The #1 Best-Selling Certification Kit. Complete Certification Kit 4th Edition. Study Book and elearning Program

Transcription

1 The #1 Best-Selling Certification Kit ITIL Foundation Complete Certification Kit 4th Edition Study Book and elearning Program The only resource you will need to learn about IT Service Management and pass the ITIL Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management exam, including: Designed in accordance with the ITIL 2011 syllabus Narrated presentation of content - ipad/iphone friendly Exam preparation modules including sample exams Support from accredited ITIL trainers Online forum to interact with other students

2 Foreword As an education and training organization within the IT Service Management (ITSM) industry, we have been impressed by the positive changes introduced by the ITIL 2011 edition of the ITIL framework. The evolution of the core processes and concepts provided by the framework provides the more holistic guidance needed for an industry that continues to mature and develop at a rapid pace. We recognize, however, that many organizations and individuals who have previously struggled with their adoption of the framework will continue to find challenges in implementing ITIL as part of their approach for governance of IT Service Management practices. In light of this, one of our primary goals is to provide the quality education and support materials needed to enable the understanding and application of the ITIL framework in a wide-range of contexts. This comprehensive book is designed to complement the in-depth accredited elearning ITIL Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management program provided by The Art of Service. The interactive elearning program uses a combination of narrated presentations with flat text supplements and multiple choice assessments. This book provides added value to the elearning program by providing additional text and real life examples to further cement your knowledge. Your learning and understanding will be maximized by combining these two study resources, which will ultimately prepare you for the APMG ITIL Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management exam. This fourth edition also includes appropriate alterations based on the recent review of the framework and the ITIL 2011 edition Foundation syllabus and associated exams. We have also used student feedback to include improvements to the format and material, including additional content and sample exam questions. We hope you find this book to be a useful tool in your educational library and wish you every success in your IT Service Management career! The Art of Service

3 Notice of Rights Notice of Liability Trademarks All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher. The information in this book is distributed on an As Is basis without warranty. While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of the book, neither the author nor the publisher shall have any liability to any person or entity with respect to any loss or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by the instructions contained in this book or by the products described in it. Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher was aware of a trademark claim, the designations appear as requested by the owner of the trademark. All other product names and services identified throughout this book are used in editorial fashion only and for the benefit of such companies with no intention of infringement of the trademark. No such use, or the use of any trade name, is intended to convey endorsement or other affiliation with this book. This publication is to be used only in conjunction with the online elearning program relevant.

4 Write a review to receive any free ebook from our Catalog $99 Value! If you recently bought this book, we would love to hear from you! Benefit from receiving a free ebook from our catalog at by writing a review on Amazon (or the online store where you purchased this book) about your last purchase! As part of our continual service improvement process, we love to hear real student experiences and feedback. How does it work? To post a review on Amazon, just log in to your account and click on the Create Your Own Review button (under Customer Reviews) of the relevant product page. You can find examples of product reviews in Amazon. If you purchased from another online store, simply follow their procedures. What happens when I submit my review? Once you have submitted your review, send us an at review@emereo.org with the link to your review and the ebook you would like as our thank you from Pick any book you like from the catalog, up to $99 RRP. You will receive an with your ebook as a download link. It s that simple!

5 How to access the elearning Program Direct your browser to: Click login (found at the top right of the page) Click Create New Account Follow the instructions to create a new account. You will need a valid address to confirm your account creation. If you do not receive the confirmation , check that it has not been automatically moved to a Junk Mail or Spam folder. Once your account has been confirmed, your User-ID for your new account to key11@theartofservice.com You will receive a return with an enrolment key that you will need to use in order to access the elearning program. Next time you log in to the site, access the program titled: ITIL 2011 Foundation elearning Program Minimum system requirements for accessing the elearning Program: Processor RAM OS Browser Plug-Ins Internet Connection Pentium 4 (1 GHz) or higher 256MB (512 MB recommended) Windows XP, Vista, 7, MCE, Mac OSX Mozilla Firefox 3+ (recommended), Internet Explorer 6.x or higher, Safari, Opera, Chrome, all with cookies and JavaScript enabled Adobe Flash Player 8 or higher Due to multimedia content of the site, a minimum connection speed of 512kbps is recommended. If you are behind a firewall and are facing problems in accessing the course or the learning portal, please contact your network administrator for help.

6 If you are experiencing difficulties with the Flash Presentations within the elearning Programs, please make sure that: 1. You have the latest version of Flash Player installed, by visiting 2. You check that your security settings in your web browser do not prevent these flash modules from playing 3. For users of Internet Explorer 7, a solution involves DESELECTING Allow active content to run files on my computer in Internet Explorer -->Tools, Options, Advanced, Security settings.

