The Professional Framework - IT Services & Best Practices

The Rulebook: Introduction to ITIL (Incident, Problem, and Change Management)

ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) is the most widely accepted framework of best practices for implementing ITSM. It is not a rigid set of rules, but rather a library of guidance that organizations can adopt and adapt to improve their service delivery. ITIL helps standardize the processes for managing IT services, reducing costs and improving customer satisfaction. Three of its most critical processes are:

• Incident Management: An incident is an unplanned interruption or reduction in the quality of an IT service (e.g., "The email server is down," "My laptop won't connect to the Wi-Fi"). The single goal of Incident Management is to restore normal service operation as quickly as possible and minimize the business impact. The focus is on a speedy resolution, which might be a temporary workaround, not necessarily a permanent fix.

• Problem Management: A problem is the unknown, underlying root cause of one or more incidents. While Incident Management is about fast fixes, Problem Management is about deep investigation. Its goal is to identify the root cause of recurring incidents and then find a permanent solution to prevent them from happening again. For example, if the email server goes down every Friday (3 incidents), the problem might be a scheduled backup job that is consuming all its memory.

• Change Management (or Change Enablement): This is the process for managing any change to the IT environment in a controlled and standardized way. The goal is to minimize the risk that a change (like a server upgrade, a software patch, or a network reconfiguration) will cause a new incident. It involves assessing the potential impact of a change, getting the necessary approvals, and scheduling it at a time that minimizes disruption.