ITIL Chapter 7
A virtual service desk
-Allows agents to work from multiple, geographically dispersed locations
Problem identification activities includes
-Analyzing information received from internal software developers, test teams, and project teams.
Problem identification activities includes
-Analyzing information received from suppliers and partners
Workarounds
-Are documented in problem records and can be done at any stage -It doesn't need to wait for analysis to be complete
Problem identification activities includes
-Detecting duplicate and recurring issues by users, service desk and technical support staff
The change schedule is used to
-Help plan changes, -Assist in communication, -Avoid conflicts, and -Assign resources
Problem Management consists of
-Incident Management -Risk Management -Change Control -Knowledge Management -Continual Improvement
A virtual service desk
-It requires more sophisticated technology, allowing access from multiple locations and complex routing and escalation
Problem identification activities includes
-Major incident management of identifying a risk that an incident could recur
Incidents should be
-Managed to meet agreed target resolution times -logged -prioritized
Components of IT Asset Management
-Maximize value -Control costs -Manage risks -Support decision-making about purchase, reuse and retirement of assets -Meet regulatory and contractual requirements
Problem identification activities includes
-Other sources of information can also lead to problems being identified
Problem identification activities includes
-Performing trend analysis of incident records
Characteristic of Standard Change Control
-Pre-authorized -Implement without additional authorization
Problem management
-Problem Identification -Problem control -Error control
Problem control activities include
-Problem analysis -Documenting workarounds and known errors -Problem prioritization
Key requirements for successful SLAs
-Related to a defined service -Should relate to defined outcomes, not just operational metrics -Should reflect an agreement between the service provider and the service consumer -Must be simply written and easy to understand for all parties
Different types of changes
-Standard -Normal -Emergency
Service Level Agreement.
A documented agreement between a service provider and a customer that identifies services required and the expected level of service
Known error
A problem that has been analyzed and has not been resolved
Workaround
A solution that reduces or eliminates the impact of an incident or problem for which a full resolution is not yet available; some workarounds reduce the likelihood of incidents
Release
A version of a service or other configuration item, or a collection of configuration items, that is made available for use
Incident
An unplanned interruption to a service, or reduction in the quality of a service
Characteristic of Normal Change Control
Authorization based on change type
Error control activities
The effectiveness of workarounds should also be evaluated each time a workaround is used
Change Authority
The person or group who authorizes a change
The purpose of the service desk practice
To capture demand for incident resolution and service requests
Purpose of Release Management practice
To make new and changed services and features available for use
Purpose of Change Control
To maximize the number of successful IT changes by ensuring that risks have been properly assessed, authorizing changes to proceed, and managing a change schedule
The purpose of the service level management practice
To set clear business-based targets for service performance, so that the delivery of a service can be properly assessed, monitored and managed against these targets
The purpose of the service request management practice
To support the agreed quality of a service by handling all agreed user-initiated service requests in an effective and user-friendly manner
Characteristic of Normal Change Control
Very major, could be as high as management board
Error control activities
Workarounds may be improved based on the assessment
Technical management practices
have been adapted from technology management domains for service management purposes by expanding or shifting their focus from technology solutions to IT services
Service Requests
Are a normal part of service delivery, not a failure or degradation of service, which are handled as incidents
Characteristic of Normal Change Control
Low-risk, someone who can make rapid decisions
Service requests
are pre-defined and pre-agreed and can usually be formalized with clear, standard procedures
Collaboration
can facilitate information sharing and learning as well as helping to solve the incident more efficiently and effectively
Problem identification activities
identify and log problems
Swarming
involves many different stakeholders working together initially, until it becomes clear which of them is best placed to continue and which can move on to other tasks
Service Level Agreement
is a tool to measure the performance of services from the customer's point of view
Change
is the addition, modification, or removal of anything that could have a direct or indirect effect on IT services
The purpose of the deployment management practice
is to move new or changed hardware, software, documentation, processes, or any other component to live environments
The purpose of the IT asset management practice
is to plan and manage the full lifecycle of all IT assets to help the organization
Error control activities
manage known errors
The purpose of the incident management practice is
to minimize the negative impact of incidents by restoring normal service operation as quickly as possible
Event
Any change of state that has significance for the management of a configuration item (CI) or IT service
Configuration item (CI).
Any component that needs to be managed in order to deliver an IT service
IT Asset
Any financially valuable component that can contribute to the delivery of an IT product or service
Service Level Management
Captures and reports on service issues including performance against defined service levels
The purpose of the service configuration management practice
-To ensure that accurate and reliable information about the configuration of services, and the CIs that support them, is available when and where it is needed -This includes information about how CIs are configured and the relationships between them
Service desk models
-Walk-in service desks -Tangible team in one location -Centralized service desk -Virtual service desk
Problem
A cause, or potential cause, of one or more incidents
Service Level Management
Collects, analyzes, stores and reports relevant metrics to ensure service levels are met
Common practice of high velocity organizations
Decentralize change approval, making peer review a top predictor of high performance
Service request management
Depends on well-designed processes and procedures, which are operationalized through tracking and automation tools
Who defines the scope of change control
Each organization
Error control activities
Error control regularly re-assesses the status of known errors that have not been resolved, including overall impact on customers, availability and cost of permanent resolutions, and effectiveness of workarounds
Service Level Management
Establishes a shared view of the services and target service levels with customers
Characteristic of Emergency Change Control
Expedited assessment and authorization
Error control activities
Identification of potential permanent solutions
Monitoring and event management practice
Identifies and prioritizes infrastructure, services, business processes and information security events, and establishes the appropriate response to those events, including responding to conditions that could lead to potential faults or incidents
A service request
Is a request from a user or a user's authorized representative that initiates a service action that has been agreed as a normal part of service delivery
The purpose of the release management practice
Is to make new and changed services and features available for use
What does scope of change control include?
It will typically include all IT infrastructure, applications, documentation, processes, supplier relationships and anything else that might directly or indirectly impact a product or service
Characteristic of Emergency Change Control
May be separate change authority
Release
May comprise many different infrastructure and application components that work together to deliver new or changed functionality
Error control activities
May result in a change request for implementation of a solution, but only if this can be justified in terms of cost, risks and benefits
Service Level Management
Performs service reviews to ensure the current services continue to meet the organization and its customers' needs
service level management practice
Provides end to end visibility of the organization's services
Purpose of the problem management practice
Reduce the likelihood and impact of incidents by identifying actual and potential causes of incidents, and managing workarounds and known errors
Service desk practice
Should be the entry point/single point of contact for the service provider with all of its users
The purpose of monitoring and event management practice
Systematically observe a service or service component, and record and report selected changes of state identified as events
Swarming
Technique that some organizations use to help manage incidents