improving it service delivery

Improving IT Service Delivery

Why the IT leadership team needs a shared

point of view

The challenge of improving IT service delivery has never been greater

Improving the delivery of IT services is one of the most challenging aspects of running an IT organisation today

© 2011 Copyright Formicio Limited 2

The expectations of IT users are changing – and becoming more demanding.

Advances in technology (eg tablets, virtualisation and cloud computing) create new opportunities that must be translated into business value.

There is the ever-present need to improve service quality and reduce cost.

And sustained change is as elusive as ever

While there is no shortage of ideas on how to improve service – and suppliers willing to provide them – there is often a lack of real improvement.

Change initiatives tend to be piecemeal and based upon instinct, rather than holistic and based upon insight.

For many organisations delivering sustained change is as difficult and elusive as ever – resulting in many CIOs and their colleagues having to ‘seek new opportunities’.


Successful IT leadership teams have a shared point of view on what change is and how it will be delivered

Leadership teams that deliver sustained change have talent and experience, but importantly, they also have a shared point of view.

Having a shared point of view based upon contemporary thinking enables the leadership team to exercise collective leadership.

Collective leadership comes from a common understanding based on a shared set of mental models, frameworks, practices and language. It’s about having a ‘star organisation’ rather than an ‘organisation of stars’.


So, what is a shared point of view?

Something that the leadership team collectively believe to be true and of value to the organisation they lead.

Based on a set of beliefs, more a philosophy than a methodology.

Something that shapes our thinking, what we communicate and how we act.


The following pages contain a point of view on improving IT service delivery that the Formicio team has developed and evolved over many years. We share it in the hope that it will help IT leadership teams develop their own point of view.

We all have a point of view; we may not communicate it explicitly, and it

may not be aligned with our leadership colleagues, but it’s very

clear to our followers.

Improving IT service delivery – nine crucial elements

1. An organisation’s value proposition, operating model and mindset need to be aligned.

2. An IT operating model comprises a number of facets.3. IT demand and supply matures over time.4. ‘One size does not fit all’ – authentic differences must be

accommodated.5. Best practice frameworks are useful but have limitations.6. Behavioural change is more challenging than process

change.7. The role of leaders is to put in place the conditions for

success – not come up with the answers.8. Leaders should focus on introducing operating principles

not practices.9. Collaboration, not PowerPoint, drives engagement,

sustained performance and continuous improvement.© 2011 Copyright Formicio Limited 6

Having a shared point of view

provides a platform for

change. It embraces a set

of values and beliefs, and forms

a basis for developing a

change methodology and

plan.It makes the

implicit, explicit.

Operating Model

Mindset

Value Proposition

1. An organisation’s value proposition, operating model and mindset need to be aligned


What the organisation delivers to its customers and the value they get

How people feel about their organisation, their role and prospects – the principal driver of behaviour

The processes, organisation,

governance and how performance

is measured – basically how

work gets done

High performance is achieved when all three domains of capability are aligned

Org.Design

Measurement

Services PortfolioSourcing

Governance

Processes

IT Operating Model

2. An IT operating model comprises a number of facets, all of which need to be aligned

Executive

Council

Core Process Council

Management Team

Management Team

Companies/

BUs

Companies/

BUs

OrganizationOrganization

SVPSVP

Governance – structures that orchestrate development, funding, adjudication and execution of decisions

Organisational Design – structure of resources and individual competencies

Service Content Richness

Ser

vice

Lev

el Q

ual

ity

StandardService

PremiereService

• Basic product set• Prime hours• Guaranteed coverage, e.g., - Response time - Repair time

• Basic product set• 24 x 7 hours• Premium coverage - Fastest response time - Fastest repair time

• Product set extensions

• Mobile User

• Advanced Technology Introduction

• Other

ServiceOptions

Services Portfolio – aligned and segmented product and service offerings that meet business demand

Measurement – that reflects outward-facing business objectives and key performance indicators

Processes – effective and efficient processes delivering predictable and repeatable services

Sourcing – segment suppliers, understand their value proposition, develop the right relationships and execute flawlessly


Manage IT OrganisationManage IT Organisation

Manage IT SupplyManage IT Supply

Operate IT InfrastructureOperate IT Infrastructure

DiscovDiscov

ererBusinesBusines

s-ITs-ITPotentiPotenti

alal

DeliverDeliverBusinesBusines

ssSolutioSolutio

nsns

OperatOperat

e e BusinesBusines

ssSystemSystem

ss

Manage Enterprise ArchitectureManage Enterprise Architecture

Manage Business-IT PortfolioManage Business-IT Portfolio

Manage Customer RelationshipsManage Customer Relationships

3. IT demand and supply matures over time


DemandDemand

SupplySupplySupp

ort

Supp

ort

Impr

ove

Impr

ove

Inno

vate

Inno

vate

Time

BusinessTransformation

Level 3 Business Demand• Inter-enterprise solutions• Business growth through innovation and differentiation• Flexible, agile business capabilities• Business intelligence• Customer experience orientation

