BusinessForward

By: Ryan Mulvaney, Solutions Architect and Client Executive

Wouldn’t it be great if CIOs used Service Level Agreements (SLAs) as more than a contract with the business? Allotting more thought to their creation and focusing on integration with their organization’s DNA would make for a nice, built-in performance tool. Though it really is a matter of process development and documentation, busy internal technology organizations have a tendency to give the SLA frighteningly less attention than it deserves.

A common mistake many managers make is their failure to recognize that a Service Level Agreement is much more than a service contract between an organization and its customers. In reality, it’s a powerful operational performance metric. If utilized correctly, a well-written SLA can help your technology team improve customer service while lowering costs.

Along with Key Volume Indicators and other Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), SLAs can also be used to help identify opportunities for improvement in your organization, processes and technology.

Think of it this way: If a technology manager operates his/her organization with a focus on meeting SLAs, the team may find a work-around to simply meet them. Expectations won’t be exceeded and professional growth may be stilted. But if a manager utilizes an approach focused on maximizing productivity and efficiency, as they would any other operational tool, the SLAs will naturally be met and challenge people to do better.

Service Level Agreements Set an Example

The value of creating visibility and setting expectations for your customers comes later in the lifecycle of an SLA. In my experience with both global and local corporations, it’s smarter to implement SLAs internally before publishing to your customer base. This will give your organization the opportunity to assess and improve on its level of productivity. Once you are confident in your ability to meet the SLAs, you then need to work with your customers to set expectations. Like many things in life, it’s best to avoid the “do as we say, not as we do” mentality.

Even after SLAs are implemented, there should remain a focus on monitoring and managing them on a scheduled basis. When the SLA is given an operational role, it becomes an excellent tool for managers to keep their fingers on the pulse of the business. Opportunities for continual improvement become part of the landscape for the team too.

It’s really a matter of respecting the SLA for all that it can do for your organization.

Ryan Mulvaney is a Solutions Architect and Client Executive with BusinessForward. He leads consulting delivery for our customers in the retail, financial services, consumer packaged goods and manufacturing industries among others. Contact him today  to talk about your need for process improvement between your technology organization and the business.