ITIL® PROCESS IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY

Version: 4.0
Date: January 2009
Author: Pink Elephant
 Table Of Contents

1 PROCESS IMPLEMENTATION............................................................................3
1.1 OBJECTIVE ............................................................................................................3
1.2 PROGRAM MANAGEMENT .....................................................................................3
2 PROCESS IMPLEMENTATION PROJECTS ......................................................5
2.1 PROCESS, PEOPLE & TECHNOLOGY (THE INTEGRATED PROJECT PLAN) ...............5
2.2 IMPLEMENTATION ROLES......................................................................................7
2.3 PINK ELEPHANT CONSULTING ROLES ...................................................................9
2.4 HIGH LEVEL PROCESS MODEL DEVELOPMENT ...................................................10
2.5 DETAILED DESIGN ..............................................................................................12
2.6 PROCESS ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES .................................................................14
3 PROCESS IMPLEMENTATION CONSIDERATIONS ....................................18
3.1 IMPLEMENTATION TIMES ....................................................................................18
3.2 APPLICABILITY / SCALABILITY ...........................................................................18
3.3 CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS ..............................................................................19
3.4 MANAGEMENT COMMITMENT.............................................................................20
4 PROCESS EMBEDDING STRATEGY ................................................................21
4.1 PROCESS WORKSHOPS / TRAINING ......................................................................21
4.2 DETAILED ACTIVITIES (PROJECT CHECK LIST) ...................................................22
5 COMMUNICATION PLAN...................................................................................25
6 EVALUATION OF THE PROJECT.....................................................................26
6.1 POST-PROJECT REVIEW ......................................................................................26
6.2 AUDITING USING QUALITY PARAMETERS ...........................................................26
7 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................28
8 BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................................29
9 ABOUT PINK ELEPHANT ...................................................................................30
10 ITSM LEADERSHIP ..............................................................................................31
ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

1 PROCESS IMPLEMENTATION

1.1 Objective

The objective of this document is to provide guidelines for developing process

implementation plans that will be usable across a wide range of diverse organizations.
The guidelines within this document are designed for use as a general roadmap, or plan,
for any major process development or re-engineering project.

1.2 Program Management

Many organizations that undertake programs to improve their core business processes
and service delivery capabilities are frustrated by feelings of overriding failure regarding
their ambitious goals. Or, at best, they achieve what they consider to be only minor
success. Much of that frustration can be directly attributed to a single, pervading factor:
management’s inability to understand that when implementing processes within
traditional silo focused organizations, they are in reality changing a large part of the IT
business culture, roles and accountability structures.

Process Reengineering

• Single point of accountability Process • Mgmt. commitment

• Logical group of activities • Mgmt. participation
• Cross Departmental • Compensation / Rewards
• Defined procedures • Values / Beliefs
• Repeatable, consistent • Coaching / Enabler
• Global Standards • Career opportunities

People Management
• Enhanced Skills • Teamwork enabled
• Multi Functional Teams • Service Management tools
• Values / Beliefs • Integrated data sharing
• Culture biases • Knowledge Management
• Training Technology • Management Info.
• Career development
V 1.0

Figure 1: Process Reengineering Model

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

When mandating that departments must work at an enterprise IT level instead of

technology-based silos (a basic process requirement) numerous fundamental changes
need to take place:

• Defined and repeatable cross-departmental processes need to be overlaid across

existing hierarchical silo-based organizational structures.
• The implementation of enterprise IT processes effectively creates a matrix
organization where staff have several areas of accountability
• Job Descriptions must include the new areas of responsibility and personal
measurement
• Values, beliefs, and corporate cultures need to be changed from unconstructive,
departmental competition, to customer-focused cooperation
• IT staff working within complex processes require a twofold approach to training:
they need to be provided with more general knowledge and they need specific skills
training required for specialized activities
• To support a process approach, tools must be designed to enable collaborative team
efforts to achieve multi-process data integration and a high degree of workflow
automation
• Management must sponsor new staff performance measures that reward process effort
as well as silo-based departmental efficiencies.
• New policies must be put in place with existing staff, to clarify new expectations for
performance based on the new values surrounding process adherence, customer-based
measures of service delivery expectations and contracted service delivery levels

The key element to success is the realization that the ultimate goal for any process
reengineering effort is the effective sponsorship and management of organizational
change. To address this, a formal program must be developed with all of the rigors of a
major project.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

2 PROCESS IMPLEMENTATION PROJECTS

As part or our consulting engagement model, Pink Elephant follows a standardized and
scalable approach for implementing ITIL processes. The model for this approach begins
with the creation of a core process design team and the identification of a larger group of
stakeholders involved in review, feedback and signoff activities. A typical project plan
includes staged milestones and project activities which consider the requirements and
dependence of process, people, governance, and technology.

This process implementation approach is designed to facilitate a greater level of success

for project completion and process embedding. The high-level project approach provides
a model for the integration and sequence of activities that characterize a successful
process implementation project.

2.1 Process, People & Technology (The Integrated Project Plan)

Organizations need to take a holistic view of process implementation projects. This will
ensure a greater level of success for project completion and process embedding. Serious
consideration needs to be given to the development and mapping of the three basic
elements of any quality improvement initiative: process, people, governance and
technology. To concentrate on one area to the detriment of the other can jeopardize the
success of the project. The following model demonstrates the integration and sequence of
activities between process, technology and people that comprise a typical process
implementation project.

