Welcome back for Round #2 of our “ITIL for Newbies…(Like Me) – An ITIL Overview” series. Last week I introduced ITIL and discussed the benefits and logistics of becoming certified. I also promised to provide you with an easy to digest look at what ITIL is all about, and today we’ll get started with Service Strategy, the 1st stage in the ITIL lifecycle. (Make sure to keep an eye out for any words in orange, as they are additional terms you will want to become familiar with.)
EL ANTIPASTO
Before getting started, these are two very important terms that you must become familiar with:
#1 Services – means of delivering value to a customer without requiring the customer to own specific costs and risks
#2 Processes – structured sets of activities designed to achieve a specific objective. Processes have 4 basic characteristics:
- Transform inputs into outputs
- They deliver results to a specific customer or stakeholder
- They are measurable
- They are triggered by specific events
**Processes are a very important part of ITIL. The 1st four stages of ITIL consist primarily of a series of processes, that work together to resolve the specific tasks associated with that stage of the IT Service Management process. ITIL is largely organized through the structure provided by these processes.
SERVICE STRATEGY – ITIL V3 GLOSSARY DEFINITION:
Service Strategy establishes an overall Strategy for IT Services and for IT Service Management.
NEWBIE TRANSLATION:
This stage is responsible for developing the concepts behind and selecting the services that a Service Provider will offer. Here information is collected on the business objectives of the Service Provider, the demand and needs of potential users, the cost of the services to the Service Provider, and how much customers can be charged for said services. All of this is combined to establish and later manage the high level policies and standards which will govern how the Service Provider operates. Other important features of this stage include the development of the organization’s ability to collect value (payment) and manage cost and risks.
Know: Utility and Warranty
PROCESSES:
SERVICE STRATEGY MANAGEMENT – Responsible for the development of service concepts in preparation for selection of services to be provided
SERVICE PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT – Organizes the process by which services are identified, described, evaluated, selected & chartered Maintains the Service Portfolio:
- Contains: Service Pipeline (developing services), Service Catalog (current services), & Retired Services
- Identifies business value provided by a service
- Answers strategic questions: strengths, weaknesses, priorities, risks, allocation of resources?
- Tracks investment in service throughout lifecycle
DEMAND MANAGEMENT – Responsible for understanding and influencing Customer Demand for Services and establishing the capacity to meet these demands Strategize, Identify, and Analyze using – User profiles – Workload variations – Patterns of business activity (PBA) Ensures customer expectations don’t exceed their budget & that Service Provider is able to meet those expectations
IT FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT –managing an IT Service Provider’s Budgeting, Accounting, & Charging
- Used in decision making throughout ITIL lifecycle by promoting cost awareness
- Aids in the reduction of costs to the Service Provider
- Know different types of cost (i.e. Direct, Fixed, Variable, etc)
There you have it folks, the Service Strategy Stage of the ITIL Lifecycle. Next week we’ll move on to the Service Design Stage in the 3rd post of our “ITIL for Newbies…(Like Me) – An ITIL Overview” series. I know, I’m excited too! See…
ITIL for Newbies…. (Like Me) – Part 1: An Introduction to ITIL
ITIL for Newbies…. (Like Me) – Part 2: Service Strategy
ITIL for Newbies…. (Like Me) – Part 3: Service Design
ITIL for Newbies…. (Like Me) – Part 4: Service Transition
ITIL for Newbies…. (Like Me) – Part 5: Service Operation
ITIL for Newbies…. (Like Me) – Part 6: Continual Service Improvement
