The IT Skeptic - Service Strategy

Supplier strategy & policy undefined in ITIL V3 Service Strategy

mbuzina — Thu, 07 May 2009 14:33:25 +0000

Service Design 4.7.6.1 p 162 requires a Supplier Strategy & Policy from Service Strategy. Service Strategy does not mention anything with regard to this. The glossary does not define any of these two terms.

Again a cross book omission. Great, I just wanted to write a few things on the Supplier Strategy and now I am out of references (ISO 20000 does not help here, CobiT neither). OK, again I will use my common sense.

ITSCM not in the strategy book

aroos — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 07:57:19 +0000

ITSCM has a strategy dimension but it is not discussed in the strategy book

SS p238 Glossary: Cost Model

skeptic — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 09:21:27 +0000

In the definition for ‘Cost Unit’, ‘(Financial Management)’ was changed to ‘(Service Strategy)’

SS p114 Figure 5.8

skeptic — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 09:17:27 +0000

In lower left-hand box, middle section, change ‘MTTR’ to ‘MTRS’ twice

SS P201 Figure 9.5

skeptic — Wed, 12 Mar 2008 00:38:35 +0000

SS P201 Figure 9.5
The two arrows within the large oval, one next to the circle ‘Customer assets’ and the other next to the circle ‘Service assets’ have had their directions reversed, so that the first one points upwards (in an anti-clockwise direction), and the second one points downwards (in an anti-clockwise direction).

Source ISEB http://www.itskeptic.org/node/487

Retired Services shown inside Service Catalogue

Rumagoso — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 11:42:46 +0000

Retired Services are wrongly placed inside Service Catalogue at Figure 4.11 of the ITIL v3 core book Service Strategy.
The Service Porfolio contains mutually exclusive (but related; they're correspond to consecutive status of the service lifecycle) the Service Pipeline, Service Catalogue and Retired Services.

Service Catalogue should be ending at the right limit of the big Service Operation circle.

This error was noticed after a post by Dmitry: http://itilblues.wordpress.com/2007/07/16/service-portfolio-and-service-catalogue-and-itil-v3/#comment-383

Business Relationship Management is 'missing'

mnyhuis — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 03:25:09 +0000

ITIL V3 was supposed to provide better support for ISO/IEC 20000, yet it would appear that "Business Relationship Management" has been almost forgotten in the guidance.

The Service Strategy book does briefly refer to the concept of "Business Relationship Management" and it has also been listed as a Process/Function in the V3 glossary, yet it has not been formally or properly covered. Did the Strategy authors forget about this one...?

SS P86 Incorrect reference to Table 4.6

brian_dayton — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 13:53:01 +0000

In section 4.4.2, page 86 there is a reference to Table 5.3. I think it should be "table 4.6". That is the closest table that also makes sense in the context of the reference. Seems like an editing error.

SS P58 Logical error

brian_dayton — Sun, 26 Aug 2007 01:01:32 +0000

(I picked this up from the OGC Change Control Log. I am sure OGC won't mind because we're doing the community a favor).

"In section 3.5.4.1 on page 58 there is a serious logical error because the words "do not" are missing in the sixth sentence beginning with "Service providers try to meet ...". This sentence should be corrected as "Service providers do not try to meet ...". Without this correction readers will be very confused with what appears to be a contradiction."

3.2.2.2 Service Unit Example & Picture 3.11 do not fit together

mbuzina — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 13:51:58 +0000

Text speaks about service Y shared by business units A,B,C (C does not use service Y in the picture), service Z to be provided to business unit D (D does not exist in the picture).

Additionally I guess nobody needs this kind of low-level explanation who is reading a book on strategy. I have seen better explanations of value chain / network than this.

Unclear, confusing definition of 'separation of concerns'

ianclayton — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 18:45:02 +0000

Page 21 describes SoC as:

"Complex issues or problems can be resolved or separated into distinct parts or concerns. Specialized capabilities and resources address each concern leading to better outcomes overall. This improves focus and allows optimization of systems and processes at a manageable scale and scope."

The glossary entry is an improvement (p249) and should have been used on p21.

paragraph 2.4.3 should be the value of the volume to the business

PELIJN — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 00:07:49 +0000

chapter 2 in each book should describe it from a volume perspective: Therefor paragraph 2.4.3 should be the value of the volume to the business... (see service design). In SO it is a generic value to the business. In SS it does not have the value to the business described. Better alignment between these values would be beneficial.

All books 2.2.1 repeats service definition

skeptic — Sun, 24 Jun 2007 21:41:03 +0000

pure pedantry:

Chapter 2 is in all books (though with very subtle editorial differences).

2.2.1 the text at the start in a box defining a service is almost identical with the following paragraph - should have been edited?

Invalid claim that value networks supercede or trump value chains

ianclayton — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 03:07:40 +0000

P 47-49. The author references the well trodden term 'value chain' by saying "Business executives have long described the process of creating value as links in a value chain." this may be so but I believe the term 'value chain' is more commonly attributed to the pioneering work of Michael E. Porter (Competitive Advantage 1990, p59). Indeed it was referenced this way in ITIL version 2.The authors then compound this misdirection by stating that the value chain model is linear by nature (its nothing of the sort) and superseded by 'Value Networks'. It is not.

Service Management is a 'Strategic Asset'?

ianclayton — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 02:55:44 +0000

P 81. in the section 'Develop Strategic Assets (4.3.2)' the authors clearly direct the reader that Service Management the concept is a strategic asset. Service management is a conceptual framework for conducting activities designed to fulfill the objectives of a customer organization. It continues to describe strategic assets as 'dynamic'. That much may be true, but strategic assets are TANGIBLE and subject to the SMART concepts favored by metrics. More plausible examples of strategic assets would include people, services, and information.

Incorrect placement of "Market Space"

ianclayton — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 02:51:06 +0000

P 70. The concept of a 'market space' is introduced as part of the 'Develop the Offerings' conversation. The definition of market spaces (the term market segment is more commonly used by the marketing professional) is a fundamental stage of the what Service Strategy previously describes in this section as the 'Define the Market' activity. market segments are identified, target markets defined, and opportunities sized. products are positioned based upon differentiation. The service strategy book seems to be trying to rewrite Marketing 101 concepts....

Process improvement programs are a staff distraction

ianclayton — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 02:42:13 +0000

On page 10 of the introduction to this book the authors categorically state:

"A process improvement programme reduces the time the staff have for existing service duties, causing a decrease in service quality - exactly the opposite of intended programme goals. "