How ISO 20000 is a New Career Opportunity for Auditors?

Businesses everywhere are focusing on providing high-quality IT services while upholding efficiency, dependability, and customer happiness as they become more customer-centric. Many businesses are using ISO 20000, the international standard for IT service management, to meet these goals.

Getting ISO 20000 certified can be a smart move if you’re an auditor seeking a new professional opportunity. The assessment of an organization’s ITSM processes to make sure they adhere to the standard will be your job as an ISO 20000 auditor. Many advantages are provided by this ISO 20000 certification, such as:

• High Demand: Now-a-days the demand for ISO 20000 auditors is growing as more organizations seek to improve their skills and practices.
• High Salary: The ISO 20000 auditor demands high salary packages and their skills are in high demand.
• Challenges: The role of ISO 20000 auditor is challenging but advantageous. You have lots of choices for doing work in any organization, to help with them ISO 20000 practices.

An Overview of ISO 20000 Certification

An organization’s dedication to excellence in IT service management techniques is demonstrated by ISO 20000, a globally recognized standard for IT service management. This accreditation attests to the fact that the company has put in place the appropriate policies, guidelines, and processes to efficiently manage its IT services by industry best practices. Obtaining ISO 20000 certification has many advantages for people and companies. By giving stakeholders and customers more faith in the company and demonstrating its dedication to providing dependable and consistent IT services, it improves the credibility and reputation of the IT service management sectors.

Vacancies in the Auditing Career

For those who are meticulous, analytical, and have good problem-solving abilities, an auditing job offers a wealth of chances. There are many diverse job options in the broad field of auditing, such as:

• External Auditor: The independent financial auditing of businesses, organizations, and government agencies is the responsibility of these people.
• Internal Auditor: A company’s internal auditors assess and enhance its operational procedures, risk management, and internal controls.
• IT Auditors: The IT auditors assess IT-related practices like data security, IT systems, and internal controls for an organization in industry standards.
• Forensic Auditor: Your job as a forensic auditor is to look into conduct, fraud, and financial irregularities inside companies. To find financial crimes and support dispute resolution, these auditors work closely with law enforcement, lawyers, and other experts.
• Government Auditor: These auditors audit public sector organizations on behalf of the government authorities. Government auditors are essential to making sure public funds are used effectively and efficiently.
• Professional in Risk Assurance: In your role as a risk assurance auditor, you’ll offer assurance and consulting services about governance procedures, internal controls, and risk management.

Advancement of Auditing Competence

Professional growth is essential in the field of auditing because of the constantly changing corporate environment, changing industry norms, and new threats. It assists auditors in being current and armed with the resources needed to carry out their duties and obligations successfully. Some important facets of auditing professional growth are listed below:

• Continuing Training: Auditors are required to participate in workshops, seminars, and continuing training courses to broaden their knowledge. 
• Professional Certificates: Getting particular auditing certificates might also help you advance your profession as an auditor.
• Industry Networking: sector networking offers auditors the chance to expand their horizons in their auditing professions through networking with colleagues in the sector, joining professional associations, and going to conferences.
• Internal Training Programs: A few companies also set up the ISO 20000 internal auditor training course with the goal of strengthening the audit teams’ expertise.
• Guidance and Mentoring: Skilled auditors can also impart their knowledge. As mentees advance in their professions, mentors can share experiences, offer insights into the auditing industry, and offer helpful criticism.
• Performance and Review Feedback: Regular do performance reviews and feedback sessions Auditors can get helpful feedback on their work, pinpoint areas for development, and set goals for their professional growth through routine performance reviews and feedback sessions.

Auditors have a fantastic opportunity to expand their career horizons using ISO 20000. The IT service management auditor, IT governance consultant, IT project manager, and IT service delivery manager are just a few of the professions that auditors can access new opportunities in by earning this degree and consistently improving their abilities. The growing significance of efficient IT service management in enterprises is reflected in the growing need for ISO 20000 auditors. A variety of advantages, such as competitive pay packages, interesting and rewarding employment, and access to stimulating career prospects, might result from earning this certification for auditors.

