The Complete Guide to IT Service Level Agreements

Aligning IT Services to Business Needs

Andrew Hiles

• Publisher: Rothstein Publishing
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN: 9781931332132
• eBook ISBN: 9781931332996
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Customer Relations
• Index: Business

Most suppliers lose around 16% of their customers each year. The reason? Poor service — whether perceived or real. Any technology-based support service, whether in-house, contracted or outsourced, stands to be accused of being insensitive to the requirements of its customers (or users). Equally, customers of a support service may have unrealistic expectations of what can be reasonably provided. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) can overcome these gulfs. A Service Level Agreement can create harmony between parties and can prevent disputes between customers and suppliers. It can justify investment and identify the "right" quality of service. It can mean the difference between business success and failure. SLAs are potentially a strategic tool to align all support services (particularly IT) directly to business mission achievement. In the past, few organizations used them in this way. Armed with this book and the companion SLA FRAMEWORK, more and more businesses are now succeeding. Where are SLAs going? Increasingly business-focused. Increasingly measured in real-time. Simple documents that cover complex service infrastructures. Providing a competitive edge. Embracing penalties. The brave, who commit to tight SLAs and perform against them will win the commercial spoils. This book provides the knowledge and tools based on fifteen years of intensive development to ensure your enterprise is among the winners.

Table of contents

• Cover
• THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO IT SERVICE LEVEL AGREEMENTS ALIGNING IT SERVICES TO BUSINESS NEEDS THIRD EDITION
• Copyright Page
• Acknowledgements
• Contents
• List of Figures
• Foreword
• Preface to the Third Edition
• Chapter 1: An Overview of Service Level Agreements
• Chapter 2: The Measurement of Service Availability and Quality
• Chapter 3: How Service Level Agreements Apply in an Applications Development Environment
• Chapter 4: Keys to Measuring and Monitoring Service
• Chapter 5: The Downside Risk
• Appendix A: Service Level Agreement Checklist
• Appendix B: Example Dekstop Support Metrics
• Appendix C: Traditional, IT Oriented SLA
• Appendix D: Example Simple Development SLA
• Appendix E: Checklist for Outsourcing & Facilities Management
• Appendix F: Example Desktop Support SLA
• Bibliography
• About the Author
• About the Publisher