Pink Elephant UK Raises The ITIL Standard With Launch of Competency Centre

Reading UK. Pink Elephant UK has announced the launch of a new Competency Centre to help organisations successfully adopt ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) process improvements. The initiative is in direct response to overwhelming demand from UK companies.

The Competency Centre, headed by John Stephenson, newly appointed Service Delivery Director at Pink Elephant UK, will support organisations as they strive to achieve certification and compliance goals.

"IT has overshot the market," states Stephenson. "The focus is now on the creative application of technology to generate competitive advantage. Transforming IT into a business service is where the real gains are to be made—and ITIL represents a powerful agent for change."

Under growing pressure to achieve legislative compliance, cost savings and increased customer satisfaction, industry analysts Forrester Consulting confirm more and more UK companies are set to adopt ITIL over the next two years.

Findings from its recent survey of IT Service Management in the UK corroborate that change programmes in UK companies are inhibited by an endemic lack of experience in process-based methodologies. Over 75 per cent of respondents with active service improvement programmes (SIPs) confirmed they faced key challenges which included communicating change objectives, managing organisational and process disruption, and motivating IT employees. Almost 66% identified the lack of IT staff experience in ITIL as a key issue.

"The success of any SIP is dependent on incisive strategy and tactics, plus an educated and motivated IT staff," says Stephenson. "The Competency Centre offers IT organisations a step-by-step pathway to ITIL that encompasses the critical skills development their people need to operate in changing, process-driven environments."

A renowned Service Management consultant and ITIL specialist, Stephenson is no stranger to business and talent development. His pedigree in the world of commercial operations and football management are legendary—under his leadership the Academy at Celtic FC became a European centre of football excellence.

"Implementing a SIP that delivers sustainable gain is a key priority for IT organisations in 2006," states Stephenson.

"There's a growing commitment to process improvement both in the public and private sectors—our goal is to deliver a complete framework, from consultancy through to education, that enables organisations to truly harness the potential of ITIL," he concludes.

About Pink Elephant
Pink Elephant is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with operations worldwide and has three main regions; the Americas, Europe Middle East and Africa (with its head office in Reading) and Asia Pacific (with its head office in Sydney). Pink Elephant works with organisations to improve the quality of IT services through the application of established best practices, such as the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). For more information, please visit www.pinkelephant.com

ITIL® is a Registered Trade Mark and a Registered Community Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce, and is Registered in the US Patent and Trademark Office.