Frequently Asked Questions: ITSM Who's Who
Who's the ISM?
The ISM or Institute of Service Managers provides guidance and support to individuals throughout the IT Service Management community. The Institute aims to ensure that requirements for professionalism and ethical conduct are maintained and developed.
The Institute aims to achieve this by:
- accrediting an individual's level of professional competence and integrity through the award of differing grades of membership
- ensuring members participate in continuing professional development
- defining the standards expected for professional conduct, through the institute's code of conduct and the associated disciplinary procedures
The ISM is closely linked to the itSMF who's members are organisations rather than individuals.
Who's the OGC?
The OGC is a UK government agency, the Office of Government Commerce. It owns the IP rights in best practice methodologies including ITIL and PRINCE2. It has developed them from being UK public sector methodologies into widely adopted procedures used by all types of organisation worldwide.
Who's the TSO?
TSO is reponsible for publishing and disseminating much of the documentation and suport material associated with OGC methodologies such as ITIL and PRINCE2.
TSO is an independent company formed by the privatisation of HM Stationery Office in 1997.
Who's the APM Group?
The APM Group (or APMG) is the company appointed by the OGC to provide accreditation of selected best practice methodologies including PRINCE2 and ITIL.
As well as maintaining standards through accreditation of training courses, training providers, trainers and exams, it is also provides information and support material to those who have qualified through its accredited schemes.
Who's the itSMF?
The itSMF is the IT Service Management Forum, an internationally recognised not for profit organisation representing IT professionals worldwide.
The itSMF has supported the development of ITIL as a central vehicle to achieve its goal of excellence in ITSM. ItSMF International provides central cohesion and direction whilst over 40 chapters provide unique international reach.
Who's the ISEB?
The ISEB is a division of the British Computer Society (BCS) which specialises in provision of industry recognised qualifications that measure competence, ability and performance in many areas of IT.
The ISEB portfolio covers 8 major areas including IT law, Information Security and Software Testing.
The ISEB also acts as an ITIL examination institute accredited by the APMG.
Who's the BCS?
The BCS is the British Computer Society. It is the professional body for the IT industry working through networks of regional branches, forums, specialist groups and strategic panels.
The goal of the BCS is to advance the professionalism of the IT sector and to champion members' interests. This includes a deep involvement in IT training including initaiatives such as the ECDL (European Computer Driving Licence) scheme and advanced academic courses in addition to the ISEB portfolio.
Who's EXIN?
EXIN is the Dutch based Examination Institute for Information Science.
It is a global IT examination provider whse portfolio is based on international frameworks and standards such as ITIL, ISO/IEC20000, ASL and MOF.
With an extensive network of international offices it has played a central role in the dissemination of ITIL as a world standard for IT service management.
Who's the NCC?
The NCC or National Computing Centre is a leading independent IT membership organisation, serving corporate, vendor and government communities.
It focuses on the effective management and use of IT to help maximise the competitiveness of members' businesses. Through its Institute for IT Training (IITT) division it provides accreditation of many UK training providers to help maintain and improve industry standards.
Who's the SOCITM?
The Society of Information Technology Managers is the professional association for ICT managers working in and for the public sector.
Members are drawn primarily from local authorities but also from the police and fire services, housing authorities and other locally delivered public service.
With over 1900 members from 550 different organisations including 98% of all UK local authorities, Socitm provides a widely respected forum for the promotion, use and development of ICT best practice. It also plays a leading role in the implementation of local e-government in the UK.
Who's the ITGI?
The Information Technology Governance Institute (ITGI) is a research think tank that is a leading reference on IT-enabled business systems governance for the global business community. ITGI aims to benefit enterprises by assisting enterprise leaders in their responsibility to make IT successful in supporting the enterprise's mission and goals. The COBIT governance and control framework is published by ITGI.
Who's ISACA?
Originally the Information Systems Audit and Control Association, ISACA now goes by its acronym only.
With 65,000 members in more than 140 countries ISACA provides education, resource sharing, advocacy, and professional networking.
CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor) is ISACA's cornerstone certification. Since 1978, the CISA exam has measured excellence in IS auditing, control and security. The CISA certification has been earned by more than 50,000 professionals since inception and has grown to be a globally recognised symbol of achievement.