7 Contents Foreword 1 How to access the elearning Program 4 Introduction 11 Benefits of ITSM Business and IT Alignment What is ITIL? Common Terminology 18 What are Services? Processes and Functions The Service Lifecycle 31 Mapping the Concepts of ITIL to the Service Lifecycle How does the Service Lifecycle work? Service StrateGY 36 Purpose of Service Strategy Benefits of Service Strategy Principles of Service Strategy... 39

8 Service Strategy Processes Service Strategy Review Questions Service Design 82 Purpose and Value The Four Perspectives (Attributes) of ITSM Major Aspects of Service Design Service Design Processes Service Design Summary Service Design Scenario Service Design Review Questions Service Transition 170 Purpose Value Service Transition Processes Service Transition Summary Service Transition Scenario Service Transition Review Questions

9 Service Operation 220 Purpose Value to the business Major Concepts Service Operation Functions Service Operation Processes Service Operation Summary Service Operation Scenario Service Operation Review Questions Continual Service Improvement 288 Purpose Scope Value to the Business Major Concepts Seven-Step Improvement Process Continual Service Improvement Scenario Continual Service Improvement Review Questions ITIL Foundation Exam Tips 309 Answers for Review Questions 310

10 Service Strategy Service Design Service Transition Service Operation Continual Service Improvement References 327 Glossary 329 Abbreviations 357 Certification 359 ITIL Certification Pathways ISO/IEC Pathways INDEX 361

11 As this ITIL Foundation course is designed to help you memorize and understand the official ITIL terminology, in addition to helping you to apply this theory in a practical scenario, many instances of formal definitions and terminology have been quoted from the official core publications. All Gray, ITALIC text is from the five ITIL official lifecycle books (SS, SD, ST, SO, CSI) Crown copyright Reproduced under license from the Cabinet Office. ITALIC text is referenced to corresponding book and page number. All other text is based on Cabinet Office ITIL material. Reproduced under license from the Cabinet Office. ITIL is a Registered Trade Mark of the Cabinet Office. IT Infrastructure Library is a registered trademark of the Cabinet Office.

12 Chapter 1 Introduction Looking back to a period where corporate giants fell and government bailouts were measured in the billions, not to mention the overwhelming natural disasters that have occurred all over the world, the challenges faced by an ordinary IT Service Provider may seem of low priority. But now that IT budgets have come under more financial scrutiny than ever before, the value provided by managing IT with controlled, repeatable, and measurable processes has become all the more obvious. So, for the modern Chief Information Officer (CIO), employing quality IT Service Management (ITSM) practices can often help in achieving a quality sleep each night. The term IT Service Management is used in many ways by different management frameworks and the organizations that seek to use them. While there are variations across these different sources of guidance, common elements for defining ITSM include: Description of the processes required to deliver and support IT Services for customers A focus on delivering and supporting the technology or products needed by the business to meet key organizational objectives or goals Definition of roles and responsibilities for the people involved, including IT staff, customers, and other stakeholders The management of external suppliers (partners) involved in the delivery and support of the technology and products being delivered and supported by IT The combination of these elements provides the capabilities required for an IT organization to deliver and support quality IT Services that meet specific business needs and requirements. The official ITIL definition of IT Service Management is found in the Service Design volume (Service Design, page 16), and defines ITSM as The implementation and management of quality IT services that meet the needs of the business. IT service 11

13 12 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition management is performed by IT service providers through an appropriate mix of people, process, and information technology. Organizational capabilities are influenced by the needs and requirements of customers, the culture that exists within the service organization, and the intangible nature of the output and intermediate products of IT services. However, IT Service Management comprises more than just these capabilities alone. It is complemented by an industry of professional practice and wealth of knowledge, experience, and skills. The ITIL framework has developed as a major source of good practice in Service Management and is used by organizations worldwide to establish and improve their ITSM practices. Benefits of ITSM While the benefits of applying IT Service Management practices vary depending on the organization s needs, some common benefits include: Improved quality service provision Cost-justifiable service quality Design of services that meet business, customer, and user demands Integrated and centralized processes Transparency of the roles and responsibilities for service provision Continual improvement, incorporating lessons learned into future endeavors Measurable quality, performance, and efficiency attributes It is also important to consider the range of stakeholders who can benefit from improved ITSM practices. As perspectives will differ for each stakeholder, the benefits provided by enhanced ITSM practices may apply to one or more of the following parties: Senior management Business unit managers Customers End users IT staff Suppliers Shareholders