Integrated Project Plans

Process: Project High Level

Process Model Sign off Procedures, Sign off Process Review
Current Docs.
& Global Work Implementation
State? Policies Instructions /Coaching

Gather General Buy, Choose, Review

Tools: Automation Install, Configure & Deploy &
Requirements Test Tools Scale

Project Teams - Detailed Roles

Review
People: Identify Resources & Definition, Authority Lab based
Defined Process Matrix & Deployment Process & Tool
Roles Training Workshops

Name & Establish Develop Controls Sign Off On Sign off

Governance: Service & & Improvement Production
Process Owners Processes Processes

Awareness Campaign, ITIL Training, Organizational and Behavioral Change

Figure 2: Integrated Process Implementation Model

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

As can be seen from the model above, process implementation requires a complex,
integrated and multi faceted set of activities that warrant the use of a formal project
methodology. The section below (2.6 Process Roles and Responsibilities) will discuss the
recommended formal role that should be established to manage process implementation
programs.

The implementation of each ITIL process follows the model depicted in Figure 2 above.
The scope of this document covers the development of IT Service Management
processes.

2.1.1 Project Timelines

Based on Pink’s experience, a typical project in a single location will take between four
to six months to complete based on the model illustrated above. The reasons for this
duration are related to several factors:

1. Internal resources are typically assigned to projects in a part-time capacity with at

best, two to three days a week being made available for status and design meetings as
well as the creation of deliverables.
2. If process implementation is fundamentally about organizational change, then it is
necessary to build activities into the project timelines that are focused on receiving
feedback and signoff from process stakeholders so that the organizational context of
the project is continually acknowledged. Actual design and creation of deliverables
should constitute approximately a third of the time required to implement a re-
engineered process. Most organizations that discount consensus building will find
that processes designed without involvement from stakeholders will meet with a high
level of resistance and will most likely fail.
3. It is necessary to staff the core process team with diverse members from all
stakeholder groups in order to accommodate the complexities of running a process
implementation initiative that incorporates strong, cross-departmental or regional
participation. The added expense and time involved in travel and logistics associated
with these projects requires a creative use of physical as well as virtual participation
regarding design and feedback activities. Coordinating the logistics and tools required
to facilitate this level of involvement can add several months to the duration of the
project overall. Typically a core team will be brought together more frequently at the
beginning of a project and can then work in a more virtual mode as the project
progresses.

Project timelines cannot be met until the following can be confirmed:

• Establishment of Executive Sponsorship and Process Owners

• Approval of budget for internal and external resources over the twelve month period
• Availability of funds for tool selection and customization according to the ITIL
processes being designed and implemented

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

• Existence of the political will to define new ongoing roles for process management
and coordination
• Construction of small core teams from internal resources
• Allocation of core team members as dedicated resources to their respective projects
for a minimum of two or three days per week

Expected Project Deliverables:

• Documented and agreed goals and objectives for implementing the process
• Documented and agreed process and procedures
• Documented and agreed process policies
• Automation requirements defined and customized according to technology
availability and constraints
• Documented and agreed awareness campaign and training activities for process
implementation.
• Documented and agreed management reports and key performance indicators
• Documented and agreed ongoing roles and responsibilities for the management and
continued ownership and improvement of the process

2.2 Implementation Roles

The following section represents the typical roles required for a process implementation
program.

2.2.1 Process Owner

The initial planning phase of an ITIL program must include the establishment of the role
of process owner. This key role is accountable for the overall quality of the process and
oversees the management of, and organizational compliance to, the process flows,
procedures, models, policies, and technologies.

The process owner performs the essential roles of process champion, design lead,
advocate, and coach. Typically, a process owner should be a senior level manager with
credibility, influence and authority across the various areas impacted by the activities of
the process. The process owner must have the ability to influence and assure compliance
to the policies and procedures put in place across the cultural and departmental silos of
the IT organization.

The Process Owner’s job is not necessarily to do the actual hands-on process
reengineering but to ensure that it gets done. Process Owners typically assemble the
project team, obtain the resources that the team requires, protect the team from internal
politics, and work to gain cooperation of the other executives and managers whose
functional groups are involved in the process. The Process Owner’s responsibilities do
not end with the successful embedding of a new process. In a process-oriented company,

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

the Process Owner remains responsible for the integrity, communication, functionality,
performance, compliance and business relevance of the process.

In large global projects, it is critical to implement a tiered governance and process

ownership model that provides the flexibility and needed structure to maintain process
consistency across the various regions.

2.2.2 Core Process Team

In addition to a Process Owner, each core process team should consist of four to six
members and include cross-functional representatives from key departments, functional
groups and regions within the organization. The make-up and composition of this team is
a critical success factor in the overall success of the design, acceptance and effective
implementation of the processes. In a global initiative, regional representatives can
assume the roles of process manager or regional Process Owner; these Process Owners
would then be responsible for further coordinating and defining the process procedures,
tool customizations and implementation strategies required to deploy the process in their
specific region. Core process team members should expect to spend at least two to three
days a week working on the creation and design activities and their deliverables as
defined in the projects.

