James Fraser Butler

Over more than 30 years in technology, I’ve worked across software development, operations, project management and IT service management. Today, my focus is on connecting technology, people and operating models to improve how services are designed, transitioned, operated and continually improved.

My experience spans service delivery, ITSM, ServiceNow, operational governance, incident and problem management, service performance, continual improvement and digital workplace services. I’m particularly interested in the gap between technology delivery and service outcomes, and how organisations can close that gap without creating processes that simply add weight to the operation.

Earlier in my career, I built my experience from the technology delivery side, developing systems, managing operations and delivering projects. That foundation shapes how I approach service management today. I understand the technology, but I’m equally interested in the system around it; ownership, governance, workflows, data, customer experience, suppliers and the behaviours that determine whether a service actually works.

I take a pragmatic approach to service management: start with the outcome, understand the system, use data to expose the problem, and improve the capability rather than simply fixing the symptom.

I’m particularly interested in how ITSM is evolving as organisations adopt automation, AI and increasingly agentic ways of working, and what that means for the role of the Service Delivery Manager.

My goal is simple: help organisations build service management capability that makes technology easier to operate, easier to improve and more valuable to the business.