14 INTRODUCTION 13 Business and IT Alignment A common theme in any IT Service Management framework is to enable and demonstrate business and IT alignment. When staff members of an IT organization have only an internal focus on the technology being delivered and supported, they lose sight of the actual purpose and benefit that their efforts deliver to the business and customers. A way to communicate how IT supports the business is by using Figure 1.A (on page 14), which demonstrates business and IT alignment. Figure 1.A divides an organization into a number of supporting layers that work toward meeting a number of organizational goals. These layers are communicated by the following: Organization CORE Business Processes IT Service Organization IT Service Management IT Technical Activities What are the key strategic goals and objectives for the organization? These objectives define who we are as an organization and where we want to be in the future. These are represented by the repeatable business activities that produce desirable results for the business. Without these results, the organizational objectives defined above would not be supported or achieved. Defines the IT Services and supporting infrastructure that are required to enable the effective and efficient execution of the business processes above. IT Services are used by the business to facilitate and enhance outcomes, including improved efficiency of operations or ensuring accuracy in the records and information being managed. Made up by the repeatable, managed, and controlled processes used by the IT department that enable quality and efficiency in the delivery and support of the IT Services above. The actual technical activities required as part of the execution of the ITSM processes above. ITSM is utilized to ensure that any resources and effort spent performing the technical activities are optimized according to the greatest business need or reward. As these activities are technology specific (e.g., configuring application server), they will not be a focus of this book. Each layer within this structure is utilized to support the layer(s) above. At the same time, each layer will, in some way, influence the layer below it. For example, a business process that is required to be executed at all times without disruptions (e.g., emergency health services) would result in highly resilient IT services being implemented, supported by ITSM processes that reduce the risk and impact of disruptions occurring.

15 14 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition Our Business: A fashion store What are some of our organization s objectives or strategic goals? We want to increase profits by 15% each year. We want to have a good image and reputation with a loyal customer base. What Business Processes aid in achieving those objectives? Retail/sales Marketing Manufacturing Procurement, HR, finance, etc. What IT Services do these business processes depend on? Websites (internal and external) Communication services ( , video conferencing) Automatic procurement system for buying products Point of Sale Services Figure 1.A Business and IT Alignment We have ITSM in order to make sure that IT Services are: What we need (Service Level Management, Capacity Management, etc.) Available when we need them (Availability Management, Incident Management, etc.) Provisioned cost-effectively (Financial Management, Service Level Management) If we do not manage the IT Services appropriately, we cannot rely on these services to be available when we need them. If too many disruptions occur, we cannot adequately support our business processes effectively and efficiently. If

16 INTRODUCTION 15 the business processes are not operating as they should, we will ultimately fail to support and achieve our overall organization s objectives! Also note the relationship between IT Service Management processes and the technical activities below. Used properly, ITSM processes can optimize the time, effort, and other resources spent performing technical activities, ensuring that all staff actions are working in accordance to agreed business priorities and objectives. This is just a simple example used to illustrate the relationship between ITSM and the organization. Any approach used to improve ITSM practices should always be carefully considered to ensure that the plans suit the organization in terms of: Size (number of staff, customers, IT devices, etc.) Geographical dispersion Culture and ethos Current maturity and capability levels What is ITIL? ITIL stands for the Information Technology Infrastructure Library. ITIL is the international de facto management framework describing best practices for IT Service Management. The ITIL framework evolved from the UK government s efforts during the 1980s to document how successful organizations approached service management. By the early 1990s, they had produced a large collection of books documenting the best practices for IT Service Management. This library was eventually entitled the IT Infrastructure Library. The Office of Government Commerce in the UK continues to operate as the trademark owner of ITIL. ITIL has gone through several evolutions and was most recently refreshed and reviewed with the release of the 2011 edition. Through these evolutions, the scope of practices documented has increased in order to stay current with the continued maturity of the IT industry and meet the needs and requirements of the ITSM professional community. ITIL is only one of many sources for ITSM best practices and should be used to complement any other set of practices being used by an organization.

