How do I organize around the Service Management concept?
This is a question we get more often then not from our clients. My first comment is always the same: organization is less important than the process ownership. Every process must have an owner even if the process crosses multiple groups or departments, and that owner must be empowered to meet the objectives of the process. A colleague of mine once said that organizing around process is like making Jell-o without the bowl.
That being said, I think that one can organize Service Management around four major segments:
- Service Alignment and Design (AKA The Business Perspective on steroids) ? Includes business to IT Relationship Management, IT strategy, IT Architecture, Service Development and Business Process Management
- Service Delivery ? Includes Service Level Management, Availability Management, Capacity Management, Service Continuity and Financial management
- Service Governance and Control (supports both compliance management and supply chain management) ? Includes Demand Management, Project Management, Change Management, Release Management, Security Management and Configuration Management
- Service Support ? Includes Service Desk, Incident Management, Problem Management, Asset Management and Infrastructure Management
With all due respect to ITIL, I have taken some liberties with the naming of these organization groups. No doubt each organization might come up with a different naming convention as well. Where I have placed the processes is probably more important then what the groups are called. In addition, I want the new organization to really focus the planning, designing, developing and managing on a service and not simply an application or a set of technologies. Each one of the named process areas will have owners reporting up to the executive of the group.
The organizational leads for each of these four groups must have a seat at the CIO?s table. Please note that I have put a specific emphasis on two areas that I think in the long term will be the most critical: Service Design and Service Control. I also think that ITIL does not give these two areas the significance they deserve.
Service Alignment and Design puts the emphasis on the customer. The customer relationship and customer requirements are the most critical to the success of service management. Much has been written in recent years as to the importance of the customer and understanding customer needs yet many IT organizations are still struggling to align with the business. A high priority must be placed on this early in the Service Management lifecycle. At first, tying together Relationship Management, IT Strategy and Architecture and then incorporating Service Development at the same time as Service Delivery once Service Support and Control are in place.
I have segregated Service Control as a separate organization because of the significance of these processes in the overall service management scheme. Why? Two reasons: (1) so many clients relegate change management to the support side of the business and to the technical infrastructure and not to the service; and (2) The majority of the processes mentioned under service control provides the overall balance between IT Supply and IT Demand. When these processes are executed correctly together, IT can deliver on its commitments in a cost effective and customer-focused manner. Service Control is the supply chain engine of IT.
With apologies to those individuals responsible for Application Management, Infrastructure Management and Security Management, I felt it necessary to place these process areas in the most logical groups knowing that the processes nested in each will touch all four groups. Not only are these major areas and critical processes, it is critical for these groups to work cross organizationally. This will be accomplished through service governance and control: at the project level for service design and development; at the change and release level for Service Control; and at the service support level through service level agreements, operating level agreements and incidents and problems.
Whether you’re a cherry (my favorite), orange or lime Jell-O fan, it is still difficult to make Jell-O without a bowl no matter how it might be shaped!
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