What the ITIL industry can learn from iPods and sweaty sneakers January 21, 2010
Posted by ivankamenken in itil, itsm.Tags: exercise, fun, IT Service Management, itil, management, measure, nike
3 comments
I have never been a fan of sneakers / trainers / sport shoes.. they always make my feet smell (I know, WAY too much information!) and I am yet to find anybody who can convince me that this does NOT happen to him or her.. too much empirical research data proves that I am not alone with this ‘problem ‘ … Which probably explains why the closest I get to this type of shoe is by wearing my Cole Haan high heels. After all they have Nike Air in the soles!!!
Having said that – lately I am strangely drawn to Rebel Sport, Athletes Foot and other chain stores that smell of stinky socks and blisters.. Why? Because I want to purchase a pair of sport shoes! And you know why? Because I bought a new iPod, the iPod Nano which is connected to the Nike Plus website to track your exercise data… even without the shoes I am already hooked. How sad am I?
So where am I going with this? Well, this whole experience got me thinking about the ITIL/ITSM industry and the fact that so many people talk about how hard it is to implement the processes and how boring it is to go through the motion. Well – I can’t think of anything more boring than walking/jogging/running. It is probably the most monotonous form of sport I can think of. But yet I want to do it, and I want to keep doing it. Because it gives me data that makes me feel good about myself. I feel like I’ve achieved something every time I log onto the Nike+ website and I see that I’ve walked my way through a hotdog or 100 flights of stairs on a sky scraper.
So my dear ITIL consultants, read and learn… make ITIL fun. Give the IT department a sense of achievement each and every step along the way. Make it fun to measure every activity, every helpdesk ticket and play with it. Why not have graphs that represent a country or the universe.. who said that you can only graphically show data in pie charts or bar charts?
Learn from the best! and I mean… when Nike and Apple can make me walk, jog and run…. they qualify as the best in my books!!
Think about it – be creative – challenge yourself! You’d be amazed.
This is your chance to make a difference January 17, 2010
Posted by ivankamenken in Uncategorized.add a comment
This is your chance to make a difference to the entire IT Industry: THE IT PROFESSIONAL SONGBOOK… http://ow.ly/XhgZ –add YOUR song!
Are you a star?? January 13, 2010
Posted by ivankamenken in business, itsm.Tags: apmg, business, EXIN, itsm, risk, service management
1 comment so far
I just received Bob Lefsetz’s newsletter and it resonated with me. I must admit that a lot of Bob’s letters go over my head as I am not familiar with the music industry, but I love his view points and honest opinions and there are always little take aways from reading his letters. Today’s newsletter was about American Idol (a show I love to hate) and the difference between being somebody who has a hit in the hit parade and being a true star. (have a look in his archive, you might find it in the January 2010 section, titled ‘X-factor’ )
I guess the reason I really enjoyed this one is because I see so many parallels between the music industry and the IT Service Management industry. How many people within the ITSM industry are true stars? How many people do you know by name and whose opinion you value? How many organisations out there are unique and different? Trend setting, and changing the ITSM world as you used to know it?!
Most people are afraid to take risks.. just like the music labels Bob refers to. Most people only talk the talk… only bring the message that is in line with their ’sponsor’s ‘ point of view. (be it the company they work for, or the official EI or APMG point of view)
True entrepreneurs don’t accept the”status quo” without questioning it every step along the way- they run their own race, and explore the boundaries of what is possible.. they are not afraid to offend as they truly believe in what they can offer to the world. As a colleague mentioned in a phone conversation yesterday: Entrepreneurs don’t conform to what other people say or tell you to do.. not unless it sits well with your own belief system.
I truly hope that the ITSM and ITIL world learns to embrace these entrepreneurs, and not be afraid of them, as they are the true stars of our industry. Not a vanilla flavoured, carbon copy of all the other stuff that is available to you… but truly unique and fresh – the stars who make a difference to you and others around you in the ITSM industry.
What will this day be like? I wonder… What will my future be? I wonder… January 4, 2010
Posted by ivankamenken in itil, itsm.Tags: itil, ITIL expert, itsm
add a comment
Yes, OK.. I’ll admit it.. I LOVE The Sound of Music! Probably saw that movie a million times and never get bored by watching it. But that’s not what this blog is about, not really…
Today is the first day back in the office after a long break and all day I’ve had this song going through my head… the lyrics are quite suitable for how I’m feeling today:
What will this day be like?I wonderWhat will my future be?I wonderIt could be so excitingTo be out in the worldTo be freeMy heart should be wildly rejoicingOh whats the matter with me?I’ve always longed for adventureTo do the things I’ve never daredNow here i’m facing adventureThen why am I so scared?
