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Title

Critical success factors for ITIL best practice usage

Author

Publication

Year

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Author

Publication

Year

Read

Neničková

Economics and Management

2011

21-Oct-12

Key words

ITIL, standards, CSF, KPI

Summarizing comments

The article by (Neničková, 2011) provides insight in defining critical success factors (CSF) and key performance indicators (KPI) for implementing ITIL best practices. The setting Nenickova seems to have in mind is the ICT service departments, so not so much software development.

Thiry (2010) is quoted to provide a definition of a CSF: “the limited number of areas in which results, if they are satisfactory, will ensure successful competitive performance for the organization”. I prefer the definition that Learning Tree Institute ITIL Foundation training provided: “something that must happen if a process, project, plan, or ICT service is to succeed”.  

Nenickova sees external and internal CSFs, based on their visibility to customers. External CSFs are close to the service delivery to the customer; internal CSFs are targeting the management of the service operations and climate Nenickova argues that CSFs should be defined as a result of an investigation of optimizing value-added business. Ko & Fink (2010) consider there is a process perspective and people perspective to both internal and external CSFs. Thiry (2010) sets preconditions for implementation and maintenance of CSF: should be free of political decisions; should be derived from related strategies; and should be achievable and measured of their success.

Nenickova induces a list of process and people focused CSFs, for both internal and external CSFs. I have a hard time to see how these match the preconditions set out by Thiry (2010), but they are maybe more meant as a generic guideline to customize to your own environment.

Once CSFs are identified,  the KPIs for each CSF are identified to measure the CSF achievements.

I appreciate this article as combining ITIL and performance management provides a common ground for me and Stephen, which could ease studying for both of us.

Interesting quotes

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1. Read and summarizes

21-Oct-12

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