SERVICE DESK

ESSENTIAL HANDBOOK

Contains the full Global Best Practice Standard for Service Desk, Version 8.
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CONTENTS

About The Service Desk Institute 2

Foreword 2

The SDI Global Best Practice Standard for Service Desk 3-5

Introduction to Service Desk Certification 6

How to use this Handbook 7

The Formal Best Practice Standard Version 8.0 8

Concept 1 - Leadership 9-13

Concept 2 - Policy and Strategy 14-18
Concept 3 - People Management 18-24
Concept 4 – Resources 25-33
Concept 5 - Processes and Procedures 34-47
Concept 6 - Managing Employee Satisfaction 48-52
Concept 7 - Managing the Customer Experience 52-56
Concept 8 - Management Information and Performance Results 57-82
Concept 9 – Corporate Social Responsibility 83-86

Benefits of Service Desk Certification 87

The SDC Audit Process 87-88

ABOUT THE SERVICE DESK INSTITUTE

SDI MISSION

'Inspire service desks to be brilliant'

To support and achieve our mission, we encourage organizations to:

Embrace: To raise the quality of service delivery by valuing best practice

Engage: To create an inspiring and engaging customer experience
Invest: To empower their teams to be inspired, take action and be better
Shine: To demonstrate and deliver exceptional business value

The Service Desk Institute (SDI) has been connecting IT service professionals across the world
since 1988 and is the leading global community for everyone working in the IT service and support
industry. With a passion for providing industry best practice and sharing knowledge, SDI has
dedicated the last 30 years to guiding, inspiring and connecting ITSM and service desk
communities. A respected, trusted and independent advisor to the service desk industry, SDI has
inspired thousands of organizations and professionals around the world to embark on their own
journeys of service improvement and to be the best they can possibly be.

FOREWORD

This guide is aimed at a broad range of IT service and support professionals, ranging from experts
in IT service provision, to those who are looking for a suitable approach to continual improvement.

The goal of this handbook is to provide an easy to read document which explains the essential
elements that make up an excellent service delivery and IT operation.

It starts with an introduction to The Global Best Practice Standard for Service Desk (Best Practice
Standard) and Service Desk Certification (SDC). This is followed by a brief outline of the latest
update of The Best Practice Standard; Version 8 and guidance on how to use this Essential
Handbook.

Pages 9-86 detail the formal Best Practice Standard Version 8.0 along with the maturity level
descriptions for each of the 138 criteria. Based on existing international quality reference models
such as the EFQM Excellence Model and ISO/IEC 20000, this Best Practice Standard provides a
means to assess a service desk’s maturity in order to improve effectiveness and efficiency and
demonstrate its value to the organization and customers.

2
THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

The Global Best Practice Standard for Service Desk provides a set of clear and measurable
benchmarks for every IT service desk operation; some of which are not found within other
frameworks and standards such as ITIL or ISO/IEC 20000.

The Best Practice Standard is a valuable tool which enables you to map your own improvement
journey. By benchmarking your service against the criteria in each of the nine concepts, you
can give your service a baseline from which to measure future improvements or changes.

The nine concepts in the Best Practice Standard are:

1. Leadership

2. Policy and Strategy

3. People Management

4. Resources

5. Processes and Procedures

6. Managing Employee Satisfaction

7. Managing the Customer Experience

8. Management Information and Performance Results

9. Corporate Social Responsibility

An international committee comprising industry experts, service management professionals and

practitioners review the Best Practice Standard every three years to ensure that it aligns with the
latest demands and developments in the ITSM industry.

The Best Practice Standard also forms the basis of SDI’s Service Desk Certification (SDC). An
internationally recognised accreditation programme used globally to improve service delivery and
certify a service desk’s maturity level.

3
GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK
Leadership Resources
1.1 Alignment with business outcomes 4.1 Capacity, performance and reliability
of the supported organization(s) 4.2 Distribution of channel contacts
1.2 Service desk influence 4.3 Workforce management
1.3 Collaboration 4.4 IT service management (ITSM) toolset
1.4 Promoting teamwork 4.5 IT service management system
1.5 Promoting the service desk utilization
4.6 Remote support
1.6 Service performance transparency
4.7 Integrated systems of support
1.7 Driving continual improvement
4.8 Supported systems
1.8 Customer-centricity
4.9 Tools and collaboration
1.9 Service desk scope
4.10 Measurement and reporting tools
1.10 Leadership skills 4.11 Knowledge management
4.12 Self-service
Policy and Strategy 4.13 Service catalog
4.14 Supplier management
2.1 Vision 4.15 Optimization and automation
2.2 Mission
2.3 Service desk strategy, critical
success factors (CSFs) and key Processes and Procedures
performance indicators (KPIs) 5.1 Governance of processes and
2.4 Strategic planning procedures
2.5 Relationship management 5.2 Risk management
2.6 Financial management 5.3 Service level management (SLM)
2.7 Information security management 5.4 Managing feedback
2.8 Strategic value of the service desk 5.5 Incident management
2.9 Project methodology 5.6 Service request management
5.7 Incident and service request logging
People Management 5.8 Status assignment
3.1 Role profiles 5.9 Service level monitoring
3.2 Recruitment 5.10 Incident and service request closure
3.3 Onboarding 5.11 Interaction quality monitoring
3.4 Skills program 5.12 Monitoring and event management
3.5 Career development program 5.13 Problem management
3.6 Personal performance reviews 5.14 Change control
3.7 Talent management 5.15 Release and deployment
3.8 Remuneration management
3.9 Informal reward and 5.16 Service transition
recognition 5.17 IT asset and service configuration
3.10 Absence management
3.11 Leadership competencies 5.18 Service catalog management
3.12 Communication 5.19 IT service continuity management
5.20 Information security management
5.21 Supplier management
5.22 Continual improvement
5.23 Modernization and transformation
 Managing Employee Management Information and Performance Results
Satisfaction
8.1 Business related metrics
6.1 Employee satisfaction 8.2 Reporting activities
monitoring program 8.3 Target alignment
6.2 Skills and capabilities 8.4 Number of incidents
6.3 Training plans 8.5 Number of service requests
6.4 Staff morale 8.6 Average time to respond to an inbound enquiry
6.5 Employee engagement 8.7 Average time to respond to assigned incidents
6.6 Career development 8.8 Average time to respond to assigned service requests
opportunities 8.9 Abandon rate
6.7 Employee feedback 8.10 Average time taken to resolve incidents that are not resolved
6.8 Positive team culture on first contact
6.9 Team meetings 8.11 Average time taken to fulfill requests that are not fulfillled
on first contact
Managing the Customer 8 12 First contact incident resolution rate
Experience 8.13 First contact request fulfillment rate
8.14 First level incident resolution rate
7.1 Customer experience program
8.15 First level request fulfillment rate
7.2 Capturing customer feedback
8.16 Re-opened incident rate
7.3 Analyzing customer feedback
8.17 Re-opened service request rate
7.4 Customer feedback
8.18 Incident backlog management
management
8.19 Service request backlog management
7.5 Relationship management
8.20 Percentage of hierarchic escalations
7.6 Customer profiling
8.21 Percentage of functional escalations
7.7 Customer engagement
8.22 Number of reassignments
7.8 Service design
8.23 Average incident resolution time by priority
Corporate Social Responsibility 8.24 Average request fulfillment time by priority
8.25 Average resolution time by incident category
9.1 Community engagement and 8.26 Average fulfillment time by service request type
charitable activities 8.27 Comparison of service level targets to performance
9.2 Environmental protection 8.28 Service desk knowledge usage
9.3 Health and safety 8.29 Customer-facing knowledge usage
9.4 Professionalism and ethics 8.30 Service desk knowledge quality and effectiveness
9.5 Mental health and emotional 8.31 Customer-facing knowledge quality and effectiveness
wellbeing 8.32 Self-service monitoring measured against target
9.6 Flexible working practices 8.33 Monitoring incidents caused by changes measured
9.7 Physical environment and against target
ergonomics 8.34 Total cost of service delivery
9.8 Diversity and inclusion 8.35 Average cost per incident by channel
8.36 Average cost per service request by channel
8.37 Employee satisfaction feedback
8.38 Employee turnover
8.39 Unplanned absence days
8.40 Periodic customer satisfaction measurement
8.41 Event-based customer satisfaction measurement
8.42 Complaints, suggestions and compliments
8.43 Problem records created through proactive problem
management
8.44 Incident reduction through problem management
INTRODUCTION TO SERVICE DESK CERTIFICATION

The performance of a service desk is a reliable indicator of the overall health of an organization’s IT
provision. By achieving Service Desk Certification, an organization demonstrates to both its
customers and competitors that its support operation is truly dedicated to best practice.

SDI’s Service Desk Certification (SDC) programme is the only industry, standard based
accreditation programme designed specifically to certify service desk quality.
The level of Certification that an organization achieves depends on the level of excellence and
maturity that the service and support operation reaches according to SDI’s Global Best Practice
Standard for Service Desk.

Each service desk in the SDC programme is audited against all 138 criteria in the Best Practice
Standard and assessed for compliance before being given an overall score. The audit is a full review
of an entire service desk operation using interviews, desk-side observations and a review of service
level metrics. Evidence based material is required prior to the audit to confirm the service desk
conforms to the Best Practice Standard. If rated at a ‘Proactive’ level or above, Service Desk
Certification and a star rating will be awarded.

The SDC Star rating

Reactive

Proactive

Customer– led

Business– led

World Class

Following the SDC Audit, the service desk management are provided with a detailed and tailored
road-map for continual improvement. This contains observations, recommendations, suggested
timelines and responsibilities for any new implementations, all designed to bring tangible service
delivery results.

Only organizations using the following logo are officially recognised and approved to deliver the
SDC audit programme. Visit www.servicedeskinstitute.com for a list of approved audit partners.

6
HOW TO USE THIS HANDBOOK

This handbook is your essential guide to a brilliant service desk, according to global ITSM best
practice. It lays out the description and maturity level for all of the 138 criteria from the Best
Practice Standard. From analysts to CIOs, professionals at all levels can use the detail and expert
knowledge in this handbook as a quality reference model for service desks in any industry or
location.

It can be used as a quick-reference guide, or to map your own service improvement journey using
the Best Practice Standard as a framework in its entirety.

Use the Maturity Level Description in each of the 138 criteria to determine which maturity rating
your service is aligned with for each criteria.

This handbook outlines four Maturity Level Descriptions:

1. Reactive
2. Proactive
3. Customer– led
4. Business– led

Each maturity level builds on the previous. So in order to achieve a Business-led rating, you must
fulfill the criteria of all four maturities. To achieve a Customer-led rating, you must fulfill the first
three maturities, and so on.

You should be aiming to continually improve your maturity rating in each criteria. How you do this
depends on the nature of the concept itself, so might involve implementing new ways of working,
adopting new practices, technologies or increasing communication with stakeholders.

Essentially this handbook enables you to review all aspects of your service, will introduce some new
concepts and will help you identify certain inefficiencies, to highlight potential improvement
opportunities.

