Continual Service Improvement (CSI) and Survival

The systems, the processes, and the culture that worked for IT service providers 20 years ago will not work in today’s environment. No big news here! Most IT support staff will agree. The truth is that the same could be said for systems or methods that service providers used five years ago or even last year. The dynamic and rapid change of business requirements demands that a service provider be dynamic and continuously adapt to evolving business needs and outcomes.

When you get into your car and turn the key or push the start button, most would expect that the car is going to start. You might also expect that it has wheels, an engine, and all the elements necessary to drive this car, right? This is the same expectation that a business operation expects. When a service is provided the business expects that service is going to have all the working elements to ensure that it does what they need. The customer expects that the service is available and secure for day to day operation.

The systems, the process and the culture that worked for IT service providers 20, 10 or even five years ago is not likely to work in today’s ever-changing world. We have all realized that whatever process, service or product you deploy today is already outdated by the time it is usable. The truth is that the requirements are changing before we can ever even deploy. This creates confusion, frustration and in some cases the Project Manager does not feel enabled for success. Being over time and over budget becomes more of the norm than an anomaly.

What do all frameworks, methodologies and best practices have in common?

All of these frameworks and methods could be used and dovetailed together to provide value. Frameworks do not stand alone.

Think about:

Agile and the focus on iterative design
Lean and how to remove waste
The culture to shift left
Agile Service Management and Minimum Viable Process (MVP)
ISO/IEC 9000, 9001, or ISO/IEC 20,000 that ensures an ongoing quality/managed service system
TQM and the Deming Cycle for Plan, Do, Check, Act…

At the core of these frameworks is the idea that Continual Service Improvement is necessary to deliver value. If you are not growing, living, breathing and moving with the business than this becomes not only suggested but required for survival. Educate and Inspire!

For more information on Continual Service Improvement: https://www.itsmacademy.com/itil-csi/

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