Hello,

I would really like to start a career in ITSM but find it difficult to find any junior ITIL positions out there. Everyone wants ITIL managers with x number of years experience... How on earth to get that experience???

Dimitare

Dear Dimitare,

You pose an age-old question. “Everyone wants experienced staff, but how do I get experience if the only openings are for people with experience?”

Below are a few tips that I hope can get you started accumulating that experience.

First, please note that senior IT Service Management staff probably didn’t start out in the work world as junior IT Service Management staff. Like most of us, they started out in a junior IT position, but not necessarily an IT Service Management position.

However, they all shared some common traits as they rose through the staff and management ranks. First, they developed an understanding of the business, its needs and requirements, and how the function they performed contributed to the business’ success. Second, they realized that there was a continuous need to improve themselves and the work they do, which meant that they established some strong disciplines and procedures to enable them to constantly measure their work and improve it. Third, they recognized that everything had to be viewed through the lens of the business and provide value to the business’ bottom line.

Interestingly, these are the same three characteristics of an effective IT Service Management culture. It is:

• Management focused
• Process oriented
• Cost optimized

So, how do you get from a prospective employee in the ITIL world to a fully fledged ITIL employee? It is actually the same way people have always moved up the management track – a combination, of Education and Experience. Education (e.g., ITIL courses such as Foundation, Practitioner, Manager), gets you in the door, and Experience (especially if you demonstrate the capability to relate your experience to the wider world of ITIL) opens many new doors to you.

Take that job as a junior Service Desk Analyst, Network Technician, Programmer, etc. and perform it within the context of ITIL. Your success in this area will lead to recognition and a chance to move into a more focused Service Management area.

And, then, your burning question might well be, “Do I take the ITIL job with an established ITIL-compliant company and gain ITIL operational experience, or do I take an ITIL job in a company that is implementing ITIL and gain experience in the ITIL transition process?”

I hope these tips help, and good luck in your future endeavors.