What is Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL)?

by Bebo Khamvongsa, MS Windows Engineer

Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is an IT standard which applies best practices to the management of IT services. Prior to standards such as ITIL and ISO 9001:2000, IT issues were often dealt with on an ad hoc basis. This approach was neither cost efficient nor beneficial to the long term growth of the company.

Unlike ISO 9001:2000 certification, ITIL certifies an individual. Version 3 certification became available in May 2007. I was fortunate enough to attend a training boot camp in December 2007 and received the "ITIL v3 Foundation" certification.

The ITIL certification was originally developed in the 1980s by UK's Central Computer and Technology Group (a government body). Since the mid-1990s, the ITIL standard has been adopted by a great number of businesses and organizations in every field. Large and small entities, both in the public and private sectors, have learned that ITIL standards support the interdependency of IT infrastructure, business objectives, and profit goals.

Although the ITIL standard was not the first IT management standard, it seeks to take accepted standards further to enable managers to increase cost efficiencies between the IT department and the core business by encouraging individual managers to broaden their understanding of the business goals and align them with IT service strategies. This has to be performed on a cost efficient basis while consistently improving IT services to the client. The standard also emphasizes the need to meet measurable present goals and to always seek ways to improve the service strategy.

Three levels of ITIL certifications (Foundation, Practitioner, and Manager) are available. These certifications provide the overview and knowledge for running IT services for any organization. Individual certifications make ActioNet even more competitive and are directed toward Team Leads, Supervisors, and Project Managers.

With the intensifying demand for national and international coordination of business objectives by various entities, Chief Information Officers, even in small companies, recognize the need to incorporate IT management standards.

ActioNet is currently International Standards Organization for Quality Management System (ISO 9001:2000) certified. This accreditation means ActioNet has processes, procedures, and controls in place that meet or exceed the industry standard for quality management. These practices and skills are valuable to our customers and are highly sought after. ActioNet is encouraging all applicable staff members to seek ITIL certification to further these skills and assets. I was the first.

The ITIL Foundation course was beneficial not only for materials and lectures, but also for group discussions of real world scenarios and how ITIL applies at different levels. I highly recommend IT professionals research the ITIL v3 framework to further their career objectives. The knowledge of ITIL provides a broader perspective about improving processes and procedures which can be applied not only to IT Management, but to other business models as well.

ITIL v3 Core Volumes of a Service Life Cycle

Service Strategy (SS)

• Service Management Strategy and value planning
• Linking business plans to IT service strategy
• Planning and implementing service strategy

• Managing organizational and cultural change
• Knowledge management
• Service knowledge management system
• Methods, practices and tools
• Measurement and control
• Companion best practices

• Service design objectives and elements
• Selecting the service design model
• Cost model
• Benefit/risk analysis
• Implementing service design
• Measurement and control

• Application Management
• Change Management
• Operations Management
• Control processes and functions
• Scalable practices
• Measurement and control

• Business and technology drivers for improvement
• Justification
• Business, financial and organizational improvements
• Methods, practices and tools
• Measurement and control
• Companion best practices