17 16 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition Five volumes make up the ITIL 2011 Edition: Service Strategy Service Design Service Transition Service Operation Continual Service Improvement Each volume provides the guidance necessary for an integrated approach and addresses the direct impact of capabilities on a service provider s performance. The structure of the ITIL framework is that of the service lifecycle. It ensures organizations are able to leverage capabilities in one area for learning and improvements in others. The framework is used to provide structure, stability, and strength to service management capabilities with durable principles, methods, and tools. This enables service providers to protect investments and provide the necessary basis for measurement, learning, and improvement. In addition to the core publications, there is also ITIL Complementary Guidance. This consists of a complementary set of publications with guidance specific to industry sectors, organization types, operating models, and technology architectures. At present, this complementary guidance is available by subscription from Best Practices Ignoring public frameworks and standards can needlessly place an organization at a disadvantage. Organizations should seek to cultivate their own proprietary knowledge on top of a body of knowledge developed from using public frameworks and standards (Service Strategy, Page 20). Public frameworks (ITIL, COBIT, CMMI, etc.): Frameworks are scaled and adapted by the organization, instead of following a prescriptive set of practices (standards). Examples of public frameworks for ITSM include: ITIL COBIT The Control Objectives for Information and related Technology Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI) for IT Services

18 INTRODUCTION 17 Standards: Usually a formal document that establishes uniform engineering or technical criteria, methods, processes, and practices. Unlike frameworks, they are prescriptive in declaring mandatory elements that must be demonstrated. Examples of standards relating to ITSM are: ISO/IEC International Standard for IT Service Management ISO/IEC International Standard for Information Security Management Systems ISO/IEC Corporate governance of information technology standard Proprietary knowledge of organizations and individuals: Specific expertise developed for internal purposes or developed in order to sell to other organizations (e.g., Gartner). Generally, best practices are defined as those formalized guidelines as a result of being successful in wide-industry use.

19 Chapter 2 Common Terminology Critical to our ability to participate with and apply the concepts from the ITIL framework is the need to be able to speak a common language with other IT staff, customers, end users, and other involved stakeholders. This chapter documents the important common terminology that is used throughout the ITIL framework. Care should be taken when attempting the ITIL Foundation exam, as there will be a number of questions that seek to ensure that the candidate has an effective grasp of the terminology used throughout the framework. A full glossary has been included at the back of this book for terminology and acronyms that are covered under the ITIL 2011 Foundation syllabus. The following introductory glossary is provided as an introduction to the common terms found within the framework. Throughout the book, relevant terms will be discussed in more detail in the context of their corresponding process or lifecycle stages. 18

20 COMMON TERMINOLOGY 19 Baselines Terminology Business Case Capabilities External Service Providers Functions Internal Service Providers IT Service Management Explanations (ITIL Continual Service Improvement) (ITIL Service Transition) A snapshot that is used as a reference point. Many snapshots may be taken and recorded over time, but only some will be used as baselines. For example: An ITSM baseline can be used as a starting point to measure the effect of a service improvement plan. A performance baseline can be used to measure changes in performance over the lifetime of an IT service. A configuration baseline can be used as part of a backout plan to enable the IT infrastructure to be restored to a known configuration if a change or release fails. A decision support and planning tool that projects the likely consequences of a business action. It provides justification for a significant item of expenditure. It includes information about costs, benefits, options, issues, risks, and possible problems. The ability of an organization, person, process, application, CI, or IT service to carry out an activity. Capabilities can be described as the functions and processes utilized to manage services. These are intangible assets of an organization that cannot be purchased, but must be developed and matured over time. The ITSM set of organizational capabilities aims to enable the effective and efficient delivery of services to customers. Service provider that provides IT services to external customers, e.g., providing internet hosting solutions for multiple customers. A team or group of people and the tools they use to carry out one or more processes or activities. Functions provide units of organization responsible for specific outcomes. ITIL Functions covered include: Service Desk Technical Management Application Management IT Operations Management An internal service provider that is embedded within a business unit, e.g., one IT organization within each of the business units. The key factor is that the IT services provide a source of competitive advantage in the market space where the business exists. A set of specialized organizational capabilities for providing value to customers in the form of services.

