Product Description

While this book may serve as a textbook, it is not a theoretical book. Instead, it contains a wealth of practical knowledge collected by the editorial board. This practical knowledge and the introduction to the field of IT service management make the book useful even for those not preparing for the examination. Since no single publication can have the answers to all the questions that arise in a field so multifaceted as IT Service Management, the aim of the book is to raise key questions, to encourage discussions and the comparison of the best practices found in the book with the reader's own experience.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2318200 in Books
• Published on: 2007-03-21
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 234 pages

Review
(Previous edition)

.....among the best I've read 2002, and ....among the most important books published this year for IT....professionals. -- Mike Tarrani on Amazon.com

(Previous edition)

If you're looking for the best introductory ITIL book on the market, this is absolutely it. -- Barry T Campbell on Amazon.com

(Previous edition) ..ideal for anyone involved in IT organization or reengineering, and ...should be read by all IT professionals. -- Linda Zarate on Amazon.com

... among the best I've read, certainly among the most important books published for IT operations and infrastructure professionals ... -- Amazon Reviewer

... he recommends this book to anyone interested in giving the certification exam ... -- Amazon Reviewer

...in my opinion should be read by all IT professionals ... -- Amazon Reviewer

An excellent preparation tool for basic ITIL certification exams. -- Malcolm Ryder, CA Architect

No book have I recommended more highly than this. Without exception it's the one book reference to IT Service Management. -- David Messineo, Computer Associates

¡­ If you're looking for the best introductory ITIL book on the market, this is absolutely it ... --Amazon Reviewer

From the Publisher
Endorsed by the International Publications Executive Sub-Committee (IPESC) of itSMF. Published on behalf of ITSMF NL. Foundations and Introductions are available in English, Dutch, Spanish, Italian, Russian, German, French, Chinese, Japanese, Brazilian (Portuguese), Korean and Danish. Arabic due Winter 2006. Electronic versions are also available in selected languages ¨C for further details visit the Van Haren Publishing website.

About the Author
Chief Editor Jan van Bon is responsible for managing the content of most of the ITSMF-NL publications and represents ITSMF-NL on ITSMF-International s Publication Committee. During the last 8 years he produced around 40 books on IT Service Management apart from managing large numbers of publications he also advizes small and large organizations in quality improvement projects, and he is a respected and accredited trainer.

Customer Reviews

Good and not so good. . .
The Good: I used this book as THE only major study source to pass the ITIL Foundations and indeed, it has the essentials to pass the exam -I passed with room to spare using only this *plus* a Transcender Practice exam (Oh yeah, and the ITIL chart that sells here for $11.) So, in one way of looking at it, there is a lot of helpful info here and it does the job to pass the exam. Also, it is the most affordable reference I could find.

The Not So Good: EXTREMELY boring! (another comment below has more detail about this) It written to be only a catalogue of Service Management elements and how they relate. A few illustrations were begun in the first chapter, but were discontinued by Chapter 2 making this very painful read. It is written in a way that the necessary info and the relationships of the processes are elaborated on enough to pass the exam, but again, so boring. It was also too repeatitive.

I hold several certifications and am the type of person who keeps all their books, however, I gave this one away the same day I passed the test. Several reasons: one, there is no index whatsoever for future reference -that would have been both easy for the publisher and extremely helpful for future needs; also, it is just so boring, nothing I want to see again. The numbering sequence when I first bought it I thought followed the Service Management Publications numbering, but not so, so there is no correaltions to that 'Bible' of ITIL. Seems to me that would have also been helpful and easy to do.

I do recommend this IF you can endure the pain and if you obtain something else to suplement. My choices of Transcender ITIL practice exam and the chart worked for me. I definitely am keeping the chart for future reference.

Excellent book to understand the ITIL basics
Excellent book to understand the ITIL basics and to clear the foundation certification. I would recommend this if your objective is to clear the certification in a short span of time. There are other books available if you want to read every process in detail.

Excellent reference
I just finished the ITIL Foundation Certification class (still awaiting test results) and this book was used for teaching. The book is more clear and concise than the older version which a coworker has. Since I am in charge of one of the ITIL processes at work and wasn't familiar with the "Seperation of Duties" I really needed this book. I will use this book and knowledge gained from the class in order to Implement the process.