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IT Change Management — IT Certificate

IT-Based Assets

An effective change management process also considers the extent to which change management
will alter IT-based assets on which business services depend. Assets subject to change management
include:
 Workstations, laptops, tablets, phones, servers, routers, switches, and core infrastructure
components such as power generation or cooling, networked printers, and mobile devices.
 Operating systems, middleware, and applications (including in-house developed applications
and commercial off-the-shelf applications).
 Data and data structures, including individual files updates, complete database updates,
complete database updates (e.g., restoration of a previous version), and data integration jobs.
 Antivirus software, firewall rules, router configurations, email filters, web filters, and intrusion
protection/detection configuration parameters.

Software and Process Tools

There are numerous software and process tools available to facilitate and assist in the change
management process. Types of tools include but are not limited to:
 Often categorized as services management tools, most ticketing systems have modules for
change, problem, release, knowledge, asset, and configuration management. Organizations that
implement all modules can use the tool to manage their assets from beginning to end.
 Code repositories allow organizations to manage software updates. Code is stored in a securely
located repository that requires programmers to check out code they are tasked with changing.
Once changes are complete, the code is checked back in. This method ensures documentation
and version control.
 These perform functions, which include code promotion between environments, server
provisioning, and automated patch deployment.

Tool Selection

When selecting and using a tool to assist in the change management process, management should
understand the capabilities, functionalities, and limitations of each tool. Risks are commonly
introduced when:
 Multiple tools are used with multiple interfaces.
 Separate tools are used for different types of changes.
 Tools are managed across diverse and/or multiple geographic locations.

Change Management Process Steps

Change management process steps will differ among organizations, and some steps may occur
concurrently. We will use the image provided here for our example.

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