Complementary ITMS Frameworks


OW2 OSS Good Governance initiative (GGi) is but one new approach to manage IT services and resources. The GGi methodology is to be considered alongside well known IT Service Management (ITSM) frameworks such as ITIL, ISO/IEC 20000, CMMI-SVC and COBIT. For those already aligned with these approaches, GGi is a side option helping better manage open source resources. Ggi should also be considered along other best practices approaches such as Agile and DevOps.

ITIL

Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) as the name indicates is a library of publications including a set of best practices, described processes and functions made available in booklets, white papers, etc. ITIL provides a terminology, structure, basic concepts and core principles. ITIL provides guidance, it is mostly descriptive, not prescriptive. Current iteration is ITIL 4 released on February 28, 2019. The ITIL framework is aligned with ISO 20000. ITIL is managed by Axelos.

ITIL comes with four dimensions, seven guiding principles, 34 management practices.

ITIL’s four dimensions

  • People: organisation and skills
  • Products: technical resources
  • Partners: partners and suppliers
  • Processes: value streams and processes

ITIL’s seven guiding principles: 

  • Focus on value
  • Start where you are
  • Progress iteratively with feedback
  • Collaborate and promote visibility
  • Think and work holistically
  • Keep it simple and practical
  • Optimize and automate

Out of ITIL’s 34 management practices, the following seem most relevant for GGi

  • Software development and management
  • Infrastructure and platform management
  • Workforce and talent management
  • Knowledge management
  • Strategy management

ISO 20000

ISO 20000 is an international standard used for service management, it emerged initially from ITIL V2. ISO 20000 helps ensure IT service management (ITSM) processes are aligned the needs of the business and with international best practices. It comprises of two parts: a code of practice for service management, specifications for IT service management. As an official standard, ISO 20000 is an auditable norm, it comes with clearly defined requirements that must be met in order to certify that a minimum of best practice standards are met. ISO 20000 is managed by the International Standard Organisation.

ASL

Application Services Library (ASL) provides guidance for the implementation of application management. Like ITIL, it is a vendor-independent, public domain library consisting of publications on processes for application management and a large number of best practices, white papers, articles and presentations. ASL is based on a framework identifying seven clusters of processes needed for application management. While ITIL particularly covers the area of IT infrastructure management ASL aims to professionalize the field of application management. ASL is managed by the BISL Foundation.

COBIT 5

COBIT 5 is a business and management framework for governance and management of enterprise IT that supports the business objectives of an organization. COBIT 5 covers the areas of regulatory compliance, risk management, and IT strategy alignment with organisational goals. COBIT 5 is the latest iteration of the framework, it was released in 2012. COBIT 5 is based on five key principles and defines 7 supporting enablers. COBIT 5 is managed by the ISACA Association. 

COBIT 5 five principles: 

  • Enterprise-wide coverage
  • Creating an integrated framework
  • Meeting the needs of stakeholders
  • Separating governance from management and including it in IT
  • Creating a holistic approach to operational efficiency
     

https://www.axelos.com/best-practice-solutions/itil
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITIL
https://www.officialitil4.com/
https://advisera.com/20000academy/knowledgebase/itil-iso-20000-comparison/
https://www.iso.org/standard/70636.html
https://www.itgovernanceusa.com/iso20000
https://www.itgovernanceusa.com/itil
https://www.didfoundation.com/asl/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2020/07/22/the-best-isos-for-your-saas-company/?sh=317a79fc6e10
https://www.invensislearning.com/blog/cobit-5-principles/
https://www.didfoundation.com/
https://www.axelos.com/about-axelos
https://www.isaca.org/why-isaca/about-us