skeptic's blog

Results of itSMF International Board election

Submitted by skeptic on Thu, 2007-10-18 09:25

It's official: Sharon Taylor is Chair. So what next for Ken Wendle? Watch this space...

ITIL3 is on the way to being a fully-fledged fad

Submitted by skeptic on Tue, 2007-10-16 09:02

ITIL3 is on the way to being a fully-fledged fad as the ITIL industry falls over itself in its haste to get product, especially training product, to market.

Sizzling criticism of the ITIL Version 3 Foundation exam

Submitted by skeptic on Sun, 2007-10-14 05:48

Some sizzling criticism of the ITIL Version 3 Foundation exam was posted on this blog recently by Ian Clayton, reproduced here:

...how can you test an individual's basic grasp (their understanding - if we are truly using Blooms taxonomy here), of 380+ figures, 130+ tables and 2000 pages with 40 questions? Simple math and a vanilla application of Blooms gives us an interestingly bigger number.

Don't swim against the tide: ten alternatives to itSMF for ITIL practitioners

Submitted by skeptic on Fri, 2007-10-12 09:49

Learn to live with the fact that itSMF serves the ITSM industry not the practitioner community. Consider whether you also need to be a member of an another organisation committed to representing your interests and developing your profession.

the dropping of ITIL Version 2 certification, training, and publications

Submitted by skeptic on Sun, 2007-10-07 09:06

If the criticism of ITIL version 3 certification that you see on this blog and others concerns you, consider this.

trial ITIL versus a placebo

Submitted by skeptic on Fri, 2007-10-05 23:18

This article has been podcast
If there is an eccentric company owner out there who would like to contribute to business science by conducting a controlled experiment on your company, please contact me. I would like to trial ITIL versus a placebo.

Instead of using ITIL as the framework or guidance for process improvement in IT production, I would use a placebo body of knowledge. Examples might include:

  • astrology
  • today's process is brought to you by the letter "A"
  • Madonna's lyrics

How long can they beat the CMDB drum? What is the next fad?

Submitted by skeptic on Sat, 2007-09-29 06:11

drumCMDB can't be done - not with a reasonable investment of resources. But not to hear the vendors (of software and consulting) tell it.

How to read the ITIL version 3 Service Strategy book

Submitted by skeptic on Tue, 2007-09-25 06:26

My colleague Ross has suggested a technique for dealing with the density of the new ITIL version 3 Service Strategy book.

ITIL's biggest hole: where is the meta-lifecycle?

Submitted by skeptic on Sat, 2007-09-22 12:01

Writing a presentation today, I was reminded again of the biggest hole in the ITIL content, even ITIL3. ITIL3 now describes the lifecycle of a service, and does an excellent job of it. But where is the guidance on how to implement the ITIL process machinery to manage that service through its lifecycle? Where is the lifecycle of the lifecycle, as it were - the meta-lifecycle?

How not to comment-spam a website

Submitted by skeptic on Fri, 2007-09-21 19:58

[updated to protect the guilty] We have had a wonderful example of how not to comment spam a website, by an otherwise reputable company.

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