Understanding Processes and Functions

It is important to differentiate between processes and functions. This section explores the concepts of processes and functions, as well as the definitions provided by the framework for each.

Processes in the Service Lifecycle

ITIL provides defines a process thusly:

A process is a structured set of activities designed to accomplish a specific objective. A process takes one or more defined inputs and turns them into defined outputs.

Processes are a vital component in the service management approach. The ITIL framework is based on processes, because the mechanisms used to ensure services are delivered according to a controlled set of activities, enabling the delivery of a specific outcome.

Within a process, we are able to define actions, dependencies, and sequence. A process that is well defined and managed can improve productivity across the organization or function, carrying out the activity identified as part of the process.

The Process Model

Figure 1.3 illustrates the process model. This is a key figure in your understanding of the service lifecycle because each process you consider should follow this model.

FIGURE 1.3 Process model

Based on Cabinet Office ITIL material. Reproduced under license from the Cabinet Office.

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In the process model you can see three distinct sections. The upper section of Figure 1.3 shows the required controls for the process to take place.

A process is organized around a set of objectives, which drive the main outputs from the process. The objectives will include the process measurements (metrics) and other outputs, such as the required performance reports and process improvement actions.

In the central section of Figure 1.3, you can see the input, output, and activities. The output produced by the process should meet the requirements as specified by the business objectives. The business objectives will set out the standard or “norm” that is required for the output. Once the output has been confirmed as achieving this requirement, the process can be declared as effective. It can then be repeated, measured, and therefore managed to achieve the desired outcomes. If the activities are carried out utilizing the minimum resources, we can also declare the process to be efficient.

The inputs to the process are the data or information that is used by the process, and this may, of course, be the output from another process.

There will be a trigger for the initiation of the process or an activity within the process. There are many different mechanisms that can act as triggers, such as the arrival of an input or other event or an output from another process. This might be a failure report triggering the event management or incident management process.

Within the process, it is possible to establish the roles, responsibilities, tools, and management controls that are required in order to deliver the outputs to the required norm. The process may also define other elements, such as any required activities, work instructions, standards, and policies that are required to ensure the process will be carried out successfully.

Once a process has been defined and the inputs, outputs, and controls have been agreed on, it should be documented and controlled. The process can be repeated and managed once the controls are established, and metrics and measures can be incorporated into the controls. These measures and metrics will then be able to provide feedback and improvement in the form of regular management reports.

Supporting the process are the enablers: the resources and capabilities. We will cover these enablers in Chapter 2, “Understanding Service Strategy,” as part of the key concepts covered by the service strategy lifecycle stage.

There are many examples of processes both in the IT environment and outside of IT.

Consider something as simple as making a cake. The inputs are the ingredients, the activities are the method, and the output is, of course, the cake.

Decisions need to be made on the type of ingredients based on the required ‘outcome’ or how many slices of cake are required. It must also satisfy the stakeholders in terms of quality.

In order to bake the cake, the correct resources and capabilities must be employed: the right number of cooks with the correct equipment and with the right skills, for baking.

The trigger for the process is the need for the cake, perhaps a special occasion like a birthday.

When this is translated into the IT environment, remember all of these factors must be considered in order to deliver a successful process.

Fixing a failed item of infrastructure requires the correct resources, capabilities, inputs and activities in order to deliver the required outcome.

Process Characteristics

Some common characteristics apply to all processes:

Measurability It is important to ensure that all processes can be measured in a relevant manner. Processes are based on the performance of activities to deliver a specific output, so the measurement should be performance based.
Different perspectives for the activities will require different measurement. For example, managers will typically be more interested in the measurement of cost, quality, and other variables of the performance, while those engaged in carrying out the performance are likely to be more concerned with duration and productivity.
Specific Results Processes exist to deliver a specific result, or else they should not be taking place. This result must be individually accountable and identifiable for it to have any measurable worth or value.
Customers/Stakeholders Every process should deliver its primary result for the benefit of a customer or stakeholder. The process should meet the expectation of the recipient, regardless of whether they are an internal or external customer or IT or business stakeholder.
Responds to a Trigger It makes no difference if the process is repeated or continual; the actions should be traceable to a specific trigger.

Organizing for Service Management

Obviously there is no single approach that can be adopted by all organizations for the structure of the service provider. The individual organization will have to tailor the structure and resources applied to service management according to constraints of cost, size, and needs of the business. However, there is a requirement to have a basic functional capability, no matter what size or other organizational constraints you have.

Functions

A function is defined by ITIL as a team or group of people and the other resources or tools that are used to carry out a process or process activities.

