Why Re-Invent the Wheel?

Leveraging ITSM Across Departments

Unlike other IT management practices that focus on hardware, network or systems, IT service management aims to consistently improve IT customer service in alignment with business goals. This approach to leverage software solutions to make your business work better is so successful that non-IT departments are taking note and wanting to provide the same level of service.

Historically, there is a common perception that a department like Human Resources requires a Human Resource System with tool specific functionality focusing on what makes a department different to the next – rather than the essence of what it delivers or manages.

However, we have recently supported a number of clients across various industries (retail, financial institutions, higher education, etc.) to integrate a service management approach across departments – providing a unified approach in connecting employees with services and information they need to be productive.

In reality, service management is actually incredibly powerful as it provides the ability to manage processes across numerous lines of business from a single application that has the flexibility to handle it all. This could include: IT, Human Resources, Facilities, Fleet, Case Management, Project Management, and even some aspects of Accounting—really any department that provides some sort of service. 

It is essentially a means towards providing both your customers and employees with more value through the use and adoption of service management principles:

In considering whether or not your business is ready to implement service management more broadly throughout the organisation, a few strategic questions to ask:

• What’s the advantage of providing employees a single portal for requests?
• Why and how do you prioritize requests?
• How can the process be streamlined with automation?
• How do you ensure streamlined delivery for services that touch different departments?
• How do you connect employees with self-service options?
• Who has the need for the services (i.e requests, knowledge search, issue resolution)?

In our opinion, this approach is a sure way of gaining a competitive edge over other companies that fail to see its merits — and any company that does leverage service management across departments will enjoy not only having a better technological edge but better growth margins and customer and employee satisfaction.