Service Design follows the Service Strategy in the Service Lifecycle, and deals with the design and development of services and their related processes. It refers not only to completely new services, but also to modified service delivery.
According to ITIL, the most important objective of Service Design is:
The design of new or modified services for introduction into a production environment.
The objectives of Service Design include, but are not limited to:
To contribute to the business objectives
Where possible, to contribute to saving time and money
To minimize or prevent risks
To contribute to satisfying the current and future market needs
To assess and improve the effectiveness and efficiency of IT services
To support the development of policies and standards regarding IT services
To contribute to the quality of IT services.
In order to ensure that the services that are developed meet the customer’s expectations, the following actions must be undertaken:
The new service must be added right from the concept phase of the Service Portfolio. And it must be kept up-to-date throughout the process.
The Service Level Requirements (SLR) must be clear before the service is delivered.
Based on the requirements, the capacity management team can model these requirements within the existing infrastructure.
If it appears that a new infrastructure is needed or more support is desired, then financial management must be involved.
Before the implementation phase begins, a Business Impact Analysis (BIA) and a risk assessment must be performed. This will provide valuable information for IT Service Continuity Management (ITSCM), availability management and capacity management.
The service desk must be brought up to speed regarding the new service delivery before the new services are delivered.
Service Transition can make a plan for the implementation of the service.
Supplier management must be involved if there are purchases to be made.
To satisfy the changing needs and demands of the business, the design of effective and efficient IT services is a process of balancing among functionality, available resources (human, technical, and financial) and available time. This is a continual process in all phases of the lifecycle of IT services.
Value of Service Design
Good Service Design offers the following benefits:
Lower Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)
Improved quality of service delivery
Improved consistency of the service
Simpler implementation of new or modified services
Improved synchronization of services with the needs of the business
Improved effectiveness of performances
Improved IT administration
More effective service management and IT processes
More simplified decision-making.
Design Constraints and Opportunities
Although designers are free to design services, it must be understood that they are dependent on internal resources (including available financial resources) and external circumstances (e.g. the impact of ISO, Sox and COBIT). In addition, the design process offers opportunities to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of IT facilities through the use of a Service Oriented Architecture approach, considering the resulting decrease in time for delivering service solutions to the business.
It is important that the services are kept up-to-date in the Service Catalog (part of the Service Portfolio and the configuration management system, or CMS). In general, this will position the organization to link IT facilities with the objectives (business service management). This will allow them to predict the impact of technology on the business and vice versa.