SDI is a specialist in service improvement. With over 30 years’ experience supporting service desks
in a diverse range of industries across the globe, we know how to help you transform your service.
Whether you choose the Service Desk Certification route, use the Best Practice Standard for self-
guided continual improvement or opt for one of our flexible service improvement plans, you’ll see
tangible results and experience the advantages of having support from the experts.

Visit www.servicedeskinstitute.com for more information.

7
THE FORMAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD VERSION 8.0

The Global Best Practice Standard for Service Desk represents industry consensus on quality
standards for service desk management and a commitment to continual improvement.

First introduced in 2000, the SDI Global Best Practice Standard for Service Desk was designed to
improve the effectiveness of IT service and support operations. It has now evolved into an
internationally accepted framework and reference model for service desk quality and is the basis
of SDI’s Service Desk Certification programme.

The landscape of service management is changing all the time. We know this simply by looking at
the number of ITSM philosophies that exist, many of which have been, or are being updated to
cater for this consistent change. Advancements in technology, changes in demand and shifts in
user expectations all contribute to an ever-evolving service management landscape.

The full Best Practice Standard covering all nine concepts can be found on the pages that follow.
This Standard is the definitive reference guide for any service desk looking at how and where to
improve service levels.

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THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 1 – Leadership
All levels of leadership and other staff in management roles inspire and drive continual improvement.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
1.1 Alignment with business outcomes of the supported organization(s)

Service desk leadership ensure that service desk staff understand the relationship between support
services and the business of the supported organization.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk leadership can articulate the business of the supported
organization(s).

Proactive Service desk leadership cascades its understanding of the supported

organization(s) business to service desk staff.

Customer-led Service desk leadership ensures that the services offered by the service desk
are designed to support the success of its customers.

Business- led Service desk leadership act as trusted business partners and enablers through
established links with the supported organization(s) in order to understand its
evolving requirements.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

1.2 Service desk influence

Service desk leadership promotes a broad level of understanding of the role of IT service management
across the organization.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk leadership displays understanding of how the service desk
interacts with other IT departments and practices.

Proactive The service desk team proactively engages and communicates with the
organization.

Customer-led The service desk team collaborates with other IT teams and has influence across
the organization.

Business- led The service desk has an integral role in the IT decision making process.

9
1.3 Collaboration

All levels of IT leadership encourage a collaborative culture, and shared objectives are defined across the
IT organization in order to optimize contributions from stakeholders and achieve successful business
outcomes.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are informal meetings to discuss how teams should work together.

Proactive Teams are formed to help drive collaboration within the IT organization. Some
shared objectives are defined along with a basic plan for how to achieve them.

Customer-led Shared objectives are agreed, and the roles required and measures for success
are clearly defined. Teams work together openly, honestly and effectively and
understand the benefits of cooperative working.

Business-led Effective relationships are cultivated in the IT organization to create a culture

that supports the organization's strategy and drives continual improvement.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

1.4 Promoting teamwork

All levels of IT leadership actively promote and participate in team building activities and advocate team
work throughout the IT support operation.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are organized and regularly scheduled team activities to promote and
encourage service desk teamwork.

Proactive There are defined procedures and training objectives in place to encourage
teamwork in the IT organization.

Customer-led The success of team-based effort is defined, recognized and measured across
the IT organization.

Business-led The results of team-based efforts are successfully fed into documented
continual improvement initiatives.

10
1.5 Promoting the service desk

All levels of IT leadership effectively raise the visibility of the service desk throughout the organization
and promote it as a valued business partner.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive All levels of IT leadership encourage appropriate use of the service desk across
support groups and by personal example.

Proactive All levels of IT leadership recognize and articulate the value of the service desk
function to the organization.

Customer-led The service desk proactively involves itself with other departments in the
organization and promotes its role and value.

Business-led The service desk can influence and participate in activities intended to improve
the overall business performance of the organization.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

1.6 Service performance transparency

Service desk leadership actively promotes a culture of transparency by distributing service performance
data and other support related information in order to deliver business value.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk performance is measured against service level agreements or

agreed and documented service targets at least monthly.

Proactive Performance results reports are readily available to service desk staff and other
IT groups.

Customer-led Service desk leadership regularly provides information that gives direction to the
service desk team and other support groups about service performance.

Business-led Stakeholders have access to timely, meaningful and relevant service

performance information that can be used to make business decisions.

11
1.7 Driving continual improvement

Service desk leadership inspires staff to suggest ideas that lead to continual improvements that drive
successful business outcomes.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk leadership has an ad hoc approach to continual improvement.

Proactive Service desk leadership engage staff in formal continual improvement initiatives.

Customer-led There are regular cross-functional collaboration opportunities for service desk
staff to contribute to continual improvement initiatives.

Business-led Service desk staff are empowered to initiate, test and drive continual
improvement activities and to influence other areas of the organization.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

1.8 Customer -centricity

Service desk leadership actively encourages customer-centric behaviors and has processes in place in
order to satisfy organizational demand and customer experience.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk leadership actively engages with customers.

Proactive Processes are in place to ensure that service desk interactions are customer
focused.

Customer-led Customer-centricity is culturally embedded in day-to-day service desk

operations.

Business-led The organization has invested in a comprehensive customer experience

program that incorporates continual improvement.

12
1.9 Service desk scope

Service desk leadership ensures that the service desk practice is understood, engaged and involved as
part of a wider service value stream.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk leadership are consulted on input to the creation of new services
and products.

Proactive Service desk contribute to the creation and delivery of support services to the
organization.

Customer-led Service desk are recognized as a key contributor to the creation, delivery and
support of services and products.

Business-led Service desk use support and delivery data as input to the demand for new and
upgraded products and services.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

1.10 Leadership skills

The structured leadership training program includes a progressive approach to enabling modern
leaders and promotes inclusive, holistic, values-based leadership.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a clear distinction between the skills required for effective management
and effective leadership. The structured leadership training program
incorporates defined leadership skills in the form of competencies.

Proactive The structured leadership training program provides a progressive approach to

skills development and incorporates modern leadership concepts.

Customer-led Potential leaders are identified in the organization based on the leadership skills
definition. Leadership traits are assessed as part of succession planning activity.
Leadership skills are regularly reviewed for the purpose of continual
improvement.

Business-led Leadership skills development supports the creation of the desired

organizational culture and meaningful purpose for individuals and teams.
Leaders demonstrate positive influence over how their colleagues think, behave,
react, collaborate and realize potential.

13
THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 2 – Policy and Strategy

Service desk leadership incorporates the organization's values and quality concepts into the definition,
communication, review and improvement of service desk policies and strategies.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
2.1 Vision

The service desk reflects the organization's vision in its strategic plans and cascades it to service desk
staff.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff understand the organization's vision.

Proactive The service desk's vison is aligned with the IT organization's vision.

Customer-led The service desk's strategic plans are aligned with the organization's vision.

Business-led The service desk aligns continual improvement activities to the organization's
vision.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

2.2 Mission

The service desk's mission is aligned with the organization's vision and reflects both the service desk's
role and its value contribution to the organization's success.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff understand the organization's mission.

Proactive The service desk team is involved in documenting a memorable mission

statement that is aligned with the organization’s mission and there is a
procedure to review periodically.

Customer-led The service desk’s mission is promoted and communicated to the organization
on a periodic basis.

Business-led The service desk’s mission is embedded in the culture of the organization.

14
2.3 Service desk strategy, critical success factors (CSFs) and key performance indicators (KPIs)

The service desk has a defined strategy intrinsically linked to the organization's strategy. CSFs have been
created and underpinned by KPIs that enable measurement of strategic performance in order to ensure
successful business outcomes.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a defined strategy that supports both the vision and the
mission and underpins the organization's overall strategy.

Proactive CSFs have been defined. These CSFs are clearly aligned to the service desk
strategy and are underpinned by KPIs. The KPIs are communicated and
understood by all members of the service desk team.

Customer-led The service desk's strategy, CSFs and KPIs are incorporated and linked to the
strategy of the organization. They are regularly reviewed and updated
accordingly with stakeholders, in line with the overall organizational strategy.

Business-led Business outcomes and value are delivered, which are marketed and
communicated to all levels of the organization.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

2.4 Strategic planning

There are strategic plans and supporting operational plans in place designed to meet the service desk's
strategic objectives and achieve successful business outcomes.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a documented operational plan in place that is aligned to the service
desk strategy.

Proactive The service desk's operational plans describe all elements required to
successfully execute the service desk strategy.

Customer-led The service desk's operational plan is aligned and integrated with the
organization's strategic plans. The service desk’s operational plan is regularly
reviewed and updated with stakeholder input to support the changing needs
of the organization.

Business-led The service desk's operational plan ensures the delivery of the overall service
desk strategy, CSFs and KPIs to deliver business value.

15
2.5 Relationship management

Relationship management ensures that value is delivered to the organization in line with demand by
managing relationships with stakeholders at all levels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk is tasked to identify key stakeholders across the organization
and to contribute to relationship management activities.

Proactive There is a documented policy with clearly defined roles and responsibilities to
identify stakeholders and solicit their input to strategic and operational plans.

Customer-led Regular, documented stakeholder reviews take place to ensure the strategy is
aligned to the organization and delivering against the plan.

Business-led Relationship management successfully feeds into service design and continual
improvement activities to ensure that business value is delivered.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

2.6 Financial management

Service desk leadership demonstrates a clear understanding of the link between service desk
requirements, budgeting, staffing levels, technology and facilities and understands the financial
performance results of both the service desk and the IT organization.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a defined budget for the IT organization.

Proactive The service desk has an allocated budget. The budget is regularly reviewed and
updated and periodically reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led Service desk leadership have influence over allocation of the budget.

Business-led Service desk leadership utilizes financial and performance metrics to calculate
overall return on investment. The budget is aligned to required business
outcomes and drives business value.

16
2.7 Information security management

There is a security policy in place that identifies the service desk's role in the information security
process to ensure confidentiality, integrity and availability in order to encourage compliance and
mitigate business risk.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff are aware of the organization’s security management
policies.

Proactive The service desk proactively educates users about security matters in order to
prevent breaches in security.

Customer-led Service desk staff participate in the monitoring and logging of security
breaches to aid security breach detection.

Business-led The service desk contributes to the correction of security risks and security
management improvement initiatives. Its security priorities and actions are
integrated with organization at all levels.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

2.8 Strategic value of the service desk

The service desk is an influential contributor to the organization at operational levels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk can influence operational decisions.

Proactive The service desk can contribute ideas at a strategic level.

Customer-led The service desk is involved at a strategic level in relation to decisions and
investments that affect products and services.

Business-led The service desk is an integral part of the organization's decision-making

process and is fundamental to driving strategic thinking and business
transformation across the value stream.

17
2.9 Project methodology

The service desk employs several methodologies and ways of working for project management.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Project management is informal and reactive.

Proactive There is a defined methodology in place for project management.

Customer-led Project management is consistently applied across the IT organization.

Stakeholders are involved in developing business cases.

Business-led The service desk uses the appropriate methodology for projects including
waterfall and agile approaches depending on the project needs and right value
fit. Projects are aligned with continual improvement activities and prioritized
accordingly.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 3 – People Management

Service desk leadership supports and enables staff to realize their full potential.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

3.1 Role profiles

There are role profiles for all positions within the service desk that accurately describe the
responsibilities and competencies required to successfully fulfill the roles.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Job descriptions are documented for all service desk positions.

