ITSMF 2009
Service Quality attended the ITSMF Conference this year. Cherwell Service Management and Capisce Surveys, generated a lot of interest in the industry. I will get some photos of the event up on the web soon.
ITSMF Program
Stream A
Powerful Planning
COVERING: IT Governance, Risk Management, Audit Preparations, Service Level Management, ISO/IEC 20000, Service Portfolio Management, Demand Management, Understanding customer needs, Gaining CEO support, IT - Cost centre to profit driver, Case Studies
Most attended topics included ISO/IEC 20000, SLA's and Governance.
As defined in ITIL Version 3 and evidenced by practical experience, effective and thorough planning from the beginning of a project is a key element in determining whether it will be successful or not. Without meticulous planning, it is impossible to know what is going to be best for an individual organisation and to then mitigate the risks involved in change. This stream is all about how to incorporate strategic planning into the full lifecycle of an ITSM project. It starts with identifying what the business needs are and then planning to meet pre-defined objectives right through the design, transition and operation phases of a process implementation.
Stream A will feature practical and theoretical examples of how life-cycle planning is fundamental to achieving full business value from the application of ITSM standards and best practice frameworks. It will include topics such as the application of business planning to ITSM projects, how to sell ITSM to the board, setting roles and responsibilities, surveying customers and auditing service levels, risks, service offerings and customer demand to set requirements.
Stream B
Powerful People
COVERING: Release & Deployment Management, Change Management, Configuration Databases & Management System, Knowledge Management, Validation & Testing Management, Early life support, Retraining technical staff to speak business, Business readiness, Cultural change - the people side, Case studies.
When you get down to it, ITSM is all about people. It is only human beings who plan and design projects to meet objectives. There are automating tools to help along the way, but the bottom line is that you need enthusiastic, trained and motivated people to manage change and configuration and knowledge retention. This stream will focus on the key issues that affect people in the holistic view of ITSM.
These include: How to manage technical, process and cultural change in your environment. Setting up the Change Advisory Board, the role of change communication with all stakeholders how to retain the ITSM knowledge that is accumulated through the full lifecycle of an ITSM project and make this available to everyone into the future. Stream B will also include the latest trends, thought leadership and opportunities in Configuration Management, CMDB development and the importance of validation and testing.
Stream C
Powerful Practical
COVERING: Request Management, Event, Incident and Problem Management, Managing Technology, Application Management, Meeting the SLAs, Measuring the Service Levels, Managing Customer expectations, Quality Customer Service, Service Delivery, Case studies.
It’s all about quality customer service and it is a never-ending journey of continual improvement. There are many practical challenges along the path to successful ITSM implementations and this stream will be aimed at addressing them. At the frontline, incidents have to be managed so that they create minimal disruption to IT services and business productivity. Once recurring incidents are identified, effective problem management is crucial to making sure the appropriate changes can be made to eliminate them in the future.
Stream C is all about the best ways to pro-actively manage hardware and applications so that they perform above and beyond expectations for an IT organisation’s customers. It will also address the type of processes that are needed to manage requests for IT services from the business so they can be delivered in a timely, cost effective and efficient manner with optimised, continually improving results that meet pre-defined objectives. This is where you will also find current best practice in managing service levels and using metrics to achieve results.
Stream D
Powerful Principals
COVERING: Issues of relevance to existing and aspiring CxOs and Academics. IT Strategy, Financial Management, SOA, The changing relationship between Business and IT, Research and trends, Academic updates and trends, training and certifications in standards and frameworks, Case studies.
The success of ITSM projects requires the captains of industry to have knowledge, understanding and buy-in to the true value that can be delivered through standards and best practice frameworks. There are a number of bigger picture issues that are of relevance to CxO-level executives and this community needs specialised presentations to keep them engaged throughout the conference. Meanwhile, the academic community is increasingly coming to understand that they have to deliver graduates with tertiary qualifications and certifications that are relevant to the changing needs of industry.
