The objectives of Service Management

The primary objective of Service Management is to ensure that the IT Services are aligned to the business needs. It is imperative that the IT Services underpin the business processes but it is also increasingly important that IT should act as an agent for Change to facilitate business transformation.

 

 

 

Figure 1.2 - Service Support: coverage
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Most organisations that use IT will be dependent on it. If IT processes are not implemented, managed and supported in the appropriate way, the business will probably suffer unacceptable degradation in terms of loss of productive hours, higher costs, loss of revenue or perhaps even business failure, depending upon the criticality of the IT service to the business.

IT service provision, in all organisations, needs to be matched to current and rapidly changing business demands. The objective is to continually improve the quality of service, aligned to the business requirements, cost-effectively. To meet this objective, three areas need to be considered:

1. People with the right skills, appropriate training and the right service culture
2. Effective and efficient Service Management processes
3. Good IT Infrastructure in terms of tools and technology.

These three areas will only facilitate the implementation or realisation of the objectives if they are considered in relation to a conscious, structured mechanism of alignment or 'steering' towards concrete business focused goals. Unless People, Processes and Technology are considered and implemented appropriately within a steering framework, the objectives of Service Management will not be realised.