Where to start with SACM? Service Asset and Configuration Management

I often get asked the questions, "Where do I start with SACM? How do I implement this process?"

In my experience, this is one of the most difficult processes to implement correctly. Let’s discuss the first activity of the SACM process of Planning.

In this activity, decisions will be made about the scope of what needs to be controlled in your organization. What level of configuration management is required? How will that desired level is achieved? Do you gather information about a service or about specific components? Do you need to control assets which are causing your customers the most pain points? When do you establish a controlled configuration, how do you change a controlled configuration, and what amount of resources are you going to expend to manage configurations? All of these decisions must be documented and formalized within the configuration management plan.

Configuration Management Plan:
· Context and Purpose
· Scope
· Requirements
· Applicable policies and standards
· Roles and Responsibliites
· Systems and tools
· Processes and procedures to implement
· Implementation plan
· Interface Controls
· Supplier Considerations

As you can see, there are many things to consider when implementating SACM. My advice is to start small, begin with a pilot project, ensure tht change management exists with a documented relationship between your change and configuration processes. You should also ensure that once you have collected your data, you can and must control the assets. Remember, the better the planning, the more successful the implementation!

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