Proactive There are role profiles that accurately describe the responsibilities and
competencies for all service desk positions and that define the deliverables
and outcomes required.

Customer-led Role profiles are specifically referred to during performance reviews and 1-to-
1s and are reviewed and revised as necessary.

Business-led Organizational values and beliefs are incorporated in the role profiles.
Responsibilities and accountabilities are aligned with the organizational goals.

18
3.2 Recruitment

There is a structured recruitment process in place designed to attract the right talent and to increase
efficiencies in hiring and retention.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive People engaged in the recruitment process receive appropriate training and
vacancies are evaluated.

Proactive A cross-section of people across different teams are invited to be involved in

recruitment processes.

Customer-led There is a structured and documented recruitment process which considers

the recruitment experience of the candidate.

Business-led Interview questions are aligned to the organizational values and the
recruitment process aims to limit the influence of individual characteristics and
preferences.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

3.3 Onboarding

There is a structured onboarding process to ensure that new staff feel valued and part of the business,
understand company culture and become efficient and effective as soon as possible.

Reactive There is a basic induction or onboarding process in place which includes a

buddy system.

Proactive Onboarding objectives incorporate training, culture, security and exposure to

the wider organization. Timescale milestones are identified. Regular formal
reviews are conducted to assess progress against required outcomes.

Customer-led The effectiveness of the induction program is monitored, measured, and

informs operational decisions.

Business-led The induction program incorporates 360 reviews which evaluate the employee
and employer and feeds into continual improvement initiatives.

19
3.4 Skills program

There is a coordinated approach to ensure that people have the skills to perform their defined roles.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is an informal approach to skills development for each defined role and
for each member of staff.

Proactive A defined and documented skills development program exists which is

regularly reviewed and updated.

Customer-led There are service desk staff skills and competency matrices in place aligned to
business outcomes. Gap analysis activities take place to assess training
requirements.

Business-led Competencies required to support future business requirements are included

in the skills program.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

3.5 Career development program

There are career development programs in place to ensure that staff achieve their full potential and to
increase job satisfaction.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is an informal approach to career development for each member of the
service desk team.

Proactive A defined and documented career development program exists which is

regularly reviewed and updated.

Customer-led The career development programs in place for all service desk staff are aligned
to business outcomes. They are reviewed at least annually and updated in
order to match the competencies of existing staff to current business
requirements.

Business-led Career development programs include provisions for the future requirements
of the organization.

20
3.6 Personal performance reviews

There are agreed objectives in place for service desk staff that align with the objectives of the service
desk and the organization.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a performance review program in place.

Proactive The performance review program is documented and KPI criteria are linked to
service desk and organizational objectives. Reviews are conducted annually.
People engaged in the program receive appropriate training. Service desk staff
input to and agree objectives and areas for improvements are identified.

Customer-led Service desk management give regular feedback to service desk staff between
formal performance review meetings.

Business-led Feedback from personal performance reviews is integrated into continual

improvement initiatives and is used to support both the organizational and
operational strategy.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

3.7 Talent management

There is a talent management program in place to identify, attract, develop, retain, manage and evaluate
service desk staff.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive A talent management program is documented and there are processes in

place to support it.

Proactive The talent management program is aligned with business strategy, supports
skills diversity, and incorporates succession planning.

Customer-led Managers are trained to follow practices that underpin the talent management
program. There are opportunities for all staff and for longstanding employees
who have varied job experience.

Business-led Talent management supports business outcomes. This results in increased

productivity, improved performance, lower staff turnover and reduced
recruitment costs.

21
3.8 Remuneration

There is a fair and equitable remuneration package in place that focuses on improving staff productivity,
satisfaction, development and retention.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff remuneration is reviewed informally.

Proactive A formal remuneration package is documented and compared to similar

positions within the same industry sector and geographic area.

Customer-led Management regularly reviews the impact of the program and makes
adjustments and improvements based on the results.

Business-led The remuneration package rewards service desk staff for achieving personal,
team and organizational objectives.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

3.9 Informal reward and recognition

An informal reward and recognition scheme for service desk staff is in place in order to actively
encourage desired behaviors.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is an informal service desk reward and recognition scheme for
individuals and teams.

Proactive Staff are empowered to participate in the development and maintenance of

the informal reward and recognition scheme.

Customer-led Service desk management periodically reviews the impact of the informal
reward and recognition scheme.

Business-led Adjustments and improvements are made based on the outcomes and are fed
into continual improvement initiatives.

22
3.10 Absence

Service desk management monitors and measures employee absence.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a procedure in place for measuring and monitoring unplanned

absence.

Proactive Back to work interviews are conducted after unplanned absence.

Customer-led A trend analysis of unplanned absence is regularly performed and the impact
on the team is managed.

Business-led The impact of absence is managed with the wellbeing of all employees
considered.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

3.11 Leadership competencies

There is a program in place to develop service desk leadership attributes, skills, knowledge and desired
behaviors.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The leadership training available to service desk management is aligned to role
profiles.

Proactive There is a structured leadership training program in place for developing

individuals. It has a set of core competencies, a well-defined curriculum and is
supported by senior management. It is regularly evaluated and reviewed to
ensure that it is meeting objectives.

Customer-led The leadership program focuses on developing the organization and culture-
setting. Content is aligned with business strategy and senior management
participates in the program.

Business-led Senior management is fully engaged in the leadership program and applies
leadership competencies to successfully execute strategy. Talent management
is integrated, and a learning and leadership culture is embedded in the
organization.

23
3.12 Communication

The organization promotes positive communication across teams and individuals, using tools and
techniques that help to improve the understanding of different communication styles and behaviors.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff are encouraged to be aware of different communication

styles, diverse interests, and culture when interacting with stakeholders.

Proactive Structured sessions are held to identify and develop awareness of

communication styles, within and across teams, using known tools and
techniques.

Customer-led The service desk has developed working methods and training for staff to use
different communications techniques in response to diverse customer styles
and behaviors, and in varied business situations.

Business-led The organization has a structured and coordinated approach to managing

positive communications for all staff and stakeholders. This uses proven
techniques to develop, manage and monitor positive interactions between
people and to help improve communication skills.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

24
THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 4 – Resources
The service desk has access to the resources and tools necessary for staff to achieve objectives.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

4.1 Capacity, performance and reliability

There is appropriate functionality, capacity, technical performance management and reliability in the
infrastructure that allows support tools and related services to be effective.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The infrastructure is reliable and unplanned interruptions are minimized.

Proactive The service desk, or its support partners, captures performance data relating
to the infrastructure components in order to identify capacity, performance
and reliability issues and reports the metrics to stakeholders.

Customer-led Capacity, performance and reliability metrics are used to assess, plan and
implement continual improvements to the infrastructure.

Business-led There is a strategic roadmap in place with internal and external suppliers to
integrate and optimize supporting technologies

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

25
4.2 Distribution of channel contacts

There is a system in place to efficiently distribute incoming interactions from all supported channels of
communication to ensure that incidents and service requests are delivered to analysts quickly and
appropriately.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process for appropriately distributing incoming interactions to the

service desk from all supported channels.

Proactive All interactions across the supported channels are routed to the service desk
correctly and fairly. Interactions are monitored, identifying volumes and
response times.

Customer-led Some channels are integrated to ensure that the preferred contact method of
the customer is available.

Business-led All channels are integrated, managed, and monitored, to provide an optimized
channel mix, for all interactions and the channel data is provided to customers
highlighting the value of each channel.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

26
4.3 Workforce management

The types and levels of resources deployed within the service desk are designed to meet the
requirements of the services it is contracted to provide, and the workforce management method or
model used supports continual improvement initiatives and drives business value.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Workforce resourcing levels are managed using a formal method or model that
considers service desk workloads, including the number of incidents and
service requests received, and the work-time involved to manage their lifecycle
to meet service level obligations.

Proactive The formal workforce management method or model is documented, owned

and considers the agreed service levels it is contracted to deliver.

Customer-led The formal workforce management model accounts for fluctuating or seasonal
workloads. Workforce management activity provides data that is used to
monitor performance, anticipate current or future workloads, develop long-
term workforce management strategies and contributes to continual
improvement initiatives.

Business-led Workforce resourcing is orchestrated and blended between human and non-
human capabilities that are continually assessed, amended and automated, to
maintain a continually optimized service.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

4.4 IT service management (ITSM) toolset

There is a toolset in place that supports the ITSM processes required to support products and services
to deliver the strategic objectives of the organization.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a basic logging and tracking system in place for managing work across
the service organization.

Proactive The ITSM toolset in use is utilized effectively to manage work with consistency
and accountability.

Customer-led The ITSM toolset is used to support key ITSM processes and practices used by
the organization.

Business-led The ITSM toolset is optimized and integrated to drive continual improvement
initiatives that deliver tangible business value.

27
4.5 IT service management system utilization

The ITSM toolset in place is an enabler of the planning, delivery and support of the products and
services provided to customers.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The ITSM toolset is used by the service desk for basic logging and tracking
purposes.

Proactive All support groups utilize the same ITSM toolset as their primary tool for
tracking work and key ITSM processes.

Customer-led The ITSM toolset is used across the whole service organization and its user
community, for advanced integrated functionality, using a variety of channels.

Business-led The ITSM toolset is integrated with additional optimization or automation tools
and practices, to support digital innovation and transformation.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

4.6 Remote support

The service desk has a remote support tool strategy in place to quickly interact, diagnose, and resolve
issues.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has implemented a tool to provide analysts with access to
users' devices in order to aid diagnosis and resolution.

Proactive The remote support tool is completely integrated with the support processes
used by the service desk. These tools provide support capabilities to mobile
and off-site devices.

Customer-led Integration between the ITSM tools provides the capability to generate
incidents and service requests automatically. Interactions and actions are
captured by the ITSM system for performance monitoring.

Business-led The remote support tools are fully integrated and aligned with business
objectives.

28
4.7 Integrated systems of support

The systems of support are integrated in order to provide strategic advantage e.g. improved efficiency,
accuracy and capabilities.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The systems have the functionality to import data from other systems.

Proactive Communication with support staff and customers occurs automatically.

Customer-led Integrated tools are accessible to support staff from multiple access points.

Business-led Integration across systems is seamless and adaptive. Regular reviews occur to
identify areas for improvement with the functionality and efficiency of the
systems.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

4.8 Supported systems

The supported IT systems have active support agreements in place with vendors. They are regularly
maintained, and their purpose is understood.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk understands the role and criticality of each supported system
within the organization and there is basic event management in operation.

Proactive A central repository exists detailing the supported systems, their roles and
their criticality, the support agreements in place with vendors and responsible
resolver groups.

Customer-led The reliability of each supported system is regularly reviewed and the service
desk contribute toward continual improvement activities.

Business-led There is a consistent, collaborative approach to systems refreshes with a focus

on cost effectiveness, productivity and reliability.

29
4.9 Tools and collaboration

There is a system in place that supports an agile and socialized approach to inter-team and
cross-practice collaboration and sharing.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is an awareness of social collaboration tools and how they can support
real time inter-team and cross practice collaboration and sharing.

