Key ITIL Terms and Definitions · Topic 2 of 4
Experience, Strategy and Transformation Terms
ITIL 5 terms for experience, digital experience, trust, UX, CX, experience level agreements, strategy, mission, vision, VUCA, change and transformation.
- 3 min
- Experience is perception and reaction; digital experience is that experience with digital products.
- UX is the users' experience; CX is the customer's.
- Human-centred design starts from the people who use the product.
What it is
ITIL (Version 5) Foundation includes basic terms from three areas: experience, strategy and transformation. The exam asks you to recognise the basic terms in each area: how people experience digital products, how an organization sets direction, and how change differs from transformation and from business as usual.
How it works
Experience terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Experience | How a person perceives and reacts to interacting with a product or service |
| Digital experience | The experience of interacting with digital products and services |
| Trust | A party's confidence that another party will act honestly and reliably |
| User experience (UX) | The experience of the people who use the product or service |
| Customer experience (CX) | The experience of the customer, who defines requirements and is responsible for outcomes |
| Experience level agreement | An agreement that sets expectations for the experience, not just technical service levels |
| Human-centred design | Designing products and services around the needs and perspectives of the people who use them |
Strategy terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Purpose | Why the organization exists |
| Mission | What the organization does now to fulfil its purpose |
| Vision | The future state the organization wants to reach |
| Strategy | The approach the organization chooses to achieve its goals |
| Business strategy | How the organization intends to compete and create value in its market |
| Digital strategy | How digital technology supports and shapes the business strategy |
| VUCA | Volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity: the conditions organizations work in |
| Leadership | Influencing and guiding people toward goals |
VUCA conditions are a reason for continual improvement and iterative working: when needs keep shifting, products and services must keep adapting.
Transformation terms
| Term | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Change | The addition, modification or removal of anything that could affect services | Upgrading a service's software version |
| Transformation | A fundamental shift in how the organization operates or what it offers | Entering a new market with a new business model |
| Business as usual (BAU) | The routine, day-to-day activity that keeps the organization running | Answering routine user requests |
Vision is the future you want; mission is what you do now; purpose is why you exist. Exam options often place these three side by side.
How the exam asks about this
- "Leaders describe the future they want to reach. Which term?" Vision.
- "What does VUCA stand for?" Volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.
- "Answering routine requests each day is an example of what?" Business as usual.
What to remember for the exam
- Experience is perception and reaction; digital experience is that experience with digital products.
- UX is the users' experience; CX is the customer's.
- Human-centred design starts from the people who use the product.
- Purpose is why, mission is what now, vision is the future state.
- Change modifies something; transformation is a fundamental shift; BAU is routine work.
Not every change is a transformation. A software upgrade is a change; redesigning the whole operating model is a transformation.
Common mistakes
Confusing mission and vision. Mission is current; vision is future.
Treating UX and CX as the same. Users and customers are different roles.
Calling routine work a change. Routine work is business as usual.
Check yourself
What does VUCA stand for?
Volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity.
What is a transformation?
A fundamental shift in how an organization operates or what it offers.
What is human-centred design?
Designing products and services around the needs and perspectives of the people who use them.
Topic 2 of 4 in Key ITIL Terms and Definitions
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