In this issue:

• Service Level Management and the IT Infrastructure Library 
  IT Consultant Char LaBounty on delivering unified service and support throughout your organization
  
• Right Service - Wrong Customer?
  Is your company wasting good money chasing bad customers? Phil Verghis explains 

Expert interview:  
Service Level Management and the IT Infrastructure Library
by Char LaBounty
President, LaBounty & Associates

Char LaBounty is one of the best-known names in the IT Service and Support space, and has been a mentor of mine. Lately there’s been a great deal of interest in Service Level Management (SLM) and ITIL (IT Infrastructure Library). Recently I had a chance to sit down with Char and get her perspectives on both topics.

PV: How long have you been a consultant?

Char: 8 years. Prior to that I was an executive level practitioner for Norwest Corporation and Disney Worldwide Services.

PV: What is your area of focus?

Char: Primarily in IT enterprise space, but we're very well known for Service Level Management and SLM leadership.

PV: How would you describe SLM to someone who's not familiar with the concept?

Char: Service Level Management is about clearly identifying the products and services you provide, determining how well you're meeting the expectations surrounding them, and creating relationships with internal and external customers. It's really all about establishing clarity and managing to reasonable expectations. 

PV: There's been a lot of buzz surrounding the Information Technology Infrastructure Library. What is the ITIL?

Char: The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is a set of books developed by the United Kingdom's Office Of Government Commerce (OGC). The books describe an integrated, process-based, best practices framework for managing IT services.

ITIL provides a framework for delivering unified service and support throughout an organization. There are many things that happen within an organization from a service delivery and support standpoint. ITIL gives you perspective. It helps you see the points of intersection and dependencies between different organizations within the enterprise. ITIL also gives you a common language, so all levels of management can understand the implications of what is being proposed.

(Editor's note: For more information, visit the official ITIL web site: www.itil.co.uk.) 

PV: This sounds great. It's a lot like what we've been doing over the years, but in a more formalized and systematic way. What types of companies would benefit most from adopting ITIL?

Char: ITIL is good for just about everyone. Of course, you don't need to tackle all the parts of the framework at once. Start with what's most important to you. Any company looking for process maturity for scalability should strongly consider it. If your company is a little too IT-focused, ITIL can help you to understand the external environment you're providing service to. 

Global organizations will benefit greatly from ITIL. Many already have it, particularly in Europe. ITIL has been more popular in Europe for a long time. Another group that will benefit are entrepreneurial companies, looking at next level of growth. ITIL helps ensure that Operations, IT and Support are scalable and repeatable.

In general, if your business is fragmented into silos, if IT projects are chronically delayed, or if IT is accused of not meeting the needs of the business, then these are pretty good indicators that you could benefit from ITIL.

PV: Char, are there any companies that ITIL is not suited for? 

Char: Hmm, good question. Well, if a company is not process-driven, it might not be the right time to introduce ITIL - although they could certainly benefit from it! It can be very painful for these kind of organizations. 

Young, entrepreneurial companies at a very early stage will also have a hard time implementing ITIL. But they should think about it as soon as they grow to a certain size and become more process-driven.

PV: Speaking of that, some people argue that ITIL is too process-driven, that it actually impedes innovation. Is that a fair comment?

Char: No, I don't think so. In order to innovate, companies need the stable framework and processes that ITIL delivers. Take pharmaceutical companies. Sure, they innovate a lot. But because of government regulations and safety concerns, they're also very process-driven. 

ITIL helps you build connections between groups. But once you're there, the end result should be fewer defects in new products, as well as a more balanced view of what it takes for the product or service to succeed.

PV: Any words of wisdom for someone thinking of looking into ITIL?

Char: It's very important for companies to understand it's a journey, not a project. There's no middle and no end. It will not go away! To succeed, you'll need senior management commitment and empowered, educated and flexible process owners.

Note: Noel Bruton from the Bruton Consultancy authored a white paper titled "The ITIL Experience: Has it been worth it?" Details at: www.noelbruton.com.

For more information, contact Char LaBounty at 303-660-5994 or by email at char@labountyassociates.com.

LaBounty & Associates specializes in Service Level Management gap analysis for the IT Enterprise and the Service and Support organization. Visit them online at www.labountyassociates.com.

As companies mature and their service goes from 'good' to 'great', they often end up providing the right service to the wrong type of customer.

Huh? Isn't the customer always right? Not always. Consider these two examples.

What's a "Good" customer?
What's your definition of a 'top' customer? The one who brings in the most revenue? Well, that's how most of us think. But if that's the case, you could be throwing good money after bad. Here's why.

Often the clients that pay the most have also negotiated the biggest discounts. In addition, they often consume a disproportionate amount of your company's resources. Naturally, everyone wants to keep this important customer happy.

Step back. Sit down with your financial team and review the numbers. You may be surprised to discover the correlation between revenue and profitable customers. Often your biggest revenue sources are not your most profitable customers. Uncover the facts - then adjust your service accordingly. After all, you do want to stay in business, right?

What do they really want?
Here's another example. Companies often assume that what their contact in the company wants is what the company itself wants. For employees who put company before self, that may be true. But in some cases, it's not.

Again, it's important to step back. Remember, particularly in larger institutions, that you're dealing with an individual, not an entire company. Understand the motivations of that individual, and realize that what that person says may - or may not - be in complete alignment with the company's true needs and goals. Be prepared to seek out different viewpoints, or gently challenge your contact if you suspect that what they say doesn't represent their company's real interests.

Stay tuned for more thoughts and provocative interviews in the months and issues ahead.

For more information or a no-obligation initial consultation, call Phil Verghis toll-free at (800) 494 9142 (+1 617 395 6613 if outside the United States) or by email at info@verghisgroup.com.

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