Proactive A social collaboration tool is in place and is used to communicate and share in
real-time. All support groups utilize the same central social collaboration
platform for real-time communication.

Customer-led There are defined, documented and owned social collaboration processes,
workflows, goals, objectives, policies, guidelines and performance metrics in
place. The social collaboration platform is customer centric, culturally accepted,
adoptive and integrated in day to day support activity. Social collaboration has
demonstrably created business agility.

Business-led The social collaboration platform is adaptive, continually evolved and aligned
with business strategy, supporting the delivery of desired business outcomes
and tangible business value. Ongoing social collaboration evaluation
contributes to continual improvement initiatives.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

4.10 Measurement and reporting tools

Reporting and analysis tools are used to monitor and manage the activity of service desk operations in
order to optimize quality and performance.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Basic reporting tools exist to provide operational data.

Proactive Reporting tools provide real-time and historical data.

Customer-led Reporting tools are flexible and easy to use and show progress in performance
and quality improvement by comparing results to a target or baseline.

Business-led Reporting tools are consolidated across the IT organization and the content is
regularly analyzed to drive continual improvement initiatives.

30
4.11 Knowledge management

There are systems and methods in place to capture, record, and share knowledge in order to answer
common questions, search for known errors, and to improve service to users.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive A knowledge management system or process is in place. It is easily accessible

for service desk staff to use and update.

Proactive The knowledge management process is integrated into standard processes

and is culturally accepted by all support levels.

Customer-led Knowledge is viewed as a significant support asset and its use and quality are
constantly tracked and monitored.

Business-led Knowledge is used to facilitate collaboration and communication across all

stakeholders. There is a formal repository that integrates all knowledge into a
service-based structure.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

4.12 Self-service

There is a self-service portal in place that gives users access to knowledge, log incidents, log service
requests and resolve issues without assistance.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Users can access answers to basic support questions, and log incidents and
service requests and check their status.

Proactive Users can resolve common issues without assistance using automated
remediation.

Customer-led Self-service effectiveness and usage are regularly reviewed, and the benefits of
self-service are actively promoted to the organization.

Business-led Self-service has delivered value as defined by the organization.

31
4.13 Service catalog

The service desk supports the services contained in a service catalog. The services are defined and
agreed with its customers.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive A structure of services is defined, agreed and published to customers for

reference purposes.

Proactive The service catalog is presented through an integrated, actionable and current
portal to allow users to request services. The portal is regularly reviewed and
maintained.

Customer-led The service catalog is presented using multiple views as appropriate to

different stakeholder groups.

Business-led The service catalog provides a framework for value-based reporting.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

4.14 Supplier management

Supplier management is in place to support the supplier delivery mechanism.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff have knowledge of supplier relationships and visibility of the
contracted service levels.

Proactive Service desk staff are involved in regular supplier management reviews and
actions are minuted and distributed appropriately.

Customer-led Service targets or underpinning contracts are in place to support the

relationship between the service desk and its suppliers.

Business-led Suppliers are invited to take part in service delivery improvement plans.

32
4.15 Optimization and automation

The service desk can demonstrate automation and optimization project effectiveness.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Automation to address specific pain areas, reactive in nature utilizing several
platforms and tools has been evaluated and adopted.

Proactive Automation targets are defined with specific metrics. There is a documented
continual improvement roadmap.

Customer-led The continual improvement roadmap is integrated with business automation

projects. Automation is embedded within the culture across the organization.

Business-led Automation is adaptive and includes self-learning, self-healing, machine

learning and artificial intelligence. The effectiveness of automation is routinely
reviewed with stakeholder input.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

33
THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 5 – Processes and Procedures

The IT support organization identifies, reviews, documents and revises its processes and procedures in
order to deliver optimal levels of support.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.1 Governance of processes and procedures

Processes and procedures are defined to support the overall objectives of the organization. They are
continually monitored to ensure compliance, and to identify improvements that will produce better
performance and control.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Process and procedure issues are addressed on a case-by-case basis.

Proactive All processes and procedures are version controlled.

Customer-led Processes and procedures are service and customer focused and integrated
across IT within an organization-wide methodology and regularly
communicated to stakeholders.

Business-led Processes and procedures are aligned with organizational strategy. They are
quantitatively measured and controlled, and the results support continual
improvement and business strategy development.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

34
5.2 Risk management

The service desk has effective processes in place to identify and mitigate risks in order to improve
strategic planning and drive continual improvement.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Informal risk management activities that relate to the service desk are
undertaken.

Proactive There is a developing or developed awareness of risk and some risk analysis
activities are undertaken. Risk management processes are owned,
documented, routinely and consistently followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led A functional risk framework is implemented and there is clear awareness of

risk outcomes. The value and benefits of risk management are fully
understood.

Business-led Risk management is embedded in the service desk's decision-making

processes and is incorporated into strategic planning and continual
improvement initiatives.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

35
5.3 Service level management (SLM)

The Service Level Management (SLM) process ensures that the organization's structure, culture,
processes and technologies balance business requirements with IT capabilities.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has published service targets for the services it provides
considering targets for service desk performance. Informal SLM processes
align organizational requirements with IT service levels.

Proactive The service desk has Service Level Agreements (SLAs) or agreed and
documented service targets in place based on business objectives. The
process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and
regularly maintained.

Customer-led The service desk has Operational Level Agreements (OLAs) with other resolver
groups and Underpinning Contracts (UCs) with its suppliers that are aligned
with the organization's strategy. Monitoring activities take place regularly which
provide performance data to measure service levels.

Business-led The service level management process demonstrates alignment to the

organization's business objectives. Regular discussions occur with stakeholders
to review service level performance in order to change, enhance or update
SLAs or service targets, OLAs and UCs.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.4 Managing feedback

There is a process in place for managing interactions between the service desk, its users, its support
partners and suppliers.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive A process exists to capture compliments, complaints and recommendations

for improvement from users, support partners and suppliers.

Proactive The process monitors, tracks and reports feedback status to ensure
resolutions are actioned. The process is owned, documented, routinely and
consistently followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led The feedback process includes users, suppliers and other support operations
in feedback resolution activities.

Business-led The process integrates feedback with continual improvement opportunities

and stakeholders are informed about how their feedback was used.

36
5.5 Incident management

A process is in place for managing incidents received from all supported communication channels
throughout their lifecycle.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process for managing incidents from all supported communication
channels which includes prioritization and categorization activities.

Proactive The incident management process is communicated to all stakeholders and it

tracks incidents to completion, supported by the ITSM toolset. The process is
owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed, and regularly
maintained.

Customer-led There are clear processes that support different business situations, using
relevant priority responses, including a major incident management (MIM)
process.

Business-led The efficiency and effectiveness of the incident management process is

periodically measured and areas for continual improvement are identified and
acted upon.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.6 Service request management

A process is in place for managing service requests received from all supported communication
channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process for managing service requests received from all supported
communication channels.

Proactive The process incorporates approval procedures which reflect the organization's
security policy. The process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently
followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led The process is communicated and available to all stakeholders and service
requests are auditable and tracked to completion, supported by the IT service
management toolset.

Business-led Areas for continual improvement are identified and acted upon and
automation exists within service request workflows for approvals.

37
5.7 Incident and service request logging

Procedures are in place for logging and triaging incidents and service requests received from all
supported communication channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are procedures in place for logging, categorizing and prioritizing
incidents and service requests received from all supported communication
channels.

Proactive The information required for logging and triaging is defined and routinely
captured. The procedure is owned, documented, routinely and consistently
followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led All incidents and service requests are captured in an automated environment
that is easy for support teams and other stakeholders to access in order to
reference and verify their status.

Business-led Common and/or repetitively used information is supplied automatically by the

ITSM systems to facilitate fast identification of repetitive issues.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.8 Status Assignment

There are procedures in place for allocating the correct status to incidents and service requests and for
communicating the current status to stakeholders.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are procedures for allocating status levels to incidents and service
requests.

Proactive All incidents and service requests are assigned a status. The procedures are
owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and regularly
maintained.

Customer-led The status assignment procedures ensure that status changes to incidents and
service requests are routinely monitored, updated, and communicated to
stakeholders throughout their lifecycle.

Business-led Status update activity is regularly reviewed for the purpose of continual
improvement.

38
5.9 Service level monitoring

There are procedures in place to ensure that incidents are resolved, and service requests are fulfilled
within the agreed service levels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are procedures in place for monitoring incident resolution and request
fulfillment service levels.

Proactive The procedures are owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed
and regularly maintained.

Customer-led The procedures assign issues to an appropriate person or support group if

additional expertise or authorization is required.

Business-led The procedures ensure that users receive a satisfactory solution within agreed
service levels. Resolution and fulfillment notes are regularly reviewed for the
purpose of continual improvement.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.10 Incident and service request closure

There are procedures in place for closing incidents and service requests received from all supported
communication channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are procedures in place for closing incidents and service requests
received from all supported communication channels.

Proactive All required information is routinely captured in the relevant log records. The
procedures are owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and
regularly maintained.

Customer-led Closure information is available and communicated to stakeholders and the

procedures allow for reopening inappropriately closed records.

Business-led The procedures ensure that user needs and expectations have been met or
that the response is fully understood before closure and there is a mechanism
for stakeholders to provide feedback.

39
5.11 Interaction quality monitoring

There is a quality monitoring process in place that allows service desk management to evaluate the
quality of interactions and all recorded information from all supported communication channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a quality monitoring process in place to monitor the quality of

interactions and all recorded information from all supported communication
channels.

Proactive The process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and
regularly maintained.

Customer-led The quality monitoring process allows for the observation, or recording of
interactions, and the analysis of recorded data. The results of monitoring are
used to determine the education and training requirements for service desk
staff.

Business-led The results of interaction monitoring are included in the performance review
process and are used for continual improvement initiatives.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.12 Monitoring and event management

There is an automated diagnostic process in place to detect events. The process provides proper
notification to the service desk and takes corrective action.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process for detecting interruptions to supported technologies,

services and products.

Proactive When service is interrupted or impacted, the appropriate support group or

tool notifies the service desk. The process is owned, documented, routinely
and consistently followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led The process includes procedures for automatic notification, assignment, and
escalation and for initiating corrections for at least some conditions.

Business-led The process includes procedures to measure, evaluate and improve the
effectiveness of detection and the effectiveness of remediation tools and
procedures.

40
5.13 Problem management

There is a problem management process in place that identifies root causes in order to create
workarounds or eliminate recurring incidents in order to ensure the on-going effectiveness and
efficiency of the IT support operation, minimize negative business impact and deliver business value.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The IT support operation has a problem management process in place to

identify root causes in order to facilitate the creation of workarounds or the
elimination of recurring incidents.

Proactive The process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and
regularly maintained.

Customer-led The service desk and its support partners actively participate in problem
investigation and root cause analysis and have access to a known error
database to assist in the incident management process.

Business-led Infrastructure and service changes are actioned based on the outcomes of the
problem management process. Workarounds are regularly reviewed for
effectiveness and improved where necessary.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.14 Change control

There is a change control process in place in order to ensure that all changes to the IT environment are
controlled and successfully implemented.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process in place that provides the service desk with visibility of all
changes.

