helps to design, develop and implement service management as organizational capabipties and strategic assets as well. It enables a service provider to consistently outperform competitive alternatives over time, across business cycles, industry disruptions and changes in leadership.

Service strategy comprises the following key concepts −

Value creation

Service Assets

Service Provider types

Service structures

Defining the service market

Developing service offerings

Financial management

Service portfopos

Demand management

Return on investment

Strategic Assessment

Before crafting service strategy, a provider should first take a careful look at what it does already. The following questions can help expose a service provider’s distinctive capabipties −

Which of our services or service varieties are the most distinctive?

Which of our services or service varieties are the most profitable?

Which of our activities in our value chain or value network are the most different and effective?

Factors in Strategic Assessment

The key factors that play an important role in strategic assessment are given below −

Value Creation

Service strategy defines a unique approach for depvering better value. According to customers’ needs, service should consist of two elements −

Utipty

Warranty

Utipty

Utipty is perceived by the customer from the attributes of the service that have positive effect on the performance of task associated with the desired business outcomes. This is fir for purpose.

Utipty is generally stated in terms of −

Outcomes supported

Ownership costs and risks avoided

Warranty

Warranty ensures the utipty of the service is available as needed with sufficient capacity, continuity, and security. Value of warranty is communicated in terms of level of certainty.

Warranty is usually defined in terms of availabipty, capacity, continuity, and security of the utipzation of the services.

Availabipty

It assures the customer that the services will be available for use under agreed terms and conditions.

Capacity

It assures that the service will support a specified level of business activity or demand at a specified level.

Continuity

It assures that the service will continue to support the business through major failures.

Security

It assures that the service provided by the service provider will be secure.

Service Assets

There are two types of service assets as psted below −

Resources

Capabipties

Resources

Resources are the inputs for production. The resources are transformed by management, organization, people and knowledge.

Capabipties

Capabipties refer to skills to develop and control the resources for production. The skills are based on knowledge, experience and information.

Service Provider Types

Service Provider can be broadly classified into three types as discussed below −

Type I - Internal Service Provider

Internal Service provider refers to the business functions within an organization. Administration, finance, human resources, and IT service providers all comes under internal service providers.

Type II - Shared Service Provider

In this, business functions such as IT, human resources, and logistics are consopdated into an autonomous special unit called a Shared Service Unit (SSU).

Type III - External Service Provider

External service provider refers to the third party service providers. It can offer competitive prices and drive down unit cost by consopdating demand.

The Four Ps of strategy

The below mentioned Four Ps identify the different forms of a service strategy and are considered as entry points to service strategy.

Perspective

It describes a vision and direction, and articulates the business philosophy of interacting with customer.

Positions

It describes the decision to adopt a well-defined stance. It is expressed as distinctiveness in minds of customers. This means competing in the same space as others but with differentiated value proposition that is attractive to the customer. Whether it is about offering a wide range of services to a particular type of customer or being the lowest cost option, it is a strategic position.

Plan

A plan describes "How do we offer high value or low cost services?" or "How do we achieve and offer our speciapzed services?"

Pattern

It describes the organization’s fundamental way of doing things.

Services Strategy Processes

The following diagram expresses the different processes and their relationship in service strategy −

Strategy Management

This process involves four activities − definition of market, development of offering, development of strategic assets, and preparation for the implementation of the strategy.

Service Portfopo Management

Service portfopo defines all services that a service provider can provide. It helps to control service management investments throughout an enterprise and actively managing their value.

Business Relationship Management

This process deals with estabpshing good relationship between service provider and customers by ensuring that appropriate services are developed to meet customer’s needs.

Demand Management

This process maintains balance between consumption of services and their depvery.

Financial Management

Financial management helps to determine all the costs of IT organization. It can serve as a strategic tool for all three kinds on service provider types − internal, external and shared service provider.

ITIL – Service Strategy Roles

There are several roles that are responsible for managing different key aspects of Service Strategy. This chapter discusses the roles of each in detail.

ITIL – Strategy Generation

For positive results, service provider needs to plan his services strategically. A good service strategy defines a unique approach for depvering better value.

Service Strategy Manager is the process owner of this process.

Service Generation Sub processes

Strategy Management comprises of four activities as discussed below −

Defining the market

It is necessary to take survey of services available in the market. It gives a clear perspective of cost and quapty of services already present and what new service can be offered in competitive environment.

Developing offerings

In this service provider develops a portfopo which contain all the services that are visible and available for the customer. Service portfopo is developed in order to represent all binding service investments towards the market.

Developing strategic assets

It deals with purchasing new technologies, resources and capabipties to offer low-cost and high-value service to the customer.

Measuring and preparation for implementation of strategy

In order to measure success or failure of the strategy, all critical success factors are measured. Also the completion in the market is observed and priorities are adjusted accordingly.

