How ITIL Service Management saves Europe from the recession October 1, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in itil, itsm.Tags: customer, customer service, IT Service Management, itsm, money, recession, service management, SLA
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After spending many years in the ITSM / ITIL space I notice that everything in time becomes a best practice, good practice or bad practice example of IT Service Management.
This week’s example has to do with Demand Management, Service Level Management and Financial Management.
The scenario is like this: I traveled from Australia (where I live) to The Netherlands (where my family lives) for a short family holiday.
As part of being in The Netherlands I wanted to do some shopping (no need to analyse my PBA’s to figure that one out!). And I did go to the shops:
1) Shop nr. one – doesn’t accept credit cards at all (what the?! All I have is a credit card, what do I do now?)
2) Shop nr. two – DOES accept credit cards, but only when you have a pincode to go with it (??? yes, I am sure the bank sent me a pin number but I never use it in Australia so I completely forgot it…)
So far the holiday has been very cheap for me.. I WANT to spent money… I HAVE the money to spend and I know exactly what I want to spend it on… but I can’t spend it!
As a client I know what I want – the demand is there. And the demand management process has analysed my PBA … the appropriate shops are available for me to purchase the products and services that I want. What is missing is the combination between Financial Management and Service Level Management. I was not aware of the agreed service levels prior to me going to The Netherlands. And as a result I am an unhappy customer who feels ill-prepared, not able to receive the service levels that I want.
As IT organizations we can learn from this:
- Communicate our Services and Service Levels
- Understand what your customer wants and how they want the whole customer experience to happen.
- Make it as easy as possible for our customers to pay for our products and services (now that I can only pay cash, I definitely spend less)
- If you can’t offer the complete experience – communicate this very clearly to your clients.
To top it all off…
Yesterday I came prepared to the train station… I had a 50 euro bill to pay for my train ticket! Very proud moment, I felt extremely empowered. Went to the ticket machine and made it all the way through to the payment point where the machine asked me to enter 24 euro worth of COINS in the slot as the only available means of payment!
sigh…
In times of recession – how does ITIL Service Management help to keep your good employees? April 14, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in business, itil, itsm.Tags: certification, crisis, customer service, economy, IT Service Management, itil, itsm, recession, service, service management, the art of service, value
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Today I was interviewed by somebody from the itSMF about trends in the ITSM education and training industry. Inevitably the questions go the the current economic climate and the position of education in all this.
To me this is really easy – but then again: I run an education company so I am slightly biased – ITSM education really helps organisations to make a difference. Note that I don’t say ‘training’ as I don’t have a lot of positive things to say about organisations who only focus on the training aspect.. teaching monkeys tricks… Of course there is a training aspect in each educational program but there is so much more to it! Being an educator means that you know your subject as well as have the ability to make people understand what this new theory means for them – in their working environment. You need to understand that it is NOT about you but about the students. Educating is more than presenting, it is about focusing on the needs and requirements of the students… constantly.
Anyway, stepping down from my soap box for a second here, I strongly feel that ITSM education can make the difference between an IT organisation that is subject to outsourcing or an IT group that adds value to the overall corporate goals. ITSM education make the difference to the individual wanting to get that new job, and helps to get passed by when the redundancies are handed out.
Like I said to the interviewer today; I am constantly looking for new staff. We filled 2 vacancies in March and are currently advertising for 2 additional vacancies. So I see my fair share of applications and resumes across my desk. In comparison to 12 months ago, we receive about 10x the amount of applicants but I can’t say that the overall quality of the applicants has risen. Mind you, there are still gems out there – and they stand out! But what I expected to see as a result of all these job cuts and redundancies was that a lot of highly skilled people with fantastic experience and backgrounds would be applying for jobs.. and I don’t see that at the moment. Not in Australia that is…
Why do I say this? Well, for highly competent – qualified and experienced ITSM staff members the jobs are still out there and it is easy to stand out among the other candidates. So adding ITSM certification to your resume could be a good thing for individual IT professionals.
On the other side – IT organisations can use ITSM education as a differentiator to maintain their high performing employees. Offering educational opportunities to them will make them highly productive in the work place – making sure the IT group can cope with the new requirements and added work pressures – but also happier employees as they know they are valued and continue to improve their skills and qualifications. This seems to be a way to retain your good employees. High performers want to be challenged, and constantly learning new things or improving current processes. ITSM education gives them the opportunity to do this. This ultimately saves you money through retention of your high performers and not having to look for new staff as well as an improved IT Service delivery mechanism.
Benefits no matter where you look! So, what’s keeping you from educating your staff?!
Starting from scratch in 2009 – new chances for ITIL, ITSM and Cloud Computing… January 1, 2009
Posted by ivankamenken in business, cloud computing, itil, itsm.Tags: business, cloud computing, economy, management, recession, service management, technology
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It is 7am on the 1st of January 2009 – always a special moment the start of a new year. We have a tradition that on the 31st of December we grab a little notebook that we hide during the year and look back at our goals and ambitions that we wrote down on the 31st of December of last year. It is great fun to look back at all the goals and targets we achieved (tick) and missed (crosses). Even our 7 year old joins in with his goals and targets for the next year…
And now 2009 is here… we look at an empty calendar and consider all the things we want to do and achieve this year.