Don’t get me wrong – I’m not depressed or anything! Far from it! Every day I do something that I am scared off.. it has been part of my daily routine for quite some time now and it makes me stretch myself further and further. It’s an amazing way to grow as a business person, a professional as a human being.
The reason why the song resonates with me today is because I find myself pondering the future of ITIL as a framework. It is now 2010 and I’ve been involved with the ITIL Framework since 1997. I have seen it go through the versions from 1 till 3 and to me the ITIL Framework is similar to the air that I breathe. I don’t need to understand the exact chemical compound to experience the positive effects of breathing it every second of each day.
But I have also watched from a distance how other people get more and more confused about the ‘ circus’ that is created around the framework. The certification scheme that makes you collect 22 points is fair enough, but in the past 2 years the rules have been evolving around the certification. Some of the changes:
- Originally you were not allowed to mix-and-match V2 with V3 certifications.. but now you are! Doesn’t matter how you get your 22 points, as long as you get there.
- The ITIL advanced level is now called ITIL Master, which sounds very much like the ITIL V2 Masters level (marketing term, not the official qualification name) by which the ITIL V2 Service Management Certificate is known.. but it is NOT the same.
- The addition of extra courses that fall outside of the Foundation-Intermediate- Expert pathway but still count towards the Expert status. (and while we’re on the subject.. when you have ITIL Expert, does that mean that you get credits for EXIN’s ISO/IEC 20000 pathway as well as sort of cross-pollination?)
- Last year saw the introduction of a software certification, but what does that mean? Many vendors claim that their software is ITIL compliant, but is that now officially against the rules? Does every software vendor have to rewrite their marketing materials to stay in line with the official dogma?
- And best of all: the refresh of the refresh! I have been receiving many emails from clients and IT Professionals asking me if they now have to re-sit their exams because ITIL is changing again?!!
The most successful things in life seem to get to this status because of their simplicity. Think paperclip or iPod, it looks easy and it works… And in its basic form, ITIL has (had?) the ability to fit within the same category. It was simple – never easy – and clear for every party involved what the features and benefits are of the framework. But what about the future? Will ITIL become too scary, too difficult, too intense, too convoluted for people who enter the amazing world of IT? Too difficult to even want to understand??
What will the future of ITIL be? I wonder…
Why Social Media is important for ITIL and ITSM practitioners November 9, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in cloud computing, itil, itsm.Tags: change management, customer, economy, IT Service Management, itil, technology, the art of service
3 comments
Life will never be the same again! I remember the day in the last century when I purchased my first mobile phone so I could continue the conversations with my clients while I was stuck in one of many traffic jams in The Netherlands. I also remember that most of my consultancy clients didn’t have email addresses, although there was inter-company electronic mail and those big yellow internal mail envelopes for paper memos etc. To connect with clients you used the phone or fax.
fast forward to 2009:
Our current clients have email addresses, a skypeID, google chat, twitter accounts, a facebook or myspace page, a google Wave account and everybody always talks on their mobile computer (isn’t it amazing that the Apple iPhone has this cool apps that you can download so you can even make phone calls with it?)
So what did I do? Over the past few months I have been more and more active with social media for The Art of Service. For one reason: we want to continue to create long-lasting relationship with our clients and course participants.
For me this is natural and logical: Our clients discuss important and urgent issues on twitter and facebook (as well as the not so important but still urgent), so where are there to answer their questions and to engage in the conversation.
So how has the interaction changed?
- I have my own twitter account http://www.twitter.com/ivankamenken . I use this account to share my research findings, ideas, comments and general communication around IT Service Management, ITIL, Cloud Computing, Business Management and personal ’stuff’
- Because not everybody is interested in my thoughts and rants, I also create a corporate twitter account to discuss our events, programs, products and generic information. http://www.twitter.com/taos_events
- I started promoting my mobile phone number on my business card and email signature again to encourage clients to speak with me directly, rather than going through my PA.