AI and ISO 20000: Upgrading to IT Service Management Standard

In this digital age information technology is the backbone of every business. The ISO 20000 standard developed just because to know the efficient delivery of IT services. The ISO 20000 set out of the criteria for establishing, controlling, maintaining, and continuous management system. The assumption of AI is now reshaping the IT service management pushing the businesses towards the ISO 20000 certification with the efficiency and effectiveness.

The ISO 20000 Certification

ISO 20000 Certification reflects an organization’s dedication to providing high-quality IT services. It focuses on aligning IT services with corporate goals, ensuring customer satisfaction, and continuously improving service delivery procedures. While gaining ISO 20000 certification is an important milestone, using AI has the potential to transform ITSM process.

The AI Powered Growth in ITSM

In the digital age, IT service excellence has become an expected rather than a goal. ISO 20000 certification raises the bar for IT service management, and artificial intelligence serves as a catalyst for meeting and exceeding those standards.

AI-driven ITSM changes the game in several basic ways:

• Automated Incident Management: AI chatbots and virtual assistants can quickly resolve typical IT incidents, allowing human workers to focus on more complicated duties.
• Predictive Maintenance: AI algorithms analyse IT infrastructure data to anticipate possible faults and schedule maintenance ahead of time, reducing system downtime.
• Self Service Portal: AI-driven self-service portals enable users to solve typical IT problems on their own, increasing efficiency and lowering IT support calls.
• Performance Analytics: AI gives real-time analytics and insights into IT service performance, enabling organizations to discover bottlenecks and improve service delivery.
• Problem Root Cause Analysis: AI can analyse massive datasets to uncover the underlying reasons of reoccurring IT issues, allowing organizations to adopt long-term remedies.

AI and ISO 20000 Alignment

Let’s see the how AI align with the specific ISO 20000 clauses:

1. Clause 4: Organizational Context: AI improves an organization’s understanding of its IT context, allowing it to make more educated decisions that correspond with business and service objectives.
2. Clause 5: Leadership: AI helps leaders by delivering real-time ITSM data and insights that allow for informed decision-making and strategic planning for service enhancements.
3. Clause 6: Planning: AI’s predictive skills help with risk assessment, capacity planning, and the development of preventive actions to ensure the efficient delivery of IT services.
4. Clause 7: Support: AI automates basic ITSM procedures, such as incident and problem management, to ensure prompt and efficient support services.
5. Clause 8: – Operation: AI-powered performance monitoring guarantees that IT services adhere to ISO 20000 standards and business needs.
6. Clause 9: Performance Evaluation: Artificial intelligence continuously monitors IT service performance, providing data for performance evaluation and assisting organizations in tracking their progress towards service objectives.
7. Clause 10: Improvement: AI finds possibilities for service improvement and assists organizations in implementing data-driven changes to their ITSM procedures.

AI-powered ITSM auditor training improves the quality of IT services while also streamlining service delivery. As AI technologies progress, organizations that implement AI-driven ITSM processes will not only exceed ISO 20000 requirements, but will also be leaders in offering smooth, efficient, and customer-centric IT services. The combination of ISO 20000 with AI is a winning formula for organizations looking to thrive in the digital era, raising IT service management standards and transforming the IT environment for the better.

How to Understand the Organization’s Context in Terms of ISO 20000 Standard?

ISO 20000 The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electoral Commission together created ITSM, the global standard for IT service management (IEC). ISO 20000 is recognized by the majority of nations in the globe because it was approved by a majority of member nations to become an international standard.

The standard outlines a set of management procedures designed to help in delivering IT services that are more effective (both to those within the business and customers). The framework and methods provided by ISO 20000 allow for the management of the ITSM while also demonstrating the company’s adherence to best practices, which will enhance the quality of your IT service delivery. And ISO 20000 applies to businesses of any size and in any industry.