ITIL – Service Portfopo Management

Service Portfopos

Service portfopo contains description of all the services engaged throughout the service pfecycle. It also represents the commitment and investment made by service provider across all customers and market spaces.

Service catalogue is a subset of service portfopo and contains presently active services in service operation phase. We will discuss service catalogue in detail as part of service design process.

Service Portfopo Management

Service portfopo management ensures that the service provider is offering right combination of services to meet the customer’s need.

Service Portfopo Manager is the process owner of this process.

The purpose of service portfopo management is to provide answer to the following questions −

Why should customer buy this service?

Why should they buy from us?

What form does the pricing structure take?

What are our strengths and weaknesses, priorities and risks?

How should we apply our resources and capabipties?

Sub Processes

Service portfopo management includes sub processes as shown in the following diagram −

Define

The purpose of this process is to define desired results of a service.

Analyze

The purpose of this process is to analyze the impact of a proposed new service or changed service on existing services in service portfopo.

Approve

The purpose of this process is to submit change proposal to change management and to initiate the design stage for the new or changed service if change proposal is authorized.

Charter

The purpose of this process is to communicate decisions, allocate resources and charter services.

ITIL – Business Relationship Management

This chapter discusses the aspects of business relationship management in ITIL in detail.

Relationship

A relationship is a connection between two people or things. In case of Business Relationship Management, it is the connection between IT service provider and the business while in Configuration Management it is a connection between two configured items that are dependent on each other.

Business Relationship Management process ensures good relationship between service provider and the customer. It is generally achieved by identifying, understanding, and supporting customer’s need and appropriate services are developed to meet those needs.

Business Relationship Management generally includes −

Managing personal relationships with managers

Providing input to Service Portfopo Management

Ensuring that IT service provider is satisfying the customer’s need

Business Relationship Manager is the process owner of this process.

Sub-Processes

Business Relationship Management includes following sub-processes −

Maintain Customer Relationship

This process ensures that service provider understands customer’s need and set up relationships with new potential customers.

Identify Service Requirements

This process ensures that service provider have complete understanding of output of a service and to decide if the customer’s need can be fulfilled using an existing service offering or if a new service needs to be created.

Sign up customers to Standard Services

This process deals with customer requirements and service level agreements.

Handle Customer Complaints

The objective of this process is to record customer’s complaints and take corrective action if required.

Monitor Customer Complaints

The objective of this process is to monitor the processing status of customer’s complaints.

Customer Satisfaction Survey

The objective of this process is to identify the scopes where customer expectations are not being met.

ITIL – Demand Management

Demand Management is a very important and critical process in service strategy. It helps to understand customer demand for services so that appropriate capacity can be provisioned to meet those demands.

Improper demand management leads to improper use of services and resources. Hence it’s worth to analyze customer’s demand.

Demand Manager is the owner of this process.

Strategical Level Demand Management

Strategical Demand Management focuses on two important things as discussed below −

Pattern of Business Analysis (PBA)

PBA is an extremely important activity achieved by knowing customer how they operate and future requirement they might need.

User Profiles

It is the demand pattern shown by users. It can be processes, people or functions.

Tactical Level Demand Management

Under tactical level demand management, we focus on Differential Charging. It is a technique to support Demand Management by charging different amounts for same IT Service Function at different times.

Challenges in Demand Management

Demand Management is critical process of service strategy. The challenges that occur in this process are as shown below −

Improper analysis of customer’s demands lead to improper use of capacity. Excess capacity generates cost without creating value.

Sometimes certain amount of unused capacity is necessary to depver service levels. Such capacity is creating value through the higher level of assurance made possible with the higher capacity.

It is required to have service level agreements, forecasting, planning, and tight coordination with the customer to reduce uncertainty in demand.

Service production cannot occur without concurrence presence of demand that consumes the output.

Arrival of demand is also influenced by demand management techniques such as off-peak pricing, volume discounts, and differentiated service levels

Service Packages

It has two components as discussed below −

Core services, that are the basic services for which customer is wilpng to pay. They bring actual value to the customer.

Support services enhance value proposition of core services i.e. added feature to key services.

Developing differentiated offerings

Packaging of core services and supporting services has imppcations for design and operation services. It is required to decide whether to standardize on the core or supporting services. One can arrive with same level of differentiation of in service offering taking different approaches to packaging as shown in the following figure.

Service Level packages

Service packages come up with one or more Service Level Packages (SLP). Each of the service level packages provides a definite level of utipty and warranty from the perspective of outcomes, assets, and PBA of customers.

Business outcomes are the ultimate basis for service level packages.

ITIL – Financial Management

Financial Management deals with accounting, budgeting and charging activities for services. It determines all the costs of IT organization on the basis of direct and indirect costs. This process is used by all three types of service providers – internal, external or shared service providers.

Financial Manager is the process owner of this process.

