IT departments need to recognise that they are service organisation with a service-orientation. Linear technology-focussed projects may be inappropriate. Until recently, there has been a reliance on the orthodoxy of systems development methods and systems development lifecycles that are out of tune with the continuous evolution of systems and the move toward componentisation. The Centre for IT Service Management exists to address this problem. These will be oriented towards service design, implementation and evaluation in a networked business world where the boundaries between internal and external information systems are increasingly blurred and global information system penetrate every aspect of business.
Most organisations have an IT department of some kind.
The IT department supports all information requirements for the organisation. While the focus of most IT departments may be on the technology, the technology itself is only the tool for the delivery of a service to the organisation. This service involves managing information flow, delivering business benefits and enabling business process. IT departments need to develop a deep understanding of service management and to apply service management concepts to the delivery of IT within the organisation. This results in communication barriers, misunderstandings and the sidelining of the IT from the strategic aspects of the business.