ITIL v5 Glossary

• Acceptance criteria

- Minimum requirements a service or service component must meet to be acceptable to key stakeholders.

• Agentic AI

- AI systems designed to act on behalf of users by autonomously performing predefined tasks within agreed boundaries, while remaining under human oversight and governance.

• AI governance

- The system by which an organization directs, controls, and monitors the use of AI to ensure digital products and services create value while remaining ethical, secure, compliant, and aligned with organizational objectives.

• AI maturity

- The extent to which an organization can effectively, responsibly, and consistently use AI capabilities to support its objectives, including governance, data quality, skills, processes, and ethical considerations.

• Architecture management practice

- The practice of understanding all elements that make up an organization and how those elements relate to one another.

• Architecture principles

- Norms and rules guiding the use and deployment of resources and assets across an organization.

• Artificial Intelligence (AI)

- The capability of digital systems to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence, such as learning from data, recognizing patterns, making predictions, or supporting decision‑making.

• Asset register

- A database or list of assets capturing key attributes such as ownership and financial value.

• Availability

- The ability of an IT service or configuration item to perform its agreed function when required.

• Availability management practice

- The practice of ensuring that services deliver agreed levels of availability to meet customer and user needs.

• Band of visibility

- The combined aspects of the service consumer organization visible to the service provider, and the aspects of the service provider visible to the service consumer.

• Baseline

- A report or metric that serves as a starting point against which progress or change can be assessed.

• Best practice

- A way of working proven to be successful by multiple organizations.

• Big data

- The use of very large volumes of structured and unstructured data from various sources to gain new insights.

• Business analysis practice

- The practice of analyzing a business or part of a business, defining its needs, and recommending solutions that address those needs or solve business problems to create stakeholder value.

• Business case

- A justification for the expenditure of organizational resources, providing information about costs, benefits, options, risks, and issues.

• Business Relationship Manager (BRM)

- A role responsible for maintaining good relationships with one or more internal customers.

• Capability

- The ability of an organization, person, process, application, configuration item, or IT service to carry out an activity.

• Capacity and performance management practice

- The practice of ensuring that services achieve agreed and expected performance levels, satisfying current and future demand in a cost-effective way.

• Change

- The addition, modification, or removal of anything that could have a direct or indirect effect on products and services.

• Change authority

- A person or group responsible for authorizing a change.

• Change enablement practice

- The practice of ensuring that risks are properly assessed, authorizing changes to proceed, and managing a change schedule to maximize successful service and product changes.

• Change model

- A repeatable approach to the management of a particular type of change.

• Change schedule

- A calendar that shows planned and historical changes.

• Cloud computing

- A model for enabling on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources that can be rapidly provided with minimal management effort or provider interaction.

• Complexity thinking

- An approach to analysis and decision-making based on recognizing and understanding the various levels of complexity inherent in systems and their context.

• Confidentiality

- A security objective ensuring information is not made available or disclosed to unauthorized entities.

• Configuration

- An arrangement of configuration items or resources that work together to deliver a product or service; also refers to parameter settings for CIs.

• Configuration Item (CI)

- Any product, service, or component within scope of configuration management.

• Configuration Management Database (CMDB)

- A database used to store configuration records and their relationships throughout their lifecycle.

• Configuration Management System (CMS)

- A set of tools, data, and information supporting service configuration management.

• Configuration record

- A record containing details of a CI and documenting its lifecycle.

• Continual improvement

- A recurring organizational activity ensuring the organization continually meets stakeholder expectations.

• Continual improvement practice

- The practice of aligning practices and services with changing business needs through ongoing identification and improvement.

• Continuous delivery

- Techniques and tools enabling software updates to be deployed to production at any time.

• Continuous deployment

- Techniques and tools enabling every change that passes automated tests to be automatically deployed to production.

• Continuous integration

- Techniques and tools enabling developers to frequently merge code into a central repository with automated builds and tests.

• Core value stream

- A value stream that enables value for consumers in a form intended by the operating model.

• Cost

- The amount of money spent on an activity, resource, product, or service.

• Cost centre

- A business unit or project to which costs are assigned.

• Critical Success Factor (CSF)

- A necessary precondition for achieving intended results.

• Culture

- A set of shared values expressed through behavior, ideas, beliefs, and practices.

• Customer

- The role that defines requirements for products and services and takes responsibility for outcomes of service consumption.

• Customer Experience (CX)

- The sum of functional and emotional interactions with a service as perceived by a customer.

• Cycle time

- The time it takes to complete one specific step of a value stream.

• Dashboard

- A real-time graphical representation of data.

• Data governance

- Rules, policies, standards, and controls used to manage data assets effectively.