The majority of the actual work of process development and reengineering is the job of
the core process team. They will develop the high-level process model based on the ITIL
framework and other existing sources of process knowledge, both external and internal.

2.2.3 Stakeholder Groups & Subject Matter Experts

In order to simultaneously maintain a control of cost and at the same time handle the
cross-functional requirements for feedback, expertise, and sign off, additional stakeholder
and subject matter experts could be identified and brought into the project at key times.
The project work assigned to these individuals should not require a significant amount of
work as it is mostly review and providing feedback to the core process team. However,
including these individuals will add to the duration of the project due to the calendar time
allocated for the reviews. It is important to re-iterate that the inclusion of such roles and
activities in the project is critical for addressing political constraints and for ensuring the
long-term success of the process initiative.

2.2.4 Internal & External Process Advisors

Process Owners, project managers, and core process teams need to focus on the specific
reengineering activities being carried out in the organization. The process advisor role
provides strategic, tactical, and operational knowledge transfer at the right place, at the
right time, and in the right quantity in order to facilitate the activities of the entire project.
The process advisor is responsible for enabling and supporting the process owners,

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

project manager, and the process teams by providing advice about correct knowledge,
methods, and tools.

Process advisors also bring to the project the experience of past implementations; they
are equipped with in-depth knowledge of best practice, time saving strategies and
templates. This role does not have to be a dedicated to the project 100%. Typically,
process advisors expend the majority of their efforts at the start of the project, conducting
training and awareness seminars to ensure the project begins well and is equipped with
the knowledge required. From that point forward, process advisors interact with the
project at key milestones.

Process improvement programs are greatly assisted by the correct and timely use of both
internal and external advisors.

2.3 Pink Elephant Consulting Roles

Pink Elephant provides several defined roles and resources for implementation projects.
These roles have been designed to provide the right level of experience and advice to the
organization and the process design teams. For a typical implementation project, Pink
Elephant assigns a Managing Consultant who provides high level oversight of the
relationship between the organizational Sponsors and Process Owners.

A Senior Consultant provides subject mater expertise and acts as advisor to the Process
Owner and process design teams. Senior Consultants provide most of the knowledge
transfer in the beginning phases of the project. As the project continues through its
lifecycle, they then work with the team on a periodic and decreasing basis.

Pink Elephant can also provide hands-on assistance with deliverables by assigning a
process consultant to work alongside process team members. This role can be shared
between multiple process projects.

The following table provides a visual representation of the model used in our standard
engagement activities.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

Table 1: Project Roles

Service Delivery Project Role Organizational Position
Executive Sponsor
Principle Consultant CIO and Executive
Strategic Vision and Direction
Process Sponsor Director
Tactical Integration and Change Senior Manager
Process Owner Director
Managing Consultant Process Design and Training Senior Manager

Program/Project Manager
Internal PMO
Template Schedules

Team Leads or Process Managers Specialists and Operational

Senior Consultants Roles and Responsibilities Staff
Consultants
Stakeholder & Subject Matter Experts (SME)
Managers or Specialists
Training and Advisory

Process Team Members

Specialists and Operational
(Internal & External)
Staff
Documentation/Workflow/Policy

2.4 High Level Process Model Development

During the first phase of the project plan, the core team develops a high-level process
model which includes process activities, global polices and defined process roles. This
model is critical to understanding the drivers for staffing requirements and tool selection.
In its most elemental form, the high level process model maps the key process steps in a
sequential flowchart design as shown in Figure 3 below:
Start

Step 1

Step 2

Y/N? No Step 3a
Data

Yes

Report
Step 3b

Figure 3: Basic High Level Process Model

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 ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

As Figure 4 below illustrates, this high-level process model will map the flow and
lifecycle of inputs entering the process all the way to the output of desired results.
Decisions about staff roles, skills, and competencies are then better made when
identifying process activities and process integration points. Also, areas for automation
will become clear as detail is developed within the activities.

Roles and Roles and

Responsibilities Output Inputs Responsibilities Output
s s
Process
Activities Activities Process
Integration Point
Goal
Process A Process B

Figure 4: High Level Process Model & Process Integration

The goal of this phase is to establish the basic requirements that will set the tone and the
direction of all future work. A high-level process model should help address the
following points:

1. What is the objective of the process and how does it integrate with other
processes?
2. What are the activities of the process and how do they flow from a sequential and
parallel perspective?
3. What decision-points exist within the process and what information is required to
make the decision?
4. Which are the roles that interact in the process and what do they do?

These points can be summarized by the following questions:

• What is the process and what is the point of it? (i.e.: What is the purpose of the
process and its role in the framework?)
• What happens when?
• Who gets to do what?

It is absolutely critical to address these points and to gain political consensus about them
in the high-level process design phase before moving the project forward. Ineffective
consensus-making and agreeing at this point will provoke disagreements and excessive
debate over basic decisions about what, when and who during the definition of policies,
procedures and deployment training.

The primary tools presented here are sample flow diagrams that represent a deployable
process model and description; also, an Authority Matrix that represents a tool to
facilitate the mapping of roles to a process flow (see section 2.6.1).

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

2.5 Detailed Design

After the high-level process model has been developed and illustrated in a flow diagram,
the process needs to be carried down to another level of detail in order to be truly
executable.

