Service Level Management Process flow

Purpose and Scope

Purpose

The objective of Service Level Management process is to:

Define, document, agree, monitor, measure, report and review the level of IT services provided to <Customer Name>.
Provide and improve the relationship and communication with the business and customers.
Ensure that specific and measurable targets are developed for all IT services provided by your organization.
Monitor and improve service quality by continuously working to measure and enhance customer satisfaction.
Ensure that IT and the customers have a clear and unambiguous expectation of the level of service to be delivered.
Ensure that proactive measures to improve the levels of service delivered are implemented wherever it is cost-justifiable to do so.

Scope

Service level management or SLM as it is more commonly called, is a procedure initiated by organizations to protect both customers and service providers. The basic premises is that they agree on a certain level of expectations through a cycle – which includes monitoring, reporting and continuous improvement.

SLA’s which are part of the SLM, are clearly defined agreements, defining the boundaries – specifying process flows, agreeing upon targets and managing SLA penalties between the service provider and the customer. You can also understand how to prevent SLA breaches in one of our posts.

Definitions

Service

A means of delivering value to Customers by facilitating Outcomes Customers want to achieve without the ownership of specific Costs and Risks.

Service Level Agreement

It is an agreement between <your organization> and <Customer Name>.

The SLA describes the IT Service, documents Service level targets, and specifies the responsibilities of the <your organization> and <Customer Name>.

Operational Level Agreement

It is an agreement between <your organization> and another department of <your organization>

An OLA supports <your organization> delivery of IT Services to <Customer name>. The OLA defines the goods or Services to be provided and the responsibilities of both parties.

Underpinning Contract (UPC)

It is a contract between an <your organization> and a Third party.

The Third party provides goods or Services that support delivery of an IT Service to a <Customer name>. The Underpinning Contract defines targets and responsibilities that are required to meet agreed Service level targets in an SLA.

Configuration Management System (CMS)

It is a set of tools and databases that are used to manage <your organization> Configuration data.

The CMS includes tools for collecting, storing, managing, updating, and presenting data about all Configuration Items and their Relationships.

The CMS also includes information about Incidents, Problems, Known Errors, Changes and Releases; and may contain data about employees, Suppliers, locations, Business Units, Customers and Users

The CMS is maintained by Configuration Management and is used by all Service Management Processes.

Service Improvement Plan

A Service Improvement Plan (SIP) is a formal document that outlines a structured approach to address service shortcomings and improve performance to meet or exceed agreed-upon service levels. With the advent of artificial intelligence, one will see SLAs are evolving with AI rapidly ensuring accuracy.

Service Level Requirements (SLR)

A Customer Requirement for an aspect of an IT Service.

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Roles and Responsibilities

Service Level Manager Responsibilities

Keeping aware of changing business needs.
Ensuring that the current and future service requirements of <Customer name> are identified, understood and documented in SLA and SLR documents.
Negotiating and agreeing levels of service to be delivered with the <Customer name>; formally documenting these levels of service in SLAs.
Negotiating and agreeing OLAs and, in some cases, other SLAs and agreements that underpin the SLAs with the customers of the service.
Assisting with the production and maintenance of an accurate Service Portfolio, Service Catalogue, application Portfolio and the corresponding maintenance procedures.
Ensuring that targets agreed within underpinning contracts are aligned with SLA and SLR targets.
Ensuring that service reports are produced for each <Customer name>’s service and that breaches of SLA targets are highlighted, investigated and actions taken to prevent their recurrence.
Ensuring that service performance reviews are scheduled, carried out with <Customer name> regularly and are documented with agreed actions progressed.
Ensuring that improvement initiatives identified in service reviews are acted on and progress reports are provided to <Customer name>.
Reviewing service scope, SLAs, OLAs and other agreements on a regular basis, ideally at least annually.
Ensuring that all changes are assessed for their impact on service levels, including SLAs, OLAs and underpinning contracts, including attendance at CAB meetings if appropriate.
Identifying all key stakeholders and customers.
Developing relationships and communication with stakeholders, customers and key users.
Defining and agreeing complaints and their recording, management, escalation, where necessary, and resolution.
Definition recording and communication of all complaints.
Measuring, recording, analyzing and improving customer satisfaction.

Input, Output

Inputs

Business Information (Such as organizations business strategy, plans and information on current & future requirements.
Business Impact Analysis
Business Requirements
Service Portfolio
Service Catalogue
Change management information
Configuration Management System (CMS)
Customer feedback
Inputs from other Service Management processes

Outputs

Service reports
Service Improvement Plan (SIP)
Service Quality Plan
Service Level Agreements (SLA)
Operational Level Agreements (OLA)
Service Level Requirements (SLR)
SLA review meeting minutes
Revised Contracts