Proactive There is a unified approach for change across the entire IT support
organization. The process ensures that all changes are assessed, approved,
tested, implemented and reviewed in a controlled manner. The process is
owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and regularly
maintained.

Customer-led The service desk is involved in assessing, approving and reviewing relevant
changes.

Business-led The service desk is an authorized approver of change and has the authority to
halt deployment of a change if the change control process has been violated,
or if the service desk or user community is unprepared.

41
5.15 Release and deployment management

There is a process or set of processes in place for the purposes of planning and overseeing the
successful roll-out of and introduction of new and changed services into the production environment,
that minimizes negative business impact.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a release and deployment process in place that includes the
communication and management of new releases and changed services.

Proactive The service desk has access to real-time visibility of the status of new and
planned releases and changes. A documented model exists for early life
support that includes FAQs, user education and communication. The process
is owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and regularly
maintained.

Customer-led The service desk is actively involved in the planning and release of new services
and changes and it has access to the relevant information and release and
deployment content.

Business-led The service desk is fully integrated into the release and deployment process.
The service desk has a set of standards which define the minimum information
required before a new or changed service is accepted into support. The
process is balanced for control and agility and is optimized for efficient release
and deployment.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

42
5.16 Service transition

There is a practice or set of processes in place to ensure the successful introduction of new, changed or
retired IT services into and out of the environment, and the associated handover to the service desk for
on-going support.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a standard methodology for introducing, changing or retiring services

that is consistently used across all IT environments and the service desk is
involved with the process.

Proactive There is a documented model for service acceptance and operational

acceptance that includes early life support, FAQs, user education and
communication. The process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently
followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led There is a formal and structured service transition process in place

incorporating production assurance standards that define the minimum
information required by the service desk before a new or changed service is
accepted for support. The service desk is fully integrated into the process and
service is optimized.

Business-led The service desk has a forward view of all service transitions that take place,
are actively engaged in all service transitions and measure the
success. Improvement opportunities are integrated into the continual
improvement process.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

43
5.17 IT asset and service configuration management

There is a configuration management process in place that ensures accuracy of configuration and asset
management data that includes identification, notification and remediation of inaccurate data.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a configuration and asset management process in place for the
service desk to document and report inaccuracies in asset and configuration
management data.

Proactive Configuration and asset data are available in real-time to assist service desk
staff to resolve incidents. The process is owned, documented, routinely and
consistently followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led There is a single process for updating and maintaining configuration and asset
data for the entire IT organization. The process is aligned with business
objectives.

Business-led The service desk actively seeks to identify inaccuracies in service asset and
configuration management data, and there is an interface between the source
process and the service asset and configuration management process to note
discrepancies for investigation.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.18 Service catalog management

There is a process in place to maintain a service catalog in order to ensure that it accurately documents
the services offered to users to enable them to make decisions about the services that are appropriate
for their role.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive A list of services offered to customers.

Proactive The service catalog is published to appropriate stakeholders. The process is

owned, defined and documented, routinely and consistently followed and
regularly maintained.

Customer-led Use of the service catalog is tracked and reported on and widely utilized and
valued by stakeholders.

Business-led The service catalog process is linked to the release and deployment process to
ensure that the catalog accurately represents the services on offer.

44
5.19 IT service continuity management

There are regularly maintained service continuity plans in place for managing service interruptions for
both planned and unexpected circumstances.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive All relevant data is regularly backed-up and stored in a secure area.

Proactive There are specific disaster recovery plans in place for scenarios that are
appropriate to the service desk and its geographic location e.g. weather,
emergencies, fire, natural disaster. The plans include service level
commitments for recovery. The procedure is owned, documented, routinely
and consistently followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led The IT service continuity plan is documented and includes replacement of user
and service desk data, hardware, systems, and telecommunications
infrastructure. The plan is communicated to relevant stakeholders.

Business-led IT service continuity and service desk disaster recovery plans are regularly
tested and routinely updated.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

45
5.20 Information security management

There is a process or set of processes in place to manage the governance of information security,
supporting the prevention of unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, inspection,
recording or destruction of information.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process, or set of processes, in place to identify and estimate levels
of exposure to information security risk, the likelihood of information loss and
risk mitigation.

Proactive The process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and
regularly maintained. The process includes governance related to staff security,
security training, security awareness, process adherence and staff
performance management.

Customer-led Information security governance activities incorporates defined security

targets, security objectives and service levels. It also includes activities that
support testing, incident emulation, information quality and compliance,
internal and external auditing. All appropriate activity feeds into continual
improvement activities.

Business-led The organization’s information security governance complies with established

international standards.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

5.21 Supplier management

There is a process or set of processes in place to ensure the successful management of suppliers.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process for managing interactions with key suppliers.

Proactive The process clearly defines contact methods, roles and responsibilities, and
resolution and response times. The process is owned, documented, routinely
and consistently followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led The process is integrated into the overall support model and is used across all
levels of service and is communicated to all stakeholders.

Business-led The efficiency and effectiveness of the supplier management procedure is

periodically measured with areas for continual improvement identified and
actioned with the supplier’s input.

46
5.22 Continual improvement

A process is in place to drive continual improvement activities that bring value to the organization.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive A process exists to ensure there is a consistent approach to continual

improvement activities.

Proactive The process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently followed and
regularly maintained.

Customer-led The process is an enabler for service desk staff to contribute to continual
improvement initiatives.

Business-led The process is embedded in the culture of the IT organization with the service
desk recognized as a key driver of continual improvement initiatives.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

5.23 Modernization and transformation

There is a process, or set of processes, in place to understand modernization and transformation

demand, in order to continually assess opportunities to optimize and automate services to improve
service value.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a process in place used to ascertain opportunities and demand for
modernization and transformation.

Proactive There is a holistic approach to modernization and transformation across the

entire IT support organization. The process encourages teams to engage, work
flexibly and co-operatively to create value and focuses on continual
improvement. The process is owned, documented, routinely and consistently
followed and regularly maintained.

Customer-led The service desk is involved in assessing and reviewing opportunities and
demand for modernization and transformation, through agile, cross functional
continual improvement activities. The service desk is instrumental in shaping
and developing all stakeholder delivery and support requirements.

Business-led The service value chain has enabled the co-creation of value for all
stakeholders, demonstrated through the ongoing implementation of tailored
products and services. Services are delivered and supported in a way that
meets all stakeholder expectations. Clear business value is continually derived
from the modernization and transformation process.

47
THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 6 – Managing Employee Satisfaction

Service desk staff are supported and empowered to drive the quality of service and support. The
organization’s perception of the service desk acknowledges its ongoing business value.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

6.1 Employee satisfaction monitoring program

There is a program in place for monitoring employee satisfaction. Targets are set, results are analyzed
and management initiates improvements that generate business value based on the results.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive A program exists to examine employee satisfaction levels.

Proactive There is a documented and measurable employee satisfaction program in

place. It is regularly scheduled, reviewed and updated.

Customer-led The results of feedback and surveys are compared to meaningful targets on a
regular basis and are communicated to service desk staff.

Business-led Improvements are achieved as a result of introducing continual improvement

initiatives generated by the output of the program.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

6.2 Skills and capabilities

There is a training and development program in place that is aligned to defined service desk roles and
skills matrices in order to equip service desk staff with the skills and knowledge they require to succeed.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The skills and capabilities required for service desk roles are defined.

Proactive Service desk management actively take responsibility for developing service
desk staff. There is a documented list of technical and non-technical skills that
are matched to each member of staff.

Customer-led There are technical and non-technical skills matrices in place that are aligned
with the organization’s requirements.

Business-led The skills database is an integral part of the operational decision-making

process. The database is continuously adapted and adds value to the
organization, the team and the individual.

48
6.3 Training plans

There are agreed training plans in place for all service desk staff in order to develop and maintain skills
and knowledge and improve morale.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a training plan in place for each member of the service desk team.

Proactive Training sessions are regularly scheduled, and they run as planned.

Customer-led Training plans reflect personal preferences and align with the requirements of
the business.

Business-led The effectiveness of training is measured and analyzed. The results are linked
to skills matrices and are used to improve the training program.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

6.4 Staff morale

Service desk staff are included in and able to contribute to decisions that affect them, and they are
aware that their value is recognized.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff enjoy their work.

Proactive Service desk staff contribute to decisions that affect them.

Customer-led Service desk staff feel that their contributions are valued and used.

Business-led Service desk staff feel valued and respected in their work by stakeholders.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

49
6.5 Employee engagement

Service desk staff are committed to the organization's purpose, objectives and values and are motivated
to contribute to its success while enhancing their own sense of well-being.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk staff can articulate how they contribute to the organization's
success.

Proactive Service desk staff display pride and passion in their work and demonstrate
commitment to the organization.

Customer-led Service desk staff demonstrate discretionary effort in their day-to-day activities.

Business-led Service desk staff are advocates for the organization and display inspirational
effort in their day-to-day activities.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

6.6 Career development opportunities

Career development plans are in place with clear objectives and a defined career path.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is a defined career path within the service desk. Service desk staff
objectives support personal development.

Proactive There are a range of career development opportunities available for service
desk staff to choose between.

Customer-led Service desk staff are encouraged to express personal preferences for career
development and time is allocated to support their development.

Business-led Service desk management provide multiple opportunities for staff to develop
their careers (e.g. coaching, secondments, mentoring) and there is evidence of
tangible business benefits.

50
6.7 Employee Feedback

Service desk staff can express their views and opinions freely and openly in a positive continual
development culture.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There is an open-door culture to encourage trust, openness and transparent

behavior between management and staff.

Proactive All staff and stakeholders are observed to contribute in an open, transparent
working environment, where ideas are generated freely and positively.

Customer-led There are regular feedback sessions between management and staff that
involve listening and capturing feedback and improvement ideas.

Business-led Management visibly act on the ideas generated and feed back to staff on
decisions taken, reasons supporting the decisions, and progress on actions.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

6.8 Positive team culture

A positive team culture is promoted and maintained in order to encourage collaboration and motivation
within the service desk team.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service desk team members take responsibility for their own work and are
encouraged to share their skills and knowledge.

Proactive Inter-team cooperation, skills, and knowledge transfer commonly occur.

Positive steps are taken to promote transparency and a blame free culture.

Customer-led There are role models within the team who demonstrate a commitment to
improve and the behaviors required in a cooperative culture. A positive team
culture is incentivized at individual and team levels.

Business-led Proactive and collective responsibility is evident with no single points of failure.
Staff are performance orientated, cooperative and enthusiastic and know that
they make a positive business impact.

51
6.9 Team meetings

Service desk team meetings are held regularly in order to discuss process and service improvements
and provide general feedback.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Informal service desk team meetings are held.

Proactive Team meetings are held regularly and include provisions for remote
attendance. The key discussion points are distributed to the team.

Customer-led Ideas and suggestions resulting from team meetings are fed into continual
improvement initiatives.