• Deliver and support

- The value chain activity ensuring services are delivered and supported according to agreed specifications.

• Deployment

- The movement of any service component into a controlled environment.

• Deployment management practice

- The practice of moving new or changed components to controlled environments.

• Design thinking

- A human-centered approach to solving complex problems and creating practical solutions.

• Development environment

- An environment used to create or modify IT services or applications.

• DevOps

- A movement emphasizing collaboration between development and operations, with automation to improve delivery speed and reliability.

• Digital product

- A combination of digital resources designed to offer value to consumers.

• Digital product and service management

- Capabilities enabling value through digital products and services.

• Digital product vendor

- An organization responsible for creating and improving digital products.

• Digital service

- A service that relies fully or largely on digital products.

• Digital transformation

- Strategic adoption of digital technologies to change how an organization operates and creates value.

• Disaster

- A sudden unplanned event causing major damage or loss.

• Disaster recovery plans

- Plans describing how an organization will recover from a disaster and return to normal.

• Effectiveness

- A measure of whether objectives have been achieved.

• Efficiency

- A measure of whether the right amount of resources has been used.

• Enabling value stream

- A value stream that supports core value streams for internal customers.

• Environment

- A subset of IT infrastructure used for a particular purpose (e.g., live, test).

• Error

- A flaw or vulnerability that may cause incidents.

• Escalation

- Sharing awareness or transferring ownership of a work item.

• Event

- Any change of state significant to service management.

• External customer

- A customer working for an organization other than the service provider.

• Feedback

- Information about stakeholder reactions used for improvement.

• Feedback loop

- When part of an activity’s output is used as new input.

• Flow efficiency

- The percentage of cycle time that is value-added time.

• Generative AI (GenAI)

- AI systems that create new content such as text, images, or code.

• Goods

- Tangible resources transferred from provider to consumer.

• Governance

- The system by which an organization is directed and controlled.

• Governance of digital technology

- Human-based governance of current and future digital technology use.

• Incident

- An unplanned interruption or reduction in service quality.

• Incident management practice

- The practice of restoring normal service operation as quickly as possible.

• Information and technology

- One of the four dimensions of product and service management.

• Information security management practice

- The practice of protecting confidentiality, integrity, and availability of information.

• Information security policy

- The policy governing an organization’s approach to information security.

• Infrastructure and platform management practice

- The practice of overseeing infrastructure and platforms used by an organization.

• Integrity

- A security objective ensuring information is only modified by authorized personnel.

• Internal customer

- A customer working for the same organization as the service provider.

• Internet of Things (IoT)

- A network of physical devices that connect and exchange data.

• Interoperability

- The ability of systems from different vendors to operate together.

• IT asset

- Any financially valuable component contributing to IT service delivery.

• IT asset management practice

- The practice of planning and managing the lifecycle of IT assets.

• IT infrastructure

- All hardware, software, networks, and facilities supporting IT services.

• ITIL

- A framework and best-practice guidance for digital product and service management.

• ITIL Continual Improvement Model

- A structured approach to planning and implementing improvements.

• ITIL Four Dimensions of Product and Service Management

- Four perspectives critical to facilitating value.

• ITIL Guiding Principles

- Recommendations guiding an organization in all circumstances.

• ITIL Value System (ITIL VS)

- A model showing how components and activities work together to create value.

• Kanban

- A method for visualizing work and managing work in progress.

• Key Performance Indicator (KPI)

- A metric used to evaluate success in meeting an objective.

• Knowledge management practice

- The practice of maintaining and improving the use of information and knowledge.

• Known error

- A problem that has been analyzed but not resolved.

• Lead time

- Total time from initiation to delivery of outputs.

• Lean

- An approach focused on maximizing value by eliminating waste.

• Lifecycle

- All stages and statuses in the life of a service, product, or practice.

• Live

- Refers to a service operating in the live environment.

• Live environment

- A controlled environment used for operating digital products and services.

• Maintainability

- The ease with which a service can be repaired or modified.

• Major incident

- An incident with significant business impact requiring immediate coordination.

• Management practice

- Organizational resources and capabilities designed to accomplish objectives.

• Management system

- Interconnected elements establishing policy and enabling objectives.

• Maturity

- A measure of reliability, efficiency, and effectiveness.

• Measurement and reporting practice

- The practice of supporting decision-making by reducing uncertainty.

• Metric

- A measurement or calculation monitored for improvement.

• Minimum Viable Product (MVP)

- A product with just enough features to satisfy early customers.

• Mission

- A short description of an organization’s purpose and intentions.

• Model

- A representation used to understand or predict behavior.

• Modelling

- Creating and utilizing models.

• Monitoring

- Repeated observation to detect events and understand status.