2.5.1 Process Procedures

After the high-level process model has been developed and illustrated in a flow diagram
or model, detailed procedures need to be developed to document each activity. Process
dependencies will also have to be worked out such as Priority Indicators, Categorization
Schemes, and Escalation Models. Developing adequate procedures ensures that a process
flow is documented with enough detail so that consistent execution and clear handling of
process exceptions is possible.

In short, procedures should:

• Describe clusters of sequential and/or related activities that, together realize the
process objective
• Be started by an external trigger (inputs)
• Have connections to other procedures
• Describe WHO, WHAT, WHEN and WHERE

Examples of Procedures Required For Change Management:

• What must be done to propose a major change

• What must be done to handle an RFC
• What must be done to handle an urgent change
• What must be done to produce specific management information

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

Start
Procedure 1

Step 1 Activity 1 Roles

Procedure Guides
Policy Statements
Decision Criteria
Responsibilities
Step 2

Work Instructions

Y/N? No Step 3a
Data

Yes

Report
Step 3b

Figure 5: Procedures To Work Instructions

2.5.2 Development Of Work Instructions

Work Instructions are detailed, sequential, step-by-step descriptions of HOW to perform

a task in exactly the same way each time. As illustrated in Figure 5 above, work
instructions derive from the high level process model by iterative activities that step
down through each high level process activity to define procedures that are comprised of
more detailed work instructions (i.e.: descriptive process steps that not only define
WHAT needs to be done but also finally HOW to do it). Work instructions are generally
required for sections of procedures that allow no deviation.

Work instructions:

• Describe HOW an activity is performed

• Are required in ISO certified organization

Work instructions are necessary for:

• Complex activities (e.g. more than one department involved at the same time)
• Activities that need to be performed identically every single time (e.g. back up
procedures)
• Activities performed by an inexperienced or unskilled work force

2.5.3 Policies

Policies are a way to formally document management expectations and intentions. They
are used to direct decisions and to ensure consistent and appropriate development and

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

implementation of process activities, procedures, and work instructions. Without policy

statements and documents the actual use of the process model would be up for
interpretation. Examples of process components that would generate policies are listed
below.

Incident Management

• Incident categorization and classification models

• Assignment, Escalation and notification models
• Major Incident Review process

Change Management

• Request for change lead time process

• Change Classification models
• Change Approval requirements

Problem Management

• Major Problem Review process

Configuration Management

• CI update frequency
• Which attributes require change approval for modification

2.6 Process Roles & Responsibilities

Once detailed procedures and work instructions have been developed, an organization
must design the new staffing model required to support the process and, more
importantly, the process framework. This often presents a challenge for organizations
because it is here, at this critical point, that IT leadership stakeholders begin to recognize
clearly the extent of required changes to the status quo and the impact such changes
might have on their sphere of influence and reporting structure. The effectiveness of the
Communication Strategy and the Program Awareness Campaign can be determined and
measured by the degree of resistance experienced at this strategic point in the detailed
process design phase.

Clear definition of accountability and responsibility is a critical success factor for any
process implementation project. Without clearly defined roles and responsibilities,
functional staff are unclear as to the expectations surrounding their performance of
activities and they will revert to previous behavior in carrying out process tasks.

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 ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

2.6.1 The RACI Matrix

To assist with the task of designing the new staffing model in support of the process, the
RACI (Authority) Matrix is often used within organizations to indicate roles and
responsibilities in relation to processes and activities. When the activities in the process
flow are complete, a matrix can then be used to associate process activities with specific
roles and responsibilities. Because involvement for each activity can be layered, it is
useful to distinguish between the various levels of involvement for which an Authority
Matrix can be created. The matrix can be used to verify that detailed procedures specify
the appropriate level of involvement for different groups.

• Responsibility (R): correct execution of the process and activities. The person(s) or
group(s) who actually executes the task are assigned an “R” in the matrix.
• Accountability (A): ownership of the quality and the end result of the process. For
each activity (at each level of involvement), only one role (person or group) should be
accountable.
• Consulted (C): involvement through input of knowledge and information. If the
activity requires input from a person or group, they are considered consulted.
• Informed (I): receiving information about process execution and quality. If the
activity requires that a person or group only receive information (per activity or in
summary form), then they are informed.

2.6.1.1 Example RACI Model

Function: Client Service Desk Network Service Desk Business Supplier
Manager Administrator Analysts Services Mgr.
Incident Management (Help Desk)
Incident Alerted R/I A I I I
Notification
Information Recorded I A R R

Incident Classification A/I R/C R/C C

Incident Diagnosis A/C R R C

Initial support
Initial Investigation
Resolution C A/I C C
Recovery
Escalation
Further Support
Detailed Investigation C/I A/C/I R R C R/C
Resolution
Recovery
Incident follow-up C A/R C R C

Incident Closure I A/I R

Monitoring I A/I I R I

Proactive Communication C/I A/R R

Process Review C/I A/R C C R C

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

Possible Problems To Watch For With The RACI Model:

• More than one person accountable for a process

• Delegation of responsibility without necessary authority
• Delegation of accountability to the appropriate party
• Focus on matching processes and activities with departments
• Incorrect division/combination of functions: conflicting agendas or goals
• Combination of accountability for strongly related processes, such as Service Desk +
Problem Management; Change + Release Management

As an organization works through the development of an authority matrix, it soon

becomes clear that process workload distribution is not always easy or clear. A single
activity in a process flow can be executed by multiple roles depending on various
circumstances. A natural use of the RACI model is to define what policies and detailed
procedures need to be in place. When all of the RACI elements have been completed with
enough detail to describe when and how activities occur; when enough documentation
has been developed to cover all the variables and if / then clauses present in the process
flow; at this point, it can be concluded that an adequate level of documentation detail has
been defined.

