Describing the Service
ITIL recommends producing a key output from the service design stage—a service design package (SDP). The service design package consists of one or more documents, produced during the service design stage, that describe all aspects of the service, throughout its lifecycle. It contains all the necessary information that will be used to transition and operate the service. It is passed forward to the transition stage so that those transitioning the service have a clear understanding of the requirements that need to be verified in testing.
Typical contents of an SDP include the following:
- Original agreed business requirements for the service
- How the service will be used
- Key contacts and stakeholders
- Functional requirements
- Management requirements
- Service level requirements
- Technical design of the new or changed service including hardware, software, networks, environments, data, applications, technology, tools, and documentation
- Sourcing strategy
- New or changed processes required to support the service
- Organizational readiness assessment
- Service lifecycle plan, including the timescales and phasing, for the transition, operation, and subsequent improvement of the new service
- Service program, service transition plan
- Service operational acceptance plan
- Service acceptance criteria (SAC)
A large amount of information is gathered during the design stage, often as part of a formal project management methodology; the production of the SDP ensures that all the relevant information is captured when the project ends and is passed on to those who will be transitioning, managing, and improving the new or changed service.