• Monitoring and event management practice

- Systematic observation and reporting of selected changes of state.

• Observability

- Understanding internal system state by analyzing external outputs.

• Operating model

- A representation of how an organization co-creates value.

• Operation

- Routine running and management of an activity or service.

• Operational technology

- Hardware and software controlling physical processes.

• Organization

- A person or group with responsibilities and relationships to achieve objectives.

• Organization’s purpose

- Describes what an organization does and why.

• Organizational change management practice

- Ensuring changes are smoothly implemented and benefits achieved.

• Organizational resilience

- Ability to anticipate, prepare for, respond to, and adapt to external influences.

• Organizational velocity

- Speed and efficiency with which an organization operates.

• Organizations and people

- One of the four dimensions ensuring structure and roles support strategy.

• Outcome

- A result enabled by outputs.

• Output

- A tangible or intangible deliverable of an activity.

• Outsourcing

- Having external suppliers provide products or services previously provided internally.

• Partners and suppliers

- One of the four dimensions covering relationships with other organizations.

• Partnership

- A relationship between organizations working toward common goals.

• Performance

- A measure of what is achieved or delivered.

• Pilot

- A test implementation of a service in a live environment.

• Policy

- Documented expectations and intentions guiding decisions.

• Portfolio management practice

- Ensuring the right mix of programs, projects, and services to execute strategy.

• Problem

- A cause or potential cause of incidents.

• Problem management practice

- Reducing likelihood and impact of incidents by identifying causes.

• Procedure

- A documented way to carry out an activity.

• Process

- Interrelated activities transforming inputs into outputs.

• Product

- A configuration of resources designed to offer value.

• Product and service management activities

- Activities managing digital products and services through their lifecycle.

• Product and service portfolio

- A complete set of products and services managed by an organization.

• Product/service prototype

- An initial version used to test and refine design and functionality.

• Product/service specification

- A detailed document outlining requirements and characteristics.

• Production environment

- See live environment.

• Programme

- A set of related projects and activities.

• Project

- A temporary structure delivering business products.

• Project management practice

- Ensuring all projects are successfully delivered.

• Quick win

- An improvement providing fast ROI with low cost and effort.

• Record

- A document stating results and evidence of activities.

• Recovery

- Returning a configuration item to normal operation after failure.

• Relationship management practice

- Establishing and nurturing links with stakeholders.

• Release

- A version of a product or service made available for use.

• Release management practice

- Making new and changed services available for use.

• Reliability

- Ability to perform intended function for a specified time.

• Request catalogue

- A view of the service catalogue showing service requests.

• Request for Change (RfC)

- A description of a proposed change.

• Resolution

- Solving an incident or problem.

• Resource

- Personnel, material, finance, or other entity required for an activity.

• Retire

- Permanently withdrawing a product or service from use.

• Risk

- A possible event that could cause harm or loss.

• Risk assessment

- Identifying, analyzing, and evaluating risks.

• Risk management practice

- Ensuring risks are understood and handled effectively.

• Safety culture

- A culture where people are comfortable being themselves.

• Service

- A means of enabling value co-creation by facilitating outcomes.

• Service action

- An action performed by a service provider or jointly with a consumer.

• Service architecture

- A view of all services provided by an organization.

• Service catalogue

- Structured information about all services and offerings.

• Service configuration management practice

  - The practice of ensuring that accurate and reliable information about the configuration of services, and the configuration items that support them, is available when and where needed.

• Service consumer

  - An organization responsible for procurement and use of services.

• Service consumption

  - Activities performed by an organization to consume services, including managing resources, service actions, and receiving goods if required.

• Service continuity management practice

  - The practice of ensuring that service availability and performance are maintained at a sufficient level in case of a disaster.

• Service design practice

  - The practice of designing products and services that are fit for purpose, fit for use, and deliverable by the organization and its ecosystem.

• Service desk practice

  - The practice of providing the entry point and single point of contact with the service provider for all users, and capturing demand for incident resolution and service requests.

• Service financial management practice

  - The practice of ensuring that the organization’s financial resources and investments are being used effectively.

• Service journey

  - The sum of activities and interactions performed by organizations engaged in service relationships.

• Service level

  - A set of metrics that define expected or achieved service quality.

• Service Level Agreement (SLA)

  - A documented agreement between a service provider and a customer that identifies the services provided and the agreed level of each service.

• Service experience

  - The sum of functional and emotional interactions with a service and provider as perceived by a stakeholder.

• Service offering

  - A formal description of one or more services designed to address the needs of a target consumer group.

• Service provider

  - An organization responsible for delivery and support of services.

• Service provision

  - Activities performed by an organization to provide services, including resource management, access, service actions, service level management, and continual improvement.

