In theory, imposing disciplines on IT processes should improve productivity and make IT more responsive to the business. Many organizations are turning to the Information Technology Infrastructure Library, better known as ITIL, to accomplish this goal, said research firm Computer Economics in a February research note summarizing the report ITIL Implementation Trending Up, But Adoption May Slow.

Large IT organizations are continuing to expand ITIL initiatives at a healthy pace, but new adoption may be slowing. The obstacles to adoption are real, and benefits are sometimes difficult to quantify. Furthermore, the current economic crisis is not favorable to investment in long-term improvement programs such as ITIL. On the other hand, a downturn in business volume may be the best time to make changes to IT processes and services, as personnel may have more time for such initiatives.

The CE study does find some indication that organizations already engaged with ITIL have been accelerating their investments. CE sees this as a good sign, as they believe that, in the long run, organizations focused on continuous improvement will survive and ultimately prosper.