Clause 4 has been modified by the addition of the phrase “Context of the Organization” in ISO 20000-1:2018. The organization establishes a strong foundation for attaining the objectives and results of the Service Management System by being clear about which internal and external concerns are pertinent (SMS). must start with internal problems and determine the organizational context.

The corporation must specify the limits and applicability of the SMS to establish the scope of the ISO 20000 implementation in to identify the context of the organization. The organization should take both internal and external factors into account when deciding the scope. A company’s internal problems can be caused by several, a few of which are mentioned below.

• Organization size: Concerning the assignment of duties to employees, a company’s size is a key factor. One individual may be responsible for several roles in a small business.
• Organization structure: The organization’s service management processes must be handled across all departments and functions. Before adopting an SMS, the organizational structure of the business, such as its hierarchical, matrix, or self-learning team structure, must be taken into consideration.
• Culture: Adopting a service management system requires careful consideration of ethics, individual conduct, and departmental personnel.
• Methods/frameworks: Find out if the business has already received certification for any ISO standards, such as ISO 20000:2011. Knowing how much of the current processes, procedures, and ISO 20000 documents have to be revised to comply with ISO 20000:2018 will be made it easier with this information. You should also be aware of any other frameworks that the business has been using, such as ITIL, COBIT, etc.
• Technology: What different technologies does the business utilize to provide its present services, such as IT infrastructure including the cloud, SAAS, PAAS, etc.?
• Service types: What types of IT and non-IT services, such as local, global, round-the-clock, and 24×7, are provided by the organization for its products?
• Resource capabilities: Process maturity, organizational maturity, and staff maturity all play critical roles. SFIA (Skills Framework for Information Age), a global industrial framework, can be used by IT professionals. The ISO 20000 awareness training is crucial in this context.

The implementation of an SMS should be adaptive enough to meet business changes brought on by external factors. Some of the external challenges that organizations need to be aware of are listed here.

• Political: An organization may be unable to establish or strengthen alliances with organizations in other nations if the nation’s foreign policy changes. For example, Changes in government, laws, regulations, alterations in policy, and controversies
• Economic: The procedures for determining prices, accounting practices, and procedures may need to alter as a result of this. For instance, competition, consumer purchasing power, and union membership inclusion or exclusion
• Sociological: Customers and suppliers could demand business operations electronically. Employees grow increasingly technically minded and conscious of the advantages of electronic communication.
• Technological: Advanced technologies in communication and computing may increase organizational effectiveness and efficiency, which rivals are currently utilizing. For instance, benchmarks, emerging technologies, and trends
• Legal: The way that the management systems function may vary as a result of changes to the organization’s policies and practices. For instance, trademarks, intellectual property rights, and data privacy or confidentiality
• Environmental: This could be the consequence of pressure from the organization’s specific operating environment or industry, or it could be from the actual environment in which the organization is located. The way that redundant equipment is disposed of may be impacted by the company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility or by the addition of an environmental management policy, such as ISO 14001. Take e-waste, sustainability, and renewable energy as examples.

12 Tips to Improve the ISO/IEC 20000 Audit’s Pleasantness

Published by ISO and IEC, ISO 20000 is the universe standard for IT service management (ITSM). ISO 20000 is recognized by the majority of nations in the globe because it was approved by a majority of member nations to become an international standard. The standard outlines a series of management procedures intended to help you provide IT services more successfully. The methodology and structure provided by ISO 20000 help to manage the ITSM while demonstrating that the business adheres to best practices, which will enhance the quality of the IT service delivery. And ISO 20000 applies to businesses of any size and in any sector. Here are mentioned some tips that help to make the ISO/IEC 20000 audit process easy.

