ITIL tool vendor accreditation: The DCON Software & Service case

Silke Theison – Board Member at DCON Software & Service

German service management consultancy and tool vendor, DCON Software & Service, is one of the first IT service management tool vendors to become a PeopleCert ITIL-accredited Tool Vendor.

We spoke to Silke Theison, board member at the company, to find out what makes a successful tool vendor in today’s market and why the company chose to participate in the PeopleCert accreditation programme:

“We wanted to be one of the first to adopt the programme, as we believe that PeopleCert will bring innovation and modernization to ITIL. And they’ve raised the bar on what vendors need to do to achieve certification,” Silke Theison said.

For her – and her fellow board members – gaining the ITIL-accredited tool vendor status is the culmination of a multi-year company vision to embed 19 ITIL 4 practices. This meant focusing the DCON team on ITIL’s practice requirements and why they’re necessary to include in a service management tool.

“We needed the will and vision to be one of the best in our field and to bring a single ITIL story together in the tool. As a tool vendor and service provider, we live for being professional and delivering high quality. So, if there is a certification that recognises how important this is, then achieving it is a no-brainer,” Silke added.

This was a logical step for DCON, which prides itself on taking its customers’ challenges seriously and, therefore, continually introducing innovation and new optimization in its software.

The ITIL 4 factor – for software and people

Meeting the criteria for PeopleCert’s ITIL tool vendor accreditation meant measuring DCON’s software compatibility with ITIL 4 practices.

Silke calls this a “must-have” for any tool vendor and the companies they serve: “In recent years, people have recognised that IT and digital services underpin everything. If they’re not organised professionally, organisations will lose both money and reputation.

“And as ITIL 4 brings a professionalism to running IT services, it makes sense to have a tool that’s measured against ITIL best practice. ITIL is the reason why any organisation’s IT runs seamlessly.”

In addition – and unlike any other tool vendor accreditation on the market – the PeopleCert programme also addresses the training and certification of teams working on the vendor’s software solution.

“This recognises that there’s more than the tool to being a good tool vendor,” Silke said.

“Internally, it helps assess the individual strengths and competencies of our employees and helps to clarify to everyone how important it really is to excel in their work and maintain the mindset that we need to achieve the highest quality.

“It’s also about each person in the team choosing their development direction and focusing on the necessary training and certification.”

For example, DCON’s sales teams are undertaking ITIL 4 training to be able to explain to customers the importance of ITIL practices as part of the service management solution. Meanwhile, the growing consulting team will obtain ITIL 4 knowledge to know how to connect business needs with the tool.

“We need to have leaders who love what they’re doing and have the highest level of ITIL Practices knowledge that makes them experts and will enable them to share it with the whole DCON team,” Silke added.

A dramatic move forward

So far, how has DCON’s ITIL tool vendor accreditation been received by customers and what difference does Silke think this will make to the business in future?

“It will make a big difference. Potential customers are now engaging with us because they’ve recognised our accreditation.

“I expect this to become an even stronger driver over the next 12 months. And, as we adapt to the latest insights PeopleCert brings to the field of service management, it will take us forward in a dramatic way.”