ITSM and the Consummate Gardener

The Consummate Gardener

There are times in IT Service Management that seem to be like dry cold spells. Times when the funding is dry, the resources are lean and to all but the consummate gardener might appear to be nonproductive in the way of moving forward. The consummate gardener will find something to put on the schedule in the bitter cold of January, something like garden planning, tool maintenance, or alphabetizing the seed packets. Perhaps browsing seed catalogs and more to ensure they are prepared for the next season. Why? They have a vision! The crop, the wonderful fruit of their labor realized.

Back to the Basics

Like the gardener there are areas of ITSM Best Practice that a service provider can continually be preparing for and improving. When times are lean and dry as well as when they are not. With all the terms, the technology, the latest and greatest buzz lets pause and step back; back to the basics. For the gardener that is the seed, the soil and the tools that will be needed to ensure their vision.

People: (Seed)

Consistent thought effort and preparation for how to invoke the culture required for strategic initiatives has to begin with a focus on people. Who? What? Where? How? When will you need executive management involved in the near future for aspires that are on the horizon? The consummate gardener in ITSM will be reading up on relationship management, stakeholder communication, and perhaps investigating to find out what communication plans and awareness campaigns are working in other areas that they can leverage from. They will be engaged in and encouraging change champions that will create fertile ground for the upcoming seed that will soon be planted.

Process: (Soil)

The crop will not bring in itself. Like the gardener the service provider will need to think of who, what where when how the ground is to be fertilized, tilled, planted and sowed to ensure a fruitful crop. For ITSM it might be things like what governance boards will be required? Not only what policy will be needed to govern ITSM processes but what activities and procedures will I need? The gardener here will be preparing for documentation, knowledge management and perhaps begin with what templates might help. The consummate gardener has a listening ear for conversations that make evident where existing process and activities are broken. Listening, reading gathering and preparing while constantly keeping the vision of the full crop in mind while fertilizing the soil. When the time is right the consummate gardener will be prepared to instigate the projects required with appropriate buy in and support and watch their vision play out.

Technology (Tools)

Success for many gardeners comes from having the best tools available. The consummate gardener is aware that determining the crop, getting prime seed, building relationships and getting the best suppliers for just the right seed will trump the tools and automation that they might be fortunate enough to have. Bad seed when planted in unprepared soil will not result in the best crop regardless of what tools or automation the gardener uses.

The consummate gardeners in ITSM will take advantage of every season prioritizing their thoughts and efforts with a clear vision of the crop. They understand that the seed and the soil are utmost to their success and will prioritize to ensure that the tools they use are in support of those. Let’s get back to the basics: The seed, the soil and the tools. The planting does not begin in spring and the crop will not bring in itself. We need a consummate gardener who understands that the heart the vision and the effort in the bitter cold of January will bring forth the ultimate fruitful crops all in their season.

Four Service Characteristics

Recently I came across several articles by researchers and experts that laid out definitions and characteristics of services. ITIL provides us with a definition that can help drive the creation of value-laden services: A means of delivering value to customers by facilitating outcomes customers want to achieve without the ownership of specific costs and risks. An area that ITIL is not so clear is in terms of service characteristics. Several researchers and experts put forth that services have four basic characteristics (IHIP): Intangibility—Services are the results of actions not things. They have no physical presence and represent a logical set of elements. One way to think of service is “work done for others.” Heterogeneity—Also known as “variability”; services are unique items because of the mechanisms used to deliver services, which is people. Because the people element adds variability, the service is variable. This holds true, especially for the value proposition—not eve...

What Is A Service Offering?

The ITIL 4 Best Practice Guidance defines a “Service Offering” as a description of one or more services designed to address the needs of a target customer or group. As a service provider, we can’t stop there! We must know what the contracts of our service offering are and be able to put them into context as required by the customer. Let’s explore the three elements that comprise a Service Offering. A “Service Offering” may include: Goods, Access to Resources, and Service Actions 1. Goods – When we think of “Goods” within a service offering these are the items where ownership is transferred to the consumer and the consumer takes responsibility for the future use of these goods. Example of goods that are being provided in the offering – If this is a hotel service then toiletries or chocolates are yours to take with you. You the consumer own these and they are yours to take with you. ...

What is the difference between Process Owner, Process Manager and Process Practitioner?

This article was originally published in 2015. With the Introduction of ITIL 4, some of this best practice has changed. See ITIL 4 and the Evolving Role of Roles . Updated Definitions in ITIL 4: Process Owner: In ITIL 4, the concept of 'processes' has expanded into broader 'practices.' Consequently, the Process Owner is now often referred to as the 'Practice Owner.' This individual is accountable for the overall design, performance, integration, and improvement of a specific practice within the organization. They ensure that the practice achieves its intended outcomes and aligns with the organization's objectives. Process Manager: Now commonly known as the 'Practice Manager' in ITIL 4, this role is responsible for the day-to-day management of the practice. The Practice Manager ensures that activities are carried out as intended, manages resources assigned to the practice, and oversees the practitioners performing the work. Process Practit...

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