Logicalis US Gives IT Pros Seven Steps to an Effective ITSM Strategy

NEW YORK, July 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- For many CIOs, an ITSM strategy is a lot like a game of connect-the-dots.  They've got a ticketing system for incident management, maybe even the beginnings of a configuration management database (CMDB), and perhaps some cost management functions that could be as simple as a spreadsheet – all valid pieces of ITSM. Too often, however, they are disparate systems relying on different toolsets that are not yet integrated leaving one hand never really sure what the other is doing.  According to Logicalis US, an international IT solutions and managed services provider (www.us.logicalis.com), while companies may have all the dots, to have a fully functioning ITSM strategy, they've got to connect them together in a meaningful way.

"Many IT environments evolved over the years in response to the dictates of circumstance and short-term crises," says Mike Alley, Director of ITSM for Logicalis US.  "We are on the threshold of the day when the IT infrastructure can respond dynamically to change according to processes and parameters spelled out in advance in an effective ITSM strategy. As the pace of business and IT races faster and faster, the organizations that succeed are going to be those that use ITSM best practices to ensure that business and technology are pulling together in the same direction. Without an effective ITSM strategy in place, circumstance will continue to make your decisions for you."

Seven Steps to an Effective ITSM Strategy

1. Use Proven Standards: There are many sources of proven best practices CIOs can use to build an ITSM strategy of their own. The two primary sources are Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) which focuses on aligning the needs of the business with IT services, and Control Objectives for Information and Related Technology (COBIT) which has been described as the ITIL of governance and cost management.  The most common place to start implementing an ITSM strategy is with three key ITIL best practices: incident management, problem management and change management.
2. Provide ITSM Instructions: ITSM can be a reliable GPS for IT, but first you have to upload the data it needs to map your directions.  Start with three key things:
   -       IT operations and efficiencies to enable you to get the most from current technology
   -       Management functions that drive value (i.e., cost, finance and asset management)
   -       Business enablement that aligns IT with business requirements and objectives
3. Be Methodical: You don't have to implement a comprehensive strategy all at once. In fact, defining a strategy allows you to address short-term pain points with the confidence that you are proceeding in the right long-term direction.
4. Create a Service Catalog: A foundational component of an effective ITSM strategy is a service catalog which defines the IT services in enough detail to outline the technology and processes that are required to provide them. This also makes it possible to align IT services directly with the business strategies they support and has the additional advantage of helping IT show executive management the value it provides to the rest of the organization.
5. Address User Needs: As scary as allowing business users to request technical services on their own might be, a scarier thought is the world of "shadow IT" that enterprising users have found outside the firewall surrounding a secure and protected corporate IT environment.  Through a service catalog, IT can provide automation, workflow and orchestration and establish an approvals process consistent with the company's IT strategy.
6. Develop a CMDB: A configuration management database allows the identification, management and tracking of the technology on which business services are built.  It also allows IT pros to determine what each service costs and to identify the services — i.e., service desk, select managed services, and cloud computing — that could be more efficiently handled by a qualified third party. Implementing an effective ITSM strategy, as a result, is both a requirement and an enabler of out-tasking and cloud computing. All the information a service provider needs to set up automation and orchestration parameters for a cloud solution is available between the service catalog and CMDB.
7. Hire the Right People: A key part of ITSM is enabling communication between IT and business, and IT needs to take the lead on this process. One way to do that is by training or hiring a business strategist – part technologist, part business analyst – who possesses enough technical knowledge to work well with developers and bring business knowledge to IT projects.

Want to Learn More?

• Learn 12 ways ITSM can change your business, then explore Logicalis' recap of Knowledge14: http://www.ict-log.us/yrS1k.
• Download a Logicalis article, "Five Reasons ITSM Must be Part of Every Cloud Strategy," and find out how ITSM relates to as-a-service offerings here: http://www.ict-log.us/yrScX.
• Read a Logicalis ITSM case study to find out how Huntington Memorial Hospital enhanced its IT process, standardization and measurement using ITIL best practices through ServiceNow: http://www.ict-log.us/yrSNM.

About Logicalis

Logicalis is an international IT solutions and managed services provider with a breadth of knowledge and expertise in communications and collaboration, data center and cloud services, and managed services.

Logicalis employs nearly 3,700 people worldwide, including highly trained service specialists who design, specify, deploy and manage complex ICT infrastructures to meet the needs of almost 6,000 corporate and public sector customers.  To achieve this, Logicalis maintains strong partnerships with technology leaders such as Cisco, HP, IBM, CA Technologies, EMC, NetApp, Microsoft, VMware and ServiceNow.

The Logicalis Group has annualized revenues of $1.6 billion, from operations in Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia Pacific, and is fast establishing itself as one of the leading IT and Communications solution integrators specializing in the areas of advanced technologies and services.

The Logicalis Group is a division of Datatec Limited, listed on the Johannesburg and London AIM Stock Exchanges, with revenues of over $5 billion.

For more information, visit www.us.logicalis.com.

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Media contacts:
Lisa Dreher, VP, Marketing & Business Development,
Logicalis US
[email protected] 425-201-8111
www.us.logicalis.com

Karen Franse, Communication Strategy Group for Logicalis US
[email protected] 
866-997-2424 x222
www.gocsg.com 

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SOURCE Logicalis US