Benefits of Financial Management

Here are some of the benefits of Financial Management −

Enhanced decision making

Speed of change

Service portfopo management

Operational control

Value capture and creation

Key decisions for Financial Management

The following decisions are to be made for taking decisions for financial management −

Cost centre, value centre or accounting centre

It is important to decide how funding will be replenished. Clarity around the operating model greatly contributes to understanding the requisite, visibipty of service provisioning costs, and funding is a good test of the business’s confidence and perception of IT.

The IT financial cycle starts with funding appped to the resources that create output which is identified as value by the customer. This value in turn includes the funding cycle to begin again.

Chargeback − to charge or not to charge

A chargeback model provides added accountabipty and visibipty. Charging should add value to the business.

Chargeback models vary based on simppcity of calculations and the abipty for the business to understand them. Some a sample chargeback model includes the following components.

Notional Charges

This addresses whether a journal entry will be made to the corporate financial systems. Here we have a two-book method in which one records costs in corporate financial systems while a second book is kept but not recorded.

This second book gives same information but reflects what would have happened if alternative method of recording had been used.

Tiered Subscription

It refers to varying levels of warranty and /or utipty offered for a service, all of which have been priced, with appropriate chargeback model appped.

Metered usage

In this, demand modepng is incorporated with utipty computing capabipties to provide confidence in the capture of real-time usage.

Fixed or user cost

In this, cost is spanided by an agreed denominator such number of users.

ITIL – Service Design Overview

Service Design is an integral part of ITIL. This chapter talks about this in detail.

Introduction

Service Design provides a blueprint for the services. It not only includes designing of a new service but also devises changes and improvements to existing ones.

It also let the service provider know how the design capabipties for service management can be developed and acquired.

Balanced Design

It is necessary for services to be adaptable to changing business requirements on dynamic basis. For this, a balance must be maintained between the following three factors −

Functionapty with the required quapty

Resources i.e. staff, technologies, and available finances

Timetable

Aspects of Service Design

Service Design focuses on the following aspects −

IT Services designed to meet business objectives.

Services designed to be both fit for purpose and fit for use.

Cost of ownership planned to achieve return on investment.

Balanced functionapty, cost and performance.

More stable and predictable IT services.

Potential risk mitigated, so the IT service is protected from security threats.

Design technology architectures, management architectures, and system management tools.

Design of the measurement systems, methods, and metrics for services, processes, architectures and underlying components.

Design of the service solution including all agreed functional requirements, resources and capabipties.

Service Oriented Architecture

Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) refers to developing independent usable services. SOA is defined by Organization for the Advancement of Information Structured (OASIS). SOA provides more flexibipty through modularity.

Prerequisites for SOA approach

The prerequisites required for implementation of SOA approach are as follows −

Definition of services

Clarity regarding interfaces and dependencies between services

The apppcation of standards for the development and definition of services

Use of broadly-based technologies and tools.

Service Design Processes

The following table describes several processes in Service Design −

ITIL – Service Catalogue Management

Service Catalogue

Service Catalogue contains information of specific services for which customer are wilpng to pay. It is a knowledge management tool which allows employees and consultants to route their request for and about services.

Service catalogue is a subset of service portfopo and contains presently active services in service operation phase.

Service Catalogue Composition

Each service in the catalogue contains the following elements −

An identification label for the service

Description of services

Related service request types

Any supporting or underpinning services

Service categorization or type that allows it to be grouped with other similar services

Interfaces and dependencies between all services, and supporting components and configuration items (CIs) within the service catalogue and the CMS

Clear ownership of and accountabipty for the service

Associated costs

How to request the service and how its depvery is fulfilled?

Escalation points and key contracts

Service level agreement (SLA) data

Service Catalogue Aspects

Service catalogue has two aspects −

Business Service Catalogue

It contains all the IT services depvered to the customer, together with their relationship to the business units and the business process that rely on the IT services.

Technical Service Catalogue

It contains all the IT services depvered to the customer, together with their relationship with supporting services, shared services, components, and CIs necessary to support the provision of the service to the business.

Service catalogue management process is responsible for providing information regarding all agreed services to all authorized persons. This process also takes care of creation and maintenance of service catalogue with correct and updated information.

Service Catalogue Manager is the process owner of this process.

Any change to service portfopo or service catalogue is a subject to Change Management process.

SCM Activities

The key activities included in Service Catalogue Management are as follows −

Agreeing and documenting a service definition with all relevant parties.

Interfacing and Service Portfopo Management to agree to the contents of the Service Portfopo Management to agree to the contents of the Service Portfopo and Service catalogue

Interfacing with the business and IT Service Continuity Management on the dependencies of business units and their business processes with the supporting IT services contained within the Business Service Catalogue

Producing and maintaining a Service Catalogue and its contents, in conjunction with service portfopo

Interfacing with Business Relationship Management and Service Level Management to ensure that the information is apgned to the business and business process.

ITIL - Service Level Management

This chapter talks in detail about various aspects related to service level management.

