The ITIL version 3 Refresh Launch Roadshow: the world waits with bated breath....

Something is afoot with the ITIL Refresh. Here we are two months out from worldwide launch in seven countries, and what have we heard about plans for the events? Strange hints as to who is paying for and organising the whole thing mean the IT Skeptic smells a rat.

The latest word from itSMF International, 20th March 2007, and also headlining at itSMFUK, is the astonishing news that
"ITIL is now based on a core of five titles:
Service Strategy
Service Design
Service Transition
Service Operation
Continual Service Improvement ".

Next they will be telling jokes or firing up the piano to keep the audience amused. The MC is looking nervously behind the curtains and hissing "Psst. Maggie!".

Last the IT Skeptic heard, plans called for the launch to run over the three weeks starting June 4th, in London, Copenhagen, Sao Paulo, New York, Vancouver, Tokyo and Sydney, in that order. So you Ockers pencil June 20th orright mate? (Copenhagen?? Only the British would launch to Europe in Copenhagen. Must be the Danes are the only nationality they still like.) Back when I had a real job, my calendar would be starting to fill ten weeks out. The crowd is getting restless.

Publicity was planned to start in late February and the London event finalised and sponsors nailed by 9th March.

Could there be some delays with sponsorship? I'd have thought the Fat ITSM Four would have been good for it, not to mention Microsoft, Accenture and Pink. itSMFusa are hardly broke either. Perhaps sponsors are baulking at being asked to pay for everything. See, here's where it gets interesting.

From what the IT Skeptic can discern through the veils of secrecy thrown up by the owned-by-the-members organisation of which I am a member, and from what the IT Swami can see through his crystal monitor, OGC and TSO are doing sod all and paying for zip.

Given that OGC and TSO are about to pull three hundred quid a set for umpteen thousand copies of the books, and that TSO are now privately owned, you'd think that part of the marketing budget might come from them, no? More extraordinary, to me anyway, is that they are not running the Roadshow. Nice work if you can get it, I say.

All the planning for the ITIL launch is being done by itSMF International, Maggie Kneller and Ivor Macfarlane mostly, with the UK office staff.

And the sponsors and local chapters of itSMF between them are expected to pay for all costs of the events, including the venues, and do all the local logistics. itSMFI's role (and presumably budget) is limited to "co-ordination and management".

The total cost of a seven-country roadshow is going to run to seven figures. I'm betting the sponsors are not feeling that generous and a few of the itSMF national chapters are having something to say about it too.

On the other hand, perhaps TSO and itSMFI are just staying mum to build the suspense. If so, it's killing me.

Comments

Sponsoring the V3 roadshow may not buy you a seat at the table

Incidentally, last we heard, plans called for two bodies to run the roadshow: The Steering Group to approve the plan, allocate budget and make decisions such as changing the plan; and the Project Board to make decisions of detail within the plan. Guess which body the sponsors get to be on. Yup: the Project Board. Even though they pay for the party they can't help plan it, just do the dirty work of making it happen. Attractive, huh?

Roadshow

Is this roadshow going to be tied to other events such as conferences or are they stand-alone?

Will you be in attendance heckling or asking for a signed-copy?

I will resist the temptation to heckle

I will resist the temptation to heckle. And much as I would love an autograph, I'm betting the only people in possession of a printed copy by then will be Sharon and Ivor.

Actually I doubt I'll be there. All those cities are a bit far away from the IT Skeptic's island location.

I believe it is a standalone series. Seven cities in three weeks makes it pretty hard to link it to anything.

The Plays the Thing

Your comment triggered a thought. I presume Sharon and Ivor are at the center of the V3 going-ons. I don't know them but it sounds like you do.

Every good story deserves good characters. When is the Skeptic going to introduce the key characters; protagonist or antagonist? Who are the people at the center of it all? Who are the authors and architects? And, in the spirit of the Da Vinci Code, what secrets have they buried in these revered texts?

Surely there must be an intriguing story to be told...

The Making of ITIL, The Inside Story

Indeed. Maggie and Sharon and Ivor, I think.

Ensconced as I am in my island paradise, I am reliant on my magic viewing screen and my network of spies to keep me informed, and rarely meet these people in person (any more). So I don't feel I have complete enough picture of the individuals involved - it would be too patchy and would not do justice to some of the key players. For example, I have never met Sharon Taylor or Maggie Kneller, though I would like to, as both are spoken of highly.

I wonder how we could all paint a cooperative picture of the inside story without involving slander and with some modicum of fairness. I feel it can't be done.

It would make a good book for some (other) hack journo: The Making of ITIL, The Inside Story. On the other hand, knowing some of the players, I suspect it would be a bit light on sex and violence.

All a bit too dry perhaps?

So thats the crux of it, these people are alright in the grand scheme of things, indeed I am sure that there are allot worse out there and ITIL never killed anyone, right?

However, it's all a bit dull and the human factor seems to be missing. The more formalised we become, the more informal systems and networks are put in place to run the show.

Some pragmitism, spice and some loosely coupled processes required I believe...

RedMule
RedMule Blog

ITSMf

Are these people holed up in the UK ITSMf office at Winersh Triangle....I think that we sometimes forget what a cottage industry this represents. Let us hope that it stays that way!!!!

It looks like ITIL v3 has got some serious bloat and the wheels are falling off the billy cart already.

RedMule
RedMule Blog

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