Johannesburg, 18 Oct 2006
The IT Information Library (ITIL) has been the framework of choice for IT service management over the past two decades and has been successfully implemented by an increasing number of companies which have bought into the realisation that companies with an increased dependence on IT need to be managed by high-quality IT services.
Now eTOM - a framework developed by the telco and mobile service provider markets - has evolved and is fast becoming a market-leading ICT process best practice framework in the US, Europe and Africa.
ITIL customers now face a new question: do we use ITIL? Or eTOM? Or a combination of both?
Janice Alford, Consulting Executive at ICT service management consulting, training, and automation integration services specialist NSS, says customers need to look carefully at both offerings - and should seek expert advice before making a final decision.
"Similarities lie in the fact that both frameworks are driven by non-profit organisations, managed by the members for the members," says Alford. "The TeleManagement Forum looks at developments for the eTOM framework, whereas in the case of ITIL it is the IIT Service Management Forum (itSMF). Both frameworks strive to provide a common language that drives quality.
"Looking at the differences, we see that ITIL is designed, developed and focused on IT organisations and the provisioning of IT services, whereas eTOM focuses on telcos and service providers. We find similar terminology in the two frameworks... but these terms do not necessarily have the same meaning: ITIL, for instance, explains in detail the difference between incident and problem management while eTOM bundles them together."
Hence there is not necessarily a choice between ITIL and eTOM as they do not address exactly the same scope - with room for both frameworks in one organisation, she explains.
"ITIL suggests processes, procedures, work instructions, with defined roles and responsibilities in the event of a failure of a change to the IT infrastructure with monitoring, sizing, documenting and contractual obligations supporting it," she states. "On the other hand, eTOM provides end-to-end business processes, including strategies, marketing, service development, resource development, supply chain development with a lifecycle approach to enterprise-wide activities for products and infrastructure."
The infrastructure for a telco is therefore typical of the IT organisation. As such, there is therefore no reason why a telco cannot implement ITIL, for the changes and support of infrastructure, she argues.
"By the same token, an IT organisation may decide to implement eTOM for the management of business processes - from customer orders to billing strategic planning for the development of its offerings to the customer, or perhaps a combination of both. The two frameworks complement each other and add value to improvements of your business."
Regardless, she concludes, it is best to consult with specialist service management experts such as NSS.
For more information on eTOM and ITIL, contact training@nss.co.za or info@nss.co.za.
Share