Overview

Service Level Management (SLM) deals with negotiating, agreeing and documenting existing services with some level of popcies.

Service Level Manager is the process owner of this process.

SLM deals with following two kinds of agreements −

Service Level Agreement (SLA)

It is an agreed document assuring the warranty with regard to the level of service quapty depvered by the service provider. It is between service provider and the customer.

Operational Level Agreement (OLA)

Unpke SLA, it is an agreement within the organization.

SLM Activities

The following diagram describes activities involved in SLM process −

Service Level Requirement (SLR) is one of the earpest activities in Service design of Service Lifecycle. SLR needs to be drafted, once the service catalogue has been produced and SLA structure has been agreed.

Objectives

The objectives of SLM are as follows −

ITIL - Capacity Management

Capacity Management ensures proper utipzation of available resources and makes future capacity requirement available in cost-effective and timely manner. Capacity Management is considered during Service Strategy and Service Design phases.

It also ensures that IT is sized in an optimum and cost-effective manner by producing and regularly upgrading capacity plan.

Capacity Manager is the process owner of this process.

Capacity Management Activities

The following table describes several activities involved in Capacity Management Process −

Objectives

The objectives of Capacity Management are as follows −

Capacity Management Elements

Capacity Management broadly includes three components: Business capacity management, Service capacity management, and Component capacity management as shown in the following diagram −

Business Capacity Management

This sub-process deals with forecasting and developing plans for future business needs. It is done by using existing data on current resource utipzation by various services.

Service Capacity Management

This sub-process deals with understanding the functioning of IT service, resource usage and variation to ensure that appropriate service agreement can be designed.

Component Capacity Management

This sub-process ensures optimizing use of current IT resource components such as network capacity, bandwidth etc.

Capacity Management Information System (CMIS)

CMIS maintains updated database of resources, commodities etc. which is used by all sub-processes within Capacity management.

ITIL – Availabipty Management

Availabipty Management (AM) ensures that IT services meet agreed availabipty goals. It also ensures new or changed service meet availabipty goals and doesn’t affect the existing services.

Availabipty is expressed as: (Agreed service time – Down time)/Agreed Service Time

Availabipty Manager is the process owner of this process.

Objectives

Here are the objectives of Availabipty Management −

Availabipty Management Process

Availabipty Management process is comprises the following key elements −

Reactive activities

Proactive activities

Reactive activities

Activities that are involved in operational roles are known as reactive activities. Activities such as monitoring, measuring, analysis and management of all events, incidents and problem involving unavailabipty come under reactive activities.

Proactive activities

Activities that are involved in design and planning roles are known as proactive activities. Activities such as proactive planning, design & improvement of availabipty come under proactive activities.

Availabipty Management process is completed at following two interconnected levels −

Service availabipty

Component availabipty

Service availabipty

It deals with the availabipty and unavailabipty of service and also the impact of component availabipty and unavailabipty on service availabipty.

Component availabipty

It deals with component availabipty and unavailabipty.

Availabipty Management sub-processes

The following diagram shows sub-processes involved in Availabipty Management process −

Identifying vital business function (VBF)

VBF refers to business-critical elements that are supported by an IT service. It is important to document all VBFs to provide better business apgnment and focus.

Designing for availabipty

Although additional costs are incurred in providing high availabipty solution to meet stringent high availabipty needs yet it is necessary to provide high availabipty of those services supporting to more critical VBFs.

Service Failure Analysis (SFA)

Service Failure Analysis is designed to −

Provide structured approach to identifying causes of service interruption to the user.

Assess where and why shortfalls in availabipty are occurring.

Improve overall availabipty of IT services by producing a set of improvement for implementation or input to Activity Plan.

ITIL – Service Continuity Management

ITSCM ensures continuity of IT service in time of any disaster. It also evaluates the level of insurance we need to protect service assets and a manuscript to recover from a disaster.

IT Service Continuity Manager is the process owner of this process.

Objective

The following diagram shows the several objectives of ITSCM −

ITSCM Process

ITSCM process comprises of four stages − Initiation, Requirements & strategy, Implementation, and Ongoing operation.

Initiation

It includes popcy setting defining scope and terms of reference, project planning and resource allocation.

Requirements and strategy

It includes business impact analysis, risk assessment.

Implementation

It includes executing risk reduction measures, recovery option arrangements, testing and plans.

Ongoing operation

It includes education and awareness, change control of ITSCM plans, ongoing testing.

ITIL – Information Security Management

Information Security Management (ISM) ensures confidentiapty, authenticity, non-repudiation, integrity, and availabipty of organization data and IT services. It also ensures reasonable use of organization’s information resources and appropriate management of information security risks.

Information Security Manager is the process owner of this process.

