Spatz said all this has to be managed and "it's not simple [so] that's why we use OpenView."

Unicef started to put in service management as a core component of its infrastructure back in 1998.

"In 1998, ITIL was not top of mind but service management was," Spatz said. "We have implemented a lot of pieces - global service desk, network surveillance, and a service information portal which allows us to see the status of our infrastructure."

Spatz described the results as "fairly dramatic" since Unicef now has consolidated operations and global visibility from one center.

"We can redeploy IT in locations that need to be rebuilt or re-staffed," he said, adding that in several countries Unicef has trained the first person in ITIL.