Business-led There is evidence that decisions and actions from team meetings result in
process or service improvements. Achievements are published to all
stakeholders.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 7 – Managing the Customer Experience

The service desk manages and improves upon customer touchpoints and interactions throughout the
customer lifecycle for the purpose of meeting or exceeding customer demands and expectations, in
order to increase customer satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

7.1 Customer experience program

There is a cohesive customer experience program in place that takes a holistic approach to monitoring
and measuring the customer experience.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk participates in customer experience activities.

Proactive There is a documented customer experience program in place that is regularly

reviewed, owned and updated.

Customer-led The customer experience program is aligned with strategic objectives. It

focuses on customer needs and demands and on building strong
relationships.

Business-led The customer experience program feeds into continual improvement activities
and has delivered recognized business value.

52
7.2 Capturing customer feedback

Feedback is captured using a variety of structured media and methods, including event and periodic
surveys.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are activities in place to capture and record feedback.

Proactive Activities to capture feedback are defined, regularly reviewed and updated.

Customer-led Customers are involved in the design and review to improve the effectiveness
of feedback capture.

Business-led The output data is contextualized as input to business intelligence.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

7.3 Analyzing customer feedback

Business intelligence is derived from analyzing customer feedback in order to stimulate continual
improvement initiatives and drive successful business outcomes.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk analyzes data captured from all customer feedback sources
and publishes the results.

Proactive Customer feedback analytics are used to make customer experience

improvement decisions and stakeholders are informed about the resulting
decisions and actions.

Customer-led The outcome from analytics is used to drive customer centric continual
improvement initiatives with improvement plans published and stakeholders
actively engaged.

Business-led Implementing initiatives generated by analytics has resulted in tangible service

improvements, enhancements to the customer experience and support the
co-creation of value.

53
7.4 Customer feedback management

Customer feedback is used by the service desk in its continual improvement program.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive There are procedures in place for managing all feedback.

Proactive Feedback is actively solicited. All feedback is recorded and communicated to

service desk staff and other stakeholders.

Customer-led Customers are regularly advised about how their feedback has been used.

Business-led Feedback is linked to continual improvement initiatives and has delivered

recognized improvements.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

7.5 Relationship management

The service desk actively engages with the relationship management practice as part of the customer
experience program.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk participates in relationship management activities on request.

Proactive The service desk has a documented policy for regularly engaging with the
relationship management practice.

Customer-led Service desk staff are trusted partners in relationship management activities
that feed into operational planning.

Business-led There is a strategic business led partnership between the service desk and the
relationship management practice that drives service strategy and continual
improvement activities that deliver business value.

54
7.6 Customer profiling

The service desk creates and maintains customer profiles which aids decision making as part of the
customer experience program.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has basic customer profiles in place.

Proactive Customer profiles are used to make decisions about possible changes to the
customer experience.

Customer-led Customer profiles include journey mapping and preferred customer

experience data. Profiles are regularly reviewed and tested.

Business-led Structured experimentation of customer journeys and experiences occur with

key stakeholders. Feedback is fed into continual improvement activities.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

7.7 Customer engagement

The service desk actively engages with customers as part of the customer experience program.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk engages with customers on a request basis.

Proactive The service desk regularly engages with customers in a structured and defined
manner.

Customer-led Service desk staff collaborate with their customers, understanding the
challenges and issues faced. All activities are integrated with both the customer
experience program and the business relationship practice.

Business-led A high proportion of the end user community are clear and demonstrable
customer advocates of the service desk. The advocates promote the value of
the service desk and work with the organization to add value to the overall
service.

55
7.8 Service design

Services delivered are clearly designed with customer experience and value as the main drivers. The
design approach is iterative, customer engaging and focused on optimization and automation where
appropriate.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Service requirements are created from consultation and ongoing demand from
the service desk, continual improvement, business relationship management
and other customer engagement activity.

Proactive Service design uses a value focused methodology to capture demand and then
build service components iteratively with regular customer feedback.

Customer-led Service design uses techniques to capture the customer journey, and to
identify touchpoints where users will interact with the service and service
provider.

Business-led Service design incorporates ongoing continual improvement activities in the

running and support of the service, which utilizes automation and digital
solutions where possible for optimization and efficiency.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

56
THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 8 – Management Information and Performance Results

Actual IT support performance is measured against planned performance. The results are used to
support management in making decisions about the actions required to meet its strategic and tactical
goals.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.1 Business related metrics

Business outcomes are clearly incorporated into the service desk's metrics monitoring and reporting
process and ensure that business intelligence is based on a balanced set of metrics, not on individual
metrics in isolation.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Basic service desk performance metrics are routinely captured.

Proactive A set of core performance metrics have been established and are used to
assess performance across multiple areas within IT. Performance against
service level targets is monitored and reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led A generic set of balanced service metrics are defined based on strategic
organizational criteria and are used to assess performance throughout the
organization.

Business-led Balanced organizational metrics are tailored to specific business areas based
on business objectives and required outcomes.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

57
8.2 Reporting activities

Accurate information is consistently produced and distributed to stakeholders in order to drive

continual improvement initiatives that support business objectives.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Basic metric reports are prepared and distributed to stakeholders.

Proactive Structured reports showing the results of service desk performance data
measured against targets are regularly produced and distributed to
stakeholders.

Customer-led Management level summary reports include contextual narrative, data analysis,
failure analysis, conclusions and next steps, to provide corrective actions,
accountability and additional management information. Reports are regularly
produced and distributed to stakeholders.

Business-led Trends and results extracted from the reports are incorporated into continual
improvement activities. Report data is leveraged at a senior level to provide
business intelligence that supports business decisions.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

58
8.3 Target alignment

The targets for service desk key performance indicators (KPIs) are aligned with business strategies. The
targets are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound (SMART). SMART performance
targets and actual performance data are used to measure organizational effectiveness and operational
efficiency and drive desired business outcomes.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive SMART targets are set for service desk KPIs. Performance metrics are analyzed
independently.

Proactive The service desk has the capability to analyze multiple core metrics together.

Customer-led The service desk has defined a balanced scorecard of metrics from specific
areas to gain a deeper, holistic insight into performance.

Business-led Reporting analysis ensures the balanced scorecard data is cross-analyzed and
rationalized. This results in the creation of optimized insight, which is used to
continually optimize operational effectiveness.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.4 Number of incidents

The number of incidents reported to the service desk for all supported communication channels is
routinely and consistently monitored and measured for the purposes of workforce and demand
management.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has forecasting targets for the volume of incidents received
for all supported communication channels. The actual volume has been
routinely captured and compared to targets for at least three months.

Proactive Incident volume by channel data has been compared to the targets for at least
six months. The results are trending towards the targets and are routinely
reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its incident volume by channel targets for several
reporting periods and the trends indicate consistent results for at least one
year. Trend data is used to predict future resource requirements and initiate
continual improvement initiatives.

Business-led Incident volume by channel data is analyzed and translated into commentary,
and management can articulate the derived value.

59
8.5 Number of service requests

The number of service requests submitted to the service desk, or directly to the appropriate team, for all
supported communication channels is routinely and consistently monitored and measured for the
purposes of workforce and demand management.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has forecasting targets for the volume of
requests received for all supported communication channels. The actual
volume has been routinely captured and compared to targets for at least three
months.

Proactive Service request volume by channel data has been compared to targets for at
least six months. The results are trending towards the targets and are routinely
reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its service request volume by
channel targets for several reporting periods and the trend indicates
consistent results for at least one year. Trend data is used to predict future
resource requirements and initiate continual improvement initiatives.

Business-led Service request volume by channel data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.6 Average time to respond to an inbound enquiry

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely and consistently collects and analyzes the average time
it takes to acknowledge and respond to an inbound enquiry for all supported communication channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has targets for average time to respond to an inbound
enquiry for all supported communication channels. Actual data has been
routinely captured and compared to the targets for at least three months.

Proactive Actual average time to respond to an inbound enquiry by channel data has
been compared to the targets for at least six months. The results are trending
towards the target and are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its average time to respond to an inbound enquiry by
channel targets for several reporting periods and the trends indicate
consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Average time to respond to an inbound enquiry by channel data is analyzed

and translated into commentary. Management can articulate the derived value.

60
8.7 Average time to respond to assigned incidents

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely and consistently collects and analyzes the average time
it takes to acknowledge and respond to assigned incidents, for all supported communication channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has targets for average time to respond
to assigned incidents for all supported communication channels. Actual data
has been routinely captured and compared to targets for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual average time to respond to assigned incidents by channel data has
been compared to the targets for at least six months. The results are trending
towards the target and are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its average time to respond to
assigned incidents by channel targets for several reporting periods and the
trends indicate consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Average time to respond to assigned incidents by channel data is analyzed and
translated into commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.8 Average time to respond to assigned service requests

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely and consistently collects and analyzes the average time
it takes to acknowledge and respond to assigned service requests for all support communication
channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has targets for average time to respond
to assigned service requests for all supported communication channels. Actual
data has been routinely captured and compared to targets for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual average time to respond to assigned service requests by channel data
has been compared to the targets for at least six months. The results are
trending towards the target and are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its average time to respond to
assigned service requests by channel targets for several reporting periods and
trends indicate consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Average time to respond to assigned service requests by channel data is

analyzed and translated into commentary, and management can articulate the
derived value.

61
8.9 Abandon rate

The service desk routinely and consistently collects and analyzes data about the percentage of
telephone calls and the percentage of live chat sessions that are terminated prior to establishing contact
with the service desk.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has abandon rate targets for telephone calls and for live chat
sessions. Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to the targets
for at least three months.

Proactive Actual abandon rate data for telephone calls and for live chat sessions has
been compared to the targets for at least six months and the results are
trending towards the targets. The results are routinely reported to
stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its abandon rate targets for telephone calls and for
live chat sessions for several reporting periods and the trends indicate
consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Abandon rate data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

62
8.10 Average time taken to resolve incidents that are not resolved on first contact

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data from all supported communication channels
about the average time taken to resolve incidents that are not resolved at first point of contact, including
self-service, and compares it to the service level performance targets.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has agreed and documented targets for
incident resolution performance of incidents that are not resolved at first point
of contact, including self-service. Actual data has been routinely captured and
compared to targets for at least three months.

Proactive Actual incident resolution performance by channel data has been compared to
the targets for at least six months and the results are trending towards the
targets. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its incident resolution
performance by channel targets for several reporting periods and the trends
incident consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Incident resolution performance by channel data is analyzed and translated

into commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

63
8.11 Average time taken to fulfill requests that are not fulfilled on first contact

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely and consistently collects data from all communication
channels about the average time taken to fulfill requests that are not fulfilled at first point of contact,
including self-service, and compares it to service level performance targets.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has agreed and documented targets for
service requests that are not resolved at first point of contact, including self-
service. Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to targets for
at least three months.

Proactive Actual request fulfillment performance by channel data has been compared to
the targets for at least six months. The results are trending towards the targets
and are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its request fulfillment
performance by channel targets for several reporting periods and the trends
indicate consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Request fulfillment performance by channel data is analyzed and translated

into commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

64
8.12 First contact incident resolution rate

The service desk routinely and consistently collects and analyzes data about the percentage of resolved
incidents that are completed to user satisfaction during the initial call or electronic exchange between
users and the service desk, excluding the entitlement procedure.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for first contact incident resolution. Actual data
has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual first contact incident resolution data has been compared to the target
for at least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The
results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its first contact incident resolution target for several
reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one
year.