- I have a personal SkypeID, and the company has a corporate SkypeID so nobody has to feel they can’t connect with a client at the other end of the world
- The Art of Service has a corporate blog, posts ideas and links on posterous
- We encourage people to send in their questions and requests for help via the forms on our websites
- and of course there are the multiple of RSS feeds, Digg and delicious bookmarks, the hyves and Linkedin profiles
So when I look back at my first years as an ITIL and ITSM practitioner and compare it with the current situation – I would say that social media is a must for every ITIL and ITSM consultant or practitioner who wants to stay connected with the industry, their clients, peers and colleagues.
The way we did business 20 or 30 years ago doesn’t work (as well) anymore, we can’t stop growing… if you don’t use social media yet… change, and embrace it!
Keeping our focus on the end goal – how ITSM makes impact on business outcomes November 8, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in itil, itsm.Tags: business, IT Service Management, itil, itsm, process, service management
add a comment
Last week somebody accused me on being too much process focused and not enough focused on the end result.
After my initial emotive response (and the associated defence mechanism), I started to analyse why this person would say such a thing.
- In my discussions with people, and in my articles I talk a lot about the need for processes, disciplines and frameworks. (so yes, I can see how I come across as being purely process focused)
- Reason for this is that most of these discussions start around my professional expertise. This expertise is built around a niche in the IT industry: IT Service Management and how this can be combined with Cloud Computing Offerings. (so yes, I can see how my opinions, messages and comments may come across as one-sides erring on the side of the process)
- Where is see that a lot of people miss their goals, it is often because they stop following the processes and start ‘free wheeling’ without structure and discipline
Am I focused on the processes? Yes, I think I am. And the reason is because the lack of processes seems to be the driving force behind why most IT organisations don’t connect with the rest of the business. In the pat 2 months I have spoken with almost 100 CEO’s and Managing Directors and not ONE of them said that they really enjoyed and appreciated their IT organisation.
Not one of them commented on the fantastic level of communication and service focus of their IT groups.
This is why I am so passionate about IT Service Management and ITIL with its processes, procedures, work-instructions and activities. IT Service Management has the ability to make a major difference to many companies, small to large in revenue or size.
Do I lose sight of the end goal? I don’t think I am… in all my discussions with CIOs, CEOs and IT directors we always focus on the reason why there is a need for IT Service Management. After all – you don’t want to spend time and money on something that doesn’t make sense for your business, now do you???
Why do training organisations pay mega $$ for ITIL accreditation? October 21, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in itil, itsm.Tags: apmg, elearning, exam, EXIN, IT Service Management, itil, ITIL V3, itsm, the art of service, value
add a comment
Caveat and pre-warning. This might turn into a little bit of a rant…
Today I was notified that we didn’t win a large training opportunity. This doesn’t happen often, but still.. not happy with the results. And as always I try to figure out where I could have assisted the client better in their purchasing process. Good thing is that this time I know who I lost the opportunity to, so I decided to check out what the differences are in our approach.
Now here’s the deal: The Art of Service is accredited with EXIN for all ITIL V2 and ITIL V3 certification courses, both for our classroom delivery and our eLearning delivery methods. And yes, the full list is:
- ITIL V2 Foundation
- ITIL V2 Practitioner IPAD, IPPI, IPSR, IPRC
- ITIL V2 Service Manager
- ITIL V2-V3 Foundation Bridge
- ITIL V2-V3 Manager Bridge
- ITIL V3 Foundation
- ITIL V3 Intermediate Capability SOA, PPO, OSA, RCV
- ITIL V3 Interemediate Lifecycle SS, SD, ST, SO, CSI
- ITIL V3 Managing Across the Lifecycle
This is important to us, as we want to do the right thing AND have that independent validation of our course materials.
(and I must admit – I am very critical of the fact that we have to be accredited for ITIL Foundation programs, when people can do self study or no study and sit the exam anyway… but we want to cover all bases hence the full suite of programs.)
This is what the friendly lady on customer service told me when I quizzed ‘the other company’ on their accreditation status:
you: Who is your ITIL Foundation course accredited with?
XXX: we don’t offer credits
you: ?
you: You offer ITIL V3 Foundation
XXX: yes
you: I only want to know if your ITIL course is ACCREDITED
you: who are you accredited with
you: ?
XXX: the training is a self study course
you: yes – I understand that
you: but who is the accrediting body who approved the courseware
you: or are you using somebody else’s materials?
XXX: We use the book from OCG which is the Official Guide to ITIL v3
you: that is great – but that’s only a book
you: who authorized the coursematerials?