What will it bring for our ITIL Service Management certification programs? With the current economic situation, recession even in some countries, organisations need this more than ever…
Service Management gives visibility of IT Services, gives better management controls on the IT group, it helps with making strategic decisions due to the improved quality (and quantity) of information available to support these decisions. BUT… will their leaders have the insight and the guts to continue to hire educational services? To educate and grow the knowledge kept within their IT groups about IT Service Management, IT governance and standards compliancy… Honestly, I don’t know…
And what about Cloud computing? Again… this is such a great opportunity for many organizations to continue to deliver the IT services to its clients with more storage and more processing power… for a fraction of the price! That must be good news to most CIO’s . But it is also a fairly new concept and I am questioning if CIO’s will dare to choose Cloud Computing as a viable option for their IT Service Delivery.
No matter how you look at it, 2009 is a clean slate; we start from scratch and there are many new chances and opportunities to help IT organizations (and therefore companies at large) in achieving their goals by utilizing ITIL, IT Service Management and Cloud Computing.
I am very excited about this idea and can’t wait to get back to the office again to start talking to our clients again…
only 4 more sleeps!
In times of economic and political insecurity.. ITIL TO THE RESCUE! November 4, 2008
Posted by ivankamenken in business, itil.Tags: economy, insecurity, itil, itsm, melbourne cup, recession, service management
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I am on my way to Singapore and on the way over to the airport I was listening to the radio. As today is November 4th there is a lot of talk about the US elections but also about the economic situation in Australia. Now here is the thing: (rant coming…) The federal bank of Australia is probably going to lower the official interest rates because Australia is heading into a recession… and guess what?! Today is also Melbourne cup day; and so far Australia has thrown AUS$ 17.7 Million dollars away… gambled on a horse race!
I am not saying that the current economic climate isn’t volatile but I can’t get over the fact that in a year where there is talk about recession and economic insecurity that people spend their money on gambling on horses!
Many people are about to lose their jobs, and the IT industry is not immune for the effects of what is going on in the international arena. So – how can ITIL Service Management come to the rescue?
Well….. I have my ideas:
- In times of turmoil it is important to be more of a generalist – it’s easier to get a job again when you’re not too much cornered into a specialist niche. So an ITIL qualification is important for the individual IT Professional who might be looking for another job in the not too distant future.
- ITIL Service Management is all about delivering services to the business that the business needs, now and in the future, at a level that the business requires and is willing to pay for. Amazing stuff when you think about it as this will keep the IT organisation ‘in a job’ … when you no longer deliver what the business needs – why should they continue to pay for it?
- ITIL Service Management is about delivering value to the business – either by taking away constraints or adding to the business opportunities. In other words: take away risks or add to the revenue generation possibilities. In times when continuity in revenue generation is just as important as risk mitigation you can’t go wrong with ITIL Service Management.
- Technologies change, delivery methods change (think cloud computing and virtualization) but management of activities in an effective manner with a sound focus on the delivery of value to the customer will always stay the same! So no matter what happens, when you understand the capabilities of the technology and have the ability to manage the ‘tools’ in such a way that they are perceived to be valuable… you’re on a winning team!
Just some food for thought… although I don’t really know how ITIL will help with political insecurity – but give me some time, I’ll come up with something!
Update: see this article in the Daily Telegraph, Australia spends $168 Million on Melbourne Cup
What to do in times of recession and economic downturn? October 28, 2008
Posted by ivankamenken in business.Tags: business, economy, profit, recession, service
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You start a business!
Yes – you read that correctly… this is the ideal time to start up a new business. Many people are feeling less secure about employment and Seek.com published their survey results this week that 14% of people are worried about losing their job.
My husband and I started The Art of Service in Australia in 2000. We had no idea that this was a really bad timing!!! Most organisations had already spent their entire IT budget for the year and everybody was very stressed about the GST that was just coming into effect that year.
But because we were a new company and basically had a very low cost base, coupled with a unique selling point we soon became a successful company that started employing additional staff members.
So when you are thinking about starting a business what would it be? What are the requirements, and the things you need to consider?
- Depending on where you are your decision may be different. Currently the Australian Dollar is really low against the US dollar so starting an import business is probably NOT a good idea at the moment. Exporting on the other hand is very profitable, and it is relatively simple to achieve a competitive advantage due to the generous exchange rate.
When you live in the US at the moment you may wish to look into importing… - What do people need/want in times of duress?
- PIZZA and other (cheap) comfort food
- ways to forget that they are depressed or in a difficult financial situation
- More cost effective solutions to health issues
- LEGAL addictions, like coffee, chocolate, beer, lottery tickets (assuming it is legal where you live!!)
- stress relieve (massages, fitness groups, counseling)
… I am sure you can think of other things that people really need in this environment.
Now, take that idea and think of ideas to do it better/smarter/faster/cheaper and focus on SERVICE. Without service you are nowhere… people can get bad service anywhere at the moment, why would they go to you?
Give people a smile (it’s FREE) and good service as well as a product that they want and need and you’re up and running!!!
Good luck and enjoy!
