The pitfalls of ITIL

Fry concedes that it is a huge effort to implement all ten ITIL processes - taking most organizations three to five years - and maintain the momentum, especially if the biggest gains come early in the ITIL implementation. This is a long time to maintain momentum, but he notes that it is like taking a course of antibiotics when you are ill. "After a few doses, you feel better. But, if you fail to complete the whole course of the prescription, you will soon be back to square one - feeling ill again," he says.

Allowing departmental demarcation

Some processes cross more than one department, often causing conflict among departments, especially where department boundaries are rigid and ownership is important. "All departments need to understand that ITIL is a joint venture and success comes from all working together; that is, the üpower of oneü," he claims.

Ignoring solutions other than ITIL

Fry says although ITIL is regarded as the industry übest practiceü for IT service management, many other best practices and frameworks exist, such as Control Objectives for Information and related Technology (COBIT), Six Sigma, and CMMi. He notes that corporate control requirements, such as Sarbanes-Oxley and Basel II, can also affect ITIL, but are often ignored, which can delay ITIL implementation. States Fry: "If you do not focus on these components, then you are not maximizing ITILüs potential."