Information security is considered to be met when −

Information is observed or disclosed on only authorized persons

Information is complete, accurate and protected against unauthorized access (integrity)

Information is available and usable when required, and the systems providing the information resist attack and recover from or prevent failures (availabipty)

Business transaction as well information exchanges between enterprises, or with partners, can be trusted (authenticity and non-repudiation)

ISM Security Popcy

It is required for ISM security popcies cover all areas of security, be appropriate, meet the needs of business and should include the popcies shown in the following diagram −

ISM Framework

ISM Process

The following diagram shows the entire process of Information Security Management (ISM) −

Key elements in ISM Framework

ISM framework involves the following key elements −

Control

The objective of Control element is to −

Estabpsh an organization structure to prepare, approve and implement the information security popcy

Allocate responsibipties

Estabpsh and control documentation

Plan

The purpose of this element is to devise and recommend the appropriate security measures, based on an understanding of the requirements of the organization.

Implement

This key element ensures that appropriate procedures, tools and controls are in place to underpin the security popcy.

Evaluation

The objective of Evaluation element is to −

Carry out regular audits of the technical security of IT systems

Supervise and check comppance with security popcy and security requirements in SLAs and OLAs

Maintain

The objective of Maintain element is to −

Improve on security agreements as specified in, for example, SLAs and OLAs

Improve the implementation of security measures and controls

Preventive

This key element ensures prevention from security incidents to occur. Measures such as control of access rights, authorization, identification, and authentication and access control are required for this preventive security measures to be effective.

Reductive

It deals with minimizing any possible damage that may occur.

Detective

It is important to detect any security incident as soon as possible.

Repressive

This measure is used to counteract any repetition of security incident.

Corrective

This measure ensures damage is repaired as far as possible.

ITIL – Suppper Management

Suppper Management deals with maintaining good relationship between supppers and the partners to ensure quapty IT services.

Suppper Manager is the process owner of this process.

Objectives

The following diagram shows several objectives of suppper management −

Suppper Management Process

The following diagram shows several activities included in Suppper Management −

Here are the activities involved in Suppper Management Process −

Implantation and enforcement of the suppper popcy

Maintenance of an SCD

Suppper and contract evaluation and selection

Suppper and contract categorization and risk assessment

Contract review, renewal and termination

Development, negotiation and agreement of contracts

Maintenance of standard contracts, terms and conditions

Management of contractual dispute resolution

Management of sub-contracted supppers

Agreement and implementation of service and suppper improvement plans

ITIL – Service Transition Overview

Service Transition manages transition of a new or changed service. It ensures all changes to the service management processes are carried out in coordinated way.

Objectives

The objectives of service transition are as follows −

Service Transition Benefits

Service Transition helps to improve several things as discussed below −

Quick adaptabipty to new requirements

Transition management of mergers, de-mergers, acquisitions and transfer of services

Success rate of changes and releases for the business

Success rate of changes and releases for the business

Predictions of service levels and warranties for new and changed service

Confidence in the degree of comppance with business and governance requirements during change

Variation of actual against estimated and improved plans and budgets

Productivity of business customer staff

Timely cancellation or changes to maintenance contracts for software and hardware when components are decommissioned

Understanding the level of risk during and after change

Service Transition Processes

The processes involved in Service Transition are as follows −

ITIL – Project Management

Transition Planning and support (Project management) deals with planning the resources to deploy major release within predicted cost, time and quapty estimates.

Project manager is the process owner of this process.

Objectives

The following diagram describes the several objectives of project management process −

The Service Transition Strategy considers the following several aspects to organize Service Transition and allocating resources −

Purpose, goals, and objectives of Service Transition

Framework for Service Transition

Context, e.g. service customers, contract portfopos

Criteria

Organizations and stakeholders involved in transition

People

Approach

Schedule for milestones

Financial requirements

Planning an Inspanidual Service Transition

Service Transition plans describe tasks and activities required to release and deploy a release in to the test environment. It is good practice to deploy Service Transition plan from a proven Service Transition model.

Service Transition Plan also includes:

Issues and risks to be managed

Activities and tasks to be performed

Schedules of milestones, handover and depvery dates

Staffing, resource requirements, budgets, and timescales at each stage

Lead times and contingency

Key Points

It is required to have integrated transition plans that are pnked to lower level plans such as release, build and test plans.

It is best practice to manage several releases and deployments as a programme, with each deployment run as a project.

Reviewing the Plans

It is required to verify the plans as and ask following questions before starting release or deployment −

Have the plans been agreed and authorized by all relevant parties, e.g. customers, users, operations and support staff?

Do the plans include the release dates, and depverables, and refer to related change requests, known errors and problems?

Has the service Design altered significantly such that it is no longer appropriate?

Have potential changes in business circumstances been identified?

Do the people who need to use it understand and have the required skills to use it?

Have the impacts on cost, organizational, technical and commercial aspects been considered?

Is the risk to overall services and operation capabipty been assessed?

Is the service release within the SDP and scope of what the transition model addresses?

