ITSM Articles

Illustration of a shattered USB drive breaking apart, representing data loss from a deleted partition

Important IT Support Skills: How to Recover a Deleted Partition on a USB Drive

Losing access to a USB drive partition does not necessarily mean your data is gone. In many cases, deleted partitions, file system corruption, and accidental formatting only make files inaccessible rather than permanently erased. This guide explains how to recover USB data from a formatted or deleted partition, restore lost partitions using Windows tools and recovery software, and apply best practices to prevent future data loss.
Olympic rings illustration with small AI robot agents standing beside them, representing agentic AI coordination in ITSM

What ITSM Can Learn from the Olympics in the Agentic AI Era

The Olympics demonstrate that success depends on teamwork, preparation, governance, and seamless coordination – not individual talent alone. Discover how these same principles help IT organizations deploy Agentic AI successfully through better context sharing, AI governance, continuous validation, and clearly defined AI responsibilities.
Illustration of a person presenting an ITSM webinar on a laptop screen, with a live chat bubble and audience engagement icons

ITSM Webinars: Free On-Demand ITSM & ITIL Webinars

This “living” article has been created as a handy resource that lists the ITSM webinars ITSM.tools has participated in since 2021. It was most recently updated in 2026 with new webinars as needed.
Two grain silos on a farm, each displaying a portrait, representing silos in IT service management

Simplicity, Service, and the Discipline of Asking Why

Christian Nissen spent four decades in IT service management and helped shape ITIL along the way. In his Conversations with Giants episode, he makes the case that the industry keeps isolating capabilities it should be reintegrating, that it has swapped service for product, and that the skills worth learning are older and plainer than newcomers expect. Here are the ideas practitioners can use now.
Confused robot surrounded by a question mark, representing AI operating without context in IT service desks

Beyond Intelligence: Why Context Is the Missing Piece in AI-Driven IT Service Desks

AI is transforming IT service desks, but not in the way many expect. The real limitation isn’t the intelligence of AI models, it’s the lack of usable, high-quality context within most IT environments. From CMDB accuracy and knowledge articles to service catalogs and tacit expertise, AI is only as effective as the information it can access. Without strong contextual foundations, even the most advanced AI simply scales existing issues. The real opportunity lies in building richer, more reliable ITSM context so AI can deliver consistent, meaningful operational value.
Illustrated figure holding a large spreadsheet in a swirling colourful environment representing outdated ITAM spreadsheet tracking

IT Asset Management (ITAM) Is the Missing Link in Security, Compliance, and IT Budgeting

Many IT teams are juggling tight budgets, security gaps, compliance demands, and the growing pressure of AI — yet one discipline that could ease all of these challenges continues to be overlooked. IT asset management (ITAM) has been around for years, but for too many organisations it still means a spreadsheet and good intentions. This article explores why that needs to change, with real-world examples showing how a mature ITAM approach transforms everything from onboarding and budgeting to security and compliance.
Illustrated laptop exploding with a stopwatch representing IT asset handoff failures in ITSM onboarding

5 IT Asset Handoff Gaps That Disrupt Onboarding and Offboarding (and How ITSM Teams Can Fix Them)

Most IT asset handoff failures are not technology issues, they are workflow issues. Devices, tickets, and CMDB records may exist, but unclear ownership, poor visibility, incomplete handoffs, and unmanaged exceptions create delays, security risks, and compliance issues. This article explores five common IT asset lifecycle gaps that undermine onboarding, offboarding, and device management processes, and offers practical ways to improve accountability, readiness, and operational efficiency. Learn how readiness gates, stronger ownership models, and better workflow discipline can transform IT asset handoffs and create a solid foundation for automation and AI-driven service management.
Illustrated humans and AI robots in a meeting representing Agentic AI in ITSM collaboration