21 20 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition Process Terminology Process Owner Process Manager Resources Service Service Owner Shared Service Provider Explanations A set of coordinated activities combining and implementing resources and capabilities in order to produce an outcome and provide value to customers or stakeholders. Processes are strategic assets when they create competitive advantage and market differentiation. They may define roles, responsibilities, tools, management controls, policies, standards, guidelines, activities, and work instructions if they are needed. The person/role responsible for ensuring that the process is fit for the desired purpose and is accountable for the outputs of that process. Example: The owner for the Availability Management Process The person/role responsible for the operational management of a process. There may be several managers for one process, and they report to the Process Owner. A generic term that includes IT infrastructure, people, money, or anything else that might help deliver an IT service. Resources are also considered to be tangible assets of an organization. A means of delivering value to customers by facilitating outcomes that customers want to achieve without the ownership of specific costs or risks. The role of the service provider is to manage these costs and risks appropriately, spreading them over multiple customers if possible. The person/role accountable for the delivery of a specific IT Service. They are responsible for continual improvement and management of change affecting services under their care. Example: The owner of the Payroll Service An internal service provider that provides shared IT service to more than one business unit, e.g., one IT organization to service all businesses in an umbrella organization. IT Services for this provider do not normally provide a source of competitive advantage but, instead, support effective and efficient business processes across an organization. What are Services? The concept of IT Services, as opposed to IT components, is central to understanding the Service Lifecycle and IT Service Management principles in general. It requires not just a learned set of skills, but also a way of thinking that often challenges the traditional instincts of IT workers to focus on the individual components (usually the

22 COMMON TERMINOLOGY 21 applications or hardware under their care) that make up the IT infrastructure. The mind-set requires an alternative outlook to be maintained, incorporating the end-toend service perspective for what their organization actually provides to its customers. The official definition of a service is a means of delivering value to customers by facilitating outcomes customers want to achieve without the ownership of specific costs or risks (Service Strategy, Page 13). But what does this actually mean? The following analogy explains some of the key concepts in a way that most (food lovers) will understand. While most people do enjoy cooking, there are times when they wish to enjoy quality food without the time and effort required to prepare a meal. If they were to cook, they would need to go to a grocery store, buy the ingredients, take these ingredients home, prepare and cook the meal, set the table, and, of course, clean up the kitchen afterward. The alternative is that they can go to a restaurant that delivers a service that provides them with the same outcome (a nice meal) without the time, effort, and general fuss required if they were to cook it themselves. Now consider how that person would identify the quality and value of that service being provided. It is not only the quality of the food that will influence their perceptions, but also: The cleanliness of the restaurant The friendliness and customer service skills of the waiters and other staff The ambience of the restaurant (lighting, music, decorations, etc.) The time taken to receive the meal (and was it what they asked for?) Did they offer a choice of beverages? If any one of these factors does not meet the person s expectations, then ultimately, the perceived quality and value delivered to them as a customer is negatively impacted. Now, relate this to an IT staff member s role in provisioning an IT Service. If they focus only on the application or hardware elements provided and forget or ignore the importance of the surrounding elements that make up the endto-end service, just like in the example of the restaurant, the customer experience and perceived quality and value will be negatively impacted.

23 22 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition However, if they take a service-oriented perspective, they also ensure that: Communication with customers and end users is effectively maintained. Appropriate resolution time is maintained for end user and customer inquiries. Transparency and visibility of the IT organization and where money is being spent is maintained. The IT organization works proactively to identify potential problems that should be rectified or improvement actions that could be made. Using these principles, every phone call to the Service Desk or request for a password reset presents an opportunity to demonstrate service excellence and a commitment to our customers. To ensure that a service is managed with a business focus, the definition of a single point of accountability is absolutely essential to provide the level of attention and focus required for its delivery. The service owner is accountable for the delivery of a specific IT service. The service owner is responsible to the customer for the initiation, transition, and ongoing maintenance and support of a particular service and accountable to the IT director or service management director for the delivery of the service. The service owner s accountability for a specific service within an organization is independent of where the underpinning technology components, processes, or professional capabilities reside. Service ownership is as critical to service management as establishing ownership for processes that cross multiple vertical silos or departments. It is possible that a single person may fulfill the service owner role for more than one service. The service owner is responsible for continual improvement and the management of change affecting the service under their care. The service owner is a primary stakeholder in all of the underlying IT processes that enable or support the service they own. (Service Strategy, Page 330)

