Friday, June 29, 2007
Determining Staffing Levels at the Service Desk
When determining staffing levels, it’s always good practice to make sure your staff is the right size no matter what department you’re in. Listen to IT Service Management Consultant, Jim McKennan, as he describes running a cost-effective and efficient department.
Approximate Running Time: 7 minutes
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Summer Sizzle In San Diego - New! ITIL V3 Education Extravaganza
Put Some Sizzle In Your Summer!
We’re so excited about ITIL V3, we’re putting together a special education week focusing on V3 education. That means that in one convenient location – San Diego’s stunning Hilton Mission Valley hotel – you can learn everything you need to know about ITIL V3 and get certified, too.
And because ITIL V3 has renewed interest in complementary frameworks, we’re including COBIT Foundations and ISO/IEC 200000 Essentials.
Plus, benefit from:
- Six courses presented in one convenient location
- Non-stop learning! Our week-long agenda means you can take two courses without leaving the hotel!
- Team building! No other option (aside from our annual conference) offers you such a tremendous opportunity to train and build teams simultaneously
- Daily networking receptions with peers and Pink Elephant’s expert consultants
- Nightly dine-arounds at some of the area’s most notable restaurants with our consultants – another opportunity to take advantage of their global ITSM implementation experience
Course Dates
ITIL V3 Foundations
New Certification Course
August 20 - 22
August 22 - 24
Introduction To The ITSM Operations Process Model
Learn about the new 23 process, four function process model.
August 20 - 21
August 23 - 24
ISO/IEC 20000 Essentials
New Certification Course
August 22 - 24
COBIT® Foundations
Includes optional ITIL V3 overview for this date only.
August 20 - 22
ITIL Practitioner: Configuration, Change & Release Management
Includes optional ITIL V3 overview for this date only.
August 20 - 24
ITIL Practitioner: Service Desk, Incident & Problem Management
Includes optional ITIL V3 overview for this date only.
August 20 - 24
Special Team Rates
Thinking of sending a team? Good idea! You’ll benefit from the power of teamwork – and save money. Simply register two people from the same organization and pay the full course price. Then, register additional people from the same organization for any course and receive 10% off the price of each course price.
Hotel Information
Pink Elephant is offering you a special room rate of $169US per night at the Hilton Mission Valley. To receive this rate, you must reserve your room before July 20, 2007. Call the hotel at (619) 543-9000 to make your reservations.
Friday, June 22, 2007
An Introduction to COBIT, Part 4 of 4
Join us for the conclusion of the magical world of COBIT®. IT Governance is an important factor in the corporate world – find out why it is now and not before. IT objectives are becoming quite a significant factor for companies. COBIT has become the umbrella and integrator for a number of best practice frameworks. This concludes a quick trip into the world of COBIT for a high level overview of what an IT organization implementing best practices should be doing.
Approximate Running Time: 13 minutes
Service Catalogue & ITIL V3 Roadshows In The UK Exceed Attendee Expectations
READING, UK - June 22, 2007 - May 30th saw the launch of ITIL Version 3 and the start of Pink Elephant’s Service Catalogue and ITIL Version 3 roadshows, delivered in conjunction with newScale.
As the new lifecycle approach to ITIL V3 sees Service Catalogue appearing as a process in its own right, it was an ideal opportunity to not only mark the launch of ITIL Version 3 but to introduce Pink Elephant and newScale’s joint publication, Defining IT Success Through The Service Catalogue.
The events were held in London, Edinburgh and Manchester respectively and were well attended by delegates from all industry sectors. Rodrigo Flores, newScale CTO, presented some of the practical guidance provided in the new book. Together with Mark Lindsay, Director of Operations for newScale Europe, Rodrigo led a session focused on real-world example Service Catalogues adopted and in operation today by leading global corporations.
Following a short break, John Stephenson, Service Delivery Director for Pink Elephant Europe, delivered the eagerly awaited update on the new ITIL V3 books and processes. John led the delegates through the new lifecycle approach and highlighted those processes that have now been bought into the five new core V3 titles. He reassured delegates that ITIL V3 was a refresh and not a total rewrite.
The feedback from all three events was excellent and John’s enthusiasm for the subject matter was summed up by one of the attendees on the evaluation form:
“If John Stephenson is a nut regarding ITIL, he is also the hammer that can crack it” – Martin Gandar – Butler Group Associate
“Content very useful and interesting, instructors presented well” – Chris Gordon, Unilever
“Really useful event. Will definitely assist us in enhancing and re-promoting both ITIL and the Service Catalogue” – Donna Grove – Virgin Media
“As expected from Pink Elephant, quality presentation and presenters. I will suggest my colleagues attend, I look forward to future events” – Paul Drummond – Ernst & Young
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Pink Elephant Celebrates The Launch Of ITIL V3 With The First Public Foundations Course
SINGAPORE – June 20, 2007 – Pink Elephant today announced its inaugural delivery of the new ITIL V3 Foundations course in Singapore, just weeks after the five core ITIL V3 books were published by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), the owners of the ITIL trademark.