2.6.2 Critical Cultural Considerations

Organizational Culture is the set of values that is shared by the organization or groups
within the organization. Culture includes expectations about how people should behave,
as well as the beliefs, ideas, attitudes and practices of the organization. It is often
expressed as “the way we normally do things.”

Culture is one of the strongest points of resistance to organizational change and it is

extremely difficult itself to change. To be successful, however, process reengineering
projects must consider current culture in order to change beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors
effectively. Messages conveyed from senior management in an organization continually
reinforce current culture for the positive or negative. Performance reward systems, stories
of company origin and early successes of founders, physical symbols, and company icons
constantly enforce the message of the current culture. These messages provide people in
the organization with unspoken guidelines for the direction of acceptable behavior
patterns. People quickly determine what is “good and bad behavior” and what behaviors
will be accepted or rejected from the message received from the culture.

Organizational culture influences managerial behavior, which in turn directly influences

company plans, policies and organizational direction. In short: culture is shaped and
transformed by consistent patterns of management action. This means that reshaping of
culture cannot be achieved in the short term. Cultural changes must be continually
reinforced by consistent action over the long-term. A new process, attitude, or slogan will
not change culture if the underlying reward systems and messages of the current culture

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

are not changed permanently. Quick fixes and spontaneous attempts to change culture
will undoubtedly fail without long-term planning, commitment, and communication
demonstrated by senior management.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

3 PROCESS IMPLEMENTATION CONSIDERATIONS

A practical implementation of service management should include:

• Highlighting 'quick wins' to demonstrate the benefits of service management

• Starting with something simple and then adopting a phased approach
• Involving customers, especially those that have been critical of IT services
• Explaining the differences that will be seen by customers
• Involving third party service suppliers
• Explaining what is being done and why it is being done this way to everyone
involved or affected. Support staff are often cautious about changes. It is particularly
important that they understand the benefits in order to overcome their resistance
• Involving staff wherever possible in designing improved process/workflow
• Facilitating a sense of ownership at all levels
• Encouraging education staff and managers to become service managers

3.1 Implementation Times

Throughput times for an implementation project depend upon the scale, required
customization, and degree of complexity of each organization. In some organizations
several processes can be implemented concurrently, subject to the following
considerations:

• Size of the overall IT operation

• Scope of the role selected for each process
• Degree of integration with other IT processes
• Number of processes to be implemented
• Quality and number of assigned staff
• Speed of management decision-making

3.2 Applicability / Scalability

The size of the organization is an important factor when implementing ITIL processes (or
indeed for any other kind of change). In a small organization, many of the roles defined
may well be the responsibility of one person.

In practice, a large number of factors in the organization will have an impact on which
combinations work best; however, based on best practices, the following can be said
about role sharing:

• There is a tension between Incident and Problem Management because of their

conflicting goals. The Incident Manager is responsible for quickly minimizing the
effect of incidents on users. The Problem Manager's task is to find the underlying

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

cause and is less interested in the continuity of the users' activities. When combining
these two roles, this tension should be acknowledged
• There is a similar tension between Problem and Change Management. When
combining these roles, there is the danger of changes quickly being implemented by
the Problem Manager; when the two roles are performed by the same person, no
checks and balances exist
• Roles that are quite commonly shared are those of Configuration Manager and
Release Manager. Both tasks have an administrative component and are concerned
with maintaining an up-to-date database
• Configuration Manager and Change Manager can easily be shared roles as the
Configuration Manager uses CMDB information and there is no direct conflict of
interest

3.3 Critical Success Factors

There are several factors that will need to be considered to ensure a greater degree of
project success:

Business Decisions
Decisions about the implementation of a process should be guided by the organization’s
predefined process maturity goals.

Time For Planning & Review

Enough planning and review time should be given to the careful consideration of project
plans, process goals, and tool requirements to ensure qualified decisions are made in
respect to process implementation.

Mutual Terms Of Reference

When dealing with multiple business units or complex organizations, common frames of
reference will need to be negotiated and agreed upon i.e.: categorization, priority (impact
& urgency indicators), and escalation models. These values should be developed before a
shared tool can be fully configured and used.

Knowledge Of The People

The process owners and operators who will work at developing a common sense of
purpose for the Service Management process framework should have hands-on
ownership in the development of this initiative. All stakeholders should have a solid
understanding of the specific process in which they hold responsibilities as well as an
understanding of process integration points within the framework.

Product Configuration
Time should be dedicated up front to the proper configuration of the Service
Management process automation tool workflow and values. Detailed procedures and

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

work instructions will have to be documented, based on pre-defined process models, in

order to ensure efficient mapping of process to technology.

Central Focus On Control & Integration

Maturity within the ITIL Service Management Framework primarily focuses on the
control and integration of processes. It is important to insure that inputs and outputs to
each process are defined and automated wherever possible.

