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White Paper www.butlergroup.com
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Front Office and Back Office IT
X Analysis without compromise 1White Paper www.butlergroup.com
Written by: Martin Gandar
Published July 2006 All rights reserved. This publication, or any part of it, may not be reproduced or adapted, © Butler Direct Limited by any method whatsoever, without prior written Butler Direct Limited consent.
X MANAGEMENT SUMMARY
Many organisations implementing ITIL as part of their IT Service Management framework begin with the Configuration Management Database (CMDB). While a CMDB is a key piece of any successful ITIL implementation, there are several traps that are easily fallen into when implementing one. In fact, its complexity and asset-centric view of IT can present a significant hurdle for organisations seeking to use ITIL to improve their operational efficiency and the alignment of IT with their customers. There is also strong evidence to suggest that asset-driven CMDB projects can quickly become dangerously siloed as independent groups within IT (service desk, data centre, etc.) attempt to build their "own" CMDB. Realising that many organisations are finding difficulty with determining how best to approach ITIL, we have asked ourselves whether the implementation of a Service Catalogue should be started early in the process of adoption, either in parallel or before the introduction of the CMDB as a means to overcome this hurdle. This approach would entail using the Service Catalogue to first define what services are to be offered to IT's business customers and the user community, and then integrating the Service Catalogue with the CMDB so that each complements the other. The core of this argument is based on the need to start from the perspective of a 'Front Office' for IT, where business customer needs drive the definition and delivery of IT services - rather than from the perspective of the 'Back Office' of systems, assets, and resources, currently and historically managed by IT. This is a fundamental shift that is needed to overcome the historic structures that have made the workings of IT impenetrable and indecipherable to its internal customers. The case is based on four key propositions: 1. Unless business needs drive the definition of services and delivery of those services, there will continue to be a disconnect between IT and its internal customers. This is because building up service definitions from configuration items and available technology assets takes the same IT-centric view that has contributed to much of the communication problems inherent in IT's relationship with the business, nor does it consider the lifecycle of provision and support needed to maintain and optimise the services supported. There is a strong case to say that the data model for a CMDB should be drawn from a Service Catalogue, because that is how IT articulates what it does for its customers. Starting with a Service Catalogue forces IT to review, define, and present what it offers from a customer's view, and not from an infrastructure perspective. 2. The benefits of the Service Catalogue will come much earlier in the adoption cycle than those for the CMDB, especially when considering the long time to completion of most CMDB projects. Starting with a customer-facing Service Catalogue makes the most sense for an IT organisation that wishes to increase its customer visibility and effectiveness. An actionable Service Catalogue can be completed quickly, particularly if based on existing commercial software and templates that enshrine 'best practises', giving IT a quick and visible win. IT can then integrate the Service Catalogue with a CMDB for complete service and configuration management. 3. A Service Catalogue enables more customer-focused IT service management. The Service Catalogue achieves this through offering clearly understood, consistent, standardised, and rationalised services and appropriate service levels with associated costs to both business unit managers and end users. This applies to both simple services such as the installation of a telephone, as well as complex services that may involve the use of multiple... [download for more]
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