Agentic AI in ITSM Insights and Correlations

Discover the latest findings from the 2026 HCLSoftware-sponsored ITSM.tools survey on Agentic AI. This article explores AI adoption trends, governance priorities, regional differences, and the correlations between AI maturity, trust, business value, and organizational success, helping IT leaders better understand where Agentic AI is delivering measurable impact in ITSM.
Cartoon child dressed as a superhero standing in a server room representing ITSM heroics culture

Why ITSM Heroics Are Hurting Your Organization

From ancient myths to modern workplaces, we’ve always admired heroes – the ones who step into chaos and save the day. In ITSM, that same mindset often plays out when organizations celebrate the individual who resolves a major incident while overlooking the systemic issues that created the crisis in the first place. While ITSM heroics can demonstrate expertise, dedication, and resilience, they can also reinforce a reactive culture built on firefighting rather than prevention. This article explores why ITSM heroics persist, the hidden organizational and psychological factors behind them, and how leaders can shift recognition away from emergency responders.
Robotic hand pressing a large reset button representing the ITSM reset for AI service management

The ITSM Reset: Why AI Can’t Scale Without Strong Service Management Foundations

AI adoption in ITSM is nearly universal, but many organizations are discovering that AI can only be as effective as the processes, data, and governance supporting it. New research shows a significant gap between widespread AI implementation and the maturity of underlying ITSM practices. While AI is delivering value through automation, predictive insights, and improved user experiences, it cannot compensate for fragmented workflows, disconnected tools, or inconsistent data. As organizations pursue agentic AI and larger-scale automation, strengthening ITSM foundations (an ITSM reset) may be the most important step toward achieving sustainable AI success.
Classical and futuristic figures illustrating the concept of AI agent governance in ITSM

Why AI Agent Governance Belongs in ITSM

As AI agents gain autonomy and become embedded in critical business processes, organizations face a growing governance challenge. This article explains how established ITSM capabilities – including risk classification, service ownership, CMDB visibility, change management, incident response, and access governance – can provide a practical framework for AI agent governance. Rather than creating entirely new governance models, organizations can extend existing service management practices to ensure accountability, oversight, and operational resilience in the age of agentic AI.
CAB change advisory board meeting with IT professionals reviewing change requests around a table

Beyond the CAB: A Practical Approach to Modern Change Governance

Traditional Change Advisory Boards (CABs) help organizations govern production changes, but can introduce bureaucracy, delays, and unclear accountability. A modern alternative is an asynchronous, responsibility-driven approach where approvals are based on defined ownership, targeted oversight, and operational readiness.
Two portrait photos pinned to a corkboard covered in colorful notes and papers, representing Daniel Breston and the service management story

Want to Get Service Management Right? Grab a Post-it!

What is service management, really? Daniel Breston’s answer isn’t a framework. It’s a single question, picked up from his first CEO walking a Houston bank with a Post-it pad.
Illustrated figures standing on pillars of varying heights, representing simulation-based learning and decision-making in ITSM training

Why Simulation-based Learning Belongs in Every ITSM Program

Most ITSM training programs stop at the certificate. That’s an issue, because certification proves someone knows the theory, but it says nothing about what they’ll do when a major incident hits at 2 a.m., and the pressure is on to close the ticket fast. The gap between knowing a practice and applying it under pressure is where simulation-based learning offers something other formats simply can’t. This article makes the case for adding it to your ITSM program – not as a replacement for training, but as the part where what’s been taught finally gets tested against real consequences.
Illustrated phoenix rising in flames, representing renewal and rebirth in the ITSM tool renewal cycle

ITSM Tool Renewal Guide: 7 Questions to Ask Before Renewing or Replacing Your Platform

Many ITSM tool renewals are treated as procurement exercises when they should be strategic business decisions. With AI reshaping service management, increasing pressure to reduce costs, and rapidly evolving vendor capabilities, renewing the status quo is no longer the default choice. This guide outlines a practical 90–180 day framework for evaluating your current platform, assessing alternatives, and building stakeholder alignment before contract renewal. It also covers the seven critical questions every IT leader should answer to determine whether to renew, expand, or replace their ITSM solution with confidence.