To limit the amount of rework in phased process implementation projects, process

owners and key stakeholders should develop an integrated framework model early in the
initial process design and implementation planning activities and use it as the high level
architectural blueprint for all subsequent process implementations

Project Review
After the implementation of an ITIL process, a formal review should be done by the
organization.

Organizational Culture & Management Commitment

Demonstrated Management Commitment is the cornerstone of all success factors.
Without it and direct participation from Sr. Management, a process initiative or cultural
change is severely constrained and more likely to fail.

3.4 Management Commitment

To ensure the greatest possibility for success, Sr. Management’s role in respect to
demonstrating commitment and participation in the project must be defined, agreed and
acted upon. The following matrix (Figure 6) demonstrates the effect of low commitment
and participation of senior management on the eventual success of a process
implementation project.

Probability of Project Success

High

4% 60 % Other Considerations:
Management
Participation
- Culture
- Budget
0% 20 % - Time

Low High

Management Commitment

Figure 6: Management Commitment

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

4 PROCESS EMBEDDING STRATEGY

When it comes time to embed a process within an organization, the sequence and timing
of activities plays an important role in insuring the success and acceptance of the new
processes, procedures, and policies.

The critical inputs for this stage of the project are as follows:

• Agreed Process Goal and Objectives

• High Level Process Flow
• Detailed Procedures and Work Instructions
• Guidelines / Support and Policy Documents
• Correctly installed and configured tools
• The right skill level and knowledge of staff
• Management Commitment
• Support staff commitment to authority matrix
• Customer awareness and acceptance

A constraint or limitation on any of the above points could indicate a potential problem
with the embedding phase of the project.

4.1 Process Workshops / Training

This phase in process embedding uses the output from the High Level Modeling and
Detailed Design Phase, and employs user guides, procedure guides, Policy Documents
and other training materials to communicate the new “Way We Work.” The goal of this
activity is to insure that roles and responsibilities are clearly understood, procedures are
followed and policy adherence is understood to be a requirement as the IT organization
moves forward in a Service-Management-centered and Process-based work culture.
Process workshop and training activities are listed and discussed in the following
subsections.

4.1.1 Develop Lesson Plans

• Define target groups, for example:

− Service Desk
− Team Leads
− Management
− 2nd and 3rd level support

• Set Objectives
• Develop Time frames

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

• Develop Workshops / Training

• Develop specialized presentations
• Develop handouts and documentation
• Develop Marketing Material

4.1.2 Schedule Workshop & Process Embedding Dates

Timing is key when scheduling workshops. Ideally, training should be delivered just prior
to going live with new procedures. The following timeline in Figure 7 illustrates this
concept. It is always best practice to go live in a limited pilot location to minimize any
potential impact to the organization.

Process Starts Procedure Review

Old Procedures Workshop New Process

Adjust Procedures
(2 Weeks Coaching) and Republish

Figure 7: Training Timeline

4.1.3 Coaching Period

After the process start date, staff should continue learning to use the new procedures
through scheduled coaching workshops. This extended coaching serves several important
purposes. First, it will function in as a kind of quality audit to ensure that the new process
and procedures are being adhered to. Second, during this period, process functionality
will be examined in order to provide information for the first review. In the case of a pilot
project, improvement adjustments can be made for the full implementation of the new
process before organization-wide adoption.

4.1.4 Initial Process Review & Adjustment

Following the two-weeks of process coaching and monitoring, an initial review should be
conducted regarding the functionality of the new process. If bottlenecks or improvement
recommendations are identified, the processes and procedures should be modified,
piloted, reviewed, and then republished.

4.2 Detailed Activities (Project Check List)

• Create a process design and implementation plan

• Document Terms of reference and a statement of requirement
• Conduct a Feasibility study
• Produce a Project Brief (high-level project definition)

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

• Create a Project Initiation Document (detailed description of Work Break Down and
Product Break Down)
• Appoint a Process Owner
• Define a mission statement
• Set objectives
• Agree on scope, roles and responsibilities
• Review experiences, tools and processes at similar sites
• Perform a risk analysis
• Plan product selection and overall design
• Mount awareness campaign
• Recruit and train staff
• Perform development and validation activities
• Conduct a Pilot Project
• Conduct a Pilot Review
• Perform Implementation
• Conduct a Post implementation review
• Perform On-going management and operation
• Conduct Efficiency and effectiveness reviews
• Perform regular and ad hoc Audits

4.2.1 People Involved

• Customers and IT staff

• Appointed Process Owners
• Support staff
• Suppliers, contractors and vendors
• Consultants
• Project teams
• Auditors

4.2.2 Awareness Campaign

• Identified Sponsorship / Ownership of the Communication Plan

• Newsletters
• Workshops
• Bulletins
• Seminars
• Presentations
• Marketing Information
• External education

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

4.2.3 Systems Implementation Activities

• Acquire and install equipment

• Customize tools
• Test system(s)
• Create hardware and software inventories
• Prepare documentation
• Train staff
• Carry out acceptance testing
• Perform post implementation reviews and audits

4.2.4 Support Tools

• Automate wherever possible

• Integrate with other SM processes
• Provide accurate and timely information

4.2.5 Post Implementation & Audit

• Reconcile requirements with reality: on time, on budget, deliverables met

• Compare activity levels with forecasts
• Assess human element
• Review effectiveness and efficiency
• Identify benefits gained
• Reconcile actual and planned roles
• Review overall project – how well did it go?
• Prepare review reports
• Guarantee quality management (assurance and control)

