BCS Specialist: Service Level Management

ITIL® is recognised internationally as the best practice approach to IT Service Management (ITSM) aligning the provision of IT Services with the needs of the business. It is used globally by thousands of organisations throughout the private and public sectors to improve the way in which they implement and manage IT Services.

The ITIL qualification scheme also recognises other certifications which add value to ITIL best practices and its own certification portfolio. These certifications are recognised under the ITIL Complementary Qualifications Scheme. Such certifications are given a credit value which successful delegates can add to the credits gained from other ITIL certifications and use towards their ITIL Expert Level qualification.

The BCS Specialist certifications focus on a single IT service management job role and provide in-depth information and knowledge on how that job role operates within an organisation. They enable delegates to develop their job specific skills using industry best practices.

The BCS Specialist Certificate in Service Level Management provides a comprehensive understanding of the principles required and practical experience of using industry best practice to:

• Compile a Service Catalogue
• Identify service level requirements
• Construct Service Level Agreements following negotiation with the customers
• Review service performance
• Implement and manage service improvement plans or programmes.

To find when the next course is running in your area, please contact us on 0845 467 7029.

Audience: Who is the course for?

• Those working in a service level management role or environment at either a technical, operational, supervisory or managerial level
• Project managers, business managers and business process owners involved in defining service level requirements
• Those who require a working knowledge of the industry best practice used in Service Level Management and how it can be used to improve the quality of ITSM within an organisation
• Those who are working within an organisation which has adopted these practices and are required to deliver or improve Service Level Management within an on-going Service Improvement Programme (SIP)

Course duration:

This is a three day course. The exam is taken on the third day.

Benefits to the individual:

• Recognised professional qualification
• Understand the application of service level management principles that contribute to industry best practice
• Understand service level management processes and how they may be used to enhance the quality of IT service support within an organisation
• Gain credits towards the ITIL Expert certification in IT Service Management

Benefits to the business:

• The adoption and application of proven best practice processes results in improved IT services and increased productivity throughout the business
• The ability to agree service levels with the customer and then to deliver these in full leads to increased customer satisfaction
• The ability to monitor, review and report on service performance against targets allows improvements to be made when necessary thereby leading to greater service levels and customer satisfaction
• The framework is flexible, scalable, and systematic and can be used within different organisations irrespective of size or industry

Prerequisites:

Delegates must hold the Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management and will need to present their certificate as documentary evidence to gain admission. It is also recommended that delegates have:

• A minimum of one year's experience in an IT Service Management environment either as a practitioner, supervisor or manager
• Several years' experience in a specialist service management area aiming to take on a supervisory or managerial role
• Responsibility for the delivery and maintenance of a specific service management process

Course outline:

The objectives of this course are:

• To enable delegates to apply industry best practices in their working environment
• To develop and improve the customer and business focus of Service Level Management
• For delegates to be able to assist with the planning and implementation of Service Level Management
• To enable delegates to implement and manage Service Improvement Programmes (SIPs)

The course is conducted through interactive group study using practical examples and activities. Delegates will sit a mock exam in order to help them prepare for and successfully pass the real exam. After completing the mock exam, delegates and the tutor will review the mock exam paper as a group. Over the three day course, the following topics are covered:

Introduction

• Introduction to course
• Overview of course structure, objectives, exam format and agenda
• History of ITSM, introduction to ITSM in general, including standards, good practice and frameworks such as ISO/IEC 20000, ITIL and COBIT® and the differences in approach
• The goals and objectives of the Service Level Management process and an outline of the related functions, roles and processes.

Service Level Management processes. Service Level Management concepts and principles:

• The responsibilities and objectives in support of generic Service Level Management
• Understanding Customer/Service Level Management relationship
• Understanding the different types of Service Level Agreements
• The resourcing considerations, staffing levels, rotas, shifts, skills and knowledge levels
• Review of service achievements to ensure that the required service quality is maintained and improved

The how - ITIL and its application to Service Level Management:

• The structure intent and use of ITIL
• The key Service Management guidelines within ITIL
• Interfaces with and dependencies on other areas of ITIL and ISO/IEC 20000 especially, Service Desk and Incident, Problem, Release, Availability, Capacity, Access and Security, Portfolio Management and Financial Management

A generic Service Level Management process, including:

• Creation and maintenance of the Service Catalogue
• Identification and definition of the appropriate SLA format
• Negotiation, agreement and documentation of service levels to match customer business needs
• How to identify the Service and Supplier chains
• Identification of Operating Level agreements (OLAs) and Underpinning Contracts (UCs) to support the SLAs
• Monitor and report on service levels achieved against agreed targets
• Create and manage a Service Improvement Programme
• Ensure the overall process is effective and responsive to changing requirements
• Definition of reporting requirements and management reporting

The what – the requirements of the ISO/IEC 20000 standard:

• The structure, intent and use of ISO/IEC 20000
• The key Service Level Management requirements of Part 1 of the standard
• Supporting material from Parts 2 and 3 of the standard
• The overall Service Management System
• Interfaces with and dependencies on other areas of the standard

Tools, methods and techniques

• Awareness, knowledge and use of Service Level Management support tools and techniques
• Typical toolsets used in monitoring and reporting of services plus some element of integrated Service Management tools
• Generic requirements for production of a Service Catalogue
• Planning of SLA structure and benefits of standardisation of documentation and templates
• Integration with other areas, processes and functions
• The benefits of automation

Service Level Management roles and responsibilities – SFIA and ITIL. Skills Framework for the Information Age (SFIA) and its use with defining Service Level Management roles:

• Overview of the structure and content of the SFIA framework
• Service Level Management roles, levels of responsibility and work activities

ITIL and its use in defining Service Level Management roles:

• Service Level Management roles and responsibilities

Control, measurement and reporting activities. COBIT® and its application to Service Level Management:

• The structure intent and use of COBIT®
• The key Service Level Management requirements of COBIT®
• Interfaces with and dependencies on other areas of COBIT®

The preparation of Service Level Management reports for dissemination:

• The purpose of service reports, management reports and reporting. What to report on and what not to?
• SLAM and RAG charts
• Operational and Periodic reports
• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Critical Success Factors (CSFs)
• How statistics can be used, and abused
• Common categories of classification and analysis

Analysis of Service reports, Availability reports and Operational reports. The analysis of Operational, Service and Availability reports identifying trends:

• Identification of areas of weakness and proposing resolutions to improve the quality of service provided
• Analysis of service achievement reports to check if they meet the customer expectations

Interfaces and dependencies

• The appreciation and understanding of the interfaces and dependencies Service Level Management has with other areas, functions and processes, including.
  • Service Desk and Incident Management
  • Release Management
  • Financial Management
  • Problem Management
  • Change Management
  • Service Asset and Configuration Management
  • Request Fulfilment
  • Capacity, Availability and Continuity principles
  • IT Security Management
  • Projects and major changes
  • Supplier Management
  • Portfolio Management
  • Demand Management
  • Technical, Operations and Applications Management teams

Planning, improvement and implementation

• The planning, implementation and continual improvement (Plan/Do/Check/Act) of Service Level Management

Exam details:

The 90 minute exam consists of 25 multiple choice questions. The questions are based on a number of scenarios and the pass mark is 16/25 or 64%. This is a closed book exam i.e. entrants may not refer to any course materials or their own notes.