Glossary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W
Glossary of terms [I]
TERM
DEFINITION
Impact
A measure of the effect of an Incident, Problem or Change on Business Processes. Impact is often based on how Service Levels will be affected. Impact and Urgency are used to assign Priority.
Impact Code
A Category used to represent Impact. For example Major, Minor, Catastrophic. See Priority.
Incident
(Incident Management) An unplanned interruption to an IT Service or reduction in the Quality of an IT Service. Any event which could affect an IT Service in the future is also an Incident. For example Failure of one disk from a mirror set.
Incident Management
(Incident Management) The Process responsible for managing the Lifecycle of all Incidents. The primary Objective of Incident Management is to return the IT Service to Customers as quickly as possible.
Incident Record
(Incident Management) A Record containing the details of an Incident. Each Incident record documents the Lifecycle of a single Incident.
(Financial Management) A Cost of providing an IT Service which cannot be allocated in full to a specific customer. For example Cost of providing shared Servers or software licenses. Also known as Overhead. Indirect costs are divided into Absorbed Overhead and Unabsorbed Overhead. See Direct Cost.
Information Technology (IT)
The use of technology for the storage, communication or processing of information. The technology typically includes computers, telecommunications, Applications and other software. The information may include Business data, voice, images, video, etc. Information Technology is often used to support Business Processes through IT Services.
Infrastructure Service
An IT Service that is not directly used by the Business, but is required by the IT Service Provider so they can provide other IT Services. For example directory services, naming services, or communication services.
Transferring the provision of IT Services from an External Service Provider to an Internal Service Provider. The term Insourcing is used to mean running or managing IT Services as an Internal Service Provider. See Outsource.
Integration Testing
Testing of a Build or Release to ensure that the parts work correctly together.
Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
(Service Desk) A form of Automatic Call Distribution that accepts User input, such as key presses and spoken commands, to identify the correct destination for incoming Calls.
A Customer who works for the same Business as the IT Service Provider. See External Customer.
An IT Service Provider which is part of the same Business as their Customer. An ST Service Provider may have both Internal Customers and External Customers. See External Service Provider.
International Organization for
Standardization (ISO)
Standardization (ISO)
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is the world's largest developer of Standards. ISO is a non-governmental organization which is a network of the national standards institutes of 156 countries.
An External Service Provider that provides access to the Internet. Most ISPs also provide other IT Services such as web hosting.
(Financial Management) The Activity responsible for carrying out a Cost Benefit Analysis to justify Capital Expenditure for a new or changed IT Services. See Business Case, Cost Effectiveness, Return on Investment, Return on Capital Employed.
Ishikawa Diagram
Synonym for Cause / Effect diagram.
ISO Specification and Code of Practice for IT Service Management. ISO/IEC 20000 is aligned with ITIL Best Practice, and supersedes BS 15000. See Standard.
ISO 9000
A generic term that refers to a number of international Standards and Guidelines for Quality Management Systems.
ISO 9001
An international Standard for Quality Management Systems. See ISO 9000.
IT Directorate
Senior Management within a Service Provider charged with developing and delivering IT services. Most commonly used in UK Government departments.
IT Infrastructure
All of the hardware, software, networks, facilities etc. that are required to develop, test, deliver or support IT Services. The term IT Infrastructure includes all of the Information Technology but not the associated people, Processes and documentation.
IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL)
A set of Best Practice guidance for IT Service Management. ITIL is owned by the OGC and is developed in conjunction with the itSMF. ITIL consists of a series of publications giving guidance on the provision of Quality IT Services, and on the Processes and facilities needed to support them.
The Process responsible for the day-to-day monitoring and management of one or more IT Services and the IT Infrastructure they depend on. The term IT Operations is also used to refer to the group or department within an IT Service Provider responsible for IT Operations. See Event Management.
IT Service
A Service provided to one or more Customers by an IT Service Provider. An IT Service is based on the use of Information Technology and supports the Customer's Business Processes. An IT Service is made up from a combination of people, Processes and technology and should be defined in a Service Level Agreement.
IT Service Management Forum (itSMF)
The IT Service Management Forum is an independent Organisation dedicated to promoting a professional approach to IT Service Management. The itSMF is a not-for-profit membership Organisation with representation in many countries around the world (itSMF Chapters). The itSMF and its membership contribute to the development of ITIL and associated IT Service Management Standards.
IT Service Provider
A Service Provider that provides IT Services to Internal Customers or External Customers.
IT Steering Group
A formal group that is responsible for ensuring that Business and IT Service Provider Strategies and Plans are closely aligned. IT Steering Group includes senior representatives from the Business and the IT Service Provider.
ITIL ®
See IT Infrastructure Library.
ITIL Certification Management
Board (ICMB)
Board (ICMB)
The body responsible for the maintenance and ongoing development of the ITIL qualification scheme.
