I'd like to make a quick point. There are times when I find the discussions surrounding ITIL® v3 popularity to be superfluous. That's because whether or not people are "for" ITIL v3, if they want to work for successful organizations, they have probably already put several aspects of...

Those of you struggling with bringing IT and business alignment to life through your ITIL ® initiative may be surprised to learn that your salvation may lie in a free download. Even with the improved use of organizational charts and metrics in ITIL v3, some practitioners have commented that the linkage...

The IT Skeptic recently wrote a blog entitled “ Perhaps one day Service Management will become a universal discipline: ITIL 4? ” It starts, “Who left the IT in itSMF? What a shame we have kept our focus narrow.” Some of you may be thinking that’s absurd, of course there should be an “IT” in “itSMF.”...

As I traveled to the Sultanate of Oman for the Asia-Pacific Computer Audit, Control and Security (CACS) Conference hosted by ISACA, an air travel incident presented a painful reminder of the importance of having a contingency plan. The beautiful city of Oman has only a small number of incoming flights...

For those of you interested in taking the title of my blog literally ("Travels with Rob Stroud"), I invite you to meet me in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, at the Shangri-La, Barr Al Jissah Resort and Spa on January 21 and 22. I'll be delivering the keynote at the Asia-Pacific Computer Audit...

I'd like to welcome Kirk Holmes of Holms and Associates, Inc., Sallie Kennedy of Kennedy & Kennedy, Inc., and Lisa Schlaf of Econ Global Services to the itSMF USA board. You can read the press release here . I've been involved with the itSMF USA since 2001. Currently, as a director, I serve...

Though I didn’t realize it at the time, I experienced my first lesson in “best practices” as a young boy growing up in Sydney, Australia. I built a dog house that, well, to be kind to myself, was not fit for a dog. To prevent similar failures in the future, my father gave me advice that I’ve called upon...