Business-led First contact incident resolution data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

65
8.13 First contact request fulfillment rate

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely and consistently collects and analyzes data about the
percentage of fulfilled requests that are completed to user satisfaction during first contact, excluding the
entitlement procedure.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has a target for first contact request
fulfillment. Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to target for
at least three months.

Proactive Actual first contact request fulfillment data has been compared to the target
for at least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The
results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its first contact request
fulfillment target for several reporting periods and the trend indicates
consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led First contact request fulfillment data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.14 First level incident resolution rate

The service desk routinely and consistently collects and analyzes the percentage of resolved incidents
that are completed to user satisfaction at the service desk without escalation to other support groups.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for first level incident resolution. Actual data has
been routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual first level incident resolution data has been compared to the target for
at least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its first level incident resolution target for several
reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one
year.

Business-led First level incident resolution data is analyzed and translated into commentary,
and management can articulate the derived value.

66
8.15 First level request fulfillment rate

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely and consistently collects and analyzes the percentage of
fulfilled requests that are completed to user satisfaction at the service desk without escalation to other
support groups.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has a target for first level request
fulfillment. Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to the
target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual first level request fulfillment data has been compared to the target for at
least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its first level request fulfillment
target for several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results
for at least one year.

Business-led First level request fulfillment data is analyzed and translated into commentary,
and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.16 Re-opened incident rate

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the percentage of closed incidents that
are subsequently re-opened for additional follow-up.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for re-opened incidents. Actual data has been
routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual re-opened incident data has been compared to the target for at least six
months and the results are trending towards the target. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its re-opened incident target for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Re-opened incident data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

67
8.17 Re-opened service request rate

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely and consistently collects data about the percentage of
closed service requests that are subsequently re-opened for additional follow-up.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team, has a target for re-opened service
requests. Actual data has been routinely and compared to the target for at
least three months.

Proactive Actual re-opened service request data has been compared to the target for at
least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its re-opened service request
target for several reporting periods and the trends indicate consistent results
for at least one year.

Business-led Re-opened service request data is analyzed and translated into commentary,
and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.18 Incident backlog management

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the total number of open incidents by
age across all support groups in order to reduce open incidents.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a baseline target for incident backlog. Actual data has
been routinely captured and compared to the baseline target for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual incident backlog data has been compared to the baseline target for at
least six months and the results show a reduction in the number of open
incidents. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk's actual incident backlog has been in-line with the baseline
target for several reporting periods and the trend indicates that the number of
open incidents has been consistently reducing for at least one year.

Business-led Incident backlog data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

68
8.19 Service request backlog management

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the total number of open service
requests by age across all support groups in order to reduce open requests.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a baseline target for service request backlog. Actual data
has been routinely captured and compared to the baseline target for at least
three months.

Proactive Actual service request backlog data has been compared to the baseline target
for at least six months and the results show a reduction in the number of open
requests. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk's actual service request backlog has been in-line with the
baseline target for several reporting periods and the trend indicates that the
number of open requests have been consistently reducing for at least one
year.

Business-led Service request backlog data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.20 Percentage of hierarchic escalations

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the percentage of incidents or service
requests escalated to management due to the need to inform or involve management and raise
awareness of service impacting issues.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for hierarchic escalations. Actual data has been
routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual hierarchic escalation data has been compared to the target for at least
six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its hierarchic escalation target for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Hierarchic escalation data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

69
8.21 Percentage of functional escalations

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the percentage of incidents and service
requests assigned to the appropriate resolver group. This data supports coaching and training to reduce
mis-assignments and identify opportunities to shift left appropriate workloads from resolver team
ownership to service desk ownership.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for functional escalations. Actual data has been
routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual functional escalation data has been compared to the target for at least
six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its functional escalation target for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Functional escalation data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

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8.22 Number of reassignments

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the percentage of incidents and service
requests that are reassigned between resolver teams, directly or indirectly, as well as incidents and
requests that are reassigned between resolver teams and the service desk.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive An average expected reassignment rate, related to interaction categorization

or classification, has been identified and a maximum expected reassignment
target has been set. Actual reassignment rate data has been captured and
compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual reassignment rate data has been compared to the target for at least six
months and the results are used to identify excessive reassessment, trigger
investigation, encourage better practices, and initiate training or coaching
activities. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The reassignment rate target has not been exceeded for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year. The
results of reassignment rate analysis are fed into continual improvement
activities.

Business-led Reassignment rate data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

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8.23 Average incident resolution time by priority

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the time taken to resolve incidents
analyzed by priority.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for average incident resolution time by priority.
Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at
least three months.

Proactive Actual average incident resolution time by priority data has been compared to
the target for at least six months and the results are trending towards the
target. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its average incident resolution time by priority target
for several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at
least one year.

Business-led Average incident resolution time data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.24 Average request fulfillment time by priority

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the time taken to fulfill requests analyzed
by priority.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for average request fulfillment time by priority.
Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at
least three months.

Proactive Actual request fulfillment time by priority data has been compared to the
target for at least six months and the results are trending towards the target.
The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its average request fulfillment time by priority target
for several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at
least one year.

Business-led Average request fulfillment time data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

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8.25 Average resolution time by incident category

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the average time taken to resolve
incidents analyzed by category.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for average incident resolution time by category.
Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at
least three months.

Proactive Actual average resolution time by incident category data has been compared
to the target for at least six months and the results are trending towards the
target. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its average incident resolution time by category
performance target for several reporting periods and the trend indicates
consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Average incident resolution time by category performance data is analyzed and
translated into commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.26 Average fulfillment time by service request type

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the average time taken to fulfill requests
analyzed by service request type.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for the average time taken to fulfill requests by
service request type. Actual data has been routinely captured and compared
to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual average service request fulfillment time by service request type data has
been compared to the target for at least six months and the results are
trending towards the target. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its average request fulfillment time by service request
type performance target for several reporting periods and the trend indicates
consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Average request fulfillment time by service request type performance data is
analyzed and translated into commentary, and management can articulate the
derived value.

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8.27 Comparison of service level targets to performance

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about its service level commitments and
compares it to its actual performance results.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has targets for service level performance. Actual data has
been routinely captured and compared to the targets for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual service level performance data has been compared to the targets for at
least six months and the results are trending towards the targets. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its service level performance targets for several
reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one
year.

Business-led Service level performance data is analyzed and translated into commentary,
and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.28 Service desk knowledge usage

The service desk collects and analyzes data about the number of times knowledge is used by service
desk staff.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for service desk staff knowledge usage. Actual
data has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual service desk staff knowledge usage data has been compared to the
target for at least six months and the results are trending towards the target.
The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its knowledge usage target for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Service desk staff knowledge usage data is analyzed and translated into
commentary and management can articulate the derived value.

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8.29 Customer-facing knowledge usage

The service desk collects and analyzes data about the number of times knowledge is used by customers
through channels such as self-help, or user facing knowledge repositories.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for customer knowledge usage. Actual data has
been routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual customer knowledge usage data has been compared to the target for at
least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its customer knowledge usage target for several
reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one
year.

Business-led Customer knowledge usage data is analyzed and translated into commentary,
and management is able to articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.30 Service desk knowledge quality and effectiveness

The service desk routinely collects and analyzes data about the quality and effectiveness of its internally
facing knowledge and compares the results to its target.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for quality and effectiveness of service desk
knowledge. Actual data has been routinely collected and compared to the
target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual service desk knowledge quality and effectiveness data has been
routinely collected and compared to the target for at least six months and the
results are trending towards the target. The results are routinely reported to
stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its target for service desk knowledge quality and
effectiveness for several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent
results for at least one year.

Business-led Service desk knowledge quality and effectiveness data is analyzed and
translated into commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

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8.31 Customer-facing knowledge quality and effectiveness

The service desk routinely collects and analyzes data about the quality and effectiveness of knowledge
accessible to customers through channels such as self-help, or user-facing knowledge repositories.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for quality and effectiveness of customer-facing
knowledge. Actual data has been routinely collected and compared to the
target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual customer-facing knowledge quality and effectiveness data has been
routinely collected and compared to the target for at least six months and the
results are trending towards the target. The results are routinely reported to
stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its target for customer-facing knowledge quality and
effectiveness for several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent
results for at least one year.

Business-led Customer-facing knowledge quality and effectiveness data is analyzed and

translated into commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.32 Self-service monitoring measured against target

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the percentage of resolved incidents and
fulfilled requests, that are completed through self-service tools and compares the result to its target.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for self-service usage. Actual data has been
routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual self-service usage data has been compared to the target for at least six
months and the results are trending towards the target. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its self-service usage target for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Self-service usage data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

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8.33 Monitoring incidents caused by changes measured against target

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the percentage of incidents caused by
changes and compares the result to its established baseline.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has established a baseline for the percentage of incidents
caused by changes. Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to
the baseline for at least three months.

Proactive Actual data about the percentage of incidents caused by changes has been
compared to the baseline for at least six months and the results are trending
towards the baseline. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The percentage of incidents caused by changes has been consistent with the
baseline for at least one year.

Business-led The percentage of incidents caused by changes data is analyzed and translated
into commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.34 Total cost of service delivery

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the total cost of running its operation
and can identify the cost of delivering service per customer.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for the total cost of service delivery. Actual data
has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual total cost of service delivery data has been compared to the target for at
least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its total cost of service delivery target for several
reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one
year.

Business-led Total cost of service delivery data is analyzed and translated into commentary,
and management can articulate the derived value.

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8.35 Average cost per incident by channel

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the cost of incident operations for all
supported communication channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for cost per incident for all supported
communication channels. Actual data has been routinely captured and
compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual cost per incident by channel data has been compared to the target for
at least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its average cost per incident by channel targets for
several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least
one year.

Business-led Average cost per incident by channel data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.36 Average cost per service request by channel

The service desk routinely and consistently collects data about the cost of request fulfillment for all
supported communication channels.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for the average cost per service request for all
supported communication channels. Actual data has been routinely captured
and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive The average cost per service request by channel data has been compared to
the target for at least six months and the results are trending towards the
target. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its average cost per service request by channel
targets for several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results
for at least one year.

Business-led Average service request cost per channel data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

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8.37 Employee satisfaction feedback

There is a feedback procedure to measure overall employee satisfaction through data capture and
analysis, and it solicits suggestions to improve the work environment. The data captured is used to
develop action plans.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for employee satisfaction. Actual data has been
routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual employee satisfaction data has been compared to the target for at least
six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its employee satisfaction target for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Employee satisfaction data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.38 Employee turnover

The service desk maintains a consistent approach to staff continuity to ensure that service levels are
consistently met.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has established a baseline for employee turnover. Actual data
has been routinely captured and compared to the baseline for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual employee turnover data has been compared to the baseline for at least
six months and the results are trending towards the baseline. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led Employee turnover has been consistent with the baseline for at least one year.