24 COMMON TERMINOLOGY 23 Processes and Functions Defining Processes Processes can be defined as a structured set of activities designed to accomplish a specific objective. A process takes one or more defined inputs and turns them into defined outputs (Service Strategy, Page 20). Every process has four attributes: trigger, activity, dependency, and sequence. Processes are triggered by some occurrence or event, such as a customer call to the Service Desk, an alert through IT Operations, a missed service level in a report, etc. Once a trigger is made, the process is a series of actions that will take any inputs to the process and create an output. The trigger could provide information about the event that will be used by the process, or additional information may be required. This information is the basis for determining the dependencies on the process and is the output from other processes. The actions are predefined and ordered to obtain a specific result. Let us return to the dining analogy previously used. Consider providing dining experience as the process of the waiter. The process is triggered when the customer is seated at the table. The waiter takes action to ensure the customer has great experience during dinner. Along the way, the waiter obtains information that will allow the customer s needs to be known and delivered. Some information will be tangible, such as the customer s order, while other information will be perceived, such as the customer s mood or disposition. This information will change from one customer to the next, but will generally be the similar across all customers (i.e. all customers will order from the menu, but not every customer will order the same thing). In order to deliver the desired experience, the waiter is dependent on the capabilities of several other roles and processes, such as the cook, the bartender, and the restaurant manager. The sequence of activity provided by the waiter is even under scrutiny. Should drink orders be taken before ordering off the menu? Should the drinks be delivered with the appetizer? How many times should the waiter return to the table? When should dessert be served? How the processes are defined will impact productivity within the organization and functions. Some organizations use processes as strategic assets because they set the organization apart from others in the market place. The dining experience

25 24 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition process is nearly the same from restaurant to restaurant, but you, as a customer, have a favorite restaurant because of how the restaurant staff executes the process. A welldefined process will have the following characteristics: The process can be measured. While the most important measurement of a process is performance, other measurements may be desired. Some managers will seek measurements related to cost, quality, and other variables. People performing the process, called practitioners, are focused on duration and productivity. The process provides a specific result. This result is usually predefined and each instance must be recognizable within its definition. The result must be countable. The end result of the waiter s process in a restaurant could be the customer pays for their meal. At the end, the waiter can determine the success of their process execution by adding up the number of paying customers to the number of total customers. The process meets the customer s expectations. If the process does not meet the needs of the customer, it does not provide value and can be considered inadequate. Customers may be internal and external to the organizations: they can be a single individual, several individuals, or even another process. Whatever the characteristics of the customer, the process must meet their expectations. Therefore, understanding the expectations in the early part of the process or before it is triggered is paramount in delivering the desired result. The trigger responds to the different types of triggers appropriately. A seated customer is not the only trigger for restaurants. Different restaurants are designed to initiate their processes for different triggers, such as drive-thru, carry-out, delivery, or catered events. How the process is triggered will define certain adjustments to the process to ensure a great dining experience. In the restaurant analogy, the waiter has been the primary executer of the process. From an ITSM, the waiter is considered a process practitioner. The process practitioner is responsible for carrying out one or more process activities. The process practitioners should understand their role and how it contributes to the overall delivery of the service and how it creates value for the customer and the business. They should work in cooperation with other stakeholders interested in the service delivery and value of the process, such as the manager, co-workers, and customers. This cooperation

26 COMMON TERMINOLOGY 25 ensures that everyone s contribution is consistent to produce the best result from the process. The process practitioner is also responsible for ensuring that the inputs, outputs, and interfaces are appropriate and sufficient. The best waiters will confirm the customer s order, work with the cook to fulfill the order, and quality check the order before delivering to the customer. In addition, the waiter will maintain a journal of the process that will result in a final report to the customer in the form of a receipt. Many restaurants have adopted POS (point of sale) systems requiring waiters to log activities and events to manage the dining experience for the customer. The waiter is not the only process practitioner in the process, nor are process practitioners the only role associated to a process. The process manager role is a person accountable for the operational management of a process. In a restaurant, this person oversees all the waiters and other process practitioners, and may even be a process practitioner himself/herself. In a restaurant chain, several process managers may exist. For smaller organizations, the process manager role may be assigned to the person who also fulfills the process owner role. The process owner role is accountable for ensuring a process is fit for purpose (Service Strategy, Page 331). The process owner must ensure the process is performed according to the agreed and documented standard. They must ensure the process is defined, as well as the process meets its objectives.

27 26 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition Figure 2.B Generic Process Elements Crown Copyright 2011 Reproduced under license from the Cabinet Office The above figure defines the physical components of the process. These components are tangible and can be easily recognized and controlled. However, processes also have behavioral components, which are intangible. Behavioral components are often an underlying pattern within the members of the organization that impact decision-making, communication, and learning processes. Attitudes, prejudices, and work ethics are examples of behavioral components, though at an organizational level, not at individual level. At an organizational level, these components do not exist apart from the work processes, but will affect the activities of the process and the desired results.

