The first decision that must be made in conjunction with launching an ITIL consulting engagement is whether the analysis and design process will be conducted top down, collaboratively or using a hybrid structure. A collaborative team approach combining internal project leaders and subject matter experts under an independent Project Management Office (PMO) generates the best results. There are four key success factors that govern the speed, cost and results of an engagement. First is the decision to bring in an outside firm to drive the process that reports directly to the CEO, CFO or a senior IT executive sponsor. This gives the PMO authority to cut through organizational layers and politics that derail change. Decisions by the Executive Sponsor or Steering Committee are timely and final.

The second factor is bringing in an established framework that is proven in the market - for IT service transformation, the leading framework is ITIL. This eliminates a lot of second guessing regarding where the company is headed and provides credibility. The third decision is to brand and market the project in order to generate momentum, a sense of urgency and widespread communication. Finally, structuring internal subject matter experts under the PMO who understand your organization and know where essential information can be obtained quickly, is paramount. To be effective, most engagements must probe interdependencies across IT functions and business areas. A PMO addresses these interdependencies and cuts through silos built up over years in an organization. To evaluate solution design best practices, external subject matter experts (SME's) may be required periodically during blue printing, to facilitate "getting it right" the first time, based on proven technical and industry best practice experience.