Business-led Employee turnover data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

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8.39 Unplanned absence days

Unplanned absence days are tracked separately from time lost due to planned absence, short-term
disability or long-term disability.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has established a baseline for unplanned absence. Actual
data has been routinely captured and compared to the baseline for at least
three months.

Proactive Actual unplanned absence data has been compared to the baseline for at least
six months and the results are trending towards the baseline. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led Unplanned absence has been consistent with the baseline for at least one
year.

Business-led Unplanned absence data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and
management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.40 Periodic customer satisfaction measurement

Periodic customer satisfaction measurement methods are in place to regularly assess the level of overall
satisfaction in relation to the service experience.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for periodic customer satisfaction. Actual data
has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual periodic customer satisfaction data has been compared to the target for
at least six months and the results are trending towards the target. The results
are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its periodic customer satisfaction target for several
reporting periods and trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led Periodic customer satisfaction data is analyzed and translated into

commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

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8.41 Event-based customer satisfaction measurement

An event-based customer satisfaction measurement procedure is in place to regularly assess

satisfaction associated with individual incidents and service requests.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has a target for event-based customer satisfaction. Actual
data has been routinely captured and compared to the target for at least three
months.

Proactive Actual event-based customer satisfaction data has been compared to the
target for at least six months and the results are trending towards the target.
The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk has met its event-based customer satisfaction target for
several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least
one year.

Business-led Event-based customer satisfaction data is analyzed and translated into

commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.42 Complaints, suggestions and compliments

All complaints, suggestions and compliments are routinely captured from all possible sources and by all
possible methods and they are measured in accordance with clear process and performance targets.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has established a baseline for complaints, suggestions and
compliments. Actual data has been routinely captured and compared to the
baseline for at least three months.

Proactive Actual complaints, suggestions and compliments data has been compared to
the baseline for at least six months and the results are trending towards the
baseline. The results are routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led Complaints, suggestions and compliments have been consistent with the
baseline for at least one year.

Business-led Complaints, suggestions and compliments data is analyzed and translated into
commentary, and management can articulate the derived value.

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8.43 Problem records created through proactive problem management

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely collects and analyzes data about problem records that
have been created as a result of proactive problem management.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team has forecast targets for problem records
created as a result of proactive problem management. Actual data has been
routinely collected and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual problem records created through proactive problem management data
has been routinely collected and compared to the target for at least six
months and the results are trending towards the target. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team, has met its target for problem records
that have been created as a result of proactive problem management for
several reporting periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least
one year.

Business-led Problem records that have been created as a result of proactive problem
management data is analyzed and translated into commentary and
management can articulate the derived value.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

8.44 Incident reduction through problem management

The service desk or appropriate team, routinely collects and analyzes data about the percentage of
incidents reduced as a result of problem management.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk or appropriate team has forecast targets for the percentage
of incidents reduced as a result of problem management. Actual data has been
routinely collected and compared to the target for at least three months.

Proactive Actual percentage of incidents reduced as a result of problem management

data has been routinely collected and compared to the target for at least six
months and the results are trending towards the target. The results are
routinely reported to stakeholders.

Customer-led The service desk or appropriate team has met its target for the percentage of
incidents reduced as a result of problem management for several reporting
periods and the trend indicates consistent results for at least one year.

Business-led The percentage of incidents reduced as a result of problem management of

data is analyzed and translated into commentary, and management can
articulate the derived value.
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THE GLOBAL BEST PRACTICE STANDARD FOR SERVICE DESK

Concept 9 – Corporate Social Responsibility

The service desk has strong morals and ethics and embraces a diverse and inclusive culture both
internally, externally and within the local community.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

9.1 Community engagement and charitable activities

The service desk engages positively with the local community and/or carries out regular charitable
activities.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Informal community and/or charitable activities are undertaken by service desk
staff.

Proactive Staff are encouraged to participate in community and/or charitable events.

Customer-led There is an active policy in place for service desk staff to contribute to the
community and/or make regular charitable donations.

Business-led The organization promotes its involvement in community or charitable

activities.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

9.2 Environmental protection

The service desk embraces the organization’s policies for protecting the environment.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive Green activities are undertaken by the service desk team.

Proactive The service desk champions ethical environmental behaviors and actions.

Customer-led The service desk has a policy in place for re-using, repurposing or disposing of
equipment.

Business-led Measurable benefits are achieved as a result of embracing the organization’s

environmental policies.

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9.3 Health and safety

The organization’s health and safety policies are embedded in the service desk practices.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk receives regular health and safety training and understand
their duty of care.

Proactive The service desk actively follows the organization’s health and safety policies,
highlighting risk and reporting any issues.

Customer-led Service desk management has identified risks and issues specific to the
service desk environment.

Business-led Measurable benefits are achieved as a result of embracing the organization’s

health and safety policies.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

9.4 Professionalism and ethics

The organization’s behavioral guidelines are embedded in service desk practices.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk receives regular training related to the organization’s
behavioral guidelines.

Proactive The service desk has contextualized the organization’s behavioral guidelines
into a code of practice suitable for the service desk environment.

Customer-led Adherence to the service desk’s code of practice is embedded in quality

assurance activities.

Business-led The code of practice is aligned with wider industry standards.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

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9.5 Mental health and emotional wellbeing

The organization’s mental health strategy and policies are embedded in the service desk practices to
ensure employees experiencing any related concerns are identified and receive the support they
require.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk promotes positive mental health and emotional wellbeing.

Proactive Service desk management has identified specific needs for the service desk
environment and have taken positive steps to support these.

Customer-led The service desk receive training on mental health and stress management to
aid them with recognizing signs of adverse wellbeing and how to have
supportive conversations.

Business-led Measurable benefits are achieved as a result of embracing the organization’s

mental health and emotional wellbeing strategy and policies.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

9.6 Flexible working practices

The service desk has a proactive approach to flexible working practices that are appropriate to the
organization’s business model.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk has informal initiatives in place for flexible working practices
that are appropriate to the organization’s business model.

Proactive The service desk has enabling policies and an operating model in place to
support flexible working practices.

Customer-led The policy is applied consistently across all suitable roles and flexibility is
accepted as the norm.

Business-led The service desk’s working practice model is based on a comprehensive

strategic vision and clear and flexible working principles and has brought
measurable business benefits to the service desk.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

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9.7 Physical environment and ergonomics

The service desk’s workspace design reflects a safe, appropriate, flexible and ergonomically effective
work area.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk’s work area conforms to standards for general purpose
office space and is comparable to other administrative or office facilities
within the organization.

Proactive The facilities reflect the special requirements of a service desk environment
and provides the right tools required to support remote working.

Customer-led The service desk has facilities available for both public and private interactions
between staff and management.

Business-led Workspaces have a high level of ergonomic design that demonstrates the
service desk’s value to the organization and ensure that facilities in office and
remote working locations comply with local legislation or standards.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

9.8 Diversity and inclusion

The organization’s diversity and inclusion policies are embedded in the service desk practices to ensure
a diverse and inclusive workplace.

Maturity Level Description

Reactive The service desk receives regular training aligned to the organization’s diversity
and inclusion policies.

Proactive The service desk actively follows the organization’s diversity and inclusion
policies.

Customer-led Service desk management has identified specific needs of the service desk
and have taken steps to address these.

Business-led Measurable benefits are achieved as a result of embracing the organization’s

diversity and inclusion policies.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

86
BENEFITS OF SERVICE DESK CERTIFICATION

Service Desk Certification can bring a wide range of benefits to any IT service and support
operation. Here are a handful of reasons why so many service desks join the SDC programme:

• Honest and objective feedback from customers, staff and auditors enable you to prioritise and
target resources, in order to deliver the most efficient and cost effective service.
• Proves the value of the service desk to the wider business and to customers while
demonstrating dedication to best practice.
• Promotes a culture of business-focused continual improvement.
• Serves as a differentiator for your organization and provides positive PR and publicity
opportunities.
• Improved efficiencies will raise the quality of service and benefit the people you support.
• Improves customer communication and engagement.
• Increases trust between IT support and other departments.
• Increases team morale and promotes an engaged and motivated workforce.

For specific case studies, ROI and improved performance metrics details, visit
www.servicedeskinstitute.com.

THE SERVICE DESK CERTIFICATION AUDIT PROCESS

The SDC programme comprises three key parts; the Service Desk Assessment, the Certification
Audit and the continual improvement Surveillance Audits. There is also an optional one day SDC
Workshop you can add onto the programme, which will be designed specifically to guide your
organization through the process.

1. Service Desk Assessment

The first stage in the programme is the two day Service Desk Assessment; an initial evaluation of
the service desk measured against the Best Practice Standard. Carried out by an SDI accredited
auditor, the Assessment comprises a series of interviews and observations with the service desk
team and key stakeholders including customers.

The Assessment is designed to provide an organization with a baseline of its current situation
measured against each of the nine performance criteria in the Best Practice Standard and to
determine readiness for the full audit that leads to Certification.

By following the steps outlined in the Assessment evaluation report, an organization is able to
quickly identify key areas of strength and weakness in its support structure and the specific areas
on which to focus attention, so that it can make the most meaningful improvements prior to the
Certification Audit.

As such, the Service Desk Assessment is exceptionally useful in itself and can be delivered in

87
its own right, independently of the rest of the SDC programme. However, it is important to
understand that the Service Desk Assessment is not a substitute for a complete Certification
Audit and does not provide the service desk with a star rating or Certified status.

2. Certification Audit

This is a full review of an organization’s entire service desk operation, measured against the 138
criteria set out in the SDI Best Practice Standard using interviews, desk-side observations and a
review of service level metrics. Taking place over four days, the SDI auditor asks over 600
comprehensive questions and drills down into more detail to obtain the specific information
required for each of the nine concepts.

The responses provided during the interviews and observation sessions are combined with, and
cross referenced against, the initial Assessment and a portfolio of pre-requisite evidence
reviewed by the auditor prior to the Audit.

The audit usually takes place within nine months after the Assessment.

There are minimum scores required for each of the concepts in order to achieve Certification.
For an organization to achieve Certification, it must reach a minimum score of 2.3 in each of the
nine concepts and a minimum score of 2.5 overall. Provided an organization has met these
minimum scores they will be officially awarded Certified status along with a maturity level and
star rating.

3. Continual Improvement (Surveillance Audits)

Once an organization has achieved Certification, the improvements don’t stop there!

In order to ensure continued and sustainable service excellence and Certified service desk
status, organizations will have an annual surveillance audit to remain in the programme. A new
evolving service improvement road map will be provided after each surveillance audit, usually to
target specific areas of delivery, to make the most beneficial impact.
Organizations stay in the programme for as long as they require, in order to benefit from the
continual improvement guidance and benefits that the programme provides. Surveillance Audits
also provide an organization with the opportunity to increase its maturity level and star rating.

What’s my next step?

Get in touch to find out whether Service Desk Certification is right for your service desk. You can
talk to our trusted advisors about your goals, service and organization and ask any questions you
might have about the programme. All our details can be found on the back page of this
handbook. We look forward to hearing from you!

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GET IN TOUCH
We’d love to hear from you!

+44(0)1689 889 100

servicedeskinstitute.com
hello@sdi-e.com