In a recent survey, more than half of those polled (51%) said they plan to adopt ITIL V3, with a significant majority (60%) planning to do this within a two-year period following the ITIL V3 launch.
“Education is the recommended starting point for an ITIL journey. With this knowledge comes the understanding that the ITIL journey is one of continual improvement, and while there are some quick wins, organisations can’t expect to adopt every ITIL process all at once,” says Pierre Bernard, Pink Elephant’s Manager of Education Products and a member of the ITIL V3 exam qualification panel. “Education enables organisations to define process maturity gaps, set their own vision and strategy, and map out which ITIL processes will be most effective in meeting their objectives.”
Exploring V3 Education
ITIL V3 Foundations, which Pink Elephant first delivered in Burlington, Ontario, Canada in May and launched in global cities starting in June, provides a general overview of the enhanced ITSM framework in V3. Participants of the first course provided feedback on the program content and general opinions towards ITIL V3, which can be viewed on Pink Elephant’s website .
Attendees of ITIL V3 Foundations will understand V3’s supporting processes, functions and roles and how to integrate this framework into an organisation. The course is three days and includes an exam that leads to the Foundation Certificate In IT Service Management if a grade of 65% or higher is achieved. This certificate is a pre-requisite to enter into the Intermediate and Advanced levels of ITIL certification.
For more information about Pink Elephant’s education offerings and contribution to the ITIL V3 project, please click here or call (65) 6734 2744.
What are the differences between ITIL V2 and V3? Read the backgrounder.
So I took the V3 Foundation exam
A week ago today, I took the ITIL V3 exam (my apologies, but I am always uncertain if I am to take, sit or write an exam) Anyway, this is beside the point. I can report that the exam is fair and well constructed. It is still 40 questions, 60 minutes and you need 65% (or 26 correct answers) to pass.
Of course, I cannot tell you what the questions were - I could not remember the exact wording anyway. What I can tell you is the following:
- All books are covered
- There are general questions about the framework
- All questions have 4 possible choices
- There are questions asking you something like “which of the following is NOT…”
- There are questions giving 2 statements and asking you which are correct; first, second, both or neither
- There are definition questions
- There are questions about which roles belong with which process or function
- And there are other questions as well
So why am I telling you this? Simply because the exam is no more or less difficult than the V2 exam. It is simply different as the range of topics is much wider in V3 than in V2. The V3 Foundation syllabus covers the five ITIL V3 core books, while the syllabus for the V2 exam only covers the Service Support and Service Delivery books from OGC (and the Introduction book from Van Haren if you use EXIN exams).
Now don’t panic. Yes the syllabus covers all five core books, but not all processes are covered and you won’t need to know everything about all the material. If you pay attention during class, read the material given to you by the course provider and do the sample exam you should do well on the real exam. Hey, I am not going to guarantee that everyone will pass. People usually fail the Foundation exam because a) they don’t pay attention in class, or b) they keep answering the questions from how they have always done things rather than the ITIL way. The exam is not about how you do it but rather it is about “what” ITIL is.
I have to admit that some questions were relatively simple and easy to answer. I have to admit that I was stumped at first by a few questions as well. I had to carefully read the question and the options. Sometimes, the question or the options were a bit wordy but it is the nature of the material. I was actually expecting that. What I am trying to say is that you need to take your time and read carefully.
Of course people will complain that the exam is there to trick them, that it is not about testing their knowledge, that the material was not covered in class, etc. STOP! The exam is fair, it is well constructed, it is not there to trick you and it is about testing your knowledge. PERIOD. To accomplish this the examiner has to construct the questions and the options in such a way that it will test your knowledge and comprehension of the framework. By the way, course providers usually give you a workbook and in that workbook, there is a lot of valuable information. Read the passages that you are unfamiliar with.
So very few people get 100% on these exams. The important thing is to learn and to get that certificate on your wall. You get the certificate whether you get 65% or 100% or something in between. The score does not appear on the certificate.
By the way, I will only let you know if I pass or fail. I won’t divulge my score.
Remember to enjoy the course, come in with a positive attitude and an open mind.
Question: What do they call the person who graduates with the lowest score from medical school?
Answer: Doctor. They graduated. 
Friday, June 15, 2007
An Introduction to COBIT, Part 3 of 4
Enter the magical world of COBIT®. IT Governance is an important factor in the corporate world – find out why it is now and not before. IT objectives are becoming quite a significant factor for companies. COBIT has become the umbrella and integrator for a number of best practice frameworks. Part 3 continues a quick trip into the world of COBIT for a high level overview of what an IT organization implementing best practices should be doing.
Approximate Running Time: 13.5 minutes
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
how how does the new certification credits work?
Now that the new certification scheme has been announced by APMG, the official ITIL certification and exam provider, what does it mean?
Foundation Level
It is quite simple. There is still a V3 Foundation level course and it is worth 2 credits. For anyone holding a current ITIL V1 or V2 Foundation certificate from ISEB or EXIN (dating all the way back to the mid-1990’s), it is worth 1.5 credits.