• Conduct an ISO/IEC 20000 Mock Audit: In a mock audit, also known as a dry run, a qualified person assumes the role of the certification auditor. and poses as a guide who takes the auditee through a real audit. with a fake audit report included. 
• Always be ready for an ISO/IEC 20000 Audit: A good mindset to have is to always be ready for an audit.
• Keep documents and records in one place: If the organization has a document management system. Use it to store all the documents. If you have automated solutions, use those to store the ISO 20000 records.
• Know the ISO/IEC 20000 audit requirements and evidence: The organization knows the requirements the auditor expects you to meet. Participate in an ISO/IEC 20000 awareness PPT training course at work.
• Launch the applications before the interview: Speaking of preparing for an audit, make sure to launch every application that has records that the organization wants to show.
• How to know that the process or service is effective: The effectiveness of the service management system (SMS) is what matters most. Make sure the organization measures the effectiveness of the process if they are the process owner of the service. Act upon effectiveness issues with priority. And document all those actions. Through the continual improvement process.
• Ensure that the top management or senior individual is also present: During audits, leadership must show its commitment. Being present during an audit interview is one way of doing so. And accepted by the boss when management decisions were made. Decisions that may have caused the process or service to perform not the way was intended.

Tips that benefit during the ISO/IEC 20000 audit

• Mentally prepare for surprises: Even the best preparation may come with surprises during the audit interview. An unexpected question from the auditor. A co-worker chimed in and derailed the thought process. Or a disagreement over a finding or an opportunity for improvement.
• Educate the ISO/IEC 20000 auditor: Particularly, the auditor who audits for the first time does not know the organization, the business processes, the organizational structure, the successes, and achievements, or the titles, acronyms, and other language that is specific to the organization. So, build in time during the interview to educate the auditor. The better he or she understands the employees and the organization, the more value to the auditor can be.
• Be passionate and show confidence: Express how excited you are owning the process or the service. How you have immersed yourself in the requirements of the ISO/IEC 20000-1 standard? And how you have educated yourself and those you work with through formal ISO/IEC 20000 auditor training and awareness sessions. Convey with confidence your eagerness to learn more about the users of your process or the consumers of your service. And how you continuously improve your process or service to ensure its relevance and contribution to the results and outcomes of your organization.
• There is always scope for improvement: No process or service will ever be perfect. Auditors understand this. And they are expecting it not to be. So, missing out on a target now and then is normal. Simply accept the finding. And collectively with peers determine and execute improvements.

Tips that benefit after the ISO/IEC 20000 Audit

• Timely follow-up on corrective action plans and findings: When the auditor has determined a nonconformity or an opportunity for improvement of the process or service, follow up promptly. Organizations are given a certain amount of time to provide a corrective action plan. Provide the plan before the due date. And execute the plan according to the target dates as promised in the plan.

7 Myths About The ISO/IEC 20000 IT Service Management Standard

ISO/IEC 20000 is the universal ITSM (IT service management) standard. ISO 20000 allows IT departments to ensure that their ITSM processes are aligned with the business’s needs and international best practices. The ISO/IEC 20000 standard supports organizations in how they deliver managed services, measure service levels, and assess their performance. So here are seral myths about the ISO/IEC 20000 implementation, documentation, certification, etc.

Myth 1 – ISO/IEC 20000 is for huge organizations only: By clause 1.2, “all requirements in this part of ISO/IEC 20000 are generic and are intended to apply to all service providers, regardless of type, size, or nature of services delivered.” As a result, regardless of whether the organization is large or small, public, non-profit, or private, it can adapt to management system standards. Eventually, ISO/IEC 20000-1 assist organizations in defining the goal that must be met and applies to organizations that wish to reap its benefits.

Myth 2 – ISO/IEC 20000 can be useful only to IT infrastructure: The ISO/IEC 20000 standard specifies the requirements for a system for managing information technology services. Without a doubt, regardless of the industry, type of business, or business model, also IT services must be effectively designed, delivered, and continuously improved to meet customer needs. ISO/IEC 20000 has been used in various IT contexts such as cloud services, telecommunications, media services, and so on.

