Design & Build a User-Facing Service Catalog Improve user satisfaction with IT by letting business users know exactly what is available to them in a convenient menu-like catalog. Info-Tech's products and services combine actionable insight and relevant advice with ready-to-use tools and templates that cover the full spectrum of IT concerns.© 1997 - 2015 Info-Tech Research Group

Executive Summary Many organizations offer IT services in a very ad hoc fashion. There is no formal structure to the way services are offered. Business users have little knowledge of what IT services are available to them. Define services from the business user’s perspective, not IT’s perspective. A service catalog is of no use if a user looks at it and sees a significant amount of information that doesn’t apply to them. Separate the enterprise services from the Line of Business (LOB) services. This will simplify the process of documenting your service definitions and make it easier for users to navigate, which leads to a higher chance of user acceptance. IT and the business do not speak the same language. The business does not know what IT offers, which often leads to shadow IT solutions and poor business satisfaction. IT does not know what the business expects, resulting in misalignment with service management goals & objectives. Info-Tech’s blueprint will help you create a service catalog that succinctly organizes all of your IT services in a way that users can easily view, understand, and utilize. Our program helps you organize your services in a way that is relevant to the users, and practical and manageable for IT. Our approach to defining and categorizing services ensures your service catalog remains a living document. You may add or revise your service records with ease. Our program creates a bridge between IT and the business. Begin transforming IT’s perception within the organization by communicating the benefits of the service catalog.

ANALYST PERSPECTIVE A service catalog tells the business what IT has to offer and the value that IT provides to the business on a day-to-day basis. A service catalog initiative requires a focused effort by all groups within the IT organization. It is a major project that requires the support and sponsorship of the CIO and the senior leadership team. In order to present a comprehensive and transparent view of the services that are available to the business, IT must invest the time to identify and define all business-facing services. Business-facing IT services enable the organization to achieve its objectives and drive the business forward. A service catalog documents these services and provides the information users require to complete their day-to-day business activities. Paul Brown Director, CIO Practice Info-Tech Research Group

Our understanding of the problem CIOs Directors and senior managers within IT and the business Articulate all of the services IT provides to the business in a language the business users understand. Improve IT and business alignment through a common understanding of service features and IT support. Service Desk Manager Service Delivery Manager Business users across the company Standardize and communicate how users request access to services. Standardize and communicate how users obtain support for services. Clearly understand IT’s role in providing each service.

What is a service catalog? The user-facing service catalog is the go-to place for IT service-related information. The catalog defines, documents, and organizes the services that IT delivers to the organization. The catalog also describes the features of the services and how the services are intended to be used. The user-facing service catalog creates benefits for both the business and IT. For business users, the service catalog: For IT, the service catalog: Documents how to request access to the service, hours of availability, delivery timeframes, and customer responsibilities. A Identifies who owns the services and who is authorized to use the services. A Specifies how to obtain support for the services, support hours, and documentation. B Specifies IT support requirements for the services, including support hours and documentation. B

What is the difference between a user-facing service catalog and a technical service catalog? This blueprint is about creating a user-facing service catalog written and organized in a way that focuses on the services from the business’ view. User facing Technical User-friendly, intuitive, and simple overview of the services that IT provides to the business. The items you would see on the menu at a restaurant are an example of User Facing. The content is relatable and easy to understand. Series of technical workflows, supporting services, and the technical components that are required to deliver a service. The recipe book with cooking instructions is an example of Technical Facing. This catalog is intended for the IT teams and is “behind the scene.”

What is a service and what does it mean to be service oriented? The sum of the people, processes, and technologies required to enable users to achieve a business outcome is a Service. A service is used directly by the end users and is perceived as a coherent whole. Service Orientation is… A focus on business requirements and business value, rather than IT driven motives. Services are designed to enable required business activities. Services are defined from the business perspective using business language. In other words, put on your user hat and leave behind the technical jargons! Business Users Service Applications & Systems People & Processes

A lack of a published user-facing service catalog could be the source of many pains throughout your organization IT Pains Business Pains IT doesn’t understand all the services they provide. Business users would go outside of IT for solutions, proliferating shadow IT. Business users have a negative yet unrealistic perception of what IT is capable of. IT has no way of managing expectations for their users, which tend to inflate. There is often no defined agreement on services; the business assumes everything is available. Business users don’t know what services are available to them. It is difficult to obtain useful information regarding a service because IT always talks in technical language. Without a standard process in place, business users don’t know how to request access to a service with multiple sources of information available. Receiving IT support is a painful, long process and IT doesn’t understand what type of support the business requires.

An overwhelming majority of IT organizations still need to improve how they demonstrate their value to the business 23% of IT is still viewed as a cost center. 47% of business executives believe that business goals are going unsupported by IT. 92% of IT leaders see the need to prove the business value of IT’s contribution. How a Service Catalog can help: Use the catalog to demonstrate how IT is an integral part of the organization and IT services are essential to achieve business objectives. Transform the perception of IT by articulating all the services that are provided through the service catalog in a user-friendly language. Increase IT-business communication and collaboration through the service catalog initiative. Move from technology focused to service-oriented. Source: Info-Tech Benchmarking and Diagnostic Programs Source: IT Communication in Crisis Report Source: IT Communication in Crisis Report

Line of Business Services Project steps I Phase 1 – Project Launch Project Team 1.1 Communication Plan 1.2 Identify Metrics 1.3 Project Charter 1.4 The team must be balanced between representatives from the business and IT. Communication plan to facilitate input from both sides and gain adoption. Metrics should reflect the catalog benefits. Look to reduced number of service desk inquiries. Project charter helps walk you through project preparation. This blueprint separates enterprise service from line of business service. Finance LOB IT Service HR Sales Enterprise IT Service Sales Finance HR Marketing Enterprise Services Line of Business Services IT Services common within the organization. IT Services specific to a line of business.

Project steps I Phase 2 – Identify and Define Enterprise Services Phase 3 – Identify and Define Line of Business Services Phase 4 – Complete Service Definitions 2.1 Identify the services that are used across the entire organization. 3.1 Identify the different lines of business (LOBs) in the organization. 4.1 Understand the different components to each service definition, or the fields in the service record. 3.2 Understand the differences between our two methodologies for identifying LOB services. 4.2 Identify which information to include for each service definition. 2.2 Users must be able to identify with the service categories. 3.3 Use methodology 1 if you have thorough knowledge of the business. 4.3 Define each enterprise service according to the information and field properties. 2.3 Create basic definitions for enterprise services. 3.4 Use methodology 2 if you only have an IT view of the LOB. 4.3 Define each LOB service according to the information and field properties.

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