The cream and jam of information security

Information security can be a pain at times. I think most people understand that the controls are there ultimately to help us, through keeping our data safe. But how are they viewed, and how willingly do people go along with them? Or to put it another way, even if our security controls make it easier to do things right than wrong, we probably have considerable power to cause harm to our organisations by misusing data. This is where it is not just what technical controls we use that matter, but also how we educate people. 

Where’s the value in value if your consumers don’t see it?

Perception is reality. and if your consumers don’t recognise value from what you do, they certainly will recognise cost. In the current economic climate where competitors will claim they can do what you do ‘faster, better, cheaper’, this isn’t a good place to be. Ian MacDonald offers some pointers for demonstrating value.

Diary of a conference delegate aged 57 and a quarter

“I’m stood in front of the bathroom mirror practising tying a bow tie on a Sunday morning in early November. It can mean only one thing. It’s time for my 20th annual trip to itSMF UK’s conference and awards…” Barry Corless offers a personal insight into ITSM23.

The importance of effective metrics

Have you ever asked yourself, “Why do we measure things?” It’s a question that often goes unasked, yet it lies at the heart of our desire to understand the world around us. In a recent itSMF UK member meet-up, we explored the various reasons why we measure and the importance of doing so effectively.

Fighting for the ribbons: tales of assessment and accreditation

There is a quote attributed to Napoleon Bonaparte that goes something like “A soldier will fight long and hard for a bit of coloured ribbon.” Medals to you and me! Our itSMF UK face-to-face session in Manchester in June set out to prove just how true that statement is. For soldiers, read employees of our speakers’ organisations and the coloured ribbons in this case were CMMI, SDI, ITIL, ISO 27001 and Cyber Essentials assessments and accreditations.

Measuring customer experience

itSMF UK recently held a Member Meet-up at Burges Salmon in Bristol, bringing together organisations and individuals from across a number of different sectors who all had one thing in common: the desire to provide excellent customer experience. Chris Kingsbury shares some of the outputs and feedback from the amazing discussions generated, led by expert speakers Chris de Souza from CGI and Neil Keating from Bright Horse.