Myth 3 – ISO/IEC 20000 is not vital for internal service providers: On the other hand, several service providers who provide services have discovered benefits from being ISO/IEC 20000 certified. Every move that makes in IT services will be highly visible and will have an impact on the overall performance and image. As a result, all resources, alignments, business processes, and functions must be structured so that roles, responsibilities, and course of action are clearly defined both internally and externally. Through the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle, the standard adds discipline to the management system, ensuring continuous improvement. Being certified by an accredited certification body demonstrates that IT service management is professional and recognized globally, while also increasing productivity to assist in the delivery of services in the face of financial constraints.

Myth 4 – The employee is aware of their responsibilities: True, but what happens when someone leaves the organization? The organization will need to hire new employees and possibly start from nothing. However, having a documented management system, processes, procedures, and related, new employees can be easily guided and integrated into the organization, avoiding downtime, rework, confusion, and time and money. The ISO 20000 awareness training can be helpful in such cases to provide information about ISO/IEC  20000 requirements quickly to new employees.

Myth 5 – ISO/IEC 20000 is based on ITIL; therefore, the service providers should use ITIL as a basic framework: ITIL and ISO 20000 have some similarities and dissimilarities. ITIL is an IT infrastructure library; it is a library of best practices and processes related to IT services and IT infrastructure. ISO/IEC 20000, on the other hand, is a standard for IT service management that is, to some extent, based on ITIL. Another important aspect of ISO 20000 is that all 256 mandatory requirements must be met to comply with the standard requirements; there are no exceptions. It is up to the organization to decide how many processes or functions to implement under ITIL.

Myth 6 – ISO/IEC 20000 will slow down the service management and will make it more undemocratic: It is possible that if an organization creates complex procedures, the service provider staff will not use them properly. The standard requires that service providers use documented processes and procedures. ISO/IEC 20000-1, on the other hand, tells what to do, but the organization can decide how to do it and can choose to make it more flexible and productive.

Myth 7 – To get certified against ISO/IEC 20000 I need to know all about ITIL: That is not correct; an organization can obtain ISO/IEC 20000 certification without knowing anything about ITIL; though, more knowledge is better. When implementing ISO/IEC 20000, having extensive knowledge of ITIL and its version could provide a wide range of benefits to the business, such as improved IT service quality, as well as increased productivity, lower costs and many more.

List of Mandatory Documents of ISO/IEC 20000 IT Service Management

ISO/IEC 20000 IT Service Management is a global standard that specifies the requirements for a system that manages information technology services ITSMS. It describes several management practices aimed at assisting firms in providing more effective IT services to both internal and external clients. Its major goal is to reflect best practice recommendations from the ITIL Information Technology Infrastructure Library framework; however, it also supports other IT service management frameworks and methodologies. The ISO/IEC 20000 standard was intended to replace the British Standard 15000 and to provide a globally recognized management system services information technology standard. And since we all know how stressful the documentation process can be, here are three basic measures to follow when preparing for the ISO/IEC 20000 documentation.

• Documentation Structure: Before starting, anything Organization should make its policies, process, and descriptions from the same template. This way, anyone will be able to make navigation throughout the documentation set easier.
• Classification: SMS requirements and processes are the two key aspects of ISO 20000. The sequence should be followed while preparing the documentation. Try to prepare the SMS system documents first, for example, such as policies, scope, etc. Then perhaps you should deal with document processing. Finally, these documents must be reviewed.
• Content: ISO 20000 has contained some mandatory requirements for policies and procedures. The standard has specified certain requirements. However, the organization may need to contain some non-mandatory elements as well. Sometimes, the number of required documents also depends on the size and type of the organization.

