ABC – the Missing link to real customer focus The first Pilot training of the ABC of ICT® Fundamentals proved to be the missing link between ITIL theory and the creation of a truly Customer focused attitude for IT staff. Delegates were unanimous in declaring the training a value added addition on top of existing ITIL courseware. Not only did it create an awareness of Customer focus and Business value it also gave insights into the risks caused by ABC-issues and enabled delegates to do something about it in their organizations. The Pilot was held at the Getronics training center in the Netherlands. Getronics is the first ITIL training company to adopt the ABC of ICT® Fundamentals in its curriculum. It was the fact that 52% of ITIL implementations fail because of resistance and the fact that 70% of ITIL programs fail to deliver measurable and demonstrable value that prompted the development of the ABC of ICT® Fundamentals training. ‘We wanted to create a training that raised awareness for the need to address ABC issues and a training that enabled people to practically apply what they learn in their working environment. It confronts them with their own Attitude, Behavior and Culture and the impact of this on the business. We wanted a training that could help channel the frustration of failed improvement initiatives into positive energy, buy-in and a will to change. We wanted people to be ‘instant agents of organizational development’ following the training. Passing an exam and having a certificate is not our aim. It is to enable people to take action that can make a difference.’ says Paul Wilkinson of ABC@WORK, co-creator and co-author of the ABC of ICT® products and one the developers of ABC of ICT® fundamentals. The one day training handles theory about Attitude, Behavior and culture. Examining why so many ITIL initiatives fail. It focuses on resistance and how to recognize and use this as positive energy. The training involves practical exercises using the ABC of ICT® card set. Participants create throughout the day their own action plan, detailing new behavior and actions they will now take as a result of their new found insights and knowledge. Did the training add value to the participants? Eveline Bugter (Head Application Lifecycle Management)- ING- Bank Mendes Gans: It was a really important element - the exercise on Customer and User focus. This MUST be added to all ITIL training, particularly for the operational staff. The training created the awareness of the customers and what they need, helping to create a change in attitude. That is what it is all about. Wilma Beer (Proces Manager) – Ministry of Justice: A totally different approach to normal training. Extremely interesting. You created an approach for translating something negative ‘frustration’ into positive energy. This is an approach that not many people can achieve. Geert Schelbergen (IT Service Manager) – ING - MOVIR: Many eye openers about how I currently do things. Am I on the right track? I am a typical ‘blue’ person, focused more on ‘hard’ than on ‘soft’ issues concerning changing processes and working practices. Am I focusing enough on gaining commitment and buy-in? and am I on the right path? That was a real eye-opener.
1
Karla Stroet (IT Service Manager) ING - OPS/IT: If I think about the target audience for this training, I realize it is also applicable to business people. If you want to realize change do it together with the business so that both mindsets can change and you can both go forward and realize change. That way you create a great deal of added value. Do these exercises together with the business, then you can really make things happen. Peter de Wit (Human Resource Advisor) – Social Benefits department: I found it a refreshing, practical and concrete way of letting all working in IT appreciate the need for ‘soft’ skills. You cannot do enough of this from a human resource development angle. A great way of categorizing attitude and behavior with 57 images. To be able to perform your work well the customer focus is crucial. This is a great way to confront, to develop and to professionalize all IT staff. Arnaud van Dijk (Senior Management Trainer ITSM and Personal Competence) – Getronics Consulting: This makes organizational change, a subject that is worrying many IT people, concrete and practical, the humor ensures it is something they can understand, relate to and use in a practical way. Kees Penders (head of ICT Support) - University Utrecht: The ABC training was an inspiration. A delightful and practical instrument for managing change. We can use this. Participants personal action plans However inspirational and insightful the training was, one of its intended objectives is to empower people to change their own behavior and help make change in their organizations. One of the top world wide ABC worst practices is ‘not my responsibility’ we asked the students to tell us what they had written on their personal actions plans. “I’m going to use these in a management of change sessions with employees to create the right type of discussion about what needs changing.” “We already use Apollo and the ABC of ICT® -cards. More than 300 people have already been through ABC workshops and we’re excited about the results. In this training I have discovered how we can make the ABC workshops more concrete and use them to identify impact and risks. We are planning to ensure everybody goes through this. The value of this is that it really opens a dialogue and discussion, even with people who never have anything to say!” “I’m going to discuss this with my team and look for a sponsor at management level to use this. I’m also going to ensure we engage more with the business to fully understand their real service requirements. “I’m going to give even more attention in our ITIL implementation program to the “Why”. Why are we doing this and what is in it for the business AND for the staff. It is fantastic that I now have a new instrument to help me drive our change forward.”
2
“I’m going to invite some customers to come and tell us how they use our services and what types of issues they have. We are often accused of not understanding them I now see through these exercises the need to engage with them.” “This fits in well with our culture program. The cards are an enabler for contacting and involving the customers. I will let each of my customers do the exercise to identify the real issues. The plus point of this method is they will all choose from the same set of issues so that we can identify which ones have the most impact.” “I’m going to put some of the cards on our Intranet to start discussions and capture feedback from all the employees. “ “I’m going to suggest this as a program for our Management team. It is certainly worth their while.” The ABC@Work course facilitators will be following up with all the delegates within the coming weeks to discover the effect of their actions and to ensure that ‘Not my responsibility’ is not an attitude or behavior associated with them, and to answer any questions and assist them if need be. Getronics the first to offer ABC training Why did Getronics facilitate this training and become the first company to offer the training? “Any IT Service Management effort that does not address ABC(Attitude, Behavior, Culture) is bound for failure. For too long now many IT companies have failed to gain the expected benefits from ITSM frameworks such as ITIL. We in Getronics have recognized that we enable people through ITIL training and certification but still many initiatives fail or meet with resistance. This is because of the ABC issues. We recognized a need to make these ABC issues visible, to answer the question ‘ Why do so many ITIL initiatives fail?’, at the same time help people address them. Currently 70% of initiatives fail to achieve the required results, it is our aim as a leader in the area of ITSM training to turn this around – 70% are successful, because of a conscious focus on solving ABC issues.” says Hanno Brandsema Business Unit Director of Getronics Consulting Educational Services The ABC of ICT® Fundamentals training was developed by ABC@Work. A joint venture between the people behind GamingWorks (developers of Apollo 13) Jan Schilt and Paul Wilkinson and three independent consultants and trainers active in developing and coaching the softer skills and facilitating organizational change with experience in Service Managment, Risk- en ProjectManagement. Cornelie Meynen, Douwe Brolsma and Mark Kouwenhoven. The ABC of ICT® Fundamentals training will form part of the new Exin accreditation program and will be a set of courseware available to all ITIL training companies.
3