How to take daily chaos and create sound process
The Big Bang theory is oftentimes met with both scrutiny and open curiosity. A theory by its own definition has yet to be proven, however, the defined principles of the theory are concrete. On the other hand, the ITIL Framework has been tested and proven time and again in business. Taking a look at how our universe may have grown to where it is today and applying those principles to how you may grow or improve your business makes for an interesting analogy. The remaining challenge is to take these ideas and use them to create your own “Big Bang” by combining the rules of the universe with the principles of ITIL.
Chandra Callicutt is Senior Product Manager for TechExcel.
Take a step back in time to your 7th grade science class where you first learned of the “Big Bang Theory” and apply those principles to introducing the ITIL framework into a business. According to the theory, our universe was created as, over time, elemental chaos became organized matter. ITIL principles offer the same analogy; take the processes of today, which without question include some or perhaps a lot of chaos, and organize them into complete, repeatable processes.
The Ties That Bond
Support and service business units are often comprised of various teams or departments. An example of these teams might include desktop support, networking and security services. Within organizations that have yet to implement the ITIL framework, it is common for these teams to operate in a black hole or vacuum with minimal interaction between teams. Just as our universe was formed due to particles bumping into one another, producing energy and then over time grouping together to form clusters and ultimately stars and planets, the same can be true of IT teams.
When ITIL-centric processes are defined and introduced into an organization, these teams are forced to “bump” into one another more frequently. Frequent interactions offer opportunities for improved communications and idea exchange. These teams will discover that many share the same challenges and will become more willing to work together to overcome them. Over time, bonds are formed and these silo-ed teams begin to function as organized and efficient business units, much like the planets of our universe.
A Soupy Mess
Once your organization is committed to following the principles of the ITIL framework, it is paramount that you begin identifying both current challenges and future expectations for the initiative. When our universe was an infant, according to theory, it looked more like a soup rather than identifiable objects. When you evaluate your current business processes, it’s likely that you will find them to be a bit “soupy” as well. Everyday businesses successfully operate within a loosely defined set of processes. Then, one day it becomes apparent that in order to continue to grow and achieve higher revenue streams, these definitions must become more concrete.
Just as our infant universe of “soup” evolved into distinct objects with repeatable cycles (i.e., our earth revolving around the sun), your loosely defined support and service procedures of today must evolve into highly defined processes that are easily repeatable in order to grow into tomorrow.
Experience Expansion
The universe continues to expand. Even today, some 14 billion years later, our universe is still growing or expanding. This is the ultimate goal for any business. So what can we learn from our own universe? We know that to get where we are today, our universe has relied on constant change and years of time. We know from example that the most successful businesses are nimble and easily adapt to change. The ITIL framework defines the “what” in terms of process. It is a guideline of proven principles that will allow your company to continuously improve and expand. It is up to the business to define the “how” in terms of execution.
Every business will approach the same processes differently. If we choose to learn from our own universe, we can see that leaving the door open for evolution or change is paramount for success and longevity. In addition, it is important to remember that implementing and embracing ITIL will take time. It is never completely “done.” As the needs of your customers change, so will the needs of the business. If your business is healthy, it should continue to evolve with time.
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This is a small point, but as a former physicist I feel I must make it anyway. When you state that "the ITIL Framework has been tested and proven time and again in business" (as opposed to a theory, which cannot be proven), you have made a major but common mistake. I think ITIL is a good framework, but since we're on v3 now I think it's fair to say that it failed the test of a good theory and needed to be revised. I'm also aware of a few businesses that have not successfully implemented ITIL, and in the theory business (quite different from the theory of business) that means ITIL has failed.
Quite aside from that little rant, I found your article very informative and enjoyable. We science geeks rairly see our world cross over to business, and for that effort I thnk you.