IT service management: where is it best to start?

From the catalog or from asset discovery?

Many companies use a "bottom-up" approach to IT service management: below we explain why it is best to revisit this approach in favor of prior service catalog definition.  

In an increasingly technology-dependent business world, effectiveness in IT service management is crucial to success. ITIL processes--outlined according to the best-practices of the ITIL methodology for IT service management--provide a robust framework for optimizing this management through established practices. These include:

• Service Catalogue Management
• Service Portfolio Management
• Configuration Management
• Change Enablement (formerly Change Management)

The first two are essential for a strategic view of IT services. Service Catalogue Management provides a detailed overview of the IT services currently offered to the business, while Service Portfolio Management manages the entire lifecycle of IT services, including both under development ("service pipeline") and retired ("retired services")

With Configuration Management and Change Management, on the other hand, we go into more detail about operational management related to IT service availability: these practices focus on effectively managing IT infrastructure and minimizing the risks associated with change. Configuration management ensures that IT assets are properly identified, cataloged, and managed, while change management deals with the evaluation, approval, and monitoring of changes in the IT system.

IT service management: the bottom-up approach

IT teams understand that the proper implementation of these processes will ensure that the organization is aligned with business needs and that each service adds value.

In managing them, however, they tend to focus too much on a "bottom-up" approach that starts with asset discovery and works its way to understand what is running on the systems (and then managing it accordingly).

Having an available and up-to-date inventory of assets is critical, but keep in mind that limiting oneself to the discovery of service-related IT assets-although very useful for managing them-can lead to a fragmented view of IT services. In fact, there is more focus on the technical aspects than on the overall service strategy.

In my opinion, this approach works up to a certain point: In my experience as an ITSM consultant at WEGG, starting from discovery to go to service management leads to a level of detail that is too operational and, more importantly, blind to business needs. Without strategic alignment, which can only be there with an upstream definition of the service catalog (in line with business objectives), there is a risk of investing resources in the maintenance of assets that do not contribute significantly to business value and/or managing change with greater difficulty.

Let me give an example: planning different changes on different tools that respond to the same strategic objective at different times (because this is the case if we look at the individual asset) can lead to inefficiencies, waste of resources or misalignments. This would not happen differently with a "top-down" approach.

The benefits of the "top-down" approach

The "top-down" approach, which begins with the definition of the service catalog, allows us to strategically align IT services with business objectives.

How does it do this? With a clear understanding of the services the organization intends to offer, it is easier to ensure that each IT asset directly supports a specific service, thereby optimizing resource use and improving operational efficiency.

This leads to ensuring that every decision made at the asset and change management level is driven by the need to support or improve the services offered, making the entire process more oriented to business objectives.

And what is the role of technology?

Both approaches play an important role in ITSM, but with an upstream definition of services, it is easier to verify downstream how they are being managed with the support of technology.

If a service-oriented view is there from the start with a defined and structured service catalog, automated CMDB populating tools can then go into whether the IT infrastructure is supporting the business goals. And perhaps enhance their strategic growth with timely awareness of changes and configurations.

We also explored this topic in the webinar "Service Mapping: invisible technology at the IT services dance" scheduled on Feb. 28. Go here to watch the webinar replay again!

Article by Francesco Clabot, WEGG's CTO and ITSM lecturer at the University of Padua.