Collaborative Modelling of ITIL Service Management Processes

Motivation and Proceeding

When the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL^TM) is implemented for practical processes, there is a need for more detailed process descriptions. This chapter describes the results developed by the special interest group Operational Service Management (OSM), a part of the German Chapter of the IT Service Management Foundation (itSMF Deutschland e.V.). Figure 1 gives an overview on the objectives and the approach followed in this special interest group. After the initial problem analysis, the group moved on to define a metamodel describing the language and guidelines for the process models, that were created in the group. Different tools were then used to demonstrate that the metamodel works and that all of the models can be created independent from specific tools. After that, ITIL processes were described according to the metamodel, taking the diagrams and the text of the ITIL books into account. Afterwards, the group discussed and identified the gaps in the current version of ITIL. After that, a full-blown reference model is going to be used in a real project to prove its usability and value-add.

Figure 1.

Agreed proceeding in special interest group

This chapter describes the results, that have been created in the special interest group. Starting with the description of the problem based approach, the creation of the metamodel, an evaluation of the fundamentals and a summary of the lessons learned, an introduction in the activities of this special interest group is given.