7 steps for a smooth ITSM implementation
In our previous blog about 'How to build an ITSM business case', we discussed the benefits of IT Service Management (ITSM) for your organization. From efficiency to better customer service, to lower costs for your organization.
Do you want to take your IT team's services to the next level with ITSM? In this blog, we'll give you tips on how to make your ITSM implementation as smooth as possible.
A successful ITSM implementation in 7 steps
Introducing ITSM to your organization doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, capacity and money — an investment you’ll want to see reflected in tangible improvements and results.
Here are the 7 steps of a successful ITSM implementation:
- A solid foundation
- Advanced technology and tools
- Comprehensive and realistic planning
- Getting started with your ITSM implementation
- Dealing with challenges effectively
- Making success measurable (and celebrating it)
- Continuous monitoring and optimization
Read on to discover how you can get started with these pillars and give your organization the smoothest possible start with ITSM.
1. A solid basis
Link concrete KPIs to organizational objectives
Start by determining exactly what you need and how ITSM will contribute to your organization's objectives.
Make an ITSM business case
Make the benefits of ITSM directly measurable and use them as input to substantiate your ITSM business case.
Involve key players
Identify all key stakeholders who will impact or be impacted by the ITSM implementation. Workshops, presentations and face-to-face meetings are all ways to gather input, answer questions and address concerns.
Employee satisfaction
In a tight labour market, retaining employees and attracting new talent is a top priority for many organizations, so be sure to include this topic in your ITSM business case. With ITSM, you keep the workload for your IT service team manageable and create a pleasant, transparent environment where people want to work.
2. Advanced technology and tools
The ITSM software landscape is complex and offers a lot of choice of different vendors with distinctive features and pricing models. Be sure to include these elements in your consideration:
- functionality and features that contribute to achieving objectives;
- flexibility, adaptability and scalability of the software so that it can grow with changing requirements and needs;
- good integration possibilities with other systems in your organization;
- security functions and capabilities of the ITSM application. Consider access controls, data encryption, regulatory compliance (such as GDPR, HIPAA, etc.) and other security measures.
As well as looking at features, it’s worth considering the personal element when looking at suppliers. In many cases, people still prefer to interact with real people, especially when implementing new software. Having good click with the software supplier is a necessity, not a luxury. Personal contact for questions, tips and training can make all the difference.
3. A realistic and comprehensive ITSM plan
Drawing up a detailed implementation plan is the next step in a well-thought-out ITSM implementation. At the very least, your plan should include:
- your objective and scope (determining processes and functionality);
- the composition of your project organization;
- assigned responsibilities;
- any important milestones and deadlines;
- a plan B for plausible risks.
Make sure your plan is realistic by considering available resources, the project's complexity and the likelihood of obstacles along the way.
4. Get started with your ITSM implementation
Once you have everything in place, it's time to get started on the implementation itself. Every implementation involves people, processes and technology. Give each component the attention it needs for each implementation phase.
The supplier of the ITSM software will help you install and configure the application. They're also your go-to people for setting up access management. Once the software is ready and important integrations have been realized, you can start migrating data.
5. Deal effectively with the challenges
It's a cliché, but it’s true: people don’t like change. Especially when it comes to processes and tools they work with every day. Keep listening carefully to those involved and make sure to do something with their feedback. This is how you turn natural resistance into enthusiasm.
Technology comes with endless possibilities. But it doesn't always immediately do what you want it to. Make sure you have enough space in your schedule and sufficient backups to help you manage (temporary) technical problems.
6. Make success measurable (and celebrate it)
Implementing ITSM requires a well-thought-out plan and more than a little determination. It's important to keep those involved enthusiastic and motivated. One way of doing this is to reflect on past successes.
Have you met an important deadline, are you getting enthusiastic feedback on the new ITSM software, or is the number of outstanding IT tickets clearly decreasing? These are all reasons to celebrate. And this doesn’t have to be with cake and balloons, but can also be done with a heartfelt, public compliment.
Besides celebrating successes, it’s important to reflect on things that didn't go as well and what you learnt from them. This way, you create a transparent culture where people dare to make mistakes and think outside of the box.
7. ITSM: a continuous process of monitoring and optimization
During and after the initial implementation of ITSM and the associated supporting software, you start to see an impact on your organization. For example, based on the KPIs you determined at the start.
ITSM isn't something you implement once and never touch again. Like the supporting technology, it will change. Therefore, make sure you have easy-to-access feedback mechanisms, so end users and agents can point out areas for improvement.
ITSM implementation tips, pitfalls and real-life examples
You can read up on theory all you like, but most ITSM knowledge comes from practice. We’ve gathered some learnings from real-life ITSM implementations gone by to help you prepare for your own implementation journey.
Custom versus out-of-the-box tooling
Customized solution or standard ITSM tool? This is the question most organizations are faced with at the start of an ITSM implementation. For the University of Memphis, the answer was clear. Having struggled to power their service desk using multiple, cobbled together tools, the simplicity of a standard solution was a breath of fresh air.
Curious about their ITSM journey? Read the full University of Memphis story here.
3 tips for a successful ITSM implementation:
Go for a gradual roll-out - Don't implement ITSM processes with a ‘big bang’ but break them down into manageable steps. Start with core processes and gradually expand to more complex processes.
Stay flexible and adapt where necessary - Nothing stays the same, even during ITSM implementations. Therefore, adapt as circumstances and needs change. Take user feedback into account and align processes and systems with the needs of the organization.
Keep improving continuously - ITSM is a continuous improvement process. Work on creating a culture of continuous improvement where you encourage employees to give feedback and make suggestions.
Getting end users on board with ITSM
For Canadian retail company Roots, getting buy-in from their end users proved to be no easy feat. Luckily, with the help of TOPdesk, they were able to demonstrate the benefits of using an ITSM tool to their customers.
The hardest thing for us was not only being virtual, but trying to get 400+ end users to be on board with this, and how to utilize that successfully.
Want to know how they did it? You can read the Roots ITSM story here.
3 pitfalls of ITSM implementations to avoid:
Setting goals that are too ambitious – this can lead to unrealistic expectations and disappointment if you don’t meet your goals in time.
Poor planning and insufficient preparation – these often lead to delays, budget overruns and quality problems during implementation (and afterwards).
Too much focus on technology – focusing only on the technical aspects of ITSM and paying too little attention to people and can slow down your end users’ adoption of your new processes and systems.
Key trends influencing ITSM implementations:
More and more organizations are moving to cloud-based ITSM solutions because of the benefits in terms of scalability, flexibility and cost savings.
Automation and AI are expected to play a bigger role in ITSM as technologies evolve and organizations strive for efficiency and better user experiences.
With the growing amount of data available, data analytics and BI are becoming more important - including for improving ITSM processes and making data-driven decisions in this context.
As more and more organizations start to use hybrid IT environments, there's a growing need for ITSM solutions that seamlessly integrate local and cloud-based systems.
Want to stay on top of ITSM trends? By working closely with your ITSM software vendor, you can identify opportunities faster and can test innovative solutions first.
In conclusion
Done well, ITSM is a great way to solve problems like messy IT processes, poor user experience, and high operational costs — just to name a few. That said, to get the most out of ITSM, it’s worth doing proper research on tools and suppliers, as well as making a thought-out implementation plan.
Get the low-down on modern ITSM tools
On the hunt for an ITSM tool? Check out our ITSM buyer’s guide for everything you need to find your perfect ITSM solution.
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