There is no such thing as ITIL NON-compliant software tools

Many people argue that there is no such thing as ITIL compliance because there is no exact standard to audit against. Perhaps it is all semantics but I don't take such an absolute position - it seems to me that it ought to be measurable or at least assessable in some way. On the other hand I think the opposite statement is clearly true: There is no such thing as ITIL NON-compliant software tools.

This musing was triggered by a question on the itSMFI forum, to which i replied:

Pink Elephant will hasten to point out to you that they do not certify ITIL compliance [in fact I poked fun at them over it]. Many people argue that there is no such thing. Certainly any software at all will support ITIL processes, the question is just how well, which is a question of degree. That is, there is no such thing as NON-compliant software - just some makes it more difficult than others. You can run ITIL on Post-It Notes if you want to, or Excel.

The danger when people start talking about ITIL tools is that some get the idea that they can "buy an ITIL" by installing the tool, but tools don't make ITIL.

If you really want to test tools hard for ITIL "compliance" ask them these questions.

Comments

No other vendors?

The problem I have found is that, no matter how many times you provide the message that PinkVerify is not ITIL certification, there are still lots of customers who want PinkVerify anyway. If customers demand PinkVerification, then you may miss out on a deal because of principle.

What I find interesting is that no other company has emerged as a competitor in this market. It would be simple to create yet another tool "certification" scheme.

Redibuster

I decided to test the Skep's theory about Post-IT Notes. Participate in the "Post-it Notes are ITIL compliant" myth busting poll at http://thinkingproblemmanagement.blogspot.com/2008/10/itil-post-it-notes...
BTW: My polls are more unscientific than the Skep's!

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