4.2.6 Other Considerations

• Finance and administration

• Human Resources (embed expectations for modified responsibilities into performance
reviews)
• Suppliers, contractors and vendors
• Environment, accommodation and equipment
• Security
• Operations
• Networks

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

5 COMMUNICATION PLAN

Communication is a vital component of all projects that depend to any degree upon
cultural change. A service management project will involve many people directly but
typically, the outcome will affect the working lives of many more. Implementing or
improving service management within an organization requires a cultural change not only
by IT employees, but by IT customers and users as well. Communication about this
transformation is essential to success. It is necessary to ensure all parties are aware of
what is going on and can play a relevant part in the project. For this reason, clear and
unambiguous planning about how the project will communicate with all interested parties
is necessary.

A formal communication plan directly contributes to the success of the project.

Remember: communication is more than a one-way information stream. It requires
continuous attention to the signals (positive and negative) of the various parties involved.

Effective communication involves the following steps:

1) Formulate vision for change and role of communication.

2) Analyze current communication structure and culture.
3) Identify target groups.
4) Decide for each target group the communication objectives.
5) Decide for each target group the communication strategy.
6) Decide for each target group best communication methods and techniques.
7) Write communication plan.
8) Realize communication methods & techniques to communicate.
9) Measure and evaluate the effectiveness of the communication and adjust.

A communication plan describes how target groups, contents and media are connected in
the time-line of the process implementation project. Much like a project plan, a
communication plan is comprehensive in that it addresses activities, people, methods,
timeframes and budget.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

6 EVALUATION OF THE PROJECT

As the project draws to a close, it is important to analyze how the project was managed
and to identify lessons learned. This information can then be used to benefit the project
team as well as the organization as a whole. An End Project Report will typically cover:

• Achievement of the project’s objectives

• Performance against plan (estimated time and costs versus actual)
• Effect on the original plan and business case over the time of the project
• Statistics on issues raised and changes made
• Total impact of changes approved
• Statistics on the quality of the work carried out (in relation to stated expectations)
• Lessons learned and recommendations
• Post project review plan

6.1 Post-Project Review

The business case had been based on the premise that the project outcome will deliver
benefits to the business over a period of time. The delivery of these stated benefits needs
to be assessed at a point after the project has been completed and the process has been in
operation. The post-project review is used to assess if the expected benefits have been
realized, as well as to investigate if problems have arisen from use of the process.

Each of the benefits mentioned in the business case should be assessed to ascertain to
what degree the benefits have been achieved. The post-project review should also
consider any additional benefits achieved, or unexpected problems that arose - both of
which can be used to improve future business cases. If necessary, follow-up actions can
be developed as adjustments or improvements are identified.

6.2 Auditing Using Quality Parameters

Process quality parameters can be seen as the "operational thermometer" of the IT

organization. Quality parameters help determine whether processes are effective and
efficient. There are two types of quality parameters: process-specific and generic.

Generic Quality Parameters For IT Service Management

The following parameters are, in fact, measurement types that need to be quantified
before a valid assessment can be done. This task becomes easier once the required
Service Levels and Internal Service Requirements have been determined.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

Generic Quality parameters to consider include:

• Customer satisfaction
• Staff satisfaction
• Efficiency
• Effectiveness

Process-Specific Quality Parameters For IT Service Management

Process-specific quality parameters measure the degree to which the process delivered
the desired outcome. Examples of process-specific quality parameters are:

• Efficiency of key process activities

• Reliability of process integration points
• Specific measure of process automation tool efficiency

The appropriate information needs to be collected in order to quantify the quality of each
parameter. The nature of the information required will vary depending on how an
organization decides to measure each aspect. These indicators should be clearly defined
at the start of the project so that such benefits can be assessed objectively at a post project
review.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

7 CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the objective of this document is to provide guidance for developing

process implementation plans that will be usable across a wide range of diverse
organizations. Managing change and ensuring overall project success is greatly facilitated
by the development of a detailed implementation strategy. The guidelines developed
within this document are designed for use as a framework or general methodology to
consider when undertaking any major process development or re-engineering project.
The applicability and level of detail to which a project makes use of this report will
depend on the scale and complexity of the project or organization being considered.

However, in general it can be said that process implementation projects vary somewhat
from traditional IT projects. They are by nature, projects that are dependent upon cultural
change. Proactive measures to address change resistance, proactive project sponsorship
activities and creative communication planning activities must be incorporated into
project planning at the earliest phases. Process implementation projects present special
challenges for IT organizations, but adequate planning will help guarantee an effective
implementation strategy.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

8 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books used in the development of this report:

OGC ITIL Books & Modules:

• Service Strategy
o Organizational Culture
• Service Design
o Roles and Responsibilities
o Designing Processes
o Process Documentation Framework
• Continual Service Improvement
o CSI and Organizational Change
o Communication Strategy and Plan

Other Sources of Information:

• New Developments In Re-Engineering Organizations (Stephen Campell and Brian H.