• Service quality

  - The characteristics of a service relevant to its ability to satisfy stated and implied needs.

• Service relationship

  - A cooperation between a service provider and service consumer.

• Service relationship management

  - Joint activities performed by provider and consumer to ensure continual value co‑creation.

• Service request

  - A request from a user or authorized representative that initiates a service action agreed as a normal part of service delivery.

• Service request management practice

  - The practice of handling all predefined, user‑initiated service requests effectively and user‑friendly.

• Service validation and testing practice

  - The practice of ensuring that new or changed products and services meet defined requirements.

• Service value

  - The perceived benefits, usefulness, and importance of a service.

• Site Reliability Engineering (SRE)

  - A discipline applying software engineering to infrastructure and operations problems to create scalable, reliable systems.

• Software development and management practice

  - The practice of ensuring applications meet stakeholder needs in functionality, reliability, maintainability, compliance, and auditability.

• Sourcing

  - Planning and obtaining resources from internal or external, centralized or distributed, open or proprietary sources.

• Specification

  - A documented description of the properties of a product, service, or configuration item.

• Sponsor

  - The role that authorizes budget for service consumption.

• Stakeholder

  - A person or organization with interest or involvement in an organization, product, service, or practice.

• Standard

  - A document established by consensus and approved by a recognized body that provides mandatory requirements or guidelines.

• Standard change

  - A low‑risk, pre‑authorized change that is well understood, fully documented, and implementable without additional authorization.

• Status

  - A description of the specific states an entity can have at a given time.

• Strategy management practice

  - The practice of formulating organizational goals and adopting actions and resource allocation to achieve them.

• Supplier

  - An organization responsible for supplying goods and services used by another organization.

• Supplier management practice

  - The practice of ensuring suppliers and their performance are managed appropriately to support seamless quality products and services.

• Support team

  - A team responsible for maintaining normal operations, addressing user requests, and resolving incidents and problems.

• Sustainability

  - The assurance that a product or service meets environmental, social, and economic responsibility requirements.

• Swarming

  - A technique where multiple people with different expertise work together on a task until the needed competencies become clear.

• System

  - A combination of interacting elements organized to achieve one or more purposes.

• Systems thinking

  - A holistic analysis approach focusing on how system parts interrelate and interact over time and within other systems.

• Technical debt

  - The implied cost of rework caused by choosing an easy solution now instead of a better long‑term approach.

• Test environment

  - A controlled environment established to test products, services, and configuration items.

• Testing

  - Executing a system or component under specified conditions, observing results, and evaluating aspects of the system.

• Third party

  - A stakeholder external to an organization.

• Throughput

  - A measure of the amount of work performed by a product, service, or system over time.

• Transaction

  - A unit of work consisting of an exchange between participants or systems.

• Use case

  - A realistic scenario used to define functional requirements and design tests.

• User

  - The role that uses services.

• User query

  - An interaction with the service desk that may result in an incident or service request being logged.

• Utility

  - The functionality offered by a product or service to meet a particular need.

• Utility requirements

  - Functional requirements defined by the customer and unique to a specific product.

• Validation

  - Confirming that proposed product and service design meets agreed requirements and establishing acceptance criteria.

• Value

  - The perceived benefits, usefulness, and importance of something.

• Value chain

  - The entire set of activities enabling value through the provision of a product or service.

• Value chain activities

  - Activities performed to manage digital products and services through their lifecycle.

• Value stream

  - A series of steps used to create and deliver products and services to a consumer.

Value streams and processes

- One of the four dimensions of product and service management. It defines the activities, workflows, controls, and procedures needed to achieve the agreed objectives.

• Vision

  - A defined aspiration of what an organization would like to become in the future.

• Wait time

  - The time spent waiting between the value stream steps.

• Warranty

  - The assurance that a product or service will meet the agreed requirements. Warranty can be summarized as ‘how the service performs’ and can be used to determine whether a service is ‘fit for use’. Warranty often relates to service levels aligned with the needs of service consumers. This may be based on a formal agreement, or it may be a marketing message or brand image. Warranty typically addresses such areas as the availability of the service, its capacity, levels of security, and continuity. A service may be said to provide acceptable assurance, or ‘warranty’, if all defined and agreed conditions are met.

• Warranty requirements

  - Typically non-functional requirements captured as inputs from key stakeholders and other practices.

• Workaround

  - A solution that reduces or eliminates the impact of an incident or problem for which a full resolution is not yet available. Some workarounds reduce the likelihood of incidents.

• Workforce and talent management practice

  - The practice of ensuring that an organization has the right people with the appropriate skills and knowledge and in the correct roles to support its business objectives.