ITIL Version 5 is here, and the question we hear most from IT teams is a simple one: what do we actually need to do about it?
The honest answer is: probably less than you fear, but more than nothing. If your organisation has spent the last few years building practices around ITIL 4, that work is not wasted. A new version of the framework is not a reason to tear things up and start again. It is a reason to step back, check what is working, and decide where the new guidance genuinely helps.
We covered what has changed in ITIL 5 in an earlier article. This one is about the practical side: how to plan a sensible transition without disrupting the services your users depend on.
Start with what you already have
Before anyone books a course or rewrites a process document, take an honest look at your current practices. Which ones are mature and running well? Which exist mainly on paper? Which ones does nobody really own?
This matters because the transition will look different for each. A well-run change enablement practice might only need a light review. A problem management practice that has quietly faded away is a better candidate for a proper rethink, and the new guidance can give you a useful excuse to restart it.
A short maturity review, even an informal one done over a couple of workshops, gives you a baseline and stops the transition from becoming a vague, open-ended project.
Decide why you are doing it
“Because there is a new version” is not a strong enough reason on its own. Teams lose interest quickly if the only goal is to be up to date.
Instead, link the transition to something the business cares about. That might be faster recovery from incidents, better visibility of service costs, or a smoother experience for users. When people can see the point, adoption follows. When they cannot, you end up with new terminology and the same old behaviours.
Train the right people, in the right order
It is tempting to send everyone on a foundation course at once. In practice, a staged approach works better:
- Your practice owners and service managers first. They need to understand the changes well enough to judge what applies to your organisation.
- Your wider IT teams next. Once you know what you are changing, training lands better because it connects to real decisions.
- Your stakeholders along the way. Business partners do not need certification, but a short briefing on what is changing and why saves a lot of confusion later.
If you have people already certified in ITIL 4, check the transition routes available to them before booking full courses. It can save time and budget.
Pilot before you roll out
Pick one or two practices and one team, apply the updated thinking, and see what happens. Keep the pilot small enough to manage and long enough to learn from, usually a few months.
A pilot tells you things no plan can: where the documentation is unclear, where your ITSM tool needs adjusting, and where people quietly work around the process. Fix those things before you scale up.
Update your tool, not just your documents
This is where many transitions stall. The process documents get updated, but the ITSM tool still reflects the old way of working, so nothing changes in practice. If a workflow, a form or a report no longer matches how you want people to work, change it. Your tool is where your practices actually live day to day.
Keep it moving
Treat the transition as part of continual improvement rather than a one-off project with an end date. Review progress every few months, celebrate the visible wins, and drop anything that is not adding value.
Done this way, moving to ITIL Version 5 becomes a chance to strengthen what you already do well and fix what has been quietly not working. That is a far better outcome than a wholesale rewrite.
Planning your move to ITIL Version 5? Book a free scoping call and we will help you work out where to start.
