- Original Registration Date: 2010-05-22
- Effective Date: 2022-05-22
- Latest Revision Date: 2024-03-13
- Expiry Date: 2025-05-21
ISO/IEC 20000 IT Service Management
The scope of ISO/IEC 20000-1 covers design, seamless transition, on-time flawless delivery and improvement of services, all based on a structured, documented process. The exact way in which this is done is not prescribed by the standard but is left for the organization to decide. Thus, the Agile way of delivering services in iterations, where a basic service is supplied and new functionalities gradually added, is fully compatible with the requirements of ISO/IEC 20000-1. It’s just a different way of planning and building services to provide the customer with as much value as possible as early on in the service provisioning process as possible.
Change remains an essential feature of service management. ISO/IEC 20000-1 requires a culture of continual improvement and learning, validated by measurement. In Agile methodology, “continuous” improvement (yes, that’s the Agile terminology!) identifies opportunities to streamline the work while minimizing wasteful activities. The aim is to “fail fast” so that the situation can be fixed before it gets out of hand. In ISO/IEC 20000-1, processes are defined to be able to roll back required changes in case things don’t go as planned. This involves an intensely structured approach with a convoluted hierarchy of approvals. Conversely, Agile includes a number of software-based methodologies that automate a large part of the change management process. If the team leading the project is given the go-ahead, and automated testing and roll-back pass all the checks, then these specific requirements of ISO/IEC 20000-1 have been met. Of course, this is more straightforward in information technology environments but, then again, most of today’s services are heavily IT-based.
