How the itSMF works
The itSMF in the UK is primarily run by its membership through the Management Board and its committees. There are strict rules governing the make-up of the Management Board, membership voting rights and mechanisms and appropriate behaviour.
The intent is to maintain total independence from any influence and remain completely open to membership scrutiny. The following is a summary of some of the key elements contained in the organisation paper. Volunteers automatically receive a copy on joining; members may see a complete copy in the members-only part of the web site or obtain a copy from the itSMF office.
Our Vision
To be the premier community for leadership in IT Service Management.
Mission Statement
To provide a forum for our membership to enable them to exchange views, share experiences and participate in the continuous development and promotion of best practice and standards, through a range of services that delivers significant value to their enterprises.
Corporate Objectives
- Establish and maintain a membership base, covering the widest professional IT and business interests.
- Represent the interests and views of the membership base.
- Provide a forum for bringing together users, suppliers and other stakeholders of IT services and products.
- Support and influence and, where appropriate, produce and publish best practice standards and guidelines for IT service management, such as the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) and emergent national and international Standards, e.g. ISO/IEC 20000 and ISO/IEC 19770.
- Increase the level of professionalism within the industry through:
promotion and development of globally recognised qualifications.
an "Institute" to which registered practitioners can belong.
- Develop a growing portfolio of services that deliver real benefit to the members.
- Recognise and reward individuals and organisations that make significant contributions to the advancement of best practice, Standards and professionalism in the IT Service Management field.
- Maintain financial viability.
- Increase the general awareness of IT Service Management.
Members
Members may be Individual, Corporate, Vendor, or Associate.
Individual membership is suitable for those such as independent consultants - who may trade in a variety of ways - or persons in an organisation that is not ready or does not wish to embrace the philosophy of the itSMF.
Corporate membership is designed for those organisations operating an IT function providing service to that organisation alone. Typically, there would be a discrete set of technology, processes and people involved - even if some or all of the day to day running is performed by third party organisations. An example might be a specific Government department or site, a local authority, a small company or a subsidiary of a large organisation running its own IT services. There are different tiers, reflecting membership numbers.
Vendor membership is for organisations engaged in the sale of service management products and services, including facilities management, even though they may also run an internal IT service. Typically, the choice between corporate and vendor membership will be decided by the benefits required. Again, there are different tiers reflecting membership numbers.
There is a special class of "Associate" memberships for complementary organisations. Associate membership is free and is designed to encourage the exchange of information between like-minded organisations and to aid the pursuit of common objectives. Associate status does not carry voting or other membership rights. itSMF operates a "discount" for charities, academic bodies and others as may be decided by the Management Board.
