IT Service Management within the IS Curriculum: Comparing Two German Experiences

IT service management (ITSM) is of increasing significance to IT organizations, while at the same time information systems (IS) play a crucial role for many organizations around the world. Universities represent the first step for students to gain a qualification in the field of ITSM; as such, the university educates the future employees of IT organizations. This contribution describes the motivation, course structure, challenges, and future directions for two German universities that design and offer an IT service management course within their IS curricula, including an ITIL Foundation exam. The underlying research methodology is narrative inquiry, used to compare and analyze both cases. Finally, to support lecturers from other universities a list of findings is presented: establish a connection to other IT frameworks, pose the “life” before ITSM, and include guest lectures from industry practitioners.