XXX: and the training is instructor lead training delivered thru streaming video
XXX: the training is guaranteed
XXX: its not authorized by anyone
you: yes – who is the course approved / accredited / authorized by?
XXX:and noone has ever failed the exam after doing the training withus
XXX: with us
you: are you sure? (as this is compulsory for all providers due to copyright restrictions)
XXX: yes I am sure
you: ok – thank you
Isn’t that interesting? I mean – it will be a HUGE cost saving not to have to worry about the accreditation, audits, paperwork, renewals etc.
I might need to rethink our business model … what do you think?
The secret of success: structure and discipline! (ITIL/ITSM people – are you listening?!) October 19, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in business, itil, itsm.Tags: capacity management, change management, IT Service Management, itil, service management, time management, value
3 comments
Today I chaired a meeting with 6 other entrepreneurs. (in my role as Forum chair for the Brisbane chapter of EO) The funny thing is that these entrepreneurs are very like-minded and they are all used to making the decisions.
But I didn’t prepare the meeting very well (these things happen) and the funny thing is: due to the lack of structure and strict timelines on the agenda we went 15 minutes over time.
Would the meeting be more valuable with the additional layer of structure and discipline? ABSOLUTELY! It seems contra-indicative, but the more structure and discipline you bring into an organisation the more you get done and the more satisfaction people get from doing it.
Same thing is true for the IT industry – from where I am standing I see a lot of time (and money) being wasted because of people going around and around in circles, going off on tangents due to a lack of structure in the organisation.
Think about it – when did you feel most valuable in your job? When you get a lot done! Most of the times this would be the day before you go on a holiday. You get so much done because your have your priorities straight, have a clear plan on what you want to achieve, have a vision of going home and leaving behind a clean desk and an empty inbox; and you structure your days around these disciplines…
So tomorrow – when you get back to work, just think about the benefits of structure and discipline when you do a walk-through of an ITIL process, embrace the benefits of discipline when you sit in on a CAB meeting.
Ultimately you will feel more valuable as a result of it.
Today’s question: What would you recommend- ITIL or PMP certification? October 17, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in itil, itsm.Tags: itil, management, PMP, project, service management
add a comment
This question arrived in my inbox this morning and this is what I answered:
There is quite a big difference between ITIL and PMP and I suppose it really depends on your other skills and preferred job type to be able to answer your question.
PMP is a Project Management Methodology, which is mostly used in an IT environment, but is specifically created for the management of projects. PMP is a product of the Project Management Institute in the USA.
ITIL is a framework specifically created for the management of IT Services across the entire lifecyle. Most activities in the framework are combined in processes and because of this the framework has a focus on continual improvement of process, product, people and partner relations.
There are touchpoints between the project organisation (which may use PMP) and the strategic & operational side of an IT department (which may use ITIL ) and the two methodologies complement each other to enable the IT organisation to produce its IT Services to the best of its capabilities.
I hope this helps you to make the decision on what would be the better study path for you. Follow this link to read more about our eLearning pathway for the ITIL framework certification.
The future of ITIL certification : NO more ITIL V2 exams October 16, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in itil, itsm.Tags: certification, exam, EXIN, IT Service Management, itil, ITIL V3, itsm, the art of service
add a comment
I am packing up as my stay in Cairns has finished. The last 2 days were very good – I was invited to attend the EXIN partner event to hear about the direction EXIN is going to take in the future.
As always the presentations are mostly marketing and sales from EXIN to the training providers, but I did learn a few things that may be of interest to non-trainers as well:
1) Of all exams taken, approx. 40% are still ITIL V2 exams.
I was quite amazed at this number as my assumption was a lot lower percentage. We still have clients, in Europe and the Middle East mainly, who prefer ITIL ITIL “>V2 to ITIL V3 but I was not aware that this number is this high.
2) APMG / OGC are alledgedly taking the V2 exams out of production
The current understanding is that the ITIL ITIL “>V2 Foundation exam will no longer be available after June 2010 and that the ITIL V2 Practitioner exams and ITIL V2 Manager exams will be phased out between June and December 2010. There will still be the option for resits until somewhere in early 2011 but no new exams will be issued.
So when I take both of these together, that means that 40% of the market must change certification strategies.. OR we are going to lose that part of the market because these companies take an “ITIL V2 of nothing” approach.