Mandatory documents required by ISO/IEC 20000-1

Here is the list of ISO/IEC 20000-1 documents that need if anybody wants to be compliant with the ISO/IEC 20000-1:2018 standard

• Scope of the Service Management System according to the clause 4.3
• Service management policy and objectives according to the clauses 5.2 and 6.2
• Risk assessment and management for the SMS according to the clause 6.1.2
• Service management plan according to the clause 6.3
• Change management policy according to the clauses 7.5.4 d and 8.5.1.1
• Information security policy according to the clauses 7.5.4 d and 8.7.3.1
• Service continuity plans according to the clauses 7.5.4 d and 8.7.2
• Processes of the organization’s SMS according to the clause 7.5.4 e
• Service requirements according to the clauses 7.5.4 f, 8.2.2, and 8.3.3
• Service catalogs according to the clauses 7.5.4 g and 8.2.4
• Service level agreements according to the clauses 7.5.4 h and 8.3.3
• Contracts with external suppliers according to the clauses 7.5.4 I and 8.3.4.1
• Agreements with the internal suppliers or customers acting as a supplier according to the clauses 7.5.4 j and 8.3.4.2
• Services that are provided or operated by other parties according to the clause 8.2.3.1a
• Service components that are provided or operated by other parties according to the clause 8.2.3.1b
• Processes, or parts of processes, in the organization’s SMS that are operated by other parties according to the clause 8.2.3.1c
• Customers, users, and other interested parties of the services provided according to the clause 8.3.2
• Release acceptance criteria according to the clause 8.5.3
• Risks for service availability, service continuity, and information security according to the clauses 8.7.1, 8.7.2, and 8.7.3.2
• Procedure for classifying and managing a major incident according to the clause 8.6.1
• Procedure for continuing operations in the event of a major loss of service according to the clause 8.7.2 b
• Procedure for restoring normal working conditions after service disruption according to the clause 8.7.2 e
• Capacity requirements according to the clause 8.4.3
• Design of new or changed services according to the clause 8.5.2.2
• Service availability requirements and targets according to the clause 8.7.1

Other documents that can be used to implement ISO/IEC 20000-1 are listed below. Depending on the complexity and structure of the organization, usage may differ.

• Procedure for determining the context of the organization and interested parties according to the clauses 4.1 and 4.2
• Procedure for addressing risks and opportunities according to the clause 6.1
• Procedure for competence, training, and awareness according to the clauses 7.1.2, 7.2, and 7.3
• Procedure for document and record control according to the clause 7.5
• Procedure for management of nonconformities and corrective actions according to the clauses 10.1
• Procedure for monitoring customer satisfaction according to the clause 8.3.2
• Procedure for internal audit according to the clause 9.2
• Procedure for management review according to the clause 9.3

Why is Valuable to Implement the ISO 20000 System in the Organization?

ISO/IEC 20000 is the international standard explicitly for IT Services Management System. It defines a united set of management processes that form a service management system for the operative delivery of services to the business and its clients.

What is an ISO 20000 standard?

ISO 20000 is the universal standard for IT Service Management, which was published by ISO, and ICE. To develop an international standard, ISO 20000 had to be agreed upon by a mainstream of member countries, which means it is recognized by a majority of countries worldwide. The ISO/IEC 20000-1:2018 standard defines a set of management processes designed to help you carry out more effective IT services. ISO 20000 standard gives you the methodology and the framework to help you manage your ITSM while allowing you to prove that your company follows best practices; in turn, these best practices will help to improve your delivery of IT services. And ISO 20000 applies to any organization size and any industry.

What are the salient points of ISO 20000 for the organization to make valuable?

The benefits of ISO 20000 cannot be excessive, any size of an organization large or small has to use this standard for prodigious effect, determining and securing cost and savings and that make the organization valuable. The ISO 20000 Awareness Training can help management to understand the overview and requirements of the IT services management system. Here are some key points that an ISO 20000 certified organization can achieve after successful ITSM system implementation.