This means that you need to attend a bridging course and pass an exam at the end to attain 0.5 credits and achieve the 2 Foundation level credits. Once you have successfully completed either the V3 Foundation course or a V2 + bridging course, you may proceed to the next level of certification.
Intermediate Level
The Intermediate level contains two streams: Service Capability and Service Lifecycle. Here is how it works.
The Service Capability stream is akin to the existing clustered practitioner courses. Theses courses will be worth 4 credits each and there are four courses to choose from, which are:
• Service Portfolio & Relationship Management
• Service Design & Optimization
• Service Monitoring & Control
• Service Operation & Support
The single process practitioner courses are worth 1 credit each. These are still available from ISEB, but are no longer offered by EXIN. If you hold a clustered practitioner, such as ITIL Practitioner: Release and Control (IPRC), ITIL Practitioner: Support and Restore (IPSR), ITIL Practitioner: Plan and Improve (IPPI) or the ITIL Practitioner: Agree and Define (IPAD), these are worth 3.75 credits each.
The following are possible scenarios to consider at the Intermediate level:
Scenario 1: You complete and pass all four Service Capability certification courses, giving you 16 credits + 2 for Foundation = 18 credits
Scenario 2: You complete all four existing ITIL V2 clustered practitioners, giving you 15 credits + 2 for Foundation = 17 credits
Scenario 3: You complete a mixture of V2 and V3 clustered certification; however, they can not be the same topics, such as Service Operation and IPSR (that would be too easy, as they will cover the same material)
For those of you who are more interested in a deeper understanding of each of the five core V3 volumes from a management perspective, the Service Lifecycle stream is for you. There will be a course for each book (with an exam) and each course will be worth 3 credits. If you complete all five courses, you now have 15 credits + 2 Foundation credits = 17 credits.
It is also possible for you to mix and match courses from both streams. In this case, don’t worry about taking courses that cover all the books. This will not be necessary, as there will be one course to tie everything together: the Managing Through the Lifecycle course, which is worth 5 credits.
This course is mandatory to achieve the ITIL Diploma. You will need a minimum of 17 credits before you can attend this course, and providing you pass the exam, you will reach the magical number of 22 credits to receive your ITIL Diploma.
For those of us who hold the Service Manager certification, we only need to take a V3 Manager bridging course and pass the exam in order to be awarded the ITIL Diploma. There is no need to take a practitioner course or a course in any of the two new streams unless you want to.
Advanced Level
Finally, the Advanced Level Diploma will assess an individual’s ability to apply and analyze the ITIL V3 concepts in new areas. This higher Diploma has not been developed at this stage.
Please see APMG’s website (http://www.apmgroup.co.uk) for more details on the qualification scheme.
The only unknown with all this is how it will be received by you in the industry. Please let me know what you plan on doing.
Friday, June 08, 2007
An Introduction to COBIT, Part 2 of 4
Enter the magical world of COBIT®. IT Governance is an important factor in the corporate world – find out why it is now and not before. IT objectives are becoming quite a significant factor for companies. COBIT has become the umbrella and integrator for a number of best practice frameworks. Part 2 continues a quick trip into the world of COBIT for a high level overview of what an IT organization implementing best practices should be doing.
Approximate Running Time: 11.75 minutes
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Pink Elephant Becomes A Platinum Sponsor Of itSMF USA
BURLINGTON, ON – June 6, 2007 – Pink Elephant today announced its continued support of the IT Service Management Forum USA (itSMF) as a Platinum sponsor. As a founding member of the itSMF, the world’s largest ITIL® user group, Pink Elephant has worked with itSMF chapters around the world in their efforts to promote the best practice framework, and has also participated in the itSMF’s regional and national conferences.
As a Platinum sponsor, Pink Elephant is recognized on itSMF USA’s website and has the opportunity to serve as a contributing writer to the association’s newsletter. Additionally, Pink Elephant has the ability to designate five members on the itSMF USA speakers bureau and participate in the itSMF’s regional and national events that are highly recognizable within the industry.
“We are excited to see Pink Elephant joining a strong and growing list of industry leaders that, as sponsors, are working with us to bring ITSM best practices to a broader audience,“ said Jean Ritala, Past President of itSMF USA.
Founded in 1997, the IT Service Management Forum USA (itSMF USA) is an independent, membership-oriented association dedicated to the advancement of IT Service Management best practices through knowledge sharing, educational and networking opportunities. In addition to the membership base of over 8,000 practitioners, many leading IT vendors have joined the association as part of the global growth phenomenon in the area of IT Service Management and ITIL acceptance. The itSMF USA oversees 40 local interest groups who meet regularly to share information and learn about IT Service Management best practices including ITIL. The itSMF USA is affiliated with the itSMF International, which was formed in 1991.
Monday, June 04, 2007
An Introduction to COBIT, Part 1 of 4
Enter the magical world of COBIT®. IT Governance is an important factor in the corporate world – find out why it is now and not before. IT objectives are becoming quite a significant factor for companies. COBIT has become the umbrella and integrator for a number of best practice frameworks. Take a quick trip into the world of COBIT for a high level overview of what an IT organization implementing best practices should be doing.
Approximate Running Time: 10 minutes