Optimization of the Service Desk with ITIL problem management

I am a big fan of Problem Management (in essence, it is the only process obsessed with definitive elimination of incidents), but I also recognize that it is a process that is difficult to tackle and to put into motion. Here are a couple ideas to break down this initial resistance and allay your fear of the blank sheet of paper.

Paradoxically, the first step has nothing to do with Problem Management itself, but rather with “putting the house in order,” and guaranteeing that the data to be used in our analysis are really valid, clean and junk-free. Even though the really sound Problem Management is when we are able to be proactive (Proactive Control of Problems), it is actually typical to start with the reactive part: by analyzing (recent) past events, and based on this analysis, searching for recurrences and decide what types of incidents must be addressed first. Of course, to achieve this, we must first ensure that we are recording the right information in our systems (both that this information exists and that it is accurate). And so, the very first step, before worrying about the Problem Management process, is to take a step back and start by ensuring the quality of the data (you can read a little bit more on this topic in the post “Garbage in, garbage out.”).

Reduce tickets and IT workload

And how to proceed when we already have good information o that we can get down to work? A good first step might be to use the EAL model (Eliminate, Automate, Leverage), focusing above all on the E for “eliminate” (then we can continue with the A, which also ultimately reduces the number of requests, although it be by automating the solution). And even though the problems seek the elimination of incidents, we can also use the process and its search methods to determine which requests can be automated, and thus we will continue to reduce the number of “tickets” that reach our Service Desk, thereby increasing the satisfaction of the end user and reducing the workload of the IT technicians. In order to apply this method, in addition to checking on Internet with Google (there is abundant documentation out there), I also recommend that you take a look at Gartner’s toolkit “Categorize IT Service Desk Interactions to Eliminate, Automate or Leverage”, which, although it does not reinvent the wheel, is nevertheless a good place to start. Moreover, if you would like to read a little bit more about this method, then you can also consult our post on Service Desk y EAL Model.

Of course, I have not given you any magic solution there either, but sometimes small, obvious tasks, arranged to be handled in a reasonable sequence, can be more than sufficient to make us open our eyes and get things rolling.

I hope that you have enjoyed this, and farewell

Jandro Castro

SACM (Service Asset and Configuration Management)