A global drive towards a standard of IT governance could benefit local companies as they leapfrog the lessons learnt by overseas firms, says Don Page, nicknamed the godfather of ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library).
Page, who was in SA at the invitation of Quintica to assist with projects under way, says IT governance is becoming vitally important and is being driven by the US and the UK as they pick up the pieces after the Enron scandal.
Despite a need for ITIL, arising in the 1980s, it has yet to take firm root in companies, says Page. But this is something that is changing - despite ITIL, a best practices library, not being something that can be externally evaluated and benchmarked against. Enter ISO 20 000, the IT service management standard.
This ISO standard requires that companies continuously improve, and that they can prove as such. It will be the de facto standard when governments hand out deals in the next 18 months, predicts Page.
Behind this logic is a move by companies towards one standard from service providers. Companies do not want to be left hanging when their contractors hand over an assignment, and they want the freedom to mix-and-match suppliers in a way that works together cohesively.
Local benefit
So, where does this leave SA?
<B>The</B> <B>godfather of ITIL</B>
Don Page, also known as the godfather of ITIL, is CEO and chairman of the Marval group. He has been a keynote speaker at numerous itSMF conferences worldwide, including SA in 2004, Australia in 2005 and the UK last year. He has co-authored several service management publications including International ITIL best practice publications and ISO 20 000 (the first worldwide standard for IT service management).
"Businesses in SA must invest in ISO 20 000," says Page, warning that IT managers are not taking the standard seriously enough.
Quintica CEO Charles Osburn says the local landscape is changing. A recent South African Revenue Service tender required proof that the ISO steps were being implemented, even if the company was not certified to that level, he says.
By the end of next year, government contracts will have a strong bias towards ISO 20 000 as it is an indicator of maturity, he says.
However, despite the global move towards IT driving growth and a need for governance, Page says implementation of ISO 20 000 is still at an immature stage.
He points to an 18-month-old survey of IT professionals that found about a percent had formal problem-solving skills. This, he says, is lamentable as problem-solving should be an integral part of education.
This is especially pertinent in a world where technology changes at lightening speed, he says, leading to students coming out of university taught on yesterday's technology. On its own, this would not be an issue if their skills were bolstered with other business teachings.
This is where South African companies have an opportunity to benefit from the global move, says Page. But it is vital that companies invest in their people in order to make it happen.
In addition, he says, local firms should look at a phased approach and push service management skills. "You need a well-defined plan." But Page warns against pushing technology, saying that service excellence should be at the core of the plan, not technology.
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