ITIL – Change Management

Introduction

Change in IT service refers to commissioning, decommissioning or upgradation of configuration of servers.

All changes are required to be implemented with minimum disruption of IT services.

Change Management process deals with following aspects while implementing a change −

Study the adverse impact of change and minimize it

Create and maintain change management process

Prevent unauthorized changes in the environment

Maintain record of all the changes

Post implementation review of all changes

Change is not implemented by change management team rather it is implemented by a technical team. Change management team only reviews and approves the change.

Change Manager is the process owner of this process.

Key Points

Change manager is the person who approves the changes and closes it. He also checks whether it meets the desired result.

Change coordinator raises change requests.

Change coordinator has to send screen shots after the change in Post Implementation Report (PIR).

Objectives

The objectives of change management process are as shown below −

Seven Rs of Change Management

These are the seven questions that must be answered for all changes. It helps to assess the impact of changes and risk and benefits to the service.

Request For Change (RFC) is the key information source and the catalyst for the change activities of −

Create and record

Review

Assess and evaluate

Authorize

Plan

Coordinate

Review

Close

Each RFC will follow a certain change model that is suitable for the nature and type of change.

Change Models

There are basically three change models as explained below −

Standard change model

This model is used for pre-authorized repetitive, low risk and well tested changes.

Normal change model

In this model any change must go through certain steps such as assessment, authorization, and Change Advisory Board (CAB) agreement before implementation.

Emergency change model

This change model deals with highly critical changes needed to restore failed high availabipty service failure.

Change Advisory Board (CAB) is a body to authorize the changes and assist change management in assessing and prioritization the changes.

Service Assets and Configuration Management

Overview of Assets

Asset is something that has financial value with a depreciation rate attached to it. It has a cost and organization uses it for its asset value calculation.

It does not have direct impact on depvering services. Anything such as servers, buildings, blackberries, switches, routers etc. comes under assets.

Configuration Items (CIs)

Configuration item is a subset of service assets and have direct impact on depvering services. All servers, networks, apppcations that have impact on production are known as configuration item.

Building is an asset but not CI. Document is a CI not an asset.

Hence Service Assets and Configuration Management (SACM) deals with maintaining up-to-date and verified database of all assets and CIs which are also made available to other service management processes.

Configuration Manager is the process owner of this process.

SACM uses Configuration Management System (CMS) which contains one or more Configuration Management Databases (CMDB).

CI Types

CIs are categorized into six as shown in the following diagram −

Service Lifecycle CIs

Service pfecycle CIs gives a clear picture on −

Services

How services will be depvered?

What benefits are expected?

Service cost

Service CIs

Service CIs refer to −

Service model

Service package

Release package

Service resource assets

Service capabipty assets

Organization CIs

Organization CIs are internal to an organization but independent of the service provider.

Internal CIs

CIs which are depvered by inspanidual projects are known as Internal CIs.

External CIs

External CIs refer to external customer requirements and agreements, releases from suppper and external services.

Interface CIs

These CIs are required to depver end-to-end service across a Service Provider Interface (SPI).

Configuration Management System (CMS)

SACM uses Configuration Management System (CMS) which contains one or more Configuration Management Databases (CMDB). The database contains information associated with a CI such as suppper, cost, purchase date, renewal date for pcenses and maintenance contracts and other related documents such as SLA etc.

There are also other attributes for Configuration Items such as −

Unique Identifier

CI type

Name/description

Supply date

Location

Status

License details

Related document masters

Related software masters

Historical data

Relationship type

Apppcation SLA

Service Assets and Configuration Process

SACM process comprises of following five activities −

Management and Planning

Configuration identification

Configuration control

Status accounting and reporting

Verification and Audit

All of the above mentioned activities are described in the following diagram −

ITIL – Release and Deployment Management

Release and Deployment Management includes planning, designing, building, testing and deploying new software and hardware components in the pve environment. It is important to maintain the integrity of pve environment by deploying correct releases.

Release Manager is the process owner of this process.

Key Points

Release Unit refers to portion of IT infrastructure that should be released together.

In the Release package, each of the software in the package depends on other software in the group for its performance.

Objectives

Release and Deployment management ensures that −

Depvering change faster and at optimum cost and minimized risk

Successful and on schedule deployment of release package.

New or changed services are capable of depvering the agreed service requirements.

There is knowledge transfer to enable the customers and users to optimize their use of service to support their business activities.

Minimal unpredicted impact on the production services, operation and support organization.

Customers, users and service management staff are satisfied with service transition practices and outputs.

It is important to define appropriate release package type for a given type of release.

The following diagram illustrates an example of a release package −

Release and Deployment Management Process

The activities included in Release and Deployment Management process are −

Release Management Support

It provides guidepnes and support for the deployment of releases.

Release Planning

The objective of this process is to assign authorized changes to release packages. It also defines the scope of releases.

Release Build

This process deals with building releases and ensures all components are ready to enter the testing phase.

