Service Management Details

Service management, also called Information Technology Service Management (ITSM), to laypeople is incorrectly simplified to IT support and seen as a troubleshooting position. However, ITSM goes beyond addressing daily tech problems in an office. ITSM does not just support, it manages. It manages technology, from security to routing issues to inventory, and is in charge of implementing and enforcing policy, procedure, and best practices of all IT services.

IT is everything that relates to the technology you use in the workplace. This includes keyboards, desktops, software, apps, printers, backup devices like external hard drives, passwords to the internet, and more.

When a company hires an ITSM company, or develops an ITSM department, they do so to implement frameworks that address unique industry needs and requirements. The most common frameworks you’ll see ITSM work with are:

  • Software Engineering: developing and improving software
  • Quality Assurance: organizing standards of quality by achieving set objectives
  • ISO 9000: international standards of quality
  • Information Security: implementing procedures to lower the vulnerability of a company’s important information
  • Change Management: making sure changes in IT environments are efficient and effective

Service Management Example

A business that deals with information of any kind, especially one that stores a lot of digital and sensitive information, needs a disaster plan. A disaster plan is a set of procedures to help a company recover in the face of a devastating event, including cyber-attacks. ITSM will create a disaster plan so the company can recover as quickly as possible and restore any lost apps, software, or digital files. One of the simplest steps in a disaster plan is backing up hard drives and personal computer files to a company’s cloud network regularly. This way, the company can recover the latest versions of important files.

Hypothetical company ChordStore runs a website dedicated to providing step-by-step music lessons. This website includes videos, transcriptions of popular songs, and a blog that posts tips, tricks, and stories of interest. In ChordStore’s company files are video clips and works-in-progress that, if lost, could mean major downtime and delays. Their ITSM department understands the importance of these files and conducts weekly backups of all personal computers and company info at 5pm every Friday.

One Friday night, during a major storm, the power goes out, and everyone’s computer crashes. A team of developers were working late and in the middle of programming a major update to their website that would allow them to upload interactive transcripts. Unfortunately, when the power returned, they lost their progress—or did they? A member of IT went back into the backup files and recovered the files from the team’s last save. They only lost about an hour’s worth of work, as opposed to a full day.

Significance of ITSM

A company can hire IT specialists who know how to address day-to-day problems, but without management, these specialists may not have the tools to address larger-scale issues, like a disaster plan. ITSM ensures that workplaces are equipped to handle any IT situation and that the IT solutions and procedures they create are tailored to your unique company.