SS

Organizations already practising ITIL may use this publication to guide a strategic review of their ITIL-based service management capabilities and to improve the alignment between those capabilities and their business strategies. This volume of ITIL encourages readers to stop and think about why something is to be done before thinking of how . Answers to the first type of questions are closer to the customer’s business. Service Strategy expands the scope of the ITIL framework beyond the traditional audience of IT service management professionals.

1.2.3.2 Service Design

The Service Design volume provides guidance for the design and development of services and service management processes. It covers design principles and methods for converting strategic objectives into portfolios of services and service assets. The scope of Service Design is not limited to new services. It includes the changes and improvements necessary to increase or maintain value to customers over the lifecycle of services, the continuity of services, achievement of service level s, and conformance to standards and regulations. It guides organization s on how to develop design capabilities for service management.

1.2.3.3 Service Transition

The Service Transition volume provides guidance for the development and improvement of capabilities for transitioning new and changed services into operation s. This publication provides guidance on how the requirements of Service strategy encoded in Service design are effectively realized in Service operation while controlling the risk s of failure and disruption. The publication combines practices in Release Management , Programme Management, and Risk Management and places them in the practical context of service management. It provides guidance on managing the complexity related to changes to services and service management processes, preventing undesired consequences while allowing for innovation. Guidance is provided on transferring the control of services between customers and service provider s.

1.2.3.4 Service Operation

This volume embodies practices in the management of service operation s. It includes guidance on achieving effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery and support of services so as to ensure value for the customer and the service provider. Strategic objective s are ultimately realized through service operations, therefore making it a critical capability . Guidance is provided on ways to maintain stability in service operations, allowing for changes in design , scale, scope and service level s. Organizations are provided with detailed process guideline s, methods and tools for use in two major control perspective s: reactive and proactive. Managers and practitioners are provided with knowledge allowing them to make better decisions in areas such as managing the availability of services, controlling demand, optimizing capacity utilization, scheduling of operation s and fixing problems. Guidance is provided on supporting operations through new model s and architecture s such as shared services, utility computing, web services and mobile commerce.

1.2.3.5 Continual Service Improvement

This volume provides instrumental guidance in creating and maintaining value for customers through better design , introduction, and operation of services. It combines principles, practices, and methods from quality management, Change Management and capability improvement. Organizations learn to realize incremental and large-scale improvements in service quality, operational efficiency and business continuity. Guidance is provided for linking improvement efforts and outcomes with service strategy, design, and transition . A closed-loop feedback system , based on the Plan–Do–Check–Act (PDCA) model specified in ISO/IEC 20000, is established and capable of receiving inputs for change from any planning perspective.

1.3 Purpose

To operate and grow successfully in the long-term, service providers must have the ability to think and act in a strategic manner. The purpose of this publication is to help organizations develop such abilities. The achievement of strategic goals or objectives requires the use of strategic asset s. The guidance shows how to transform service management into a strategic asset. Readers benefit from seeing the relationships between various services, systems or processes they manage and the business models, strategies or objectives they support. The guidance answers questions of the following kind:

 What services should we offer and to whom?

 How do we differentiate ourselves from competing alternatives?

 How do we truly create value for our customers?

 How do we capture value for our stakeholders?

 How can we make a case for strategic investments?

 How can Financial Management provide visibility and control over value creation?

 How should we define service quality ?

 How do we choose between different paths for improving service quality?

 How do we efficiently allocate resource s across a portfolio of services?

 How do we resolve conflicting demands for shared resources?

A multi-disciplinary approach is required to answer such questions. Technical knowledge of IT is necessary but not sufficient. The guidance is pollinated with knowledge from the disciplines such as operations management , marketing, finance, information system s, organizational development , systems dynamics, and industrial engineering. The result is a body of knowledge robust enough to be effective across a wide range of business environment s. Some organizations are putting in place the foundational elements of service management. Others are further up the adoption curve, ready to tackle challenges and opportunities with higher levels of complexity and uncertainty.

1.4 Expected use

The Service Strategy volume is expected to be useful for IT organizations in developing capabilities in service management that set up and maintain a strategic advantage in their goals of being valuable service provider s. Service Strategy covers several aspects of service management. It provides guidance useful in defining strategic objective s, providing direction for growth, prioritizing investments, and defining outcomes against which the effectiveness of service management may be measured. It is useful for influencing organizational attitudes and culture towards the creation of value for customers through services. The publication identifies objectives for effective communication, coordination, and control among various parts of a service organization having contact with customer s, partners and supplier s. The knowledge in this publication is useful in determining and controlling the consequences of pursuing a particular service strategy with a given set of capabilities and resources. IT organizations are able to innovate and operate under constraints such as contractual commitments, service level requirement s, and government regulations. Contract s include both formal legally binding agreement s as well as informal internal agreements between parts of an organization. Strategic decisions and policies are made clear enough to every agent in the organization with a role in delivering service . High-level perspectives and positions defining service strategy are broken down into plan s and actions assigned to specific role s and responsibilities in service management.