Introduction to ITIL
In the 1980s the quality of service provided by both internal and external IT companies to UK government departments was of such a level that the CCTA (Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency, now the Office of Government Commerce, OGC) was instructed by the Government to develop a standard approach for an efficient and effective delivery of IT services. This was to be an approach which was independent of the suppliers (whether internal or external). The result of this instruction was the development and publication of the Information Technology Infrastructure Library™ (ITIL). ITIL is made up of a collection of 'best practices' found across the range of IT service providers. ITIL offers a systematic approach to the delivery of quality of IT services. It gives a detailed description of most of the important processes in an IT organization, and includes checklists for tasks, procedures and responsibilities which can be used as a basis for tailoring to the needs of individual organizations. At the same time, the broad coverage of ITIL also provides a helpful reference guide for many areas, which can be used to develop new improvement goals for an IT organization, enabling it to grow and mature. Over the years, ITIL has become much more than a series of useful books about IT Service Management. The framework for "best practices" in IT Service Management is promoted and further developed by advisors, trainers and suppliers of technologies or products. Since the nineties, ITIL represents not only the theoretical framework, but the approach and philosophy shared by the people who work with it in practice.
© 2007 itSMF International. Extracts are from the book, Foundations of IT Service Management Based on ITIL® V3, which is available from www.vanharen.net. |
