LONDON, September 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --
- Update Enhances ITIL Guidance
ITIL® 2011, published on 29 July by official publisher TSO, responds to feedback from the community that reads, uses and trains from the guidance and recognises emerging trends such as cloud computing, multi-vendor sourcing, and new and updated international standards related to service management. The updated publications enhance ITIL V1 and V2, and are distinguishable from the 2007 edition by the inclusion of a new '2011 Edition' flash on updated front covers. Printed editions and downloadable pdfs of the guidance are available now, with eBooks and Online Subscriptions following soon.
The new guidance provides improved publications with a focus on clarity, consistency, correctness and completeness. Since the ITIL Service Lifecycle books were published in 2007, trends towards the governance of IT, risk management, standardisation, globalisation, sustainability and different sourcing strategies have developed considerably. The update evolves the original ITIL concepts to keep pace with the rapid advancement of business and technology change, offering significant benefits whilst ensuring the approach is both straightforward to understand and to implement.
The authors have recognised that ensuring ease of use and continuity is critical, and so the update has been designed to minimise the impact for users and on existing software tools. Enhancements have been made to all five areas of the Service Lifecycle:
ITIL Service Strategy now includes more practical guidance and more examples where relevant. A new process of strategy management for IT services has been defined, with separate descriptions of business strategy and IT strategy. Financial management has been expanded, and business relationship management and demand management are now covered as processes.
ITIL Service Design focuses on alignment with ITIL Service Strategy. A number of concepts and principles have been clarified, most significantly the flow and management of activity throughout the overall service design stage and the addition of a 'design coordination' process.
In ITIL Service Transition, the key concepts of the configuration management system (CMS) and the service knowledge management system (SKMS) have been made more straightforward to understand and new content has been added to explain how a change proposal should be used, and to show how asset management relates to the service asset and configuration management process. Further improvements have been made to change management, release and deployment management, and change evaluation.
ITIL Service Operation now incorporates process flows across all areas, including request fulfillment, access management and event management. The publication now explains how basic events flow into filters and rule engines to produce meaningful event information and the guidance around service requests, request models, and proactive problem management has been clarified, together with the distinction between application management and application development.
The ITIL Continual Service Improvement (CSI) seven-step process has been clarified, together with its relationship with the Deming 'plan-do-check-act' cycle and knowledge management. The CSI approach now includes a CSI register where details of all improvement initiatives within an organisation may be recorded. Emphasis has been placed on the interfaces from CSI to other lifecycle stages.
Janine Eves, Contract Manager at Official Publisher TSO, comments: "Our focus has been on ensuring that ITIL continues to communicate best practice across the very latest advancements in business and technology change, from the perspectives of both users and trainers. For example, improvements to the ITIL guidance on multi-vendor sourcing will help a service provider to manage the challenges around governance and the management of multiple providers, spreading the risk and reducing costs. Likewise, the ITIL update explains how IT service management is impacted by the prevalence of cloud computing, offering guidance on current thinking around service strategies, sourcing structures and delivery models for cloud services. The updated guidance reflects the latest international standards relating to service management, including the 2011 edition of ISO/IEC 20000-1: Requirements."
The new publications, bearing the '2011 Edition' flash, will initially be available in English with translations to follow. Priority languages include Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Portugese and Spanish. Prices for the hard copies and all electronic formats will remain the same as the 2007 editions. Online subscribers will receive the update free of charge.
TSO has published a special edition of the ITIL eNewsletter to introduce ITIL 2011 edition and a comprehensive Summary of Updates document. The eNewsletter incorporates reviews from each author, an overview of changes for each core title, details of the publication formats and availability, and a 2011 Glossary. Features include frequently asked questions regarding the ITIL update project, and 'Myths and Rumours Exploded'. This and other ITIL updates can be accessed by registering for the ITIL Elert Service at http://www.best-management-practice.com/ITILRegister
NOTES TO EDITORS:
ITIL®
ITIL is the most widely accepted approach to IT service management in the world. ITIL is a cohesive best practice framework, drawn from the public and private sectors internationally. It describes the organisation of IT resources to deliver business value, and documents processes, functions and roles in IT Service Management (ITSM). ITIL is supported by a comprehensive qualifications scheme, accredited training organisations, and implementation and assessment tools. The original version of ITIL was developed at the same time as, and in alignment with BS 15000, the former UK standard for IT Service Management. BS15000 was fast-tracked in 2005 to become ISO/IEC 20000, the first international standard in ITSM. OGC is committed to the maintenance of alignment between ITIL and ISO/IEC 20000.
TSO
TSO (The Stationery Office) has 200 years experience of providing publishing and information solutions to the public sector. It specialises in the creation, production and distribution of information in print, online and electronic formats. TSO is Britain's largest publisher by output, publishing 15,000 printed and electronic products each year.
TSO has a long history of working with Best Management Practice and is the only official publisher of its Best Practice Guidance, managing various update and refresh projects on behalf of the Cabinet Office.
ITIL® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Cabinet Office
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