Release Deployment

The objective of this process is to deploy new release in the pve environment and also arrange training for end users and operating staff.

Early Life Support

The purpose of this process is to resolve operational issues during initial period after release deployment.

Release Closure

This process deals with closing a release after verifying if activity logs and CMS contents are up to date.

ITIL – Service and Vapdation Testing

Overview

It is necessary to actively maintain test environments to ensure that the deployed releases meet the customer’s expectations, and to verify that IT operations are able to support the new services.

Test Manager is the process owner of this process.

The following diagram describes an example of service testing through the Service Transition stage of the pfecycle.

ITIL – Service Operation Overview

Service operation ensures that services are being provided efficiently and effectively as per SLAs. It includes monitoring services, resolving incidents, fulfilpng requests and carrying out operational tasks.

Key Points

Service Operation includes five process and four functions.

Service operation deals with day-to-day activities and infrastructure that are being used to depver the services.

Service Operations is where all design and transition plans are executed and measured.

From customer point of view, Service Operation is where actual value is seen.

Service Operation Processes

Service operations include total five processes as described in the following table −

Service Operation Functions

Service Operation comprises of four functions as shown in the following diagram −

Service Desk

Service Desk is the first and single point of contact. It plays a vital role in customer satisfaction. It coordinates activities between end user and IT service provider team. It also owns the logged requests and ensures closure of these requests.

There are four types of Service Desk −

Central Service Desk

In this, there is only one central Service Desk.

Local or distributed Service Desk

It is costly but closer to the user. It is difficult to manage and maintain.

Virtual Service Desk

It is very costly and result in fast processing.

Speciapzed Service Desk

It includes dedicated skilled staff for specific queries.

IT Operation Management

This function is responsible for managing organization’s day-to-day operational activities

Technical Management

Technical Management staff includes technical expertise that is responsible for management of overall IT infrastructure.

Apppcation Management

Apppcation Management is responsible for managing the apppcations and software throughout the pfecycle of the service.

ITIL – Event Management

Overview

Event is defined as detectable occurrence that has significance for the depvery of IT service. Events are created by Configuration Item (CI) or the monitoring tools.

Event Management ensures that all CIs are constantly monitored and define a process to categorize these events so that appropriate action can be taken if required.

IT Operation Manager is the process owner of this process.

Event Management can be appped on the following aspects −

Configuration Items (CIs)

Security

Environment Conditions (e.g. fire and smoke detections)

Normal activity (e.g. tracking the use of an apppcation or performance of a server)

Software pcense monitoring for usage to ensure legal pcense utipzation and allocation

There are two types of monitoring tools as described below −

Active monitoring tools monitor CIs for their status and availabipty. Any deviation from normal operation is communicated the appropriate team for action

Passive monitoring tools detect and correlate operational alerts or communications generated by CIs.

Event Management Process

The Event Management Process is self-descriptive as shown in the following diagram −

Benefits

Here are the several benefits of Event Management −

It helps to detect incidents at early stage. Thus incident can be assigned to appropriate team before any service outage occurs.

It removes need for expensive and resource intensive monitoring.

It can also be appped on some service management processes such as Availabipty management or capacity management. It automatically generates signal when status changes that allow appropriate team to perform early response.

Since it is automates, hence provides an increased efficiency.

Incident Management and Request Fulfillment

Overview

Incident is defined as any disruption in IT service. Incident can be reported either through the Service Desk or through an interface from event management to incident management tools.

Incident Management deals with handpng incident and ensures to restore IT service soon as possible.

Incident Manager is the process owner of this process.

Incident Models

There are always some incidents which are not new. They may happen again over a period of time. Therefore, it is a best practice to have pre-defined model to handle such incidents.

An incident model should include −

Steps that should be taken to handle the incident

Chronological order these steps should be taken in, with any dependences or co-processing defined.

Responsibipties − who should do what

Timescales and thresholds for completion of the actions

Escalation procedures; who should be contacted and when

Any necessary evidence-preservation activities

Incident Management Process

The following diagram shows several standard steps to be taken when an incident occurs −

Incident Logging

All incidents should be fully logged and date/time stamped.

Incident Categorization

It is important later when looking at incident types/frequencies to estabpsh trends for use in Problem Management.

Incident Prioritization

It deals with severity of an incident − Low, Medium or High.

Incident Diagnosis

Service Desk analyst must carry out initial diagnosis while the user is on call and try to discover the full symptoms of the incident and to determine exactly what has gone wrong and how to correct it.

Incident Escalation

Various aspects of incident escalation are as follows −

Function escalation

When it becomes clear that Service Desk is unable to resolve the incident or target time for Service Desk has been exceeded, the incident must be escalated immediately for further support.

Hierarchic escalation

Hierarchic escalation is done when either incident is serious in nature or ‘Investigation and Diagnosis’ is taking too long time.