This stream will include content that is specifically designed to meet the needs of CxO-level executives and members of the IT academic community. From the business side it will look at the evolving role of IT from business cost centre to a business enabler. It will take a close look at some of the theories and logic behind the lifecycle approach adopted by ITIL Version 3 and to define the true business value of investments in best practice ITSM. For academics, there will be insight to the latest trends in incorporating IT certifications into business and information systems curricula as well as the type of research that is being undertaken all over the world into ITSM adoption and maturity.
Stream E
Powerful Performance
COVERING: Incident Management, Service Level Management, Help Desk Management, reducing the number of help desk calls, increasing the percentage of calls resolved at first contact, Service culture trends and managing service cultural change.
Service Desk Management is the front line in delivering IT support that is truly supporting the technology needs of customers and the business. Service Desk challenges and processes are different to other areas of ITSM and Service Desk Managers have unique interests and information requirements in relation to best practice incident management processes and personnel management to achieve business objectives.
This stream will look at all of the latest trends and solutions that are available to make the Service Desk a friendly, efficient and effective support to the business. It will define the role the Service Desk plays in achieving service levels and how to best achieve reductions in calls to the Service Desk and increase the number of calls that are resolved at first contact. There will be evidence of the value in measuring KPI’s accurately as well as analysing and applying the knowledge garnered from these metrics.
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Keynotes
Ken Wendle, ITSM Practice Principal, HP TS Solutions
A well-known, trusted and respected leader in the IT Service Management field, Ken Wendle is recognized world-wide for his role in the adoption and growth of the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL®), ITSM Best Practices as well his practical advice on various aspects of IT Management excellence and dedication to the profession.
He is employed by Hewlett-Packard Company as Client Engagement Manager within the Worldwide ITSM Practice, Technical Services and has been involved with many of the largest and most successful ITSM initiatives in the USA and is regularly consulting with IT leaders of some of the largest and most well known corporations in the world.
He earned the ITIL® Certificate in IT Infrastructure Management in 1998, is an accredited ITIL course instructor, and has the distinction of being the first American to be named a Fellow in the UK-Based Institute of Service Management, IoSM. He recently achieved the “ITIL Expert” certification, successfully completing the and passing the ITIL V3 Manager’s Bridge certification criteria.
He was a co-founder of the IT Service Management Forum USA (itSMF USA) and in recognition of his long term dedication, commitment and efforts, he was awarded the organisation’s highest honour, the itSMF USA Lifetime Achievement Award, September of 2007 at its annual conference.
On the international scene, Ken is currently serving his second two-year elected term as member of the itSMF International Executive Board as Director of Chapter Services and was a member of the ITIL Advisory Group, and was actively involved with ITIL® Version 3.0 and its worldwide launch.
A popular and charismatic speaker, Ken has spoken internationally at events like the itSMF UK conference and as featured keynote at the Australia, Finland, Netherlands, Belgium and Norway itSMF conferences and the launches of the New Zealand and the Southern Alberta organisations and most itSMF USA Local Interest Groups.
Ken has also been featured within numerous “webinars” and panel discussions and is often quoted in articles and websites and regularly sought for his dynamic and insightful presentations, sharing deep experience, anecdotes, humour and analogy to “inform, educate, entertain, inspire and motivate… though not necessarily in that order”.
Associate Professor Adela J McMurray: Adela is Assistant Dean,
Research and Innovation, RMIT
Business and has both academic and industrial experience gained through her business, research and consulting activities in both manufacturing and service industries. Her work in the area of culture and innovation recognised internationally resulting in over 60 refereed publications. She has been awarded best author, teaching, and conference paper awards and has been invited by Members of Parliament for inputs into Australia’s National policy for developing Indigenous enterprises and was a contributing expert speaker in the economy stream at the 2008 Future Summit. She is the recipient of four major Australian Research Council grants, and two RMIT Institute grants.
Adela is an Editorial Advisory Board member for the Journal of Management History, the Journal of Small Business & Enterprise Development, and the International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behaviour & Research. Adela is Chair of the Doctoral and New Faculty Consortium in the Management, Spirituality and Religion Interest Group at the US Academy of Management. In addition, Adela holds the Chair of the Emerald Best International Symposium Awards, on the International Themes Committee, at the US Academy of Management.