Can you introduce yourself by giving us a brief summary of your work experience?
I am Maurisio Ciraolo, a management engineer who graduated in Vicensa in 1998. In my professional career, I first worked within a number of consulting companies for the implementation of project management-oriented information systems. Then in 2008 I opened my own consulting company, still focused on the implementation of software tools, which was then taken over by the Horsa group and became the business unit I currently manage.For more than 15 years, in addition to application topics, I have been personally pursuing and proposing methodological training topics in the market. Over the years I have attended courses and obtained several certifications with QRP, such as ITIL® Foundation, PRINCE2® Foundation and Practitioner, AgilePM®, P3O® and Agile Change Agent. In addition, I have also obtained PMP®, PBA® (Professional in Business Analysis), Management of Risk®, and other certifications.
What is your current position?
I am currently responsible for the Horsa PLAN Division, a division of Horsa dedicated to the worlds of Project and Service Management. In both areas we offer, often in partnership with QRP, training and consultancy services for process definition and we follow the implementation of tools to support the two areas. We were born in the world of project management, so on that front we have more than one tool in the area of service management. I would mainly mention HappyFox, a service management tool that we propose not only in the IT field. As far as project management is concerned, we mainly work with three partners, which are Oracle, PlanView and Wrike.
What are the most common problems you have encountered in companies trying to implement or improve existing service management systems?
The most common problem is organising the process. Very often we are faced with companies where the management of requests and the entire service is very unstructured. This is not due to inability, but because we have become accustomed to it, i.e. each request requires a new and different approach to be resolved.The big advantage of methodologies, processes and tools is that you can solve this whole issue of service management within a structured process.
‘The tool makes the tool’, so it has to be preceded by a structured process, but the tool is often the vehicle for setting up a process even for simple issues, e.g. how requests come in.Of all the issues, the management of requests is perhaps the most challenging at the moment within companies, because very often requests arrive in the most heterogeneous ways, both in terms of channels (email, whatsapp, chat, etc.), and in terms of how requests are formatted.
Often the request is like: ‘I have a problem’. In order to frame it and thus start the investigation it is necessary to understand whether it is a problem, an assistance request, an idea for a new project, an update or a change to an existing project. This investigation has to be done by the person receiving the request.
Simply taking the request with basic information needed for those who have to process it, would already be a big step forward. Taking this into account, having a structured approach clearly helps.
Why implement the ITIL framework for IT service management?
Implementing the ITIL framework for IT service management is extremely useful for two main reasons. Firstly, re-inventing the wheel is never a good idea. ITIL offers a framework on service management that offers decades of experience.Secondly, the framework makes it possible to define the processes required for the efficient performance of many daily activities, such as categorising the type of requests and forming a search catalogue. Atypical requests, on the other hand, must clearly be handled in different ways.ITIL is obviously much more than that, but these two fundamental aspects are very useful, because they solve some of the most relevant pain points for many companies.
What are the most common mistakes you observe in organisations wishing to implement the framework?
I am repeating myself, but some of the fundamental mistakes are to work without a process, continuing to manage activities in an unstructured manner, with different handling of each problem, and thinking that it is impossible to organise the service better.Another of the most common mistakes I often encounter is neglecting the competitive advantage that organising these services could bring to the company. To give an example: if I handle an inquiry in an unstructured way, by responding on WhatsApp, then by email and chat, followed by involving colleagues; I have a great loss of efficiency and time.Too often we overlook how much time could be saved by managing requests organically. And the biggest mistake is neglecting the multiplication factor: 10 minutes lost on each request out of a thousand requests per year makes 10,000 minutes possibly saved; and that is a huge amount.
What are the keys to successful digital transformation? How does ITIL address these issues?
For successful digital transformation I would point out two main aspects. The first is that tools help a lot: they are a key to success for companies and organisations. But tools alone are not enough because they need to support existing structures.So the purpose of ITIL for service management is precisely to define which are the fundamental processes to focus on.Obviously there are many of them and it is not necessary to deal with them all straight away, but ITIL categorises them very well and makes it possible to understand which areas need to be addressed as a priority. So the first aspect is to trace everything back to processes.
The second aspect is not to introduce tools on the basis of requests, but to introduce tools with a clear digital roadmap.
The phenomenon of so-called ‘shadow IT’ is widespread and well known: introducing tools in a disorganised manner is a common phenomenon within companies.
Tools are introduced because of business requests or because they cover a specific topic, but then they are not integrated into more holistic designs. On the IT-side, one finds oneself having to manage different tools.
What steps would you recommend to an organisation that is in the phase of implementing the ITIL framework in its daily activities?
The suggestion I would give is to first think about the process or processes and define them very precisely. Because often there is the illusion that the tool alone will give you all the benefits needed, but no tool implements itself.
The tool serves to better manage rules or workflows that are defined beforehand. Unfortunately, this part is very often overlooked, and this is the crucial part. Because having designed the ITIL process, the tool that supports it becomes very effective and the benefits for those who have to manage all these processes are enormous.Whereas setting-up or neglecting this part, results in workflows that don’t work well without generating the desired result.
So the steps to implement the ITIL framework are:
- Distribute the ITIL framework, even at foundation level, because this allows you to have an understanding of the whole framework and to introduce company processes that are not based only on impressions but are well-structured and well-coded.
- Define the main processes to focus on and have them codified.
- Implement a tool to support them.
At Horsa we have followed many successful cases where this process took place and we can say that it is the best way to successful projects.
This process certainly requires a higher investment at the beginning, but it saves time and avoids future re-work.
How do the activities of Horsa and QRP complement each other in helping an organisation in this delicate phase?
The approach that we as Horsa tend to propose to introduce ITIL starts from the distribution of the framework with training courses. For this we have an active collaboration with QRP International for at least 15 years, so all courses in this area here are taught by QRP International.Then we propose a consultancy approach, or I would say process definition, which we can do as Horsa PLAN, with other Horsa structures or with QRP, with which we have done some projects in this area.
Would you like to share any additional insights with our readers?
One detail to add: the introduction of the tool is not the final step in the process of implementing the framework.In addition to checking whether there are other tools that respond better, faster, or more cost-effectively to current needs, the fundamental concept is continuous improvement. From a project management perspective, it is essential not to settle for having a structured process but to always strive to improve it.Therefore, even for companies that already have a process in place, it could be useful to review or explore which other aspects of the ITIL framework might be beneficial to introduce within the organisation.
What happens when a company introduces a tool before being ready?
Introducing a tool in a company still requires at least a basic definition of the process—step 2 mentioned earlier. Generally, implementing a tool does provide some advantage to the company, but it comes with the limitation that processes might need to be revised later or that the business might not fully understand the tool. As a result, re-work will almost certainly be necessary.Overall, some benefits are gained, but they would be much greater if all the necessary steps were followed properly.Want to learn more about ITIL implementation? Read our blog on the “9 Mistakes in ITIL Implementation.”
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