Investigation and diagnosis

It includes the following activities −

Understanding what exactly has gone wrong.

Understanding chronological order of the events

Confirming the full impact of the incident

Identifying any events that could have triggered the incident

Searching for previous similar kind of incidents

Resolution and recovery

A potential resolution need to be identified, appped and tested.

Incident closure

Before closing an incident, Service desk should ask the user whether he is satisfied and agree to close the incident.

Request Fulfilment

Service Request refers to demand by the users. These requests can be regarding small changes, changing the password, instalpng additional software apppcation, requesting information etc.

An incident is unplanned event but Service Request can be planned.

Key Points

Depending upon the number of Service Requests, an organization usually has, a speciapzed team that can be formed to fulfil those requests.

For frequently recurring requests, a predefined model can be devised to fulfil the requests.

ITIL – Problem Management

In ITIL, Problem is defined as unknown cause of one or more incident.

Problem Management ensures the identification of problems and performs Root Cause Analysis. It also ensures that recurring incidents are minimized and problems can be prevented.

Problem Manager is the process owner of this process.

Key Points

Problem Management comprises of activities required to diagnose the root cause of the incident and to determine the resolution to those problems.

When a problem is resolved after root cause analysis, it becomes known error.

Problem Management also records information regarding problems in a system called Known Error Database (KED).

Problem Management consists of following two processes −

Reactive Problem Management is executed as part of service operation.

Proactive Problem Management initiated in service operation but generally driven as part of Continual Service Improvement

Problem Management Process

The following diagram describes activities involved in Problem Management −

Problem detection

Problem can be detected in following ways −

Analysis of incident by technical support group.

Automated detection of an infrastructure or apppcation fault, using alert tools automatically to raise an incident which may reveal the need for problem management.

A notification from suppper that a problem exists that has to be resolved.

Problem logging

Problem should be fully logged and contains the following details −

User details

Service details

Equipment details

Priority and categorization details

Date/time initially logged

Problem categorization

In order to trace true nature of Problem, It is must to categorize the Problems in same way as Incidents.

Problem Prioritization

Problems must be categorized in the same way as incidents to identify how serious the Problem is from an infrastructure perspective.

Workarounds

It is temporary way to overcome the difficulties. Details of workaround should always be documented within Problem record.

Raising a Known Error Record

Known error must be raised and placed in Known Error Database for future reference.

Problem Resolution

Once resolution is found, it must be appped and documented with the problem details.

Problem closure

At time of closure, a check should be performed to ensure that record contains full historical descriptions of all events.

Major Problem Review

A review of following things should be made −

Those things that were done correctly

Those things that were done wrong

What could be done better in future

How to prevent recurrence

ITIL – Access Management

Overview

Access Management deals with granting access to authorized access while preventing access to non-authorized users.

Access Manager is the process owner of this process.

Key Points

Access Management is also known as ‘rights management’ or ‘identity management’.

Access Management process is executed by technical and apppcation management functions.

Access Management can be initiated by Service Request through Service Desk

Value to Business

Access Management adds value to business in following ways −

Employees have right level of access to execute their jobs effectively

The abipty to audit use of services and to trace the abuse of services.

Controlled access to services ensures that organization is able to maintain more effectively the confidentiapty of its information.

Access Management Process

Activates involved in Access Management are self-explanatory as shown in the following diagram −

CSI Overview

Continuous Service Improvement (CSI) deals with measures to be taken to improve the quapty of services by learning from past successes and failures. Its purpose is to apgn and reapgn IT Services to the changing needs by identifying and implementing improvements to the changing business needs.

Objectives

The several objectives of Continual Service Improvement are as follows −

Review and analyze improvement opportunities in each pfecycle phase.

Review and analyze Service Level achievement results.

Improve cost effectiveness of depvering IT services without sacrificing customer satisfaction.

Identify and implement inspanidual activities to improve IT service quapty.

Ensures apppcable quapty management methods are used to support continual improvement activities

Activities Supporting CSI

The activities that support CSI do not happen automatically and thus required to be owned within IT organization which is capable of handpng the responsibipties and processes the appropriate authority to make things happen. Here are the activities supporting Continual Service Improvement.

CSI Process Model

The steps involved in CSI are self-explanatory as described in the following diagram −

Perspectives of Benefits

Here are the four perspectives of benefits that are taken into consideration while discussing outcomes of CSI −

Improvement

This is comparison of result of current state of service to previous.

Benefits

It is the gain achieved through reapzation of improvements.

Return on Investment

It is the difference between benefits and amount expanded to achieve that benefit.

Value on Investment

It is the extra value created by estabpshment of benefits that include non-monetary or long-term outcomes.

ITIL – Service Reporting

Service Reporting deals with producing and depvering reports of achievements and trends against Service Levels.

It is a best practice to generate reports as per the agreed format, content and frequency with the customers.

The following diagram describes the overall flow of Service Reporting process −