Commonly, in larger organizations, functions are broken down and carried out by individuals, groups, or teams with specific or specialist skills appropriate to the tasks. An obvious example of this is the service desk. In smaller organizations, there may be fewer specialist groups or teams, and one team may carry out a number of functions; for example, the service desk is incorporated into the wider technical support team.

It is important to define the roles and responsibilities required to carry out the processes and activities for each service lifecycle stage. Within the functions, you need to ensure you allocate the appropriate roles to individuals and that the structure of our teams, groups, or functions are managed to meet the service management requirements.

ITIL provides a set of defined roles:

Group A number of people who are performing similar activities. Groups are not normally viewed as formal structures but are used to ensure processes are carried out in the same way across a number of different areas. An example is a group of people engaged in problem or incident management.
Team A more formal structure for those working together with a common objective. Teams are very useful for collaboration and can be located in the same place or multiple locations. Examples are as diverse as a project team, incident resolution teams, or application development teams.
Departments Formal organizational structures within an organization. There is usually a hierarchical structure that allows for the day-to-day management of staff in the department.
Division A number of departments that have been grouped together, often self-contained within an organization.

Chapter 10, “Delivering the Service: The Service Operation Lifecycle Stage,” explores the detail of the basic functions that ITIL identifies as part of the service lifecycle. Briefly, these functions are as follows:

Service Desk Single point of contact for users into the IT service provider
Technical Management Expertise and management of the technological infrastructure
Application Management Expertise and management of the applications
IT Operations Management Day-to-day management of the infrastructure and applications, including operation control and facilities management
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These functions are described in the Service Operation core publication, but all the service lifecycle stages make use of them.

Service Automation

Now that we’ve covered the function as a group or team, we’ll cover the tools that can be applied to assist with service management.

Automation can be extremely beneficial to the delivery of services and improve the performance of processes and service assets. This can be applied in all areas, for example, management, organization, people, process, knowledge, and information. Applications are a means of automation in their own right, but even these can be enhanced by additional technology where they need to be shared across people and process assets. There has been such an increase in the capability of technologies (examples such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the massive increase in rich media technology), which has increased the potential of software-based service tools to handle a wider variety of tasks.

Improving the automated capability of your service provision offers advantages in several areas:

Capacity Management Automation for capacity management enables a more rapid response to demand variations without human intervention and allows ease of management for a 24-hour service without an increase in staffing costs.
Measurement Automation allows for a consistent measurement and identification of improvement, without the human variable. This can also show where the human element of knowledge, skills, and experience are providing benefits.
Optimization More efficient optimization activities are often outside the human capability for processing data and scheduling and routing.
Knowledge Capture System-driven knowledge management reduces the reliance on individual knowledge and the difficulties of sharing proprietary knowledge.

Internal IT service providers often find it challenging to address the funding requirements for introducing suitable automation, but when applied appropriately, there should be benefits. Reducing costs and risks by managing complexity in a consistent manner will improve the quality of service.

There are a number of areas throughout service management where automation can provide significant benefit:

  • Design and modeling. Modeling tools can assist with projection and forecasting.
  • Service catalog. Implementing an automated service catalog can enable the capture of demand for services, by recording interactions from the business.
  • Pattern recognition and analysis. Understanding patterns of business activity allows you to manage demand.
  • Classification, prioritization, and routing. Incident management can benefit from an automated approach based on the targets in service level agreements.
  • Detection and monitoring. Service quality and speed to restore service can be improved through automated tools for availability management.
  • Routine service requests can also be handled with some level of automation.

To ensure that automation fulfills the promises of benefit realization, it is necessary to do some preparation, or there may be more problems created than are solved. First simplify the service processes prior to automation. This will help reduce the variations in the process, which may impede successful automation.

Simplification should ensure that you retain the outcome of the process; it is important to make sure that there are no necessary steps or information removed from the process during this activity.

Then you need to clarify the exact steps that are to be undertaken and automated. This includes inputs, dependencies, and interactions that are critical for the process to succeed. Once this has been established, the automation should be tested, and then if corrections are required, they can be applied.

Self-service technology can be extremely beneficial, but it does need to ensure that the users have the best possible experience, with the minimum requirement for interaction with the system.

The only tasks and interactions that should be automated, or considered for automation, are those that have a recognizable recurring pattern and clear inputs, activities, resources, and outputs.

By utilizing the data and information you capture from automation, you can perform service analysis to understand where enhancements can be achieved. In this way, you will be able to improve service quality.

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