Level 3 IT Supply• Open platform for innovation• Converge business and IT functions• Flexible and agile supply• Finding new value in information and IT

BusinessEffectiveness Level 2 Business Demand

• Enable business and partnerships• Enable collaboration / Break down silos• Consolidated management information• Integrated process orientation

Level 2 IT Supply• Establish common infrastructure for operations,

business processes and collaboration• Deliver on time, on budget• Build credibility• Improve service / solution delivery• Internal networks + Internet

BusinessEfficiency

Level 1 Business Demand• Foundation systems• Cost savings• Operational information• Functional orientation

Level 1 IT Supply• Provide basic services / solutions• Stabilise operations and support• Improve business processes• Closed internal communications networks

Value

IT’s operating model needs to evolve as the relationship between IT and the business matures through the levels

4. ‘One size does not fit all’ – authentic differences need to be accommodated

Shared Service operating models need to deliver a high degree of Common and Shared solutions, while recognising the need for authentic differences.

Authentic differences are those that result from a genuine need to meet different legal, regulatory and market conditions.

The number of authentic differences needs to be controlled through appropriate governance.

While the goal of shared services is typically to reduce operating cost, they are increasingly seen as a platform for growth, eg to rapidly integrate acquisitions.

The extent to which shared service organisations can provide

common solutions depends on the extent to which the enterprise has common and shared business

processes

Dedicated and specificto business units

Common to all business units (clients)

Corporate only

Common to some business units (clients)

Business Units (Clients of shared services)

Shared Services

Corporate Functions


5. Best practice frameworks are useful but have limitations

@VAL-IT.com

PRINCE2


It makes sense to use some of these frameworks, especially ITIL in the infrastructure space, but they are only part of the answer. The challenge is knowing which aspect to

leverage and how to implement, own and continuously improve.

Each focuses on something specific and has a different purpose.

They overlap in places and use the same terminology within a different context.

They are intentionally generic and cannot predict things like what tools will be used.

They are complex and hard to implement across an enterprise.

They are committed to ‘document-thinking’ not ‘open content’.

They tend to focus on ‘running IT as a business’, not converging IT with the business.

6. Behavioural change is more challenging than process change


Establishing the value proposition and changing the operating model alone will not transform performance; it is people with the right mindset who make great organisations.

A mindset is a set of assumptions, methods or systems held by one or more people, or groups of people, which is established so that it creates a powerful incentive within these people or groups to continue to adopt or accept prior behaviours, choices or tools.

Mindsets are created and changed by: – Leaders: through the way they are seen to act and behave – Communications: through the messages people see, hear and believe – Policies and procedures: through the behaviours they reinforce – Learning and development: through the capabilities and confidence it

gives people to perform.

7. The role of leaders is to put in place the conditions for success – not come up with the answers


For transformation journeys to be successful, a number of ‘critical conditions for success’ need to be put in place and sustained over time.

Like gardening, if the conditions are not in place (eg soil quality) the plants will not grow and disappointment will follow.

It is the role of leaders to define, put in place and sustain these critical conditions for success.

A periodic assessment can identify the conditions, determine to what extent a leadership team is aligned about their importance, and the actions they need to take to strengthen any particular conditions.

8. Leaders should focus on introducing operating principles not practices


Operating practices are very difficult to transfer between organisations as they are context-specific and the context is different between organisations.

Operating principles are transferable across organisations, and the application of the principles in a specific context (ie within a specific organisation) establishes practices that are ‘fit for purpose’.

Operating principles are conscious choices made by leaders that define how they would like their organisation to operate.

For each operating principle there is an equally valid alternative choice.

9. Collaboration, not PowerPoint, drives engagement, sustained performance and continuous improvement


Improved organisational clarity of understanding from a single source of ‘truth’

Encourages multi-contributor collaboration Eases search and discovery – shares knowledge

A wiki approach enables a culture of continuous improvement – empowered people sharing their knowledge and passions and taking pride in what they do.

Semantic Wiki

We hope you found our point of view helpful

We encourage you and your leadership colleagues to develop a shared point of view.

It will take time and you won’t all agree at the outset, but it will be of great value in the longer term.

The Formicio Team



We are thought partners and advisers to business and technology leaders around the world. We help our clients make informed choices, build capability and deliver sustained business change.

Specifically we:Build innovation and organisational capability.Help leaders succeed with the most complex transformation programmes.Help transform IT organisations to meet the challenges ahead.

This is an Insight Presentation by Formicio

For further information contact...


David [email protected]

+44 (0)20 7917 2993www.formicio.com