• ISO/IEC 20000 standard is the internationally recognized standard for IT Service Management. Its international approval has been speedy in recent years, as organizations see it as an important differentiator in the marketplace. And, as a widespread and established standard, you can be sure of the efficacy and scalability of the processes. That means it improves the image and integrity of an organization.
• Implementing an ISO 20000 standard in the organization increases a competitive advantage through improved productivity and efficiency because of more stable IT services. That means your organization becomes more productive.
• Applying proper ISO 20000 standard helps to deliver improved IT services that better meet their requirements, even though at the same time better protecting the company and its assets, shareholders, and management. That means whether it is an internal or external customer it increased customer satisfaction.
• To identify necessary improvements for the organization. assess your organization’s procedures, actions and compared them with the international standard for ITSM, which helps you to easily classify and implement any necessary changes. Because it is important to meet the required level of service. Which helps to create a benchmark and constant improvement makes your organization improve.
• ISO/IEC 20000 standard helps you line up IT services with an extensive business strategy. Make ensure the main focus of the organization is to give the best IT Service Management solutions, which are best suited to serving your customers and the needs of the business.
• ISO 20000 creates a rigid framework of best practices that benefits sustenance innovation. A quick modification in your organization can be handled more proficiently and with better speed, which decreases internal and external risk levels and is more probably meets the organizational aims. That means developing the organization more agile and embracing quick changes. 
• Through more active and effective delivery of IT services, you can give your organization perceptible advantages over your competitors by giving the best services to your customer, and that is how you can gain a competitive advantage.

ISO 20000 internal audit – What is it and why is it important?

Once implemented, ISO 20000 sets requirements in order to continually improve your SMS . And, this is a never-ending story. But, to start improvements, you need to start somewhere. The internal audit is one of the sources you can use. It’s an excellent source of information needed for the internal audit. But, there are some requirements in the ISO 20000 standard itself that need to be fulfilled in order to get certified. Consequently, there are also side effects of an internal audit.

Whom do you need?

The ISO 20000 Audit Training is a mandatory requirement of the standard. Therefore, the company must ensure that all requirements related to the internal audit are fulfilled. For that, there are two persons who are crucial for the internal audit to succeed.

First of all, you need someone responsible for the internal audit, as such. This person will be responsible for:

• Creating an internal audit plan/program – usually once a year, so we are talking here about an Annual Audit Plan.
• Appointing the auditor.
• Review of the results of the previous audit and follow-up actions.
• Analysis of the audit results and preparing a report for the management review meeting (a formal meeting with company’s management) – this includes the audit report, list of nonconformities, and actions to be performed.
• Taking care that corrective actions are made without undue delay and that they eliminate the targeted nonconformity, i.e., their causes. Also, the timing of implementation needs to be followed and monitored.

And the benefits…

Here are a few benefits of the internal audit:

• Know where you are – an objective and impartial internal audit will show you how good or bad your SMS is and your fulfilment of ISO 20000 requirements.
• Know what to do – during the audit you will detect many improvement points. Some of them will be officially noted, but some of them will not be that obvious, but you will know what to do (e.g. standard’s requirement is officially fulfilled, but something can be done more efficiently).
• Independence – people inside the organization have lots of information from the past; they know the organization and relationships between people, departments, etc. Performing an internal audit with, e.g., an external auditor will give you an independent opinion and a lot of facts.
• Management involvement – internal audit results are one of the inputs for the management review. In such way, you ensure that management is involved in the SMS and service delivery.

What is the purpose of the internal audit report in ISO 20000?

Most of us like to know when we did something well. It’s even better if it comes in writing. On the other side, if something is not as it should be – there are a lot of arguments as to why it needs to be documented. It’s the same with your ISO 20000-based Service Management System (SMS) – compliance as well as non-compliance with the standard should be evaluated and results documented.

Of course, we can wait until the surveillance audit takes place, but it’s not as easy as that. ISO 20000 requires that internal audits be performed on a regular basis. So, you’ll have to check the compliance of your SMS with the standard. And, you’ll need to document the findings. This internal audit is the mechanism I just described.

