Changing ITSM Seasons

As we approach the fall and winter in the northern hemisphere, the change of seasons makes me think of the whole idea of renewal. This leads me to think about the place of renewal in ITSM—Continual Service Improvement. To make improvement work really well it must be a continuous activity. At a minimum, we should take some time to recognize that ITSM has seasons just like the physical world. Each year as we strive to deliver value to our customers, users and business partners we should think about those seasons. The seasons of the year offer up an opportunity to renew our efforts in ITSM and to bring new life out of the longer-term activities and efforts within our organizations. Just like the need to change a battery in a smoke detector once per year, the “battery” of your ITSM work might need replacement, recharging or renewal.

What does renewal of an ITSM implementation or effort look like? Here is a short list of the activities and steps you might take to help your own “renewal”:

Review your strategy: Is it still valid? Have conditions changed since you created the strategy? Are tactics and operations still in line with the original strategy? Will a change in strategy cause a change in tactics or operations?
Refresh your service catalog: Are there any services that need retirement? Is the information still valid? Does the information represent the current offerings? Does the catalog still “market” your services effectively?
Shuffle your CAB membership: Is it time to bring new “blood” or “fresh eyes” to the Change Advisory Board? Does the meeting format still suffice? Are there collaborative technologies now available that could help the CAB?
Refresh your incident and problem models: Are the current catalog of models or knowledge articles still up to date? Have technology updates made the models obsolete? Are there models still needed that have not been written?
Review your measurements and metrics: Are the metrics still bringing a fresh view of your strategic, tactical and operation world? Are the metrics “stale”? Has work fallen into a rut because of “stale” metrics?

These are just a short list of thought starter questions you should ask yourself as you change seasons or as you go into year’s end. Time your renewal with the change of the physical world as a reminder each year that as nature refreshes so should your organization!

Comments

Anonymous said…

Awesome reminder to review what you have, do you need it, is it effective, does it meet your company's goals? It also builds the foundation for improved IT Governance, Risk and Compliance.
Thanks,Professor Wise.

November 25, 2013 at 9:40 AM

Four Service Characteristics

Recently I came across several articles by researchers and experts that laid out definitions and characteristics of services. ITIL provides us with a definition that can help drive the creation of value-laden services: A means of delivering value to customers by facilitating outcomes customers want to achieve without the ownership of specific costs and risks. An area that ITIL is not so clear is in terms of service characteristics. Several researchers and experts put forth that services have four basic characteristics (IHIP): Intangibility—Services are the results of actions not things. They have no physical presence and represent a logical set of elements. One way to think of service is “work done for others.” Heterogeneity—Also known as “variability”; services are unique items because of the mechanisms used to deliver services, which is people. Because the people element adds variability, the service is variable. This holds true, especially for the value proposition—not eve...

What Is A Service Offering?

The ITIL 4 Best Practice Guidance defines a “Service Offering” as a description of one or more services designed to address the needs of a target customer or group. As a service provider, we can’t stop there! We must know what the contracts of our service offering are and be able to put them into context as required by the customer. Let’s explore the three elements that comprise a Service Offering. A “Service Offering” may include: Goods, Access to Resources, and Service Actions 1. Goods – When we think of “Goods” within a service offering these are the items where ownership is transferred to the consumer and the consumer takes responsibility for the future use of these goods. Example of goods that are being provided in the offering – If this is a hotel service then toiletries or chocolates are yours to take with you. You the consumer own these and they are yours to take with you. ...

What is the difference between Process Owner, Process Manager and Process Practitioner?

This article was originally published in 2015. With the Introduction of ITIL 4, some of this best practice has changed. See ITIL 4 and the Evolving Role of Roles . Updated Definitions in ITIL 4: Process Owner: In ITIL 4, the concept of 'processes' has expanded into broader 'practices.' Consequently, the Process Owner is now often referred to as the 'Practice Owner.' This individual is accountable for the overall design, performance, integration, and improvement of a specific practice within the organization. They ensure that the practice achieves its intended outcomes and aligns with the organization's objectives. Process Manager: Now commonly known as the 'Practice Manager' in ITIL 4, this role is responsible for the day-to-day management of the practice. The Practice Manager ensures that activities are carried out as intended, manages resources assigned to the practice, and oversees the practitioners performing the work. Process Practit...

Search