28 COMMON TERMINOLOGY 27 Any well-designed process can be derailed at any point by existing negative behavioral components. Resistance to change can be considered a negative behavioral component to continuous improvement, because process drives change at all time. Resistance, in this context, is a direct adversary to improvement. Conversely, a positive behavioral component will enable a poorly-designed process to meet the desired result. A motivated workforce is considered a positive behavioral component. Ideally, an organization will want a well-designed process over a poorly-designed process: a motivated workforce will most likely ignore the poor process to ensure a better result is delivered to the customer. When defining and designing processes, the physical and behavioral aspects of the processes should both be considered. This is done best by engaging the required stakeholders (e.g., staff members, customers, users, etc.) in the design of processes. Stakeholders will express, if given the opportunity, their own ideas, concerns, and opinions about how the processes should be designed, implemented, and improved. These communications will identify the existing behaviors related to the process, either because the stakeholders explicitly mentioned them or because of how the stakeholders expressed themselves. Stakeholder groups are composed of individuals performing the same tasks. Waiters are a stakeholder group. As a group, the individuals have been provided training and education relevant to their role in the process, and they understand the value of the process in the business. Involvement in the design of the process also empowers the stakeholders in the change, reducing the possibility of active or passive resistance when the change actually occurs within the organization.

29 28 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition Defining Functions Functions are a logical grouping of roles and automation that are responsible for executing a defined process and/or a specific activity within a process. Functions are logically isolated from each other: it is easy to acknowledge, on several levels, the differences between the wait staff and the kitchen staff in a restaurant. As such, they can be considered two functions comprising several roles within the restaurant. Although, they are isolated in their defined roles and responsibilities, functions are often dependent on the other functions to effectively perform their duties. In a restaurant, the wait staff would not be able to provide the desired dining experience without quality food. Conversely, the kitchen staff would not be cooking without the wait staff interacting with the customer. Figure 2.C The ITIL Functions from Service Operation Crown Copyright 2011 Reproduced under license from the Cabinet Office RACI Model It is said that processes are perfect until people get involved. This saying comes from the perceived failure of processes in many organizations, which can frequently be attributed to misunderstandings of the people involved and a lack of clarity regarding the roles and responsibilities that exist.

30 COMMON TERMINOLOGY 29 A useful tool to address this issue, assisting with the definition of the roles and responsibilities when designing processes, is the RACI Model. RACI stands for: R Responsibility (actually does the work for that activity, but reports to the function or position that has an A against it.) A Accountability (is made accountable for ensuring that the action takes place, even if they might not do it themselves. This role implies ownership.) C Consult (advice/guidance/information can be gained from this function or position prior to the action taking place.) I Inform (the function or position that is told about the event after it has happened.) Figure 2.D The RACI Model A RACI Model is used to define the roles and responsibilities of various functions in relation to the activities of Incident Management. General rules that exist: Only 1 A per row can be defined to ensure accountability (more than one A would confuse this). At least 1 R per row must be defined (shows that actions are taking place) with more than one being appropriate where there is shared responsibility.

31 30 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition In the example RACI model given, the Service Desk is both responsible and accountable for ensuring that incidents are logged and classified, but is not responsible for the subsequent investigation, which, in this case, will be performed by other functional teams.

32 Chapter 3 The Service Lifecycle Figure 3.A ITIL Service Lifecycle Model Crown Copyright 2011 Reproduced under license from the Cabinet Office Lifecycle: The natural process of stages that an organism or inanimate object goes through as it matures. For example, the stages that a human goes through are birth, infant, toddler, child, pre-teen, teenager, young adult, adult, elderly adult, and death. The concept of the Service Lifecycle is fundamental to ITIL Previously, much of the focus of ITIL was on the processes required to design, deliver, and support services for customers. As a result of this previous focus on processes, Version 2 of the ITIL Framework provided best practices for ITSM based around the how questions. 31

33 32 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition These included: How should we design for availability, capacity, and continuity of services? How can we respond to and manage incidents, problems, and known errors? As ITIL 2011 now maintains a holistic view covering the entire lifecycle of a service, no longer does ITIL just answer the how questions, but also the why? Why does a customer need this service? Why should the customer purchase services from us? Why should we provide (x) levels of availability, capacity, and continuity? By first asking these questions, it enables a service provider to provide overall strategic objectives for the IT organization, which will then be used to direct how services are designed, transitioned, supported, and improved in order to deliver optimum value to customers and stakeholders. The ultimate success of service management is indicated by the strength of the relationship between customers and service providers. The five stages of the Service Lifecycle provide the necessary guidance to achieve this success. Together, they provide a body of knowledge and set of good practices for successful service management. This end-to-end view of how IT should be integrated with business strategy is at the heart of ITIL s five core volumes. Mapping the Concepts of ITIL to the Service Lifecycle There has been much debate as to exactly how many processes exist within ITIL Questions asked include: What exactly constitutes a process? Shouldn t some processes be defined as functions? Why has x process been left out of this study material? In developing this material, we have based our definitions of processes and functions, and where they fit within the lifecycle, on the guidance provided by the ITIL 2011 Foundation syllabus produced by APMG and the Cabinet Office ITIL 2011 Service Lifecycle suite of books. Figure 3.B demonstrates the processes and

