ITIL® and Me

In the trenches with ITIL and ITSM.

Five days down at the new place of work and I’m pretty sure it’s where I need to be as an ITSM practitioner.  Incident Management is at a CMMI level 2 (maybe more 1 ½).  Change Management is something almost entirely different, and I would say that’s the most mature of the processes, and that ain’t good.  As I mentioned in a previous post I’m using three books to help guide me on this new ITSM journey, and so far Visible Ops is becoming a much needed reference. To go with this thought, here’s the plan so far:

1. Get to know the ITSM tool – My “official” position is that of administrator, so obviously I do need to know the tool in order to even earn the paycheck.

2. Lock Change Management down to a science – This is a big one, and if you like Visible Ops, you’d agree.  Since 80% of problems come from Changes, this is where the biggest improvements will hit. Since objective #1 will take more time with training, I know it’s going to be hard not to focus on the processes.

That’s all I can really say at this point – I’ve only been there a week, so what do you really expect?  The biggest unknown is the culture – will putting in changes be difficult, or will they be willingly accepted?  OK, I’ll be realistic and say I already know the answer; but I’d rather not do any self-fulling prophecies.  In the words of my former director, “keep calm and carry on.”  (Incidentally, I think he got that from the British WWII propaganda.  I prefer the alternative of “panic, and run around like headless chickens.”  It’s never gotten me anywhere, but sure is fun.)

Update:  Forgot one last key item, and that’s the baseline metrics.  So….before leaping into any project my actual next step will be just finding out where we are so I know what is/is not effective.  I hate forgetting the basics, but as my former director always said (as quoted from Hoosiers) “you’ve gotta learn how to dribble before learning how to shoot.”

So tomorrow is my first day at a new place of work. One of the reasons why I took the new job isn’t because it’s an epitome of ITSM and a place where everything is perfect – such a place probably doesn’t exist and sounds terribly boring anyway (I like challenges). So I’m going into an environment that needs work, and probably lots off it. To help with this, my (former) director and mentor suggested I pick three books to use as a blueprint at my new place of craziness; and only use those three since using too many methodologies and frameworks would do more harm than good. Since I only have three to choose, that obviously means ITIL is out the window with its five volumes (my attempt at a joke). OK, in all seriousness, here’s the reading list:
1. Visible Ops – I read this one a while ago and it’s fantastic. Simple and to the point (as so few things are these days). It also put the importance of Change Management into perspective.
2. The ITSM Process Design Guide – I just got this book from Fusion 11 and since it’s the primary text for the CPDE certification, I’m planning on using it as a structured guide on getting my hands dirty with process improvement.
3. Real ITSM – Let’s face it, jobs such as these are tough and I need humour. Well, I don’t know many people funnier than Kiwis. And besides, who better to rip apart ITSM than someone with the same name as the guy that played Freddie Kruger (Robert England vs. Robert Englund – look it up).

That’s my list, and I’ll be sticking with it. A few notable mentions; I also plan to read ITIL Lite, which I hope gives a good wholistic approach to implementing ITIL, but with fewer calories. I also plan to read The CMDB Imperative. I met Glenn O’Donnell and Carlos Casanova at Fusion 11 and they seem like a couple of smart guys. Even though only about 5% of companies have successfully built a CMDB, I hope this book can help give a few pointers, plus I want to give them a plug on my blog.

So here it is, my last day working at “the hospital,” and of course for some reason my mind does not want me to be lazy and sleep-in (which isn’t fun since I figured I’d sleep in, grab breakfast, show up to work around 10, take a nap, lunch at 11, second lunch at 12:30, second nap….you get the idea). Since I’m up, I might as well do something (semi) productive and write-up a blog post about my (soon to be former) co-workers. Since I have no idea if they care if I use their names, I’m keeping it to only the first letters. Besides, I think all three of them can beat the crap out of me – I better play it safe.

J – He’s the director and a seasoned veteran of ITSM and ITIL. I don’t think this guy is publicly talked about in the ITSM world, but everyone that meets J remembers him. And why wouldn’t they? He’s the epitome of cool, confident, and definitely intimidating (in a good way).  He’ll sit there and listen to a problem and you can tell he’s processing everything, and I do mean everything.  If his answer isn’t one you want to hear, he’ll say it anyway.  He’s been a great mentor and someone I could equate to as being the Obi-Wan of ITSM.  To top it all off, the stories about his life rival those of the IT Skeptic.  In the past, J mentioned I quoted him a few times on my blog without giving proper credit. Since I hate doing such things, here’s a list of the most memorable quotes I can think of at 6 AM:

  1. Stop the bleeding before you grab the mop and bucket.
  2. Everyone passes out the peanuts (in reference to Southwest Airlines and riding in the jump seat).
  3. The Service Desk should act like a pizza shop. They need to ask for the user’s name, phone number and location before they take the order.
  4. Want to know good customer service? Visit Thailand.
  5. I’m not immortal. Just indestructible (from when he told the story of getting hit by a car – the first time it happened).

E – My manager (for today) and affectionately referred to by J as his bulldog. If you worked with her, you’d know why – she’s incredibly tenacious, but is also equally nice about it. And if you ever need anyone to perform QA, she’s definitely the person for the job; she has a natural gift of being able to find anything wrong with any system (just ask our vendor of our ITSM tool). E also has a great knack for being able to find the simplest solutions that make the biggest impact. She’s also cool and calm, and never lets the job get to her. E and J have worked together for the past seven years and she’s probably the only person I know that can argue with J, and win (which is not easy).

B – My coworker and friend. B is the newest one of us to walk the road (or bumpy trail) of ITIL and ITSM, and she’s great at it. She’s smart, direct, and like E and J, tenacious. I really can’t describe B because honestly, you have to see her in action to really understand why she’s great at her job. Her personality just has no bulls**t, and it’s refreshing to work with someone like that. I’ve learned a lot from working with B; one lesson being that it’s possible to be direct with someone while also being polite (I admit it, I can be a little harsh). I would go on and on about her, but I’m hoping to bring her along with me to my new job, so I don’t want anyone else to know how good she is and offer her something better.

OK, so maybe the blog post kisses ass a little too much, but in ITSM you’re probably lucky to have one like-minded coworker. Here, I was very fortunate to have three. I’ll admit it – I’ll miss working with these people. At least with the modern marvel of IM, we’ll be able to stay in touch. That’s assuming, of course, that I haven’t pissed them off at some point and they’re happy to see me go. I honestly hadn’t thought about that until now…

Let’s recap the past couple of weeks:

Fusion 11 took place.  Steve Jobs passed away.  I took a new job (a.k.a. escaping).  Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur were just celebrated, and Ohio State is blowing it big time in football.  With all these events, I can’t think of a better time then a “reflections” post.

OK, I reflected.

Any questions?

Sure, there’s a lot going on and I did take a few moments to reflect on the past and wonder what the future will hold, but I’d also like to keep things in perspective.  I doubt Apple will really hurt with Steve Jobs not being at the helm (as shown he built a legacy, not just technology products).  My new job will be a fantastic opportunity to expand on my ITSM experience (as well as create new content to blog on).  Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are great holidays and since the world is still around, I guess the praying worked, and Ohio State will eventually get a new coach and will rebuild itself back into the top ten.  As always, I’ll point out that I’d rather not lament on the past and would prefer to focus on the present.

Like I said; any questions?