ITIL V3 vs ITIL V4; Major differences

To stay on top of the game, business owners must find solutions and capabilities to win the competition. That is only possible when equal attention is given to both corporate and information technology (IT) goals no matter how difficult or cumbersome the task.

To achieve these goals, we must first understand what is wrong in the existing system and process and find loopholes. Experts involved in IT service management are aware of the importance of ITIL guidelines that gave birth to ITIL 4.

The ITIL 4 was released back in February 2019, but what does the new version has to offer? This blog concentrates on some changes in ITIL 4, but first, a little overview of ITIL.

ITIL’s Brief Overview

Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is a set of skills and best practices for the successful management of IT services. ITIL was designed as a possible solution and was a response to expensive IT services in the UK.

Over the years, ITIL instantly became a foundation or set of guidelines for ITSM practice. ITIL principles evolved to become the best guidelines to implement ITSM in an organization. That’s why knowing how ITIL works helps businesses gain numerous advantages. The ITIL Foundation certification is good to gain actionable insights on ITIL.

The ITIL framework has moved from an IT centralized approach to become more business-friendly. ITIL principles apply to the world beyond IT.

ITIL V3, also known as ITIL 2011, was supposed to meet the challenges continuously bombarded by the rapid changes in information technology. Unfortunately, this version failed to cater to these needs and was unable to offer adequate guidance to the IT sector. Recognizing the flaws in the ITIL V3, ITIL v4 was released to address these challenges.

Start Your 30-Day FREE TRIAL with QuickStart. Connect with our experts to learn more about the ITIL Foundation Certification.

Let’s see what has changed in the new version and why it is better.

●       The Conceptual Change in ITL4

The ITIL v4 aligns the value of ITSM work we perform with the collaborative creation of new values for the business. ITIL4 presented the conceptual changes with the primary scoop on working with the organization to create value rather than work to deliver value for the organizations.

The ITIL V3 introduced five core stages of the service lifecycle that consist of service strategy, service design, service operation, ITIL services transition and continual service improvement. Whereas in ITIL4, four elements introduced, though not new in any way, are the refined versions of the ITIL service value system, seven guiding principles and four dimensions of service.

For ITIL Practitioners, ITIL v3 is inflexible due to the main focus on the processes. However, ITIL v4 offers a more flexible approach, like a service value system.

●       ITIL 3 Service Lifecycle to the ITIL 4 Service Value System

Another significant change in ITIL version 4 is the addition of “Service Value System” and the dissolution of the ITIL v3 service lifecycle. ITIL v4 clearly understands the concept of one size cannot fit all and provides a valuable solution to work with other frameworks. The core of ITIL version 3 is the service lifecycle, and ITIL version 3 sought to amplify ITSM by creating a service lifecycle that covers every possible area. That was the need back in 2006, but as the new changes in the business and IT world emerges, the world demands improvements and flexibility in work. ITIL version 4 is designed to integrate with other frameworks such as Lean, DevOps, and Agile. Moreover, some practitioners found ITIL v3 to be too confined, which put too much focus on the process of management and neglects other significant external factors. In contrast, ITIL4’s service value system puts a considerable emphasis on working on service management activities alongside the other activities throughout the company and, at the same time, tearing down silos and promoting collaborative work.

●       ITIL4 Four Dimensions Model

The ITIL version 4 four dimensions model presents all the necessary aspects to help a well-balanced approach to the management of service. The four dimensions are as follows:

• Organizations and people
• Partners and suppliers
• Information and Technology
• Value streams and process

These ITIL4 dimensions can be applied to the service value system and any specific services. Although processes are clearly defined in ITIL3, ITIL4 deals with both the process and value flows.

Also Read: How to Double My Income? Get ITIL Foundation Certification

●       The 7 Guiding Principles

ITIL v4 has properly assembled significant ideas from the widest variety of ITIL frameworks available. Most strikingly, the guidelines are carefully arranged, refined and molded to become the key component of ITIL version 4. ITIL4’s seven guiding principles are an adaptation of specific guidelines introduced in 2016. These guiding principles contain the key message of ITIL and service management systems.

Furthermore, these ITIL guidelines are easily reflected in other frameworks like Agile, DevOps and Lean.

The seven guiding principle of ITIL4 are:

• Focus on Value
• Start where you are
• Progress iteratively with feedback
• Collaborate and promote visibility
• Think and work holistically
• Keep it simple and practical
• Optimize and automate

These seven guiding principles of ITIL version four put forth a proven way of thinking and working. By embracing these seven principles, an organization can easily avoid several hurdles which many IT departments face in an organization.

●       The Agile, Lean, DevOps Influence

Another significant change is that ITIL4 puts a great focus on the ability to adapt technological changes as well as a change in business and smoothly integrates the DevOps, Agile and Lean concepts with ITIL practices to make the ITSM framework more business-friendly.

While DevOps methodology tried to fit in with the ITIL v3, ITIL v4 offered a more flexible platform for DevOps. ITIL4 contains many core values found in DevOps and Agile.

Final Thought

ITIL is used widely by many organizations that want to improve and coordinate their needs with the latest IT services. ITIL4 makes use of new and improved methods of IT to the next level. Furthermore, ITIL Foundation Certification is important to have key information and actionable knowledge about ITIL4 in order to easily practice and incorporate it into an organization.