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Knowledge Powers the Service Desk
Knowledge management (KM) has enjoyed something of a chequered history in the corporate arena, with many early implementations failing to live up to full expectations. This is perhaps unsurprising given the high hopes for KM and the practical difficulties that many organizations experienced when trying to effectively create, capture, organize, access and use knowledge.
This paper argues that part of the problem historically has been the deployment of KM systems either as standalone applications or in environments where the business benefit was relatively low. As technology has progressed to a point where many of the knowledge capture, storage and retrieval problems have been solved, KM is now emerging as an important competitive differentiator in specific deployment scenarios, including most notably service desk functions.
White Papers
Measuring The Value of IT Service Management, EMA Whitepaper
The purpose of this paper is to present a method for reducing risk and increasing IT contribution during uncertain times and to assist readers with measuring the value and building a business case for IT Service Management (ITSM). To this end, the paper explains why IT must become a strategic asset — and precisely how IT can become strategic. In a step-wise fashion, this paper offers solutions for IT organizations at all maturity levels.
ITIL®: Theory into Practice
Implementing the ITIL set of guidelines to aid the implementation of a lifecycle framework for IT Service Management is now a major priority for a growing number of organizations, but remains a task where external help is often of critical importance.
This white paper, first published by Touchpaper (now part of Avocent's LANDesk division), aims to assist today's Chief Information or Technology Officer with a number of critical issues pertaining to ITIL.
Good To Great IT
Peters' and Waterman's well-known book 'In Search of Excellence', a study of some of the most well-managed companies in the United States at that time, was one of the best-known business books of the 1980s. In the book, the authors identified eight common themes which they argued were responsible for the success of the included corporations. These attributes included hands-on management, centralized values accompanied by entrepreneurial productivity, and focusing on the core business (sticking to the knitting). While the key elements of successful organizations in 1982 are still relevant today for ongoing prosperity and longevity, the connection between the effective and targeted use of IT to support business goals and organizational success was noticeable by its absence.
The LANDesk ITBM Maturity Model
A recent study by Enterprise Management Associates reveals that 87% of IT professionals are currently planning strategic, enterprise-level ITSM programs with the support of senior management. Whilst the principles of service management are laid down in various best practice frameworks, they lack a rigorous approach to measuring performance and improvement. Consider how Avocent's LANDesk Maturity Model approach can help you align service management processes with corporate business objectives.
Service Management Integration - Completing the Jigsaw
Service management solutions have the potential to return very significant hard-currency ROI. Successful implementations dramatically improve decision accuracy, enhance productivity, increase operating efficiency and reduce operational risk by providing comprehensive context for a wide range of management decisions. But these solutions cannot operate to their full potential in isolation; they require multilayer integration with the underlying IT infrastructure- the existing system and network management tools, key business applications and personal productivity tools. With comprehensive integration into this environment, service management enhances the collective functionality and business value of existing management resources, as though under its influence the solution becomes greater than the sum of its parts. This paper examines the relationship between out-of-the box integration support and the ultimate functional utility and value of service management investments.
Knowledge Management - Knowledge is Power
IT departments are always on the lookout for new technology-the "next big thing" that will save time and money by making service desk tasks faster and easier to perform. These solutions are always around the corner, always promising lots of ingenious functionality. But as great as many of them are, they can't provide the one thing IT departments need most: Knowledge. Seasoned service desk veterans are well aware that having access to effective knowledge is at least as valuable as the solutions IT uses. In fact, many view it as the closest thing to a panacea-the only way a service desk can make the leap from reactivity and constant firefighting to proactive problem prevention.
Brochures
LANDesk Asset Lifecycle Manager Brochure
LANDesk Asset Lifecycle Manager Datasheet
LANDesk Active Knowledge Brochure
LANDesk Management Information Brochure
LANDesk Human Resource Process Pack Brochure
LANDesk Resource Manager Brochure
LANDesk Asset Management Process Pack
Case Studies
Leicestershire Health Informatics
Northern Ireland Civil Service
Derbyshire Health Informatics Services
Articles
Asset Lifecycle Management - A Pragmatist Guide to Structuring IT Asset Data
At the core of every task is relevant data. To effectively plan, execute, and report on critical business activities you need quick and effective access to the right key facts.
This is a challenge for any business manager, but is especially difficult for IT asset managers where key asset data is spread across multiple applications, departments, disciplines, and sources. The IT asset manager needs to aggregate, analyze, and act on data from Purchasing, Finance, IT, Service Desk, Facilities, Security, Operations, Human Resources and others, and may be pulling data from spreadsheets, expert financial systems, word processing documents, PDFs, drawing or modeling tools, and even handwritten notes.
Key Costs - Foundation for Value Analytics and Planning
Asset cost tracking and analysis is one of the most important—and one of the most daunting—tasks an IT asset manager can undertake.
The value of effective asset cost tracking is clear—more accurate budget planning and resource allocation, greater financial accountability and cost controls, improved negotiating positions with vendors, and business-level value analytics to drive and justify ongoing project prioritization and investment strategies.
Ownership - Foundation for Cost Accounting and Strategic Steering
Asset ownership (as distinct from either accountability or assignment) is often overlooked because the fact itself has limited utility. Ultimately, though, ownership is the key vector that enables effective use analysis and strategic prioritization across the different responsible entities within the organization.
Accountability - Foundation for Stakeholder Engagement
Asset accountability is more than simple assignment tracking—it's going to the effort to understand who the key stakeholders for an asset or service are, then maintaining the discipline to include the right people in relevant maintenance, change/update, strategic deployment, and other planning activities and IT management processes.
Lifecycle - Foundation for Operational Alignment and Audit Response
Asset lifecycle tracking might be the most discussed yet least understood of the core IT asset disciplines, which is a shame because it's the foundation fact for basic value analytics, policing operational control, and effective audit response.
Assignment - Foundation for Reconciliation
Asset assignment is the cornerstone that binds the other asset attributes in a directly useful context. After everything else is said and done, the primary goal of IT asset management is to ensure that the right assets are in the hands of the right people to create value for the organization, whether we're talking about the service management infrastructure or end user service consumption assets.
Integration: The Secret of Service Management ROI
Consider, for a potentially profitable moment, two questions about service management:
- Is it possible you're seeking too little ROI from your current (or prospective) service management investment?
- Do you know the critical attribute of service management solutions that achieve or surpass their design objectives?
Benchmarking Report 2009
This report provides an insight into the UK IT Support Industry by examining the core of any organisation - the Service Desk. The study covers a wide range of issues from technology and metrics through to training and salaries. It also examines best practice adoption and provides indicators for the increasing business alignment of the Service Desk.
ITSM Change Management: It's Easier Than You Think
If you manage mission-critical IT services, you’re probably acutely aware that controlling change in the infrastructure that delivers those services is among the most difficult challenges in technology management - and the most important. You know all about ITSM and ITILv3, but you may not know the most powerful tool for mastering the discipline of controlled change: service-oriented configuration management.
SDI LANDesk Top 10 Service Desk Priorities For the 21st Century
The Service Desk has truly come of age. IT KEEPS BUSINESSES RUNNING! With every organisation now being almost 100% dependent on the effective and efficient operation of its IT Services and with technology now also integral to so many customer product lines, the support operation for all this, and hence the Service Desk, has NEVER been more important.