What is it?

Besides the fact that the internal audit must be well planned, the standard requires that you record the results of the internal audit. That’s where the ISO 20000 Audit checklist report comes into play. The internal audit report is, basically, the document where findings of the internal audit are recorded.

The internal audit report protects the value that the internal audit creates. This sounds complex, but it’s not. Namely, the internal audit will detect what was done well or what was done incorrectly. It will also detect nonconformities according to the standard’s requirements as well as opportunities for improvement. All of these elements could get lost if they are not documented in an orderly fashion and followed up on.

The content

The standard doesn’t set direct requirements for the internal audit report’s content. But, because the standard sets requirements for the internal audit, one can infer the content of the report. The internal audit has to check:

• the compliance of the SMS with the standard,
• whether the SMS fulfils the service requirements, and
• whether the SMS is effectively implemented.
• You can see that the internal audit report has to encompass all aspects of the SMS (i.e., functional and standard-, service-, and customer-related).
• The following items are usually found in internal audit reports:
• General data – dates of the audit and report, person responsible for the audit, etc.
• Scope of the internal audit – what was audited
• Improvement recommendations – meaning, no nonconformities, but something could be done better that it is now
• Nonconformities identified – the most important part of the internal audit report

There is no prescribed or one-template-fits-all document, but it’s important that the internal audit report contains all relevant data that leads to eliminating the nonconformity or implementing the improvement recommendation. So, you are free to adapt it to your business.

5 benefits of ITIL Change Management implementation

While growing and gathering know-how, IT service providers get more knowledgeable and experienced. That means performing the same job in less time, using less effort, and with greater efficiency. Many processes, i.e., activities are growing in maturity as the company grows. Sometimes, this ends up good, but it can also go in the opposite way. Building up processes and organization based on experience is OK if you are sure that you are going in the right direction.

ISO 20000:2018 offered by us has been carefully developed, that covers each and every requirement for documentation process and is used globally by many organization for making the best system with ISO 20000 certification.

The benefits

Being one of the most important and sensible processes, the Change Management process has to be implemented. But, besides “we have to implement the process,” are there any benefits that an efficiently implemented process brings? Because if you (and your management) are clear on what benefits the implementation of the Change Management process brings, it will be much easier to motivate yourself and your staff, and gain sponsorship from the management. So, what are the benefits of successful Change Management process implementation? Or, to put it another way, how would you explain a need for implementation of the Change Management process in your organization? Here are a few of the most important ones:

Customer satisfaction is proportional to the efficiency of the Change Management process. Failed changes are visible to your customers and influence their satisfaction, or dissatisfaction, with services you provide. Customers are watching what you are doing – from announcing a change until the change implementation finishes. Keep in mind that customers pay your bill. Unsatisfied customer will maybe pay the bill, but certainly not for long.

Protection of services in the live environment – well, you should be particularly careful with live services. Every malfunction or new incident is highly visible. And, to be sure, your users don’t like them. As we said before, unsuccessful changes or changes that are handled with low quality are quite often causing new incidents on, you guessed it – live services.

Reduction in number of unauthorized changes – that is a test of your management skills. Meaning, unauthorized changes happen when there is no process in place, or where the process is not managed and monitored. Let’s say – you are responsible for an ITSM organization.

Easier follow-up on business changes – it’s not a secret that the business environment is quite often – changing. And, IT services have to follow up. By having a managed Change Management process you will ensure efficient interfaces toward the business and success in implementation. That includes faster reaction to changing business requirements and efficiency of business processes after changes are implemented.

Improved staff efficiency – to explain this, let me ask you – do you like to work in a chaotic and uncontrolled environment? Most probably – no. So, neither do your colleagues and employees. They will appreciate a managed environment, which includes the change process as well. In such way they will know what their tasks are, what their responsibilities or other peoples are who are involved in the Change Management process, who is authorizing changes, etc.