Kleiner)
• Leading Change (John P. Kotter)
• Various internal Pink Elephant consulting documents
• Quality Management for IT Services (CCTA ITIL)

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

9 ABOUT PINK ELEPHANT

Pink Elephant is proud to be celebrating 20 years of ITIL experience – more than any
other supplier. Operating through many offices across the globe, the company is the
world’s #1 supplier of ITIL and ITSM conferences, education and consulting services. To
date, more than 100,000 IT professionals have benefited from Pink Elephant’s expertise.
Pink Elephant has been championing the growth of ITIL worldwide since its inception in
1989, and was selected as an international expert to contribute to the ITIL V3 project as
authors of V3’s Continual Service Improvement book and through representation on the
International Exam Panel. For more information, please visit www.pinkelephant.com.

Service Lines

Pink Elephant’s service lines each provide different, but complementary business
solutions:

• PinkCONSULTING: Using the ITIL best practices approach as a springboard, Pink

Elephant provides end-to-end solutions – from assessments, to strategic planning to
implementation, continuous improvement and beyond. Experienced consultants work
hand-in-hand with customers every step of the way
• PinkONLINE: Use Pink Elephant's online ITIL Implementation Tool Kit and gain
access to various services that support a service management improvement program,
including PinkATLAS, containing over 1,000 process deployment documents
• PinkEDUCATION: Pink Elephant is the most prolific creator and widespread
distributor of ITIL training, and leads the way with education based ITIL V3’s service
lifecycle approach. Pink is internationally accredited with EXIN, ISEB and LCS,
independent examination institutes that manage the ITIL certification program. The
Project Management Institute (PMI) has also recognized Pink as a Registered
Education Provider
• PinkCONFERENCES: Pink Elephant is the world’s largest producer of ITSM
conferences and delivers several major events per year to thousands of IT
professionals

To learn more about Pink Elephant’s services visit www.pinkelephant.com, or call us at

1-888-273-PINK.

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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

10 ITSM LEADERSHIP

Pink Elephant has grown to become recognized globally as The IT Service Management
Experts and is very proud of its commitment to IT best practice frameworks. In fact,
Pink Elephant has been involved in the “ITIL project” since its inception in 1989:

ITIL V3 (Published in 2007):

• Author of the Continual Service Improvement core volume

• Member of ITIL V3’s international exam qualification panel
• Delivered the first ITIL V3 Foundations course
• Trained more students in ITIL V3 than any other organization (Foundations, V2-V3
Foundations Bridging and V2-V3 Service Manager Bridging) with pass rates that
exceed the industry average by double-digits
• Pink’s ITIL trainers passed the very first V2-V3 Service Manager Bridging Course
exam leading to the ‘ITIL Expert’ certification

ITIL V2 (Published in 2000):

• Supported the development of ITIL V2’s core books:

o Service Support (English and French editions)
o Service Delivery (English and French editions)
• First to market with public Foundation, Practitioner and Management ITIL
certification courses in North America, and worked with EXIN to produce the
associated exams

In addition, Pink Elephant has led the way:

• Training more than 100,000 IT professionals in ITIL, including employees from over
80 of the Fortune 100 companies – more than any other organization worldwide
• Offering among the highest customer approval ratings – 96% recommend Pink’s
education
• Launching the world’s first classroom-based, foundation-level certification course in
Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT®)
• Introducing an approach to change when implementing ITIL based on the teachings
of John P. Kotter (Professor of Leadership at Harvard Business School)
• Promoting IT best practices internationally through podcasts, white papers, blogs,
published books, news articles and in presentations at international IT events
• Hosting the world’s largest and most respected IT Service Management Conference
& Exhibition each February in Las Vegas, USA
• Applying CMM (Capability Maturity Model) to assess ITIL processes
• Launching PinkVERIFY™, the only independent certification program worldwide
that recognizes software that supports specific IT management processes
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ITIL Process Implementation Strategy

• Facilitating plans for an ITIL examination centre in North America – LCS (Loyalist
Certification Services) in Belleville, Ontario, Canada
• Serving as a founding member of the IT Service Management Forum (now itSMF) –
the worldwide networking group for IT Service Management professionals

Global Presence

Pink Elephant is an international company with offices and/or partners in all major global
regions:

• Toronto, Ontario (corporate headquarters)

• Chicago, USA
• Mexico City, Mexico
• Brasilia, Brazil
• Sao Paulo, Brazil
• Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• Singapore
• Reading Berkshire, United Kingdom
• South Africa, Africa
• Sydney, Australia
• Auckland, New Zealand
• The Netherlands
• Trinidad (Caribbean)

Awards

Pink Elephant is recognized as a progressive and successful company and is the recipient
of the following awards that reflect its corporate leadership excellence and business
results:

• Top 100 Fastest Growing Companies in Canada – Awarded annually by PROFIT

Magazine. Pink Elephant was recognized as one of Canada’s fastest-growing
companies (based on a comparison of revenue growth for five consecutive years)
• Top 100 Woman Entrepreneurs – 2001 – 2008: Awarded to Pink Elephant CEO,
Fatima Cabral, by PROFIT magazine
• Top 100 Canadian IT Professional Services Organizations – Awarded by
Branham300
• Ontario Global Traders Award – Awarded by the Ontario Government for
achievements in innovation, leadership, product excellence and expansion into new
markets

ITIL® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom and other countries.

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ITIL® is a Registered Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce in the United Kingdom and other countries.