34 THE SERVICE LIFECYCLE 33 functions of ITIL, in relation to the five Service Lifecycle stages that are covered at this foundation level. Figure 3.B The Major Concepts of ITIL 2011 Foundation Level Based on Cabinet Office ITIL material. Reproduced under licence from the Cabinet Office Note: The Service Lifecycle stages (and ITIL books) are shown through the arrows at the bottom. The concepts in light shading are the ITIL 2011 processes covered within the foundation program. The concepts in dark shading are functions. Processes that are not covered by the current ITIL 2011 Foundation syllabus are not discussed fully in this book, but will be referenced as necessary for understanding.

35 34 ITIL Foundation certification kit 4th edition How does the Service Lifecycle work? Although there are five stages throughout the Lifecycle, they are not separate, nor are the stages necessarily carried out in a particular order. The whole ethos of the Service Lifecycle approach is that each stage will affect the other, creating a continuous cycle. For this to work successfully, the Continuous Service Improvement (CSI) stage is incorporated throughout all the other stages. Figure 3.C demonstrates some of the key outputs from each of the Service Lifecycle stages. Figure 3.C How Does the Service Lifecycle Work? It is important to note that most of the processes defined do not get executed within only one lifecycle stage. Service Strategy Stage: Determines the needs, priorities, demands, and relative importance for desired services, and identifies the value being created through services and the predicted financial resources required to design, deliver, and support them. This stage builds the context for the service, why it exists, and what it delivers.

36 THE SERVICE LIFECYCLE 35 Service Design Stage: Designs the infrastructure, processes, and support mechanisms needed to meet the availability requirements of the customer. This stage defines how the service works within and for the context developed in the service strategy stage, specifically designing the foundation for the future state of the service. Service Transition Stage: Validates that the service meets the functional and technical fitness criteria to justify release to the customer. The transition stage ensures that the current state of the service and its underlying IT infrastructure is moved into the future state designed in the previous stage. Service Operation Stage: Monitors the ongoing availability being provided. During this stage, we also manage and resolve incidents that affect service availability, performance, and reliability. The primary goal of this stage is to ensure the service, and its underlying infrastructure, is delivering the expected results as conceived in the service strategy stage, developed in the service design stage, and verified in the service transition stage. Continual Service Improvement Stage: Coordinates the collection of data, information, and knowledge regarding the quality and performance of services supplied and Service Management activities performed. Service Improvement Plans developed and coordinated to improve any aspect involved in the management of IT services. The purpose of the CSI stage is to continually enhance the service either to fulfill the original context of the service or exceed expectations.

37 Chapter 4 Service StrateGY Figure 4.A Service Strategy Crown copyright 2011 Reproduced under licence from the Cabinet Office The Service Strategy stage is concerned predominantly with the development of capabilities for Service Management, enabling these practices (along with the IT organization in general) to become a strategic asset of the organization. The guidance provided by the volume can be summarized as: Understanding the principles of Service Strategy Developing Service Strategy within Service Management Developing strategies for services and services for strategies How strategy affects the Service Lifecycle 36

38 SERVICE STRATEGY 37 Strategies for organizational and cultural change Purpose of Service Strategy The purpose of the service strategy stage of the service lifecycle is to define the perspective, position, plans, and patterns that a service provider needs to be able to execute to meet an organization s business outcomes. (Service Strategy, Page 331) The objectives of service strategy include providing: An understanding of what strategy is A clear identification of the definition of services and the customers who use them The ability to define how value is created and delivered A means to identify opportunities to provide services and how to exploit them A clear service provision model that articulates how services will be delivered and funded, to whom they will be delivered, and for what purpose The means to understand the organizational capability required to deliver the strategy Documentation and coordination of how service assets are used to deliver services and how to optimize their performance Processes that define the strategy of the organization: which services will achieve the strategy, what level of investment will be required, at what levels of demand, and the means to ensure a working relationship exists between the customer and service provider By achieving these objectives, it will ensure that the IT organization has a clear understanding of how it can better support business growth, efficiency improvements, or other strategies that need to be realized. KEY ROLE: To stop and think about WHY something has to be done before thinking about HOW.