Strategic
The strategic roles shown in Figure 1 are Rule Provider,
Expert, and Advisor. Rule Providers establish the rules and make
the decisions based upon their experience and the information
provided by the Experts. The Experts provide input and analysis to
ensure that the decisions are made with the best available
information. Sometimes extra or specialized information may be
required and the organization turns to Advisors for input and
advice.
Using our earlier example, the Strategic Level makes the
decision to sell corporate products on the Web. As this decision
requires complete and accurate information, the Experts provide
input to the decision-making process. In addition, depending on
the knowledge levels of the Experts, Advisors may also be used.
Tactical
The tactical roles shown in Figure 1 are the Guardian and
Coordinator roles. Coordinators are responsible for implementing
the decision, while Guardians ensure that the decision is
implemented within the time and budget specified at the Strategic
Level. Note that because this is a corporate level view, not all
of the players are within IT. The Tactical Level is a key factor
to ensuring that the Return On Investment (ROI) meets acceptable
levels, because a late or underestimated development plan can
seriously impact ROI.
Using our earlier example, the Coordinators are responsible for
all the development and implementation activities required to
install the on-line shopping resource. Meanwhile, the Guardians
monitor the project to ensure that it meets the specifications and
budgets provided to the Tactical Level.
Operational
Two more roles, Providers and Customers, complete the picture.
Providers are responsible for ensuring that the IT infrastructure
is available to meet the requirements of the Customers who are the
beneficiaries of the system. The more efficiently and
cost-effectively the Providers supply their services, the less
money the organization spends on Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).
For example, if a system continues to fail due to a Known Error
causing Customer delays, the TCO for that system will be
expensive.
In our earlier example, the Providers must ensure that once
implemented, the on-line shopping system is available as described
in the agreed Service Level Agreements.
Echelons within levels
The attractiveness of the three levels concept is that it
applies as echelons (levels within levels) to divisions and
departments as well as to organizations. For example, a typical IT
department may have a Strategic Level (IT Executive), a Tactical
Level (development and project management), and an Operational
Level (Service Management). This means that, if required, the case
for ITIL can be pitched at both an organizational level and at an
IT level. In most cases, however, it is unlikely that the
Corporate Strategic Level would be involved in reviewing ITIL.
You must identify the correct echelon to which to pitch ITIL.
For example, if IT operates in the background of an organization,
then it is highly unlikely that the Corporate Strategy Level will
have any interest in ITIL. In this case, the Corporate Strategy
level would probably have the view that IT should look after its
own shop. On the other hand, in an organization that sees IT as a
business advantage, the Corporate Strategic Level would almost
certainly be interested in ITIL and its deliverables.
Identifying the correct echelon
Since every organization is different, you must give careful
consideration to your organization before deciding which path to
follow. Five consistent parameters allow you to gain an overall
understanding of your organization's view of the status of IT:
· Financing indicates how an organization regards its
investment in IT. If the organization views IT as a cost rather
than an investment, it is likely that the organization will try to
minimize IT costs, rather than invest in IT to develop business
practices. As a general rule, the more the organization views IT
as an investment, the more likely that the Strategic Level would
be involved in ITIL-related decisions. Conversely, if the
organization views IT as a cost, the Strategy Level would have
little or no interest in ITIL, except from a cost standpoint.
- Management shows how an organization views the ownership of
IT resources. The question is whether management should be
centralized within IT or distributed to various locations, as is
typical in large, multi-national enterprises. When IT management
is decentralized, it can be very difficult to gain ITIL
commitment.
- Ownership indicates how an organization views IT outsourcing;
that is, whether IT resources should be outsourced or remain
within the organization. Organizations that have decided to retain
IT in-house will be interested in ITIL at all levels. Conversely,
organizations that have decided to outsource IT will probably not
be interested in ITIL on any level, unless the organization has
established meeting ITIL standards as one of the criteria that
outsourcers must meet.
- Innovation reflects an organization's desire to use
leading-edge technology or to stay with tried and trusted
technologies. For this parameter, ITIL applies across the entire
spectrum.
- Relationship is concerned with the level of formality between
IT and its customer base. The more formal the relationship, the
more likely that the organization's Strategic Level will be
interested in ITIL. In many cases, it is the organization's desire
to go from informal to formal that is the driving factor for ITIL.
These five parameters may be consolidated in a chart to allow
the comparison of organizational business drivers and focus.
Organization members need to assess whether they perceive the IT
organization as a service provider or as a successful enabler of
the business.
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figures 2 and 3 show charts of two organizations that differ as
to how they view IT. In Figure 2, the organization views IT as a
service provider. In Figure 3, the organization views IT as a
business enabler. For each organization, the chart shows how each
of the organizations measure up to the five parameters. From this
kind of analysis, an organization can gain insight into how IT is
perceived by key decision makers at various levels in the
organization.
By comparing the responses and the perspectives in Figures 2
and 3, it is far more likely that getting support for ITIL will be
easier in the organization depicted in Figure 3 than in the
organization depicted in Figure 2.
To determine which view most accurately reflects your
organization, create a blank form similar to Figure 2 and plot
your organization into the form. It's a good idea to get a few
others in your organization to do the same, and then compare your
results. You may wish to speak to people at different levels of
the organization. From this, you'll get a good indication whether
to promote ITIL at an organizational, divisional, or departmental
Level. Whatever you decide, remember that you still need to
structure your approach around the three Levels: Strategic,
Tactical, and Operational.
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