Reset ITSM Strategy
During the past year and a half, businesses have had to adapt quickly to a great deal of change. Depending on the industry, there may have been shifting supply chains, which affects many internal functions and processes. But most companies have also had to adjust to the dynamic of remote work amidst overall uncertainty.
It’s a lot to manage, but for IT it has been particularly intense. After all, it’s our job to support the business through these changes. And now, as we are emerging on the other side of the pandemic, albeit a little shell shocked, you may be thinking, “What now?”
From an IT service management (ITSM) perspective, the best way to support your organization these days is to put people at the forefront of a strong ITSM strategy, namely the ability to:
- Deliver what people value.
- Make it easy for them to get it.
How do you execute this? Focus on these four tenets:
What problem(s) are you solving? Put yourself in your customer’s shoes—and their customer’s shoes.
The landscape has likely changed for the people you support and the people they support. Because of this, coming up new improvements, efficiencies and approaches takes some thought. And, because our world is complex, you may need to solve a problem rooted three levels deeper than the one you are currently evaluating. Questioning “whose pain does this solve and for whom,” “what motivates them” and “how can we liberate their pain with a better experience” at each stage could help uncover the layers and reveal a starting point.
Teamwork results in more effective solutions and better buy-in.
Instead of batting ideas among the IT team, try engaging customers in problem solving. They can give you greater insight into the variables at play, and together you will likely find a solid solution. Your customer is also more likely to adopt the new process or technology after serving in your test circle, and they will be more likely to help educate peers. The surprise result might be fewer repetitive calls to the help desk on a particular subject and stronger relationships fueling feedback to IT, feedback hopefully ripe for the knowledge base.
Practice practicing. It’s only a test.
Covid-19 was such a disruption that we might experience ripples of change for awhile. Because external factors are still fluid, it’s difficult to approach innovation the way we did in the past. Consider the time it takes to research ideas, products, vendors, partners, gather information, vet information, secure buy-in, get permission to spend, purchase or otherwise invest, plan rollout or adoption, solicit feedback….after all of this, what if it isn’t the best solution, or it doesn’t work as intended?
Wouldn’t it be better to gather information and make ongoing educated decisions based on internal data? It will keep you on target, or at least allow you to adjust. First make sure that you are set up to get feedback on what you test. Then test the idea, technology or process among a small group, perhaps increasing the group size and/or span of what you are testing until you are confident in the results. If you haven’t identified KPIs, you’ll likely spot patterns now that will help you determine them, and action steps or direction will likely become more clear.
Focusing on what you are learning as you learn it strengthens teamwork, creativity and creates a culture of empowerment.
Get feedback and share what you’re learning.
Surveys are a great way to find out how happy or unhappy customers are with your service and why. The why, combined with ITSM analytics, should help you see what actions to take. With hard and soft data, you are in a good position to make a case to stakeholders, whether it be investing in new technology or integrations, hiring or a new process. You have something better than ideas at this point—you have concrete proof regarding a need to make a shift.
It’s worth educating stakeholders regularly on your findings, because it reinforces IT’s impact on the business, asserts its value and creates opportunity to collaborate with other departments.
With ITSM strategy under evaluation, how is your system holding up? Cireson can health check your system to make sure you’re operating up-to-speed. Contact Enterprise Consulting Services.
