Hello Tom,
As one of your 50-first subscribers, back in the day when
you introduced the 10-Step PM methodology, I am a bit
taken aback by this article's limitations and immaturity.
You and the Ten Step folks are much better than this!

ITIL, a library of process definitions, forms a framework
for organizations to follow in aligning the IT departmental
culture with the needs of the busines. As such, the
challenges faced by most corporate and USA Federal
Government organizations is to establish a common
"language" to communicate needs: business and IT. To
this end I offer the following thoughts:

10. Define your environment
Using the ITIL definitions the processes for common
agreement on policy and procedures is established
9. Define USER requirement and Needs
What is the business and IT communicational motivation
for using the definitions? Detail and document customer
investigatory results
8. Consensus on Needs
Review with client sponsers and key personnel findings
from both the business and IT-Service Delivery sides;
establish a common "language" for future discussions
7. Mapping IT capability to the Business
Research and Document the various infrastuctures that
are extant which support the consensus; establish
infrastructure gaps that impede implementation of
proceses not currently in place as business needs that IT
may close
6. People Impact is Key to Success
Any process change can (and will) be dramatic within the
organization. Establish clear communications beyond the
sponser level to accomplish two goals: 1) communicate
the proposed changes to the wider user organization and
2) solicit earnest and honest feedback to enable
refinement of the plan
5. Gap Analysis and Needs Assessment
At this step the project management skills are most in
play. Guide the User personnel to understand and refine
current processes to express a future state that aligns
with and wil be defined as an ITIL Framework environment
4. ITIL Service Delivery and Management
Now we focus upon establishing and documenting the
going forward steps to achieve compliance with
management supported policies that can readily be
identified as a part of the ITIL-based framework
definitions. Here is where the "rubber meets the road" as
new processes are engineered to implement procedures
that follow the ITIL definitions, such as Change
Management and/or Release Management.
3. Select the Tools
There are a number of software tools that have been
designed, arhcitected and developed to compliment the
processes defined within the ITIL Framework. At this step
one can evaluate or test the many tools available from
software providers in the Srvice Management arena -
evaluate, test and when convinced, decide.
#2. Communicate, communicate, communicate
Selection of the software (and hardware, if necesary) tools
and environment needs to be published to every User in
the environment. It is especially important that the
question, WHY?, be answered and distributed thoughout.
This is the final step before project completion - make
final Release tests comply with User and Sponser needs -
obtsin acceptance from same.
1. IMPLEMENTATION
OK, ITIL is neither a tool nor an Architecture - we all know
and accept the Library's profile. On the other hand in this
project we have redefined processes, established the new
procedures that are needed to support the Business-IT
common goals amd selected vendor solutions that most
closely match the Client's requirements. If we have
carefully utilized the Information Technology definition
library in our peole, process and technology alignment
quest - the implementstion is successul. Clients pay well
for this type of project - and, opportunity exceeds current
qualified PMs, Architects and Consultants to meet
demand.

Regards,
Skip