OracleAppsBlog

A day in the life of an Oracle Applications Consultant

IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL)

Tuesday, May 31, 2005

Why ITIL implementations fail

Although I’ve been in the IT industry for some time now, ITIL is something I only recently became aware of. The Wiki Encyclopedia provides a really good definition of what ITIL is, as follows:

The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is a customizable framework of best practices that promote quality computing services in the information technology (IT) sector. ITIL addresses the organisational structure and skill requirements for an IT organisation by presenting a comprehensive set of management procedures with which an organisation can manage its IT operations. These procedures are supplier independent and apply to all aspects of IT infrastructure.

The Wiki Encyclopedia ITIL definition page also provides a really good overview of the ITIL frameworks and the supporting sets.

I recently came across an interesting article by Malcom Fry at CIO Online entitled the The Pitfalls of ITIL. The article outlines the top ten reasons why ITIL implementations fail and discusses IT Service Management (ITSM).

10 reasons for ITIL implementation failure:

1. Lack of Management commitment
2. Spending too much time on complicated process diagrams
3. Not creating work instructions
4. Not assigning process owners
5. Concentrating too much on performance
6. Being too ambitious
7. Failing to maintain momentum
8. Allowing departmental demarcation
9. Ignoring solutions other than ITIL
10. Not reviewing the entire ITIL framework

What grabbed my attention was the 1st point. This is also listed as the main reason why ERP implementations fail in all the books and articles I have read on the subject - something for management to be aware of and to try and rectify!! A case in point is this Rockford Consulting article which provides the following list of the 12 Cardinal Sins of ERP implementation:

1. Lack of Top Management Commitment
2. Inadequate Requirements Definition
3. Poor ERP Package Selection
4. Inadequate Resources
5. Resistance to Change/Lack of Buy-in
6. Miscalculation of Time and Effort
7. Misfit of Application Software with Business Processes
8. Unrealistic Expectation of Benefits and ROI
9. Inadequate Training and Education
10. Poor Project Design and Management
11. Poor Communications
12. Ill-advised Cost Cutting

Useful ITIL Links

I’ve added these links to my link blog as well as referenced them in the del.icio.us tags at the end of the post.

• Dr. ITIL (Blog)
• ITIL wiki
• ITIL definition site
• ITIL Community Forum
• ITIL Service Leadership

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

The ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library) framework

The other day I had someone phone me up and ask me about ITIL. Sadly, I wasn’t able to tell them very much. I soon discovered that ITIL seems to be quite a buzz word in the IT industry right now. This post contains details of an upcoming Webinar on ITIL which I will be attending and which others might be interested in knowing about.

The ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library) framework is quickly becoming the most recognized service management approach by businesses looking to shore up their IT operations. As IT continually strives for improved effectiveness, measured accountability, and automated processes for ensuring best practices and policy compliance — the need for continuous IT controls is finally resonating throughout the organization.

For those interested here is a free upcoming webinar on ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library): -

“Getting the Right Data for ITIL Success”

Date - Tues., February 15th, 2005
Time - 10 AM PST (1 PM EST)
Presenter - Dr. Sheldon Borkin,
CISSP & Cendura VP, Strategic Accounts

» To register, go to:
http://www.cendura.com/webinar/register/index00.html