Innovation Applied: Marval Innovative SSI Process

Marval are thrilled and honoured to have been selected by the iTSMF as a finalist for “Service Innovation of the Year” Award for the Marval Suggested Service Improvement (SSI) process.

By Dr Don Page, ITSM Strategic Director, Marval Software

In our industry, we often talk of Continual Service Improvement (CSI) and its contribution to demonstrating business value. This is of course true, but one of the constant challenges we face is getting staff buy-in, the need to obtain the team’s hearts and minds. It’s what we refer to as “eMSMing enlightened self-interest”.

Anyone working in ICT has heard statements such as: “This is always happening” - “I’ve raised this issue a number of times” - “The customer needs some proper training”. It sometimes feels like the moans and groans never cease. Furthermore, Support Analysts can feel their input is often ignored, and they never seem to have the evidence to push back to the business, stakeholders or process owners to discuss it - and do something about it. Well, you can now, with Marval’s Suggested Service Improvement (SSI) process.

One of the key benefits (perhaps the most crucial one) from this innovation is the cultural change it introduces into ICT. It eMSMs staff, makes both individuals and teams responsible, accountable and allows us to better exploit the expertise and experience of the analysts’ and their contribution to CSI. All this while improving the customer experience and satisfaction rating.

This simple yet innovative approach brings CSI into the epicentre of ICT operations, transforming it into a truly continual, unceasing and uninterrupted process. It provides an accountable mechanism, which allows Support Analysts to feel eMSMed: their voice heard, their feedback counts and actually adds value to continual service improvement.

Marval believe it’s time to transfer power back to the people – the Support Analysts that are in the best position to flag service improvements as part of request closure; not retrospectively, but right there and then - while it is still top of mind, without having to wait until it is escalated again by an exasperated customer or colleague.

This innovation is really about people. In an industry which is often obsessed with identifying technology innovation in products, and highlights either hardware or software as the elements that drive innovation and successful outcomes, Marval have always believed that the key element is People. People (and their professionalism) are the real “killer application”, it is people that ultimately contribute to service delivery being sub-standard, fair or using by using SSI, outstanding.

This simple SSI process innovation can be easily incorporated into your own ITSM software solution, whether you embrace ITSM standards and good practices such as ISO/IEC 20000, ITIL, SDC, DevOps or SIAM. To find out how to exploit this innovation, visit